Double standards - noun - any code or set of principles containing different provisions for one group of people than for another...
Hypocrisy - noun - the practice of professing standards, beliefs, etc, contrary to one's real character or actual behaviour
Double standards exist when two groups are held to differing standards due to an inherent difference between the groups. People often have different standards for men and women given the many differences between the groups. It is somewhat less acceptable to regard groups of different ethnic or religious cultures differently, but it happens. With the exception of a few fringe groups, the standards for humans and animals are wisely very different.
Hypocrisy on the other hand is when a person exhibits a standard for others and refuses to hold themselves to that same standard.
A double standard says "some for this one, but not for that one" and hypocrisy says "some for me, but none for thee". Got it? Of course there is always a situation where one simply has no guiding principles and improvises standards all willy-nilly.
Beyond that, some use an immutable guiding principle for their words and actions. See if you can spot which approach is being used in each story of today's Ruminations. Don't be afraid to call me out too.
Now, here's why this matters to us. Left unchecked, we have every reason to believe that Qadhafi would commit atrocities against his people. Many thousands could die. A humanitarian crisis would ensue. The entire region could be destabilized, endangering many of our allies and partners. The calls of the Libyan people for help would go unanswered. The democratic values that we stand for would be overrun. Moreover, the words of the international community would be rendered hollow.
And that's why the United States has worked with our allies and partners to shape a strong international response at he United Nations. Our focus has been clear: protecting innocent civilians within Libya and holding the Qadhafi regime accountable.
Our decisions have been driven by Qadhafi's refusal to respect the rights of his people and the potential for mass murder of innocent civilians.
In 2007, an interview with Senator Obama began with this lede,
Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama said Thursday the United States cannot use its military to solve humanitarian problems and that preventing a potential genocide in Iraq isn't a good enough reason to keep U.S. forces there.