Since Russia was politically sympathetic toward the North, the sailors were cordially welcomed there.
Even leaders in Guinea's military junta, international pariahs since a massacre of unarmed demonstrators on Sept. 28, were cordially received in Paris less than two weeks before the killings, at a time when American officials were shunning all contact.
In Plains, the peanut farm town where Mr. Carter grew up and started his political career, Main Street was shut down today for a ceremony and the residents -- all 637 -- were cordially invited.
But we were cordially allowed to walk through the restaurant before dinner, and we noted the quietly splashing fountain in the entry, the pool in the courtyard and the fresh rose petals scattered on the tablecloths, muttering to ourselves about "next time".
We soon walked up to the office ourselves and were cordially invited into his studio.
He said at another recent discussion at the Kennan Institute in Washington, that foreign journalists were cordially ignored by Putin and his crowd.
