"Never discuss politics or religion." Right? If you want to avoid controversy, uncomfortable confrontation, or angry disagreement and argument, just don't even mention those two things. Of course.

But what if those two things have become inextricably intertwined, and the political choices we all must make – for our mutual safety and foreseeable futures as free peoples – boil down to a choice between two religions? Between two irreconcilable, terribly opposite worldviews and religious philosophies?

What do we do when it becomes starkly clear that at least 100 million people all over this planet believe, deeply and as a basic tenet of their devout religion, that all who disagree with them are infidels – and must either be converted, subjugated, or put to death. And that their "god" will handsomely reward any and all who die accomplishing this "conversion" of the world's population to their religion?

Do intelligent people just shrug these facts off, assuming "It'll all work out; those people don't really believe all that, and even if they do, they'll come to their senses in time"? Do we all just go about our business and pleasure, leaving the "working out" of these diabolically opposite worldviews to diplomats and politicians?

Do reasonable adults even subscribe to the growing notion that Israel is the basic cause of all the problems in the Middle East, and that we Americans should withdraw support for that troublesome, pugnacious little "thorn in our side" and let the Moslem extremists wipe it off the map – believing that all other nations can then breathe sighs of relief and enjoy a harmonious, peaceful world?

Ridiculous? Well, tell that to the National Union of Journalists in the UK, who just recently made a decision to completely boycott Israel, joining the rising tide of "thinkers" who see little Israel as the root cause, the boil that must be lanced to solve the world's major disagreements.

Encouragingly, many British journalists ridiculed the decision, and some even canceled membership in this trade union. A number of thoughtful columns and articles appeared, and one of the very best was in a popular newspaper, Daily Sport. I can't reprint it all here, though I wish I could, but the gist of it follows:

"So, you want to boycott Israel? Well, do it thoroughly and properly. Let me help you.

"Check all your medications. Make sure you don't have tablets, drops, lotions, etc. made by Abic or Teva. You'll suffer from colds and flu this winter, but hey, that's a small price to pay, isn't it?

"And completely write off the research and accomplishments of hundreds of Israeli companies that have: 

• Developed a simple blood test that helps treat multiple sclerosis.

• Produced a device that helps restore the use of paralyzed hands.

• Created human antibodies which can neutralize contagious smallpox virus.

• Made dramatic new methods to eliminate physical manifestations of Parkinson's disease.

• Developed a nose drop that will provide a five-year flu vaccine. 

• And, to be fair in your boycott, you must throw away your computer! Most of Windows operating systems were developed by Microsoft-Israel. And the Pentium NMX Chip technology was designed at Intel in Israel, as well as the Pentium 4 microprocessor and the Centrum processor, entirely in that little "boil" of a country!

• Oh, and toss your cellular phone in the trash. That whole technology was developed in Israel by Motorola, which has its biggest development center in Israel … which is one big reason Warren Buffett has invested billions in Israeli research and development. He apparently didn't recognize how unnecessary that irritating group of people is."

And of course, if the world gets rid of Israel, it won't need any of the spectacularly effective technology they've developed to combat world terrorism, originally to save their own existence, but which they've shared with the free world. After all, the 100 million radical Islamists who wish all of us dead will have been placated and satisfied. Right?

Of course not – but it'll be a good start. And it will certainly feed the religious blood lust to wipe out the rest of us. Remember, our Judeo-Christian belief system began with the Jews, and just eradicating Israel won't erase the nettlesome religion Islamo-terrorists despise. No, we'll be next.

And the whole thing seems so disappointing, since this tiny group of people gave the world literary giants like Boris Pasternak, Saul Bellow, Isaac Singer and many other Jewish Nobel Prize winners (not to mention biblical authors like Moses, King David, Solomon and the Apostle Paul); World Peace Nobelists like Henry Kissinger, Menachem Begin, Elie Wiesel and others; chemists and economists and fantastic medical researchers who have benefited the whole world; physicists and scientists like Albert Einstein and hosts of others. Indisputably, more contributors to world health and high standards of living, arts, entertainment, philosophy and science have come from these worrisome Jews than from any other group in history, proportionately or even in the aggregate!

Why do these minarets resemble kassam rockets?

Why all this unreasoned hatred, this ingrained rabid determination to destroy all things Judaic, regardless of all humanitarian consideration? It's because, at long last, politics and religion have become one!

Actually, all philosophical and political theory is religion based anyway, whether it's the product of humanistic, atheistic or theistic mindset; what motivates, dictates.

The crazed, irrational hatred of Israel is at least partly because of its historic contributions to the world. The thought of Israel's enemies is "Who made the Jews so special?" My answer is G-d did – that's who. Long ago, the G-d of Abraham promised, "I'll bless those who bless you, and I'll curse those who curse you. And in you all the nations of the world will be blessed." 

Abraham had two sons, only one by his wife Sarah, so G-d repeated the promises to Isaac. He made other promises to Ishmael, but He also foretold of everlasting enmity between the descendants of the two sons. Now that enmity has taken on global proportions, and no diplomacy or political maneuvering or "friendly persuasion" is ever going to convince those who are committed to another idea of G-d that anyone who refuses to accept their religion is worthy to live!

There's no neutrality, no spiritual Switzerland here; the lines are drawn in the sand. This conflict, growing and festering and becoming more inflamed by the hour, is between two concepts of G-d: one "loving the world so much He gave His only Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life" … and the other decreeing that all who will not accept him and his domination must be put to death, now and forever.

It's time to choose, and every single human being must make a choice. I believe we'd better get at it … on our knees. 

Copyright © 2007 by Pat Boone. 

Pat Boone, descendent of the legendary pioneer Daniel Boone, has been a top-selling recording artist, the star of his own hit TV series, a movie star, a Broadway headliner, and a best-selling author in a career that has spanned half a century. During the classic rock & roll era of the 1950s, he sold more records than any artist except Elvis Presley. This article first appeared in WorldNetDaily.

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