Ad Hoc Committee
Ad Hoc Committee
Most Distinguished Delegates of the Ad Hoc Committee:
It is my great honor to welcome you to the 2011 Harvard National Model United Nations Conference, and to the Ad Hoc Committee. My name is John Sigmier, and it will be my privilege to serve as your committee director as you confront the nameless challenges that demand the expertise and acumen of a serious and enthusiastic meeting of minds. I hail from beautiful Cleveland, Ohio, on the shores of Lake Erie, and am a rising junior living in Kirkland House. I am pursuing a Joint Concentration in The Classics and Archaeology; my interests, as you may have guessed, lie in ancient history. In the little spare time I have when I am not poring over volumes of forgotten lore or working for our International Relations Council, I am an archivist at the Harvard Semitic Museum, where I catalog photographs from the archaeological dig I participated in this past summer in Israel. Next summer, in addition to penning the study guide which you will hopefully use for your preliminary research, I will be participating in a dig in Kenchreai, one of the port suburbs of Roman Corinth, as well as taking regular courses in Greece.
I am enthusiastically looking forward to directing the Ad Hoc Committee this February; it will be a fun committee to chair, and I am confident that it will be a fun committee to serve on as well. My fellow staff members and I are preparing a string of crises designed to keep you on your toes, and we hope that our committee dynamic will be unlike any achieved before in model United Nations—grandiose ambitions, perhaps, but we dream big.
I am looking forward to meeting and working with you this upcoming February. Before then, I will be busy preparing for a great committee, and, though our topics will remain a mystery for the time being, I encourage you to consider carefully the preparatory materials that you will be receiving as conference nears. Our staff will do its best to construct a realistic and coherent simulation, but it is your individual dynamism that will make the experience worthwhile. If you have any questions, or even if you just want to introduce yourself before conference, please feel free to contact me. Until then, get excited!
Sincerely,
John Sigmier
Director, Ad Hoc Committee
Harvard National Model United Nations 2011
Confidential Communication:
The Lion is in the Cage. Repeat: The Lion is in the Cage. Over.
Great events are afoot in the world. Power is shifting once again. Yet amid tragedy, we are on the verge of arriving at a diplomatic triumph. All the pieces are in place, and the world looks on with anticipation as the crucial hour draws near. It is literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and the actors are ready—they understand the gravity of the event, and they have come prepared.
Confidential communication: The Doves have landed. Repeat: The Doves have landed. Over.
Behind all the glitter and glory there is work to be done. Behind smiling faces are minds set with grim determination. Behind locked doors hasty conversations build towards an inevitable, ultimate denouement. The rooms are being prepared, and the mood is watchful; it is the calm before the rising storm.
Confidential communication: The Castle is secure. Repeat: The Castle is secure. Over.
Science is having its moment in the sun. Years of work and study have at last come to fruition. Something revolutionary is happening; we recognize it; we are excited. We are proud. Fifty years ago, who could have imagined that we would do what we are on the verge of accomplishing? It would have been incomprehensible. And yet here we are, surveying our plan in all its magnificence, ready to commence.
Confidential communication: The Device is Green. Repeat: The Device is Green. Over.
Glasses are being raised in toasts. To kings, queens, and potentates of all kinds. To peace. To science. The anticipation beneath the bright lights is palpable. In this great room, civilization is shining.
Confidential communication: Something has occurred. We have a situation that requires your urgent attention. Repeat: We have a situation that requires immediate attention. We will follow with more information as we receive it. Over.
