Quote of the day/week/however long


"Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does."
~William James

Monday, June 22, 2020

Closed But Not Forgotten/Forgetting

As brought to our attention by Madam's sister in arms, Domani Spero @ Diplopundit, and published in Stars and Stripes:

"KABUL, Afghanistan — The U.S. State Department says COVID-19 infections have been reported at its embassy in the Afghan capital and the staff who are affected include diplomats, contractors and locally employed staff.

"The State Department did not say how many were affected. An official at the embassy in Kabul, who could not be identified because of not being authorized to talk to the media, said as many as 20 people were infected, the majority of whom are Nepalese Gurkhas, who provide embassy security.

"'The embassy is implementing all appropriate measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,' the U.S. State department said.

"The infected staff are in isolation in the embassy while the remainder on the compound are being tested, said the embassy official, who also said the embassy staff have been told they can expect tighter isolation orders."

Even so, Embassy Kabul has kept a steady flow of public notices on its website, including updates on outgoing commercial flights. Its Covid-19 page is up to date, detailed, accurate and as calming as such information can be.

A short distance away, Kabul's alphabetical sister post in Ghana is also keeping the local population as informed as possible with near-daily notices, as is Cairo and too many others to name, although not naming them feels unfair.

And then, of course, there is this kind of 'help' ...


Especially in parts of the world where rumors and 'fake news' abound, the least we can do is keep our local friends, fans and who cares who else as accurately informed as humanly possible. Investigating and shining light on local phishing and other scams is not only fun, but is also helpful and kind, and will be remembered long after the current crises are over. And we know how to do this without appearing to give legal advice - that was A-100 stuff.
The visa line won't be closed forever, and in the meantime, let's be the best that we can be, and make the best impression of sincerity and help for those who we can't otherwise serve.

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