Ron Paul Losing Me, Again

I was just beginning to soften up to Ron Paul. I'd even gone so far as telling interviewers I could enthusiastically support him if he got the nomination, despite the fact that he has no understanding of the single greatest long-term and short-term national security threat to the U.S. posed by radical Islam.

Even his inane answers in the most recent debate about how Iran poses no threat to the U.S., Israel or its neighbors in the Middle East didn't upset me too much. I just chalked it up to his isolationist extremism — something I could overlook because of his boldness in wanting to cut $1 trillion out of the federal government's budget, immediately.

Then came his incredibly insulting, demeaning, malicious, defamatory and wholly untrue statement on "The Tonight Show" about Michele Bachmann — the very best candidate seeking the Republican presidential nomination.

"She doesn't like Muslims," he said. "She hates Muslims." If it were an attempt at humor, it failed miserably. It was certainly un-presidential and unbecoming for a Republican presidential candidate, especially one who has any thought of supporting a nominee other than himself.

Michele Bachmann doesn't hate Muslims any more than I do. She is, like me, a born-again believer in Jesus as the Messiah, the Redeemer, our Lord and our King.

Jesus taught His followers to pray even for their enemies, so when you call a Christian a "hater" you are characterizing him or her as someone who betrays one of the very principles of the faith. In other words, he or she is a phony, a fake Christian. It's about the meanest, nastiest thing you could ever say about someone who loves, reveres and worships Jesus.

It's also just simply a stupid and naive statement for Paul to make. Bachmann has a realistic view of Islam. It is an ideology that conquered much of the known world and held it for 700 years, enslaving millions, killing millions, imposing its will on subjects by the sword, relegating women, Jews and Christians to something significantly less than second-class citizens.

That's just a historical reality. And it's historical reality that Islam is on the march, again. It ceased being a threat to the world for less than 100 years of its history. Islam's militancy and expansionism literally defined the world's history since the 7th century.

The first war America fought was against the Barbary pirates, who were nothing more than Islamic terrorists who attacked American ships and crews. The wars we are fighting today are being fought because of the worst-ever attack on America by Islamic terrorists.

Neither Michele Bachmann nor I even hate the worst of those Muslim terrorists who attack us today. I feel safe in speaking for my friend Michele Bachmann on this point because I know her heart. What we hate is the evil ideology that tragically captures the minds and spirits of too many Muslims and turns them into killing machines who seek to destroy the United States of America and everything for which it stands.

But we still pray for our enemies — pray their eyes are opened to the truth.

We also hate the fact that too many Americans, such as Ron Paul, cannot see the danger we face. But the inability or unwillingness to see the threat is one thing. The demonization of those who do is something much worse.

But we don't hate Ron Paul, either. And we don't lie about him or put his life in danger with vicious slander. We do, however, pray his eyes and those of his acolytes are also opened to the truth — before it's too late.

To find out more about Joseph Farah and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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