For most of this summer, "Pastor" Terry Jones has been pretty determined to go along with his plan to burn dozens of Qurans on September 11. But this morning, warnings that this move could endanger our troops have Jones hedging. Just a little.
"We have firmly made up our mind, but at the same time, we are definitely praying about it," Jones said.
"We are definitely weighing the situation. We are weighing the thing that we're about to do. What it possibly could cause. What is our actual message. What are we trying to get across."
In addition to the earlier warning from David Petraeus, the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan has also weighed in.
The U.S. Embassy in Kabul on Tuesday issued a statement saying the U.S. government "in no way condones such acts of disrespect against the religion of Islam, and is deeply concerned about deliberate attempts to offend members of religious or ethnic groups."
If I were in Gainesville, this would be carte blanche to help Jones make up his mind by picketing his church. I'm normally wary of taking such a step, but if there is ever a case for an exception, this is it.
The embassy's full statement gives even more reason for that church to be picketed--that this is happening in the middle of Ramadan. That makes it even more outrageous. Imagine the Taliban or the Iranian mullahs sponsoring a Bible-burning during Easter or Christmas.
That probably explains why things in Afghanistan are already getting heated.
One of Petraeus' deputies, Lt. Gen. William Caldwell, told CNN's "The Situation Room" that the event "has already stirred up a lot of discussion and concern" among Afghans.
"We very much feel that this can jeopardize the safety of our men and women that are serving over here in the country," said Caldwell, the head of NATO efforts to train Afghan security forces.
Caldwell said American troops "are over here to defend the rights of American citizens, and we're not debating the First Amendment rights that people have." But he added, "What I will tell you is that their very actions will in fact jeopardize the safety of the young men and women who are serving in uniform over here and also undermine the very mission that we're trying to accomplish."
In other words--Jones risks having our troops' blood on his hands. And if he does go through with this idiocy, we need to be prepared to remind him of it. Every day.