Very Fine People at the State Department
You just need to read this. A quick, unpleasant, taste:
And he repeatedly argues against using the word “xenophobia,” or the fear of foreigners, writing in side notes that he has concerns over “the malleability of the term now and in the future.”
“[W]hat real or perceived offense is next to be considered ‘xenophobic?'” he writes. “How does that square with our historic respect for the right of free expression? The drafters need to focus on behavior and actions – which states can control – rather than attitudes and states of mind.”
The internal administration documents show suggested edits Veprek apparently made, marked by his electronic State Department identifier on notes in the margins, according to a source familiar with the documents.
I mean, I guess the upside is that we’ll avoid such embarrassing displays of hypocrisy as when the State Department’s human-trafficking report condemned separating children from parents.
But honestly, I think everyone is better off if we reduce the hypocrisy by addressing the speech and behavior that creates it.