CLICK HERE to share your thoughts or comment on our January 30th Luncheon Event

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CLICK HERE to share your thoughts or comment on our January 30th Luncheon Event

1/31/2020

World Affairs Council of the Desert added a special luncheon event January 30th at Ironwood Country Club in Palm Desert. Speaker Lt Colonel Rick Francona discussed, “Czars, Sultans and Mullahs: Syria and the Aftermath of the Arab Spring.” Lt.Col Francona retired after 27 years as a USAF intelligence officer primarily in the Middle East. He is an author and commentator having served multiple tours of duty with the NSA and CIA and is featured on NBC, CNBC and CNN as a military analyst. Recruited in 2002 for the Pentagon Military Analyst program as someone influential to help sell a wary public on a possible Iraq invasion. An engaging speaker who taught us to distinguish Sunni from Shia. WACD President Jim McFarlin, himself a former Air Force officer, welcomed the sold-out crowd.
Nancy DeLuna

8 Comments

ROBERTA BARRON

2/3/2020 04:13:14 pm

The special luncheon event was an excellent decision!

Colonel Francona spoke of his experiences
in the Middle East and forecasted future scenarios.
He's smart, personable and held the
attention of the audience.
The setting at Ironwood was beautiful and the buffet lunch
was scrumptious.
I hope that another such event will be planned.

Iris Anderson

2/3/2020 04:52:06 pm

Franconia dynamic speaker with pertinent information. PLEASE HAVE MONTHLY LUNCHEONS. Many of us prefer day time lunch/speaker rather than late night dinner. You can require membership to pay for increased costs, work for WAC board and Linda.

Mitch Blumberg

2/3/2020 05:14:58 pm

Loved the luncheon. Very good speaker (as usual!). Great venue at Ironwood, terrific simple food buffet, good turnout of members. Recommend more!

Ambassador (Ret) Thomas Riley

2/3/2020 06:28:15 pm

Colonel Francona has incredible experience and is obviously a pro at this kind of presentation. Informal, but informative and entertaining. I like the idea of the luncheon meetings, buffet and open seating. Really hope there are more like this. Thanks to all involved in putting it together.

Hemlata Lepkowski

2/3/2020 07:00:09 pm

Enjoyed the event. Informative talk , good venue and delicious lunch. Look forward to more luncheon events.

Jean Carrus

2/4/2020 11:27:30 am

Venue was very convenient
Speaker was up close and personal and everyone liked that, including me. In my opinion, it was a very successful event.
I saw some members at this "day" event that I have not seen at our "evening" events.

Dory O'Toole

3/9/2020 09:58:04 am

I have been underwhelmed by all the speakers this season. Last night was especially disappointing. I am considering not renewing my membership due to this years speaker line-up. I do not want to be negative or critical but felt I should share a member reaction. So, as not to be rude I did not walk out last night but it was difficult to sit through a talk that I felt was not organized or cogent. I had a hard time following what his point was. There was too much personal info
And not enough substance for my liking when I come to hear an expert talk on a subject.

Richard Jennings

3/9/2020 11:23:08 am

The Navy Admiral was personable and a good, understandable speaker. However, I would classify most of his message as BS.
Uttered platitudes, but then failed to make his points, if any. I had hoped to be updated on the military situation in the Pacific, but that was not done. His responses to questions were narcissistic, rather than pertinent. Richard

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