Title quote taken from the movie Office Space.
Thousands of U.S. federal government employees, representing a very wide array of disciplines, are not just working but also living overseas at any given time. In over 175 countries there are U.S. citizens tasked with spreading peace and prosperity while preserving the American way of life. Many of the freedoms and benefits taken for granted by members of first-world societies are promoted abroad through United States diplomacy: the reduction of poverty, terrorism, hunger, disease, and corruption; the proliferation of economic growth, voting rights, agriculture, technology, and fair trade. This is by no means an exhaustive list, yet it is evident how daunting such goals can be to accomplish.
My specific career path is but a tiny sliver of the U.S. foreign affairs portfolio. In fact I have zero direct involvement in all but one of the above subsets. But I have indirect involvement in nearly every single aspect of foreign policy implementation by making sure it occurs safely in the interests of national security.
They say there’s no such thing as bad publicity. But publicity and reputation are not the same. While overseas, everyone from presidentially appointed ambassadors to a family on vacation are representatives of their home country whether they like it or not. Naturally, those of us getting paid to do so are held to a high standard. True, I’m not the one negotiating an international trade agreement at some sultan’s palace. But if I am dressed like that diplomat/politician/dignitary, talking with their same American accent, and wearing the same U.S. flag lapel pin as them, then for all intents and purposes I am part of their team and therefore an extension of their own reputation. Which is precisely why the very first block of our job-specific training is a multi-week general orientation to American diplomacy and life abroad.
The Dark Passport 