Today the Sarasota Herald-Tribune again uses the war against Radical Islam to bash President Bush and his administration.

In their editorial, "Connecting the dots", they tell the same old story that, "Before the war in Iraq, President Bush and his chief associates claimed they knew about a solid link between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, the international terrorist organization that attacked New York and the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001." This statement is meaningless, irrelevant and myopic.

What the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, liberals, anti-war proponents and the Democratic Party are missing is that Radical Islam is at war with the West. Radical Islamists want to kill you and me. The question is will we fight back or capitulate.

Tom Trento, Director of the Florida Security Council put it best when he said, "When 'obsessed' people supported by historic precedent and philosophic foundation proclaim war against you and plot your death and destruction you better damn well take them seriously. Sadly, Americans are divided, some for political reasons, some out of ignorance, as to whether radical Islamism is indeed America’s number one problem."

"This division hastens our demise." says Tom.

Tom points out, "In order to be victorious in this global war on terror - which has two primary targets, the 'Great Satan,' America and the 'Little Satan,' Israel - we need a unified and united effort by a majority of Americans over a protracted period of time."

Tom goes on to say, "Currently, there are a significant number of Americans who understand this ideological battle and fully comprehend the deadly desires of our Islamist enemies and the catastrophic consequences of not properly responding at all required levels. Conversely, there are a significant number of Americans who do not understand this ideological battle, have no real comprehension of the related cataclysmic consequences and do not believe our Islamist enemies either desire or are capable of our complete destruction."

"As with most controversial issues, a considerable number of Americans are in the middle trying to figure out if we should conform ourselves to a cultural mindset that attempts to appease and befriend our enemies, or if we should adapt a resilient transformational posture preparing for an ideological war underscored by military battle," according to Tom.

Those who oppose the war do so at the risk of America and Israel. The Sarasota Herald-Tribune editorial board, either out of ignorance or ideology, have "no real comprehension of the related cataclysmic consequences and do not believe our Islamist enemies either desire or are capable of our complete destruction."

Radical Islam looks at Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Palestine, Europe, Israel and the United States as simply fronts in their global war against western ideals and ideas. When we stop focusing on minor past details and come to grips with the global nature of this "clear and present danger" can America and our allies win. Otherwise we are doomed.

The war has already come to our shores. If we leave Iraq and Afghanistan the next battle will be in our homeland. Radical Islamists have said so. We must listen to them.

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune editorial board has an excellent piece titled, "Recruits with a record - Don't jump to conclusions about the military's felony waivers".

The editorial rightly points out that, "Last year, the Army granted 511 felony waivers, more than double the 249 granted in 2006. The Marine Corps' waivers increased from 208 to 350.While these are large [percentage] increases, the waivers represent a tiny fraction of the more than 180,000 active-duty recruits who joined the military in 2007."

They also state, "The military says it is extremely judicious in granting waivers. Applicants for waivers must submit character references, are personally interviewed by commanders, and must be approved for enlistment by a brigadier general or a higher ranking general."

Let's put this in perspective.

At the February 2008 meeting of the Sarasota County Veterans Commission, Florida Senator Mike Bennett talked about his run ins with the law when he was a young man. He told about how a judge gave him the option of jail or joining the U.S. military within 24 hours. Senator Bennett went downstairs from the court room and joined the Navy. Senator Bennett voluntarily served four tours in Vietnam, distinguishing himself in combat operations. He went on to start a successful business and of course run for the Florida Senate.

At the same meeting Eugene (Top) Harrison, USMC (Ret.) came to the podium and said he joined the Marines under similar circumstances. Top Harrison is a highly decorated veteran of the Korean War and Vietnam. He taught in and retired from the Sarasota County School District. Top Harrison taught at risk kids in the dropout prevention program at Venice High School. Top Harrison's son is an Air Force Lieutenant Colonel currently serving in the Middle East.

We miss the time when judges had the option of sending troubled youth to the greatest institution on this earth, the U.S. Armed Forces, rather than the worst institutions, our prisons.

The U.S. Military has the ability to transform bad behavior into good behavior. It has done this for centuries. Military training and service provides structure and discipline to those without it. Military service instills duty, honor and personal responsibility in our youth.

