When a speaker starts name-calling, that’s a signal that the speaker’s argument is weak.

Sometimes the name-caller starts calling people something less than human. Recently I’ve heard powerful political figures using words like “animals” and “vermin” to describe humans they don’t like.

One prominent American complains that immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country.” Whether he intends to echo Hitler’s racist rhetoric or not, every interpretation of this phrase shows it to be racist and dehumanizing in its own right.

When a speaker says some people are worth less than others, whether directly or by implication, that tells me that they either want to do something evil themselves, or they want their listeners to participate in something evil.

God works through all kinds of humans. This season, Christians honor a Middle Eastern refugee child as their Savior. Foreigners, immigrants, and other “outsiders” are depicted prominently and positively in Jewish and Christian histories.

If God hasn’t stopped caring about all kinds of people, worldwide, how can we?

DAVE CUNDIFF

Ilwaco