[beckett]

It seems utterly impossible for any diplomat, whose job it is to be a master of foreign cultures, to be so completely ignorant of a central, formative narrative of a foreign country. It's stunning.

For the sake of argument let's suppose Hillary Clinton, a Methodist, can be forgiven for not knowing the major stories of the Catholic faith, a designation for which Our Lady of Guadalupe certainly qualifies. But even so, how is it possible that on an official visit to the most famous religious shrine in Mexico no one at the State Department thought to brief Clinton on the story of the shrine? It's unbelievable. Talk about amateur hour!

Oh yeah, the country's in very good hands.

[chuckles]

Your post is my thought exactly. A non Catholic isn't going to be familiar with Catholic dogma, customs and tradition. However, I can't believe that she would show up ANYWHERE and not be COMPLETELY briefed in EVERY detail of the upcoming meeting.

She needs the background, the main players, the history of conflict and the local color of each place she visits. Otherwise you get this type of silly mistake that takes away from what is trying to be achieved.

As an example, just imagine meeting the Russian counterpart and handing him a silly button with misspelled words on it. Oh,,,........excuse me, already done it.

This is more serious than looking stupid to a bunch of Catholics. This shows utter incompetence in a very sensitive Obama post. I predict it won't be the last mistake of this kind and I can only pray it doesn't end in a nuclear exchange from some perceived insult to a nuclear nation.