According to a report in USA Today, some NATO troops in Afghanistan are under orders not to fight. German soldiers, for example, are apparently avoiding any contact with the Taliban. So it's no wonder that fanatical Muslim killers, who are allowed to live in Pakistan unmolested, are crossing the border into Afghanistan and causing trouble.
Now my question to Germany and NATO is this: If you're not going to fight the Taliban, who are you going to fight? The answer in many countries is: no one.
It was amusing to see U.N. Chief Kofi Annan say Iraq is worse now than it was under Saddam, this from a guy who ordered the U.N. out of Iraq at the first sign of a bombing.
Now the issue is really very simple. Muslim killers and dangerous countries like Iran well understand the West is weak. It will not confront evil. And so, the jihad marches on.
"Talking Points" has covered this territory before, but it's worth repeating: many in the world have no stomach to stop terrorism.
Wednesday, the Baker commission on Iraq will tell the world that Iran and Syria should be treated with diplomacy and that the USA should redeploy its troops in Iraq with an eye on getting out of there in a year or so.
Now I don't have any problem with talking, but as The Wall Street Journal editorializes, Iran's not likely to help us in any way. That country has repeatedly lied to the world, so anything they say can't be trusted.
And Syria is actively trying to overthrow the fragile democracy in Lebanon and continues to give terrorists safe harbor. So, good luck on the chat front.
This is very much the way the world was back in 1937. Hitler and Tojo both believed the West was weak and took advantage. Roosevelt and Churchill understood the growing danger, much like President Bush does today. But opposition to confronting the evil of the Third Reich and imperial Japan was strong, much like the far left is today.
America can't fight worldwide terrorism alone. And because the Iraq campaign has been so difficult, because we've made so many mistakes there, those who oppose confronting evil have grown in power.
Now I hate to say it, but I believe it: It's going to take another 9/11 to mobilize people against the jihad. And even then the far left will not join up.
Confrontation, however, is coming. There's no doubt. Iran and the jihadists smell blood. And they are on the march. The question is will anyone march against them beside the USA?
And that's the Memo.
Most Ridiculous Item of the Day
As you may know, I do a lot of complaining about the media here, maybe too much. But I do think you are not being served well right now by the press in general.
However, hundreds of newspapers do carry my weekly column. And I'd like to thank them by giving them some publicity. We have listed the papers on BillOReilly.com, and I hope you check them out.
And if your hometown paper is not listed, give the editor a call and ask why, why they don't carry "The No Spin Zone" column. Then e-mail me with the response, and I'll read some of them on the air. We'll see if they're ridiculous.
—You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" and "Most Ridiculous Item" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the FOX News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com
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