Now for the liberal hypocrisy.

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune and Democrats in Congress question, "whether the number of waivers is being increased for the right reasons, and whether that change is affecting the military's performance."

What does this mean. Right reason? Isn't putting criminals to work in an honorable profession the right reason?

We know of a company in St. Louis, Missouri that employs thousands of criminals, including felons (murders, etc.). This company provides one third of the pay to the prisoner to purchase personal items, puts one third of the pay into an interest bearing account for the prisoner so they have a nest egg to draw on when they finish serving their sentence, and the final third is paid to the State of Missouri. The annual payout to the State of Missouri for this program is approximately $15 million.

Doesn't it makes sense to put properly screened felons to work. If they are not working then they will fall back on the only skill they know, crime. That costs all of us. Would it not be better that they be given the chance to redeem themselves by serving our nation?

You would think that the liberal Democrats in Congress would be looking for ways to turn more criminals into loyal soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines.

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune wants questions answered about these 861 Army and Marine recruits. Having the military follow these soldiers and marines around to collect data on them just makes matters worse. Putting more pressure on them needlessly can do more harm than good.

Don't worry, if they fail the military will take care of that. I trust our military leaders to make the right decisions on who enlists and who does not. I personally believe that giving someone on the road to disaster a better road to travel is both moral and good public policy.

What do you think?

In yet another one of the most amazing articles in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune titled, "Showdown in Sadr City", the editorial board is finally worried about the people of Iraq.

That is the good news. We as Americans must help our Iraqi friends bring peace and prosperity to all neighborhoods in Iraq. We fully agree. What ever it takes we must win against the evil that has infected Iraq. This evil is Radical Islamists like Al Qaeda, Al Sadr and militias backed by the Iranian theocracy.

The bad news is the Sarasota Herald-Tribune blames the Iraqi government when it says, "While U.S. and Iraqi troops continue to fight for control of Sadr City, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has so far failed to fulfill a promise of a multimillion-dollar program to restore the battle-scarred sector."

Let's see now, Iraqi troops are battling for control of Sadr City and the Iraqi equivalent of Waste Management has not gone in to pick up the garbage. Gee, I wonder why not?

That is like blaming the Mayors of some of our largest cities because their Waste Management trucks will not go into certain areas of Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles or Detroit because the gangs control the neighborhoods and shoot at them. I don't think our garbage collectors make enough to face Radical Islamist militias armed with rocket propelled grenades provided by Iran.

What is ever so elitist is the quote by New York Times reporter Michael R. Gordon that, "some parts of sprawling Sadr City have been under U.S. and Iraqi military control for weeks..." implying that the Iraqi government should turn on a dime to fix the sewers, provide electricity, pick up the garbage and open the schools. A high standard by anyone's count. Maybe we should hold the Mayor of New Orleans to the same standard.

Let's get real. The evil doer is Mookie Al Sadr and the Iranian Quds Force backed militias. They are keeping the battle going in Sadr City. They are the ones keeping the money from flowing into Sadr City. They are the ones who have not reconciled with the Iraqi government to allow money to flow into Sadr City to fix the sewers, provide electricity, open the schools and pick up the garbage.

Why, because they want to keep power and control by keeping the people of Sadr City poor, angry and suffering. Mookie and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard do not want money to flow into Sadr City. If it did Mookie and Iranian Quds forces would no longer be in control. With them out of control peace would follow. Money would flow and services would be restored.

The people of Sadr City need an "awakening" like the one that occurred in Anbar province and Baquba, Iraq. Only when the people of Sadr City realize that peace and prosperity mean more than killing innocent men, women and children to implement Sharia law, will things change in Sadr City.

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune editorial board gets it totally wrong blaming Prime Minister al-Maliki.

Does it ever occur to you that liberals always side with the enemies of America, freedom, liberty and peace? Sadly, again, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune is pushing its political agenda by not attacking our real enemies but rather attacking our friends and allies.

The Iraqi people and those that live in Sadr City deserve better. What do you think?

UPDATE from the Multi-National Corps, Iraq:

Iraqi Army provides first aid supplies to Sadr City residents.

