[dsc]

As bad as national governments are, imagine what a disaster a world government would be.

Perhaps the position of the Church was adopted prior to the advent of highly portable, easily smuggled biological agents.

When Napoleon attacked a country, he had to get his army together, and march to their border before he could even attack outlying areas, much less population centers.

There was time for thought and negotiation, and even if the other country waited until his army was on the march, they had time to respond.

That's not true when the threat is a devout Muslim with a suitcase full of anthrax-leprosy-mu, or whatever.

Does anyone really assert that we must wait until millions die in agony before we can assert our right of self defense, even when we can see old Achmed over there preparing the aerosol dispensers for his attack?

[RobbyS]

The Church seems to forget that such order that exists in the world depends ultimately on the United States States. Without its economic power, its military power the system falls apart and we shall again be faced with the anarchy that we saw in the 1930s. The United States began as a military coalition headed by the United States. The rejection of American leadership by the Soviet Union made that organization irrelevant for many years. Now if they buck that leadership, it will all fall apart.