Paul Estrin took a brave stance in the face of evil and moral relativism. His comments drew such a firestorm among Green Party members that he was forced to resign.

At a time when many political leaders around the world are resorting to moral equivalence in the face of Islamic terrorism, Paul Estrin, president of the left-leaning Green Party of Canada, came out with strong statements against the designated terror group Hamas. He posted his personal statements on the official Green Party website.

His comments were in direct contrast to the “posture of engaged neutrality” that the party had adopted at its convention earlier in the month. Estrin, in fact, drew a clear moral line in the sand between Hamas and Israel.

According to Canadian daily The National Post, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May said it was important to clear up any confusion about Estrin’s essay: “It’s not our policy.”

At a convention earlier this month, the party called for an immediate cessation of “hostilities” between Israel and “Palestine” but said it would adopt a “posture of engaged neutrality” in favor of a diplomatic end to the long-standing conflict.

On his blog, Why Gaza Makes Me Sad, Estrin stated:

“We want to see the world as black and white, right and wrong. We want to support the underdog. Who doesn’t? But, terror is terror. Evil is evil.”

“On the other side of the coin, Israel is doing all it can with an untenable situation,” Estrin said. “The world media vilifies it, to the point that when those firing missiles into its borders and sending militias into its land need to see that they cannot do this, it is Israel, and not Gaza, that feels the world’s hate.”

He noted that Hamas is cynically using its own people as human shields in civilian areas; the Israeli army, on the other hand, does whatever it can to protect innocent lives. The IDF warns residents of Gaza to leave certain areas while the IDF pinpoints strikes aimed at targeting the terrorists.

Estrin calls on the Green movement not to support the Hamas-led government in Gaza, which, he says, “spends the money and resources needed for infrastructure, housing, hospitals, schools, and buys weapons, builds tools for terror.”

“Yes, their flag is green, but that is where the resemblance stops. Or at least, that is where it should stop,” he writes.

Estrin took a brave stance in the face of evil and moral relativism. His comments drew such a firestorm among Green Party members that he was forced to resign. This is a slap in the face to freedom and Western values. Would any sane person or party have taken a “posture of engaged neutrality” with the Nazis? The Hamas charter states its goal to kill all Jews and to annihilate the State of Israel. All decent and moral people should take a strong stance against a genocidal terror group – and they should be rewarded for it, not punished.

Article by Leslie-Ann Stoffel

Leslie-Ann Stoffel is a prolific Canadian pro-Israel blogger and social media activist. Her website is http://therealclearisrael.org/