Durban: Dead
Well, they had to get one right. I mean, just by odds alone:
Looks like Obama has come to his senses regarding the hatefest that will be Durban II. The U.S. is pulling out.
The Obama administration has decided to boycott the so-called Durban II conference out of concerns for anti-Semitism.
Multiple sources on a conference call with the White House on Friday told JTA that the Obama administration had opted not to attend any further preparatory meetings ahead of the planned U.N. conference against racism in Geneva in April.
“We’re not going to further engage in Durban II,” a senior State Department official told AFP on the condition of anonymity.
…
A second U.S. official said on the condition of anonymity that the government tried to find a way to participate. “We made an honest effort,” the official said.
…
The second U.S. official said the United States had been interested in a document that was shorter than the one eight years ago and would not single out a particular country.
“We would be prepared to consider a document that contains an affirmative approach to race and laid out a positive vision for tackling the challenges,” the official said.
“It would not reaffirm the elements of the 2001 Durban Declaration and Program of Action, would not contain specific references to any one country or a single conflict,” according to the official.
The document “would not reference to the problematic concept of defamation of religion, and would not go further than the DDPA on the issue of reparations for slavery,” the official added.
But the official said the Obama administration sent a team to the preparatory talks only to find out that the draft document was made even worse after some changes.
The official did not say what the changes were.
I could say something about blind squirrels finding nuts, but let me just thank them, even if for the only moral decision. Maybe they’ve learned something. (God, ain’t I Little Miss Sunshine today?)