A close friend of many years, an Episcopal Priest, and I were sharing our thoughts about the recent remarks by the pope that have caused such an uproar among Muslims throughout the world. And though as I shared with my good friend there is no love lost on my part for the pope, he sure stirred a hornet’s nest pointing to the viciousness and violence of Islam as a religion of the sword encouraged and approved in the Koran by the twisted and perverted Mohammad, and affirmed by the most heinous, barbaric and cruel atrocities that continue to be committed by Muslims not only against “infidels” but against each other.

And while the Muslim leadership in America refused to denounce The Attack on America by Muslims loudly and in no uncertain terms, they are up in arms, in many cases quite literally, in concert over the pope’s comments. So it is reasonable to question whether there is in fact any such thing as a “moderate” Muslim despite the protestations of spinmeisters in defense of the religion.

True enough as dear old Dr. J. Vernon MaGee pointed out Christians are often at odds, but in the case of Muslims despite how they say they love Allah they sure hate each other. And while Christianity has become a civilized religion for the greater part the same cannot legitimately be said of Islam.

But a few questions suggest themselves to me about the pope’s remarks, one being that he is far too experienced, intelligent and well educated not to know what the Muslim response would be, and any protestations on his part about not knowing Muslims would be offended has to be hollow at best if not in fact disingenuous. He must further realize any attempts to ameliorate the situation would be equally hollow and to no avail.

Another thought following these assumptions is whether the pope purposely intended to provoke such a response from Muslims worldwide? And if so, why? A guess on my part, albeit an educated one, is the pope realizes what Bush has initiated whether for the best or most immoral of motives and knows there can be no retreat now from the threat Islam poses to Western Civilization as a result of this door being opened exposing the barbaric intent of Muslims worldwide has purposely cast the gauntlet before Islam.

As the crocodile tears and hypocritical hand-wringing of the charlatans in Congress over “torture” goes on, one would do well to question where is the reality of warfare to be found? Certainly not among those in Congress that have only the keeping of their cushy jobs in view where they can continue to keep their snouts in the public tax trough. And throughout there is no clear voice denouncing our enemies, there is no clear distinction being made defining the enemy and our troops are being placed in an impossible position as a result of this refusal of our sorry excuse for “leadership” to clearly define and denounce, to properly demonize the enemy.

But in point of fact, the moment any attempt is made to clearly define and denounce the enemies of America here comes the ACLU to sue anyone attempting to do so and deal with them effectively. Because of the ACLU it is now the lawyers making the decisions as to how the military runs warfare. But an ACLU politically correct war is unwinnable and the morale among those in our military suffers accordingly.

I don’t question the good intentions of George Clooney trying to do what he can in Darfur and God bless him for trying. But where is the reality of knowing he is only spitting into the wind? In a part of the world that has never known anything but ignorance and poverty, where cruel and corrupt masters continue to murder countless thousands at their whim any help or money offered only winds up in the hands of these cruel and corrupt masters. And this is the way the UN itself operates.

Lincoln’s War, his attempt at national suicide resulting in a needless 600,000 casualties, was one of attrition. As he assessed it the North would win on the basis of the South running out of men to fight before the North did. It was a pragmatic, cold-blooded assessment of a reality where men are not human beings, but only in Thoreau’s words though peaceably inclined and against all common sense “Men at all? or small moveable forts and magazines, at the service of some unscrupulous man in power?”

However, now it isn’t just the men but women as well who are among those small moveable forts and magazines, at the service of some unscrupulous man in power. My eldest granddaughter is in the Navy so I have more than a passing interest in this.

In her column titled “Girls gone ridiculous” Kathleen Parker asks “If men are profiting from women demeaning themselves, are the women still in charge?” While Kathleen was not addressing the issue of women in the military the point is still applicable. When women debase themselves, when they pander to men whether by pornography or in the military they lose that civilizing influence which only women can bring to bear on the barbarism of men.

Henry was at a disadvantage in his writing because he never married or had children. So the emphasis on women and children being a civilizing influence on men is missing for his part. Still, his tract on Civil Disobedience rings true in many instances. But to fail in emphasizing the importance of women and children as a civilizing influence is to fail in the most essential thing of all to the argument against the evils of government and the wars men make.

So I ask myself, suppose Islam was not the woman despising thing it is, the religion relegating women to the status of subhuman chattel serving men, their role in “Paradise” to only continue as the servants of men? And what of popes and priests who do not marry and have children, but are egregiously guilty of continuing to consign women to an inferior role in the Roman Church and even in families? And what of Protestants who would take Paul literally in requiring wives to obey their husbands and keep silent in the churches?

It continues to speak to my heart and mind that were women and children given their proper priority and considered of equal value to men we would not now be facing the prospect of nuclear Armageddon because of the wars and hatreds of men. But Muslims and popes, men in general do not consider women and children to be of equal value and the resulting lack of wisdom cannot but foment the continued wars of men.