The language of the New York Times: Fair but...

This is classic: "a general sense of fair-mindedness (except perhaps toward the Arabs)". So the authors were fair in writing about Israel except in what they wrote about the Arabs. And notice that their unfairness toward Arabs in a book on Israel and its founding is a parenthetical matter for the reviewer. This is so funny. This is like saying: they were rather non-racist, except in their attitude to blacks. Or like saying that someone is non-sexist, except in his attitude toward women. Or that someone is not homophobic, except in his attitude to homosexuals. But the authors were interviewed on C-Span and they were clear that they were avowed Zionists.