So how's that so-called "war on terror" thing going? Well, aside from the minor detail that Bush invaded a country that had no terrorists, no ties to Al Qaeda, and no involvement in the 9-11 attacks, it's going pretty well. In fact, the United States has given new momentum to the movement to reestablish the caliphate.

The caliphate, for the benefit of those of you who are too busy playing Grand Theft Auto to learn anything about the world in which you live, was the institution that governed the world's Muslims for 1400 years. It was broken up at the conclusion of World War I.

Think of the caliphate as a Vatican for followers of Islam.... But without the child molesters.

The reason for the revival of the concept, however, is quite simple: For most Muslims the question is not about freedom and democracy, but rather why the United States keeps invading only Muslim countries. And the fact that Bush used the word "crusade" to justify his attack on Afghanistan didn't help matters. For many Muslims, a "crusade" tends to conjure up images of King Richard slaughtering non-Christians. Yes, that was a l-o-n-g time ago, but we're still kind of bitter about it.

And what do I think of the caliphate idea? I'm in favor of it so long as it helps me get out of here and back into power.... But there better not be any damn Shiites involved in the stupid thing.