Charles Krauthammer is the most intelligent of all commentators on television; he can say more in two sentences than you get in the rest of the program.

Finally he had a bellyful of President Obama's hate-America European tour. His O'liness descended, as you know, from the clouds into Europe and then proclaimed that America is just not respectful enough to Europe. Here's a partial transcription of Krauthammer's remarks:

Obama says, "In America there is a failing to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world."

Maybe that's because when there was a civil war on Europe's door step, in the Balkans, and genocide, it didn't lift a finger until America led.

Maybe it's because when there was an invasion of Kuwait, it didn't lift a finger until America led.

Maybe it's because with America spending over half a trillion a year keeping open the sea lanes and defending the world, Europe is spending pennies on defense.

It's hard to appreciate an entity's leading role in the world when it's been sucking on your tit for 60 years as Europe has, regarding the United states, as Europe has, parasitically.

Go, Charles.

Mark Steyn, not insofar as I know a television personality, is the only other commentator who can hold a candle to Krauthammer, and to the bracing astringency he adds the virtue of being a true wit. He maintains the Europe is culturally exhausted, too weak to defend its own institutions, its liberal, in the good sense of the word, traditions from the Muslims.

As I watch Europeans, save some Brits, sneer at Americans for being "cowboys" (like there's something wrong with that?) and unsophisticated. I recall that if not for us they'd be under one sort of totalitarian rule or another. It was our largesse in defending them, and continuing to do so, that let them develop their nanny states, and didn't require them to grow up, acting like any trust-fund brat. The care and feeding of their aging populations is based, like all welfare states, on a Ponzi scheme. Meaning that to continue to feed the greedy geezers (and the AARP thinks I qualify) they will have no choice but to admit hordes of Muslims who will, they think, make contributions to the socialist pot to feed them.

I recall what the Muslims did to the Buddhist statues in Afghanistan. I only hope that the rump of the Western Italian government can smuggle out Michelangelo's David before the Muslims take a hammer and chisel to it. As for Leonardo's The Last Supper, since it is a fragile fresco, all hope is lost.

I saw Ton Koopman, a fine Baroque musician, play in and conduct a Bach cantata, the one yielding "Jesu," in a Gothic cathredal in Amsterdam. To my mind this is the height of cultural attainment--the cadences of Bach, the practiced musicians, the engineering and construction of a cathedral made purely by human muscle. And then I think of the wailing of a muezzin.

Since I'm rambling in an anti-European mode, I'll ramble some more:

An American tourist in London decides to skip his tour group and explore the city on his own. He wanders around, seeing the sights, occasionally stopping at a quaint pub to soak up the local culture, chat with the locals, and have a pint of stout. After a while, he finds himself in a very nice neighborhood with big, stately residences...no pubs, no stores, no restaurants, and worst of all NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS. He really, really has to go, after all those Guinnesses. He finds a narrow side street, with high walls surrounding the adjacent buildings and decides to use the wall to solve his problem. As he is unzipping, he is tapped on the shoulder by a London police officer, who says, "I say, sir, you simply cannot do that here, you know."

"I'm very sorry, officer," replies the American, "but I really have to go, and I just can't find a public restroom."

"Ah, yes," said the policeman..."Just follow me". He leads the American to a back delivery alley to a gate, which he opens. "In there," points the policeman. "Go ahead sir, anywhere you like."

The fellow enters and finds himself in the most beautiful garden he has ever seen. Manicured grass lawns, statuary, fountains, sculptured hedges, and huge beds of gorgeous flowers, all in perfect bloom. Since he has the policeman's blessing, he relieves himself and feels much more comfortable.

As he goes back through the gate, he says to the police officer, "That was really decent of you... is that what you call English hospitality?"

"No sir," replied the police officer, "that is what we call the French Embassy."