Humiliating rivals is a game played well that plays well in the Beltway, but given the general sophistication of US media production and technique, it’s rather surprising that the Barack Obama administration keeps scoring own goals by accusing others of doing what it does even better.

The US was never the democratic paragon it prides itself to be, but it has seen better days. Civil liberties, privacy and accountability were not always trampled on by a top-down security state enforcing the strictures of an unequal society, as is the case today. Why even former US president Richard Nixon, vilified for his Watergate operation of spying on domestic rivals, did not preside over so vast and Orwellian an information-collecting machine as Obama has at his fingertips.

It’s nothing short of audacious to pretend to be guarding cyber civility while giving the NSA foxes a blank check and the run of the information hen house.

In diplomatic terms, it’s a non-starter, if not a provocation. Criticizing China, like any country, has its place in international discourse. But bashing China repeatedly and pointlessly is underlined by a borderline kind of race baiting, because China is frequently cast as a nefarious and inscrutable rival. Stoking fear about the unknown intentions of a poorly understood rival is a Cold War manipulation tactic that the US seems incapable of shaking.

Holder’s ploy may be a play to a domestic audience, says Douglas Paal, of the Carnegie Institute. He adds that the Obama administration is trying to show it is not as “feckless” as it has every appearance of being.

Paal’s insight suggests that taking White House spin at face value is to be spun. What Holder may be saying is not really about spying; it’s not even about China, really. What it’s about is an inept administration pretending to be doing something while doing nothing. It’s pretending that the Obama team is better at strategy than photo-ops, which sadly doesn’t seem to be the case.

When you hear the pot calling the kettle black, it’s probably time to clean up the kitchen which is slippery from all the grease and slick spin.

Tongue-tied US government spokesmen struggle to explain why an alleged case of Chinese hacking is different from the US hacking other countries. The spin of the moment is to say that the US does not spy for economic benefit, though there is documented evidence to the contrary. Even if it were true, which it is not, the distinction is a spurious one. In fact, it would be reassuring if the US only spied for economic benefit, and got out of people’s bedrooms and private phone conversations. The NSA spies on everything under the sun, and that includes economic information.

Wonton information greed and unwanted intrusions cannot be exonerated merely by pleading a lack of obvious economic benefit. Countries are not always rational economically; during World War II the Axis powers plundered their neighbors and descended into utter economic ruin for no good reason but the twisted pursuit of power.

The author is a media researcher covering Asian politics.