MARINA DEL REY, CA--ARI staff philosopher Dr. Onkar Ghate asked the people in his office to come up with one question they'd like to ask Ted Turner, given Turner's statement yesterday equating Israeli self-defense with Palestinian terrorism. Herewith, a few of their questions:
        · Do you see any distinction between the initiation of force and self-defense?
        · If a cop shoots a homicidal maniac while he's killing kids on a bus, is the cop a murderer?
        · Did the U.S. Army and al Qaeda "terrorize each other" in Afghanistan; i.e., are they both terrorist organizations?
        · How do you define self-defense? How do you define terrorism? Are they morally equal?
      "These questions," said Dr. Ghate, "and others I've seen all over the internet suggest that the average person has a much better grasp of morality than Mr. Turner. This is borne out by another statement Turner issued today withdrawing yesterday's remarks. Note part of the wording of his withdrawal: 'I believe the Israeli government has used excessive force to defend itself, but that is not the same as intentionally targeting and killing civilians with suicide bombers.' Mr. Turner can't grasp the radical difference between initiating force and using it in self-defense.
      "Unfortunately, this view that Israel and those attacking it are moral equals has infected the West. Even our own government refuses to support our strongest ally in the war on terrorism, Israel."

ARI senior fellow Dr. Onkar Ghate is available for interviews on this topic.