Guyana U.S. ambassador toned down again

After this posting of John Melvin Jones to Guyana, there is no doubt in our minds that Barack Obama has the US Presidency wrapped up. Jones was officially appointed as Ambassador by President George Bush as of October 1.

Our US sources tell us that in most cases, if not all, the US would hold off appointments of Ambassadors weeks prior to an election, especially when a President is in his final term.

This makes sense since a new President will take over the country and may or may not decide to pull someone appointed by his predecessor. In this case, we doubt that Mr. Jones would be replaced by President Obama. Mr. Jones is not the first African-American Ambassador to serve Guyana. Roland Bullen was an extremely liked and appreciated guy. Generally, Afro-Americans do well in Guyana.

So Mr. Jones welcome to our complicated country and we wish you the best for the next few years. Please don't be daunted by the numerous complaints you will hear of marginalisation and racial discrimination. And please feel free to mingle in the city.

Mr Jones' background

Jones, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, up until recently, served as the Civilian Leader of a Provincial Reconstruction Team in Iraq. Prior to that, he served as a senior inspector in the Office of the Inspector General at the Department of State.

Earlier in his career, Jones served as a senior representative in the Office of Counterterrorism at the Department of State. He had also served as State Department Representative on the Foreign Terrorist Asset

Other assignments overseas have been as consul general in Honduras; Deputy Chief of Mission in Burkina Faso; Consul General in Brussels; Refugee Officer in Bangkok, and Consular Officer in Dominican Republic.

Raised in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, Jones attended Howard University in Washington DC for both undergraduate and law degrees. He gained an MBA from the Wharton School at Penn and practiced law in Philadelphia, then joined the Foreign Service in 1981.

Jones replaces Ambassador David M. Robinson in the post.