Republicans May Be Evil, But We Are Certainly Brilliant

The Corner points to some yutz who writes that it is self-evidence that the Pope dissed Islam in order to help Republicans in the upcoming mid-term election:

Pope Provoked Muslim Rage To Help Bush and Republicans (Rob Kall, opednews.com)

Ratzinger is not stupid. Including the reference to the passage that has incited Muslim anger was no accident. It was a calculated, intentional strategy designed to help George Bush and the Republicans in the 2006 elections, just like the Catholic church systematically helped Bush and the Republicans in the 2004 elections, through Cardinals and Bishops who attacked Kerry....

To spell it out, it seems that the Pope intentionally drew an angry, violent, anti-Catholic, possibly anti-Christian response from Muslims on the street in the Arab world. This makes great TV -- burning the Pope or Christians in Effigy, threats to terror Bomb the Vatican and Catholic Churches. This is designed to raise the hackles of American Christians, to intensify the fear of Muslim terrorism, to boost the belief that there are 1.1 billion Muslims plotting against Americans.

There's no truth to these ideas, but there are millions of right wingers and some independents and dumbocrats who will go for this message hook, line and sinker.

Leave to one side the obvious point that Rob Kall's vicious anti-Catholicism will not cause Catholic riots across the world. Let's just note that the Pope's statement about violence and Islam is untrue; that the ensuing riots will cause people to vote Republican; although Democrats could better protect us if there were a threat; that Republicans are questioning Democrats' patriotism by suggesting that they are blind to the obvious threat; and that there is no threat but just fear ginned up by Republicans because voters desperate for protection will vote Republican. (It is the song that never ends, it just goes on and on my friends ....)