Tami's Blog
<< On Tact, Lack of Tact, and Impoliteness >>

By Tami Lancut Leibovitz

Today I heard that the President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, explained that his remark to President Obama about Binyamin Netanyahu being a liar – which became an international scandal – was due to France’s lack of involvement in the release of Gilad Shalit.

Sarkozy – who made this remark a month ago, and who most definitely did not intend for the comment to be heard publicly around the world – eventually apologized to Netanyahu. Holding such an esteemed political position, he had no other choice – there was no way he could have ignored the remark, and attempted to move on without addressing it properly. Sarkozy may have meant it when he called Netanyahu a liar, but he most certainly did not mean for the slander to be heard by anyone other than the President of the United States.

Nevertheless, we needn’t look very far to find an example of a similar scandal – just this week, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Chief of Staff Benny Gantz were heard exchanging sexist jokes at a military event. Some found these jokes sexist, others viewed them simply as a vulgar attempt at humor, and yet others considered them a legitimate criticism on the current religious-based exclusion of women in the army. Either way, that’s beside the point.

What we saw was a failed attempt at exchanging banter that was completely out of line. True, there may have been some true to the joke – who of you doesn’t partake in cynical remarks every so often? But men and women who hold such positions of public office are held to a higher standard, and they must take that into account when taking part in casual conversations – whether the cameras are on, the microphone is active, or if they’re “off the record”.

There are positions – especially in public office – where you are on duty 24 hours a day. In these cases, there is a very thin line that separates private from private affairs.

True, we are all human beings and are thus moved to actions by emotions – but these figures in power must remember that part of their job is to muster restraint, control, and of course civility.

Apologizing is just an attempted cover-up, but what’s been said cannot be unsaid. There will always be those who will take your words and display them out of context, but it’s extremely difficult to explain away these acts of slander – and it would be wise to choose your words carefully in the first place.

© Tami Lancut Leibovitz