Apples to Oranges

Andrew Sullivan recently linked to a clever idea from some Israeli students. They are organizing a "rival flotilla" to deliver humanitarian aid to Turkish Kurds. Clearly the plight of the Turkish Kurds is at least as unjust as the Palentians' situation. This little bit of counter-spin points out the inherent hypocrisy of the Turkish government crtiticizing Israel. I have heard similar cries of "double standard" when Israel is criticized by its various less than democratic neighbors. But that begs that question, when did Turkey become the gold standard of justice? If the best thing you can say about your country's human rights record is "it's no worse than Turkey", maybe something is wrong.