BAGHDAD - Iraqi Army soldiers conducted a combined medical assessment in the southern portion of the Sadr City district of Baghdad. The operation was supported by the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Multi-National-Division - Baghdad, and provided citizens with essential medicines and personal hygiene supplies at Joint Security Station Tharwa 1. For the assessment, Iraqi Security Forces provided military and civilian doctors to ensure visitors received medical supplies and were not in need of immediate or critical medical care. Citizens ranging from the very young to the elderly received medical attention at the station. Dealing directly with the ISF, the Iraqi people living in Sadr City witnessed the ability of Iraqi Forces to care for them. More than 400 citizens received medical care in less than two hours, making the event a successful one. "It really turned out good. It was successful and turned out better than I thought," said Capt. Ryan Mendenhall who serves as the fire support officer. Mendenhall said he was surprised by how quickly the people reacted and came to the project.

Well it must be Presidential election time. The Sarasota Herald-Tribune editorial board in its column, "Rational for abuse, Congress should examine legal opinion's impact on interrogations" goes after our soldiers, the Department of the Army and of course the Bush administration.

What a great way to change the subject from Senator Barack Obama's pastor saying Sunday our founding fathers (that's Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Hamilton, et. al.) “planted slavery and white supremacy in the DNA of this republic.” Senator Obama saying of small town Americans, "they get bitter, and they cling to guns, or religion, or antipathy toward people who aren’t like them, or anti-immigrant sentiment, or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations." Or Senator Hillary Clinton saying she dogged bullets when visiting Bosnia - a lie.

The anti-war left wingers love it when the liberal media brings up a new conspiracy theory.

First of all it is always good to point out the falsehoods in the liberal media's editorial. Let's start with, "Congress should explore whether Yoo's reasoning was extended to the military interrogation of prisoners at Abu Ghraib."

There is no reason to explore whether or if Yoo's memorandum was involved in the Abu Ghraib incident because an investigation of influence by the then Chain-of-Command was done by the Army. Allegations of "improperly communicating interrogation policies" was a clear part of that investigation.

By the way. I do not think any member of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune editorial board has any experience in the Inspector General Corps and investigating General Officers. Well I have. I was the Deputy Inspector General of the U.S. Army Western Command (now U.S. Army Pacific Command) from 1985 till 1990 when I retired. I have investigated General Officers, assisted DAIG investigations, and know the procedures. They are thorough and exacting. If any criminal activity is found it is immediately turned over to the local office of the Army Criminal Investigation Division and Judge Advocate General for action and prosecution.

Let's look at the findings of the Army's investigation into Abu Ghraib available on the Army website. Here are excerpts from a May 5, 2005 Army press release on the investigation:

Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, then commander Combined Joint Task Force 7 (CJTF7), was investigated by the Department of the Army Inspector General (DAIG) for the following allegations:

1. Dereliction in the performance of duties pertaining to detention and interrogation operations

2. Improperly communicating interrogation policies

The DAIG found each of the allegations unsubstantiated. Lt. Gen. Sanchez is currently serving as the Commander of V Corps, headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany.

Maj. Gen. Walter Wojdakowski, then Deputy Commander Combined Joint Task Force 7 (CJTF7) was investigated by the DAIG for the following allegation:

1. Dereliction in the performance of duties pertaining to detention and interrogations operations.

The DAIG found the allegation unsubstantiated. Maj. Gen. Wojdakowski currently is serving as a Special Assistant to the Commanding General U.S. Army Europe headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany.

Maj. Gen. Barbara G. Fast, then C2 intelligence officer Combined Joint Task Force 7 (CJTF7), was investigated by the DAIG for the following allegation:

1. Dereliction in the performance of her duties

The DAIG found the allegation unsubstantiated. Maj. Gen. Fast currently is serving as the commander of the U.S. Army Intelligence Center and Fort Huachuca, Ariz.

Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, then Commander 800th Military Police Brigade, was investigated by the DAIG for the following allegations:

1. Dereliction of duty

2. Making a material misrepresentation to an investigating team

3. Failure to obey a lawful order

4. Shoplifting.

The DAIG found two of the allegations unsubstantiated, while the allegations of dereliction of duty and shoplifting were found to be substantiated.

