James at his best:

War for the Shire

A politically conservative friend related to me awhile back an apologetic for the current "war on terrorism" that went something like this: Everyone seems to want a world like the Hobbit's shire, but often the same people fail to see the need for the defense of that shire against the evil of places like Mordor. The argument being, obviously, that sometimes you do have to fight for peace. Okay.

Oh how I wish the world were that simple. That evil should be so easy to geographically identify... point to the map and say with absolute certainty that "there is the evil empire" and that all the orcs (people) there need to be wiped out. But, where is evil?

Is it found in what some term "radical Islam?" Is it found in what some term modern American imperialism? Perhaps it is found in globalization? Or can we see it in the "one world government" soon to be ruled by the anit-christ? Maybe, it is in Rome? Or Moscow? Or Washington DC? North Korea? Iraq? (Whistling) Here evil... come here boy... come on!

Ahhh... there you are... right where you've always been: in my heart.

(sigh of contentment)
Now, I can march to war for the Shire.