The loose cannon that is Pat Robertson

Just when I was thinking that I haven't tackled politics in a while, Pat Robertson opens his mouth.

Sheesh. Someone should take Pat's microphone away. This is just the sort of thing that gets people mumbling about US imperialism and gets the fundamentalists on the other side ranting about taking out somebody - like say, George W.

Just imagine the outrage if an imam said that the democratically elected leader of a country should be assassinated because he's being troublesome. Oh, wait. I think sort of thing has been said by some imams, and has been reported with rightous indignation by the western press. You can fill in the rightous indignation, right? Blood-thirsty, radical, horrific, undemocratic, violent, yadayada....

But this story is being reported with an amazing lack of editorial comment. Perhaps that's coming later? Perhaps the press just doesn't know quite what to say yet?

But it's important to say something. One thing that was clear from reading Imperial Hubris is that folks in the Middle East take seriously statements made by Western religious leaders. We may dismiss it as the ramblings of an old geezer going ga-ga but from their viewpoint, these are words of wisdom issued by a leader in our culture. And let's remember that he isn't just a nobody; he was a presidential candidate and that gives him additional weight abroad. They assume that his statements either reflect current public opinion or are intended to form public opinion. Either way, it's not pretty, so somebody had better muzzle old Pat soon.

And how the man can call himself a Christian, and how he can cast aspersions on Islam, calling it a violent religion, is beyond comprehension. The hypocricy is so overwhelming that it does kind of take one's breath away. Perhaps that's the reason for the editorial silence at the moment. I hope everyone gets their breath back soon & lambasts the idiot.

And I hope peace-loving Christians will quickly and publicly distance themselves from Pat Robertson.