Based upon the DAIG investigation, Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Dick A. Cody issued Brig. Gen. Karpinski a memorandum of reprimand and directed that it be filed in her Official Military Personnel File. The Commander of the U.S. Army Reserve Command, Lt. Gen. James R. Helmly, formally relieved Brig. Gen. Karpinski from command of the 800th Military Police Brigade on April 8.

Today, the President approved a recommendation to vacate the promotion of Brig. Gen. Karpinski from her rank of brigadier general. This action was in response to a recommendation by the U.S. Army Reserve Command commander, the Chief of Staff of the Army, and the Secretary of the Army to the Secretary of Defense and the President. This decision reduces her rank to colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve.

Though Brig. Gen. Karpinski’s performance of duty was found to be seriously lacking, the investigation determined that no action or lack of action on her part contributed specifically to the abuse of detainees at Abu Ghraib.

Col. Marc Warren, then Staff Judge Advocate for Combined Joint Task Force 7 (CJTF7), was the subject of a preliminary screening inquiry (PSI) conducted by the Department of the Army’s Office of the Judge Advocate General for allegations of:

1. Professional impropriety under lawyers ethics rules

2. Dereliction in the performance of his duties.

The Office of the Judge Advocate General found the allegations to be unsubstantiated. Col. Warren currently is serving at Headquarters, Department of the Army, Washington, D.C.

To date, the Army and the Department of Defense have conducted 10 separate comprehensive investigations examining all aspects of detention operations. The major inquiries are based on more than 1,700 interviews and more than 16,000 pages of documents. Additionally, over 360 criminal investigations examined allegations of detainee mistreatment. Thus far, allegations against more than 130 military members have been addressed in courts-martial, non-judicial punishments, and other adverse administrative actions.

Regarding officer accountability, roughly 25 percent of the adverse punishments to date have been applied against officers, who make up about 16 percent of the total Army force. While there are still officer cases that remain open, to date, the Army has taken the following actions against officers in the ranks of brigadier general to warrant officer:

Brigadier General - Promotion vacated, relief from command, one letter of reprimand

Colonel - One non-judicial punishment

Lieutenant Colonel (four officers) - Two letters of reprimand, two non-judicial punishments

Major (three officers) - Three letters of reprimand, one non-judicial punishment

Captain (10 officers) – Three courts-martial, one other than honorable discharge, five letters of reprimand, one non-judicial punishment

1st Lieutenant (four officers) – Two courts-martial, one letter of reprimand, one non-judicial punishment

2nd Lieutenant (two officers) - One other than honorable discharge, one letter of reprimand

Chief Warrant Officer 3 - One court-martial

Chief Warrant Officer 2 - One court-martial.

Investigations into detainee abuse allegations are rank immaterial and will continue until all cases are completed. Investigators are persons of integrity, are under no undue command influence, and are charged to proceed wherever the truth leads in assessing accountability. Detainee abuse is not tolerated. The Army is committed to ensuring all Soldiers live up to the Army Values and the Law of War regardless of the environment or circumstances.

I for one have had enough of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune making political hay by attacking our Army simply to distract the public from the real and present danger of Radical Islam.

Their call for an investigation of our Army is both politically motivated and unnecessary. If they want to know what happened then read the full Army report.

Well Fidel Castro has stepped down but, unfortunately, not out. Communist Cuba is now under the iron hand of brother Raul.

The biggest policy mistake made by any President was John F. Kennedy's decision to abandon the Cuban freedom fighters at the Bay of Pigs. His mistake brought us to the brink of WW III with the Cuban Missile Crisis and has kept the people of Cuba under communist rule ever since. Over the decades they have suffered under a failed Communist system. Castro has not embraced capitalism at the expense of his people.

What is interesting is the liberal media's love of Castro and hate of the United States. You can already see it via their "concern for the people of Cuba". In an article by a local liberal paper, "Castro out but not down" they call for us to "Lift the embargo".

Their rationale is, "In light of the financial success experienced by many Cubans who emigrated to the United States, economic engagement, rather than punishment and isolation, seemed the more humane course and the most likely strategy to have toppled Fidel. And, perhaps, the U.S. could have filled a vacuum that has recently led Venezuela and China to invest in Cuba....But for decades, America let dogma get in the way of good sense, just as the former president of Cuba did."

