How Martin Luther King Would View Things Today...

How Martin Luther King would view things today: that is the subject of this evening's "Talking Points Memo".

The reverend would have been 76-years old. And the African-American community would be an entirely different place had he not been assassinated. That's because Dr. King had his roots firmly grounded in Christianity and non-violent confrontation.

He was also a man who understood injustice and did something about it. Now I admire Dr. King because he dedicated himself to righting wrongs, but did not hurt people in the process. He incorporated the tactics of Gandhi into the philosophy of Jesus. We're all brothers, don't hurt anyone in pursuing noble goals.

If Dr. King were alive today, I believe he would admire Bill Cosby's crusade to hold individual adults responsible for bad behavior and providing bad examples for children. King would deplore gangsta rap music, the drug and intoxication world, gangs, unfettered welfare, bad schools, disrespect for authority, and the denigration of the English language.

Dr. King would be appalled by the secular culture, the attacks on Christmas, the demonizing of Christianity. By the way, where's the ACLU (search) and other pinheads when Martin Luther King's picture is displayed on public property? He openly advocated the philosophy of Jesus and proudly declared himself a Christian. What say you, ACLU? Dr. King yes, the creche no? Think about it...

The question is why has a leader like Dr. King not emerged since his death? Jesse Jackson (search) wanted the mantle, but his turned into a quest for money and an obsession with liberal politics.

No one else commands the respect that Martin Luther King did, even after 37 years. King could have easily embraced violence. His own house was bombed. He was stabbed in the chest here in New York City. But the man turned the other cheek time and time again.

It is far easier, as everybody knows, to answer violence with violence than to practice the self-control Dr. King did. He truly walked the walk.

Americans should recognize true heroes when they see them. And most of us do. You don't have to agree with everything Dr. King espoused, but his overall demeanor and philosophy puts him in the hero category. Today, the USA badly needs another Martin Luther King, Jr. — Pray one comes along.

And that's "The Memo."

The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day

As you may know, I appeared on the tsunami telethon Saturday evening. Nothing much happened. We don't know yet how much money was raised, but we do know the American Red Cross says about 95 percent of the donations will go directly to the victims. The rest used to provide administration.

Now everybody involved was very nice to me. Bruce Willis (search) and I watched the New York Jets lose —heartbreaking— before the program began. And Drew Barrymore (search) was also very down to earth, although I believe she said the word to me "groovy." Is that possible?

So now we'll watch the situation, but I'm confident the 9/11 chaos will not be repeated. NBC and the Red Cross are well organized.

Also, in the ridiculous queue this evening, I want to thank all "The Radio Factor" listeners in New York and Los Angeles. Ratings for the fall book were strong, especially on KABC in L.A. Key demos up 100 percent from year to year, and we also did well on WOR.

You may remember a few months ago conservative G. Gordon Liddy (search) and liberal Paul Begala (search) falsely reported on CNN that "The Radio Factor" was not doing well. We called them on it. You might remember that.

And guess what happened? Liddy's radio program has now been canceled, and Begala's TV show, poof. Karma? Might be ridiculous.

I—You can watch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" and "Most Ridiculous Item" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the FOX News Channel. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com