A Tangled Web

A Saturday Essay – in Remembrance.



MORAL EQUIVOCATION.



Let’s get one thing straight from the beginning. The sheer scale of Thursday’s terrorist atrocity in Madrid is understandably hard to take in for so many decent people. The very thought of all those Spanish families bereaved of their loved ones – husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters - so callously, so suddenly, is one that properly requires time for solemn reflection. I spoke with a Spanish colleague on Friday whose family all lived in Madrid. Her main emotion was shock then relief that as far as she knew, her family were safe. She was not sure about her friends. The human tragedy is very real and it is at these moments that the indomitable human spirit is tested severely. Our prayers are with those affected by the carnage in Madrid.



Yesterday, in the Friday Essay, I tried to explain that I view the perpetrators of this vile act, whoever they are, as the very personification of evil. I went on to suggest that all democratic nations have a legal and moral duty to use all available resources to bring the killers to justice. Or justice to them. Yet ongoing media coverage combined with a number of postings on both this and other web sites on this topic raise a number of disturbing points. It is these which I now seek to address.



Flashback: 9/11. As the rubble of the Twin Towers still burned, the liberal media were quick to question the claim by the US Government that this had been the work of Al Qu’eda. Where was the evidence, the talking heads mused? Even when the evidence became clear, the line of enquiry being followed was that the US had brought such an awful day upon itself by its foreign policy. In other words, the US had it coming and even if Bin Laden was guilty, then the correct response was to try and “understand” what drove men to hi-jack aircraft and then pilot them at 500mph directly into Offices containing thousand of defenceless workers in New York. Ring any bells?



Fast Forward: 3 March 2004. As the bodies were still being pulled clear from the shattered carriages in Madrid, the liberal media were quick to question the assertion by the Spanish Government that this was the work of ETA. Where was the evidence, the talking heads muse? Even when the Spanish security services emphasised their belief that it was ETA, the line of enquiry being followed is that Spain has brought such an awful day upon itself by its foolish support of the USA. In other words, Spain had it coming. Even if Al Qu’eda is proven to be guilty, then the correct response is to try and “understand” what drove men to plant bombs on crowded railway carriages and then detonate them via mobile phones.



In a few years, the liberal media has moved from a refusal to accept Al Qu’eda involvement in terrorist attacks to a refusal not to accept Al Qu’eda involvement in terrorists’ attacks. Funny old world, as they say.



But digging a bit deeper, other prejudices bubble to the surface. When Jose Maria Aznar calls for the animals (which apologies to animals) responsible to be tracked down and brought to justice, a HOWL goes up from the liberal hordes. Apparently, this will only make matters worst! Isn’t it better if we try to “jaw-jaw” with the planners of these awful events? Wouldn’t it be best to compromise with terrorists in order to secure a just and lasting peace? This takes us to the heart of this essay – moral equivocation.



In essence, this distils to four central elements.



First, equivocators don’t know what a terrorist is. “One man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist” is their cri de Coeur. Rubbish. Those who set out to use terror and violence in pursuance of their own illegal organisations are terrorists. Black and white, guys.



Second, equivocators offer conditional defence of acts of terror. Thus, the IRA was wrong to murder thousands of innocent people BUT they were striving to achieve freedom for the Irish people. It’s a familiar moan that deserves to be treated with familiar contempt.



Third, equivocators believe that dialogue and understanding offer the best solution to eradicating terrorism. They appear to think that one can reason with men who slaughter at random.



Fourth, equivocators know that when all else fails, blame the victims of terrorism. The US had it coming at 9/11 – the Spanish had it coming on 11/3. And as for those supremicist unionists...



Finally, lost in a maze without a moral compass, equivocators are the terrorists best friend.



In a fallen world, one can understand why there are so many moral equivocators. They constitute a fools chorus, bringing joy to the ears of the murderers.



We must not only remember the dead in Madrid, we must remember why they died.



Spain is a civilised nation, standing firm against all forms of terrorism. Today we should all be Spanish.



In remembrance.