A ruggedly handsome, elegantly dressed man sits at his table in an expensive San Francisco hotel restaurant casually opening his morning mail. Slitting open a plain envelope, his own business card falls onto the table. Picking it up he reads, “Have Gun—Will Travel!  Wire Paladin, San Francisco.”

Such was the regular opening of a 1957 popular television show set in the late 1800s that ran for six years, always in the top five. Accompanying his card was always a letter from someone in the Wild West who needed help from Paladin, a hired gun or medieval champion. The letter always convinced him to leave his comfortable hotel suite, dressed in black—wearing his famous gun, board a train, and travel to the troubled area to right some wrong.

Sensible people desire that every person on earth live in freedom; however, Bush has no constitutional authority to pursue that lofty goal.

President Bush thinks of himself as a modern Paladin: Have Gun—Will Travel! Contact Bush, Washington, D.C. The President has announced his desire to bring democracy and freedom to all parts of the world. Sensible people desire that every person on earth live in freedom; however, Bush has no constitutional authority to pursue that lofty goal. Furthermore, how practical is it to force our form of government on people with no concept of freedom and its obligations?

As to Muslim nations, the concept of democracy is totally unacceptable since it conflicts with the Koran and the Hadith. Those two “holy” books are the basis of all Islamic governments thereby not permitting freedom of religion, freedom of press, equal rights for women, etc. Hasn’t someone explained to the President that it is impossible for a Koranic nation to be a democracy?

Mr. Bush must understand that he is President not Paladin. He is limited by the chains of the Constitution and would we want it otherwise? Even if Congress authorized his altruistic adventures, they would still be illegal! After all, who made the U.S. the policeman of the world? Are we required to right every wrong? Do we have enough manpower to accomplish that task? Do we have unlimited funds to finance such activities? Was Jefferson wrong when he warned of getting involved in entangling alliances?

Does our position as world leader permit or require us to invade any nation at will to right all the wrongs? If so, will that principle be advocated when China is the world leader? If not, what is the difference? Is it because capitalism is good while communism is bad? Who defines “good” and “bad”? And while we are righting the wrongs, why have we not righted the wrongs in Cuba only ninety miles from our coast? Don’t the Cubans have a right to freedom? At least they have experience with freedom and democracy.

If Bush is so concerned with spreading freedom and taking on tyranny then he could stop giving two billion dollars annually to Egypt that has been under “Emergency Rule” for 25 years! The Land of the Pharaohs is also a place where prisoners are routinely tortured and vocal pro-freedom leaders are often jailed. In fact, Coptic Christians are being persecuted as I write. Where is Paladin? Bush is not concerned about Egyptian freedom.

How about freedom in Saudi Arabia? Has Bush demanded that his oil buddies in the House of Saud travel the road to democracy? Has he demanded the right for me to start the Trinity Baptist Church in Mecca? Maybe I could rent the Kaaba since it is not used on Sundays! Or maybe Bush could at least demand the right of U.S. diplomats to have a worship service in our own embassy each Sunday! All right, how about demanding the right for Americans who keep the oil flowing to have a worship service with their own family members without being arrested by the Saudi religious police! No, you have not heard Bush push freedom that far. Wonder why not?

Our international Paladin has declared war on “evil” and “terror” when it is not only unconstitutional but ridiculous. How will we know when the war is won? When evil and terror no longer exist? That will not happen, at least not until God does it.

Our international Paladin has declared war on “evil” and “terror” when it is not only unconstitutional but ridiculous. How will we know when the war is won? When evil and terror no longer exist? That will not happen, at least not until God does it.

The television Paladin did not declare war on every bad guy in the West but only by request on specific ones, so he always knew whether he was successful. (He was always successful!) However, in the real world, Bush can enumerate the bad guys his troops have captured or blasted into “Paradise,” but there is an ever expanding horde of religious fanatics who are willing to face him at high noon on the “dusty streets of Laredo.”  Unlike the TV Paladin, Bush has no assurance he will win the shoot-out.

The President is fighting an enemy he does not understand nor is willing to understand. He glibly speaks of resisting “terror over there so we won’t have to fight them over here!” He does not realize that the battle could last a hundred years because the enemy is going to fight us no matter what we do until, as a nation, we capitulate to Muslim law. We will have to fight the enemy whatever our successes or failures in other nations. All Muslims know that they can never co-exist with non-Muslims except during a time of their weakness. When they reach the necessary strength, any temporary co-existence will cease. Would someone please tell President Bush that simple, shocking, and salient fact?

The President is not willing to say, “Our battle is with Koranic Muslims” who pursue martyrdom with gusto. Bush is like a wayward, warped Paladin who rides off helter-skelter to western towns looking for bad guys to shoot down. Paladin never ran out of bad guys to plug with his trusty .45 until the series ended. Someone should tell the President that this isn’t make-believe and the Muslim fanatics will continue to come and his pandering to Islam only enables them. 

We had better plan for a very, very long bloody conflict with Koranic Muslims even if  we declare victory and slip out of Iraq some night—before the 2008 elections. This global battle against evil and terror is one fight our hapless Paladin cannot win.

Tags: politicians