Israel Matzav: Moral clarity?

Moral clarity?

Evelyn Gordon credits Tony Blair with 'moral clarity' for these comments he made in a weekend interview in Haaretz. Blair was asked why British public opinion is so anti-Israel.

“Look, there’s criticism everywhere,” Blair responded. “But that’s partly because people don’t understand how difficult this situation is when you come under attack, your civilians come under attack, and you’re a democratic government and you’re expected to respond.”

Evelyn calls this statement 'remarkable' (it is), because it seemingly equates Israel's situation with the situation of British troops in Afghanistan (for example).

Even by itself, that’s a remarkable statement: the problem, according to Blair, is not Israel’s actions; it’s that other Western countries, not facing the same daily assaults, refuse to recognize that if they did, they might respond similarly.

Even more remarkable, however, is the next sentence: “I mean, we face this [situation] continually. We face it now, actually, in places like Afghanistan.”

In short, Westerners should understand Israel because they’re in the same boat: their own armies are causing civilian casualties “in places like Afghanistan” for the exact same reasons.

As a result, Evelyn credits Tony Blair with 'moral clarity.'

Blair never explicitly mentions Israel as a front in this global battle, but his linkage of Israel’s situation with the one “we face … in places like Afghanistan” makes the implication clear. And the conclusion, while similarly inexplicit, is equally clear: were the West to acknowledge its enemy’s true nature, its view of Israel might change.

Since no current Western leader exhibits anything like Blair’s moral clarity, that’s unlikely to happen soon. But given the nature of the enemy, it almost certainly will happen someday. Hence, rather than capitulating to its enemies, Israel’s goal, like Britain’s in World War II, must be to hold fast until then.

I wish I could share Evelyn's optimism and her view of Blair as having moral clarity. But the truth be told, with George Bush circa 2002-2004 gone, Blair doesn't have a lot of competition right now on the 'moral clarity' front, and in fact his statement is nowhere near as morally clear as it could have been.

Had Blair really wanted to be fair, he could have noted the difference between British troops facing Taliban jihadis hundreds of miles from home, and Israeli civilians facing 'Palestinian' jihadis in our backyards every day.

Until Blair is clear enough to recognize that difference - which makes the lack of support Israel receives from Britain and other Western countries all the more remarkable - there is little hope that 'someday' World leaders will exhibit even the modicum of moral clarity exhibited by Tony Blair.

Israel Matzav: Moral clarity?