GOODY TWO SHOES: The Stiletto Gets Results (Sometimes)
James Taranto’s "Best of the Web Today" column on Wednesday, October 17th belatedly gets around to conceding that Turkey - which The Wall Street Journal keeps insisting is democratic, secular and pluralistic, despite all evidence to the contrary - has unconstitutional laws (their constitution) on the books that make it a criminal offense to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide. The Stiletto has taken him to task for omitting this fact when he protested a French law to extend criminal penalties for Holocaust denial to include Armenian Genocide denial as well (he approved of the former free speech restriction, but not the latter). The Stiletto is pleased his position on freedom of speech is evolving, and hopes he eventually sees the wisdom of condemning laws that criminalize Holocaust denial as well, since it is indefensible for a journalist to want to squelch anyone’s free speech rights.
Having said that, The Stiletto takes issue with the general thrust of his argument – the House is too ignorant about history to condemn the Armenian Genocide. The Representatives were knowledgeable enough to call upon the Government of Japan to formally accept historical responsibility for its Imperial Armed Force's coercion of young women into sexual slavery – and knowledgeable enough to pass a resolution condemning Iran’s persecution of the Baha’i. It begs credulity that the House’s ignorance about historical events is limited only to the Armenian Genocide.
Oh, and one more thing: The resolution is not "ultimately about nothing," Taranto. It is about acknowledging a monstrous crime against humanity that should not be forgotten or go unpunished - even with the slap on the wrist of a nonbinding, symbolic resolution; it’s about sending the Turks a message that Americans will not be an accessory to this crime by supporting genocide denial; and it’s about affirming the testament of every aged and infirm eyewitness survivor before he or she dies.
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