Very well done, Mel. Thank you for taking such time to research so much.
You're point? Night Elves have a tendency to be racists, they're elves. I see far too many people bashing characters who're racists over the stigmatism placed on it in politically correct areas of the world.
Sorry, but even I have to interject here.
Many people use Tyrande as an example to make the night elves appear that way. Yet not once were her comments racist. She did not use any slur towards humans, dwarves, gnomes or even the orcs when they first met. She kept referring to them as "outlanders" or "mortals" if anything. Using the word "outlander" as a disparaging term falls far more into the category of xenophobia, not racism. It shows an excessive fear and dislike of outsiders, and she had quite a good reason for it, considering she thought even the humans were responsible for the death of Cenarius.
We know better now, don't we?
With that being said,
of course people are going to bash racist night elves. Thure is as traditional as you can get. But why exactly should a night elf continue to have such severe distrust against a human even when they're there to fight back the invading Horde? Varian Wrynn personally fought in the battle of Warsong Gulch, offers wood from his own land of Elwynn to stop the Horde's resource campaign in Ashenvale, and in the Cataclysm issues a formal decree for ALL Alliance members to help Ashenvale.
http://cata.wowhead.com/quest=28492
By insulting the humans, dwarves, gnomes and draenei, you would be insulting people that some night elves call their dear friends, people they owe their lives to. If the night elves could be self-sufficient and kick ass on their own, I couldn't be happier. But the fact is, the Alliance is on Kalimdor to help. Not to colonize, not to invade, but to help. Something I can't say about the tauren that are loyal to the Horde (not the Cenarion Circle, mind you), yet I still see more love and respect towards them. A night elf that can't accept that is stuck in a time vacuum. As appealing and interesting as it might be to roleplay someone like that, they're lagging behind. Tyrande put it aside, Malfurion put it aside, why not YOU, my brother of the night?
I loved Fandral Staghelm. I still do. But if every night elf was like him, Teldrassil would be a smoking bonfire. Unless every racist night elf can make up for batallions of draenei vindicators, human soldiers, dwarven siege tanks, gnomish planes and worgen support, they really have no room to talk or be appreciated.
We don't have the luxury of being racist.