Let's look briefly at recent history when we have economically engaged with dictators.

Let's start with Adolf Hitler, we tried to appease him with the Sudetenland and that led to WW II. We tried to appease Japan by looking the other way when they invaded Korea and China and it led to Pearl Harbor. We tried to appease Joseph Stalin with detente and it got us the Cold War.

Now let's look at more recent attempts at economically engaging dictators.

President Clinton signed an agreement with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il. We gave them economic aid and oil to keep the North Korean people from starving. The outcome, Kim kept the money for his cronies and millions of his people starved to death or died in concentration camps. He developed a nuclear weapon and sold the technology to Iran and other nations.

How about the West and UN dealings with Saddam Hussein? The UN Oil for Food Program was exactly what liberals call "economically engaging". With the "economic engagement" money Saddam built palaces, murdered and tortured his people. The program became corrupt and Iraqis suffered. There was no food for the oil!

Today we have another form of economic engagement going on with Venezuela and Iran. The Western nations buy oil from these countries on the open market. Billions flow into these countries. Do their dictators use those monies to raise the economic standards of their people? Both countries use their revenues to shore up their regimes and spread communism and radial Islamic terrorism around the world.

We engage economically every day with China and Russia. Both those countries have used our "economic engagement" to become less democratic, more confrontational, more militaristic and their people suffer more and more.

The only thing dictators understand is power and the use of power to get what they want. What the West must do, led by the United States is, to confront this evil, not subsidize it.

Liberals never learn from history. They constantly want to "economically engage" with evil in hopes of appeasement. Consistently we get the same result - our dollars are used against us, like they were on 9/11.

  The following is a recent conversation overheard between two journalists named Daryl and Tom who work for the New York Times Company.

"Have you noticed that profits are down 20-30% at the Los Angeles Times and Boston Globe this year? Did you know that the San Diego Union-Tribune eliminated more than 100 jobs, one-tenth of its work force. The Chicago Sun-Times began a major round of newsroom layoffs, then put itself up for sale, and publishers in Minneapolis and Philadelphia warned that tough economics could force cuts there? "

"Shush, don't say anything or we could get fired. I heard that the big wigs in the New York Times company, who owns the LA Times and Boston Globe, are getting big salaries and bonuses while us peons get laid off."

"Why do you think our profits are down so much?"

"I don't know. Maybe it is because we make our money off of the pain and suffering of others and people are tired of reading about it."

"No, that can't be it. People love to read about rapes, murders, fires, hurricanes, tornadoes and suicide bombers. People love watching train wrecks, we are just giving them what they want. Remember our motto, 'if it bleeds it leads'."

"Well if it isn't the bad news maybe people don't like it when we coerce people in government to sell us national security secrets about wire tapping and prisons in Europe that undermines our ability to fight terrorists and harms our government."

"No that can't be it. I get great e-mails from my friends from Berkeley, the Daily Kos, Code Pink, MoveOn.org, the Huffington Post, Hugo Chavez, Vladimir Putin, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Osama, and the Democratic National Committee. They say keep them coming. They really love us in Congress because they use our stories as an excuse to hold hearings. If they didn't hold hearings what would they do? Win the war on terror, fix Social Security, cut taxes and reign in government spending? Don't be silly."

"Well maybe we need to print more bad news about the War in Iraq?"

"That would be great and sure would get our readership up but unfortunately we are winning in Iraq. There isn't any blood and gore that we can put on the front page. It is so bad in Iraq that even the grave diggers are facing a recession because of the drop in body count. It is so sad. It seems our fortunes go as does the grave diggers in Iraq. Strange isn't it?"

"How about we bash Bush?"

"No, Nancy, Harry, Hillary and Barack are doing that for us. Old news!"

"Well maybe we need to go to the files and pull out the "this economy is the worst since the great depression" stories we published during the 2004 Presidential elections and reprint them?"

"No, that won't work. We have already milked the "we are in a recession" story line already. We need to be much more creative."

"I got it. Let's talk about the obscene profits made by other companies to hide the fact that we are going under?"

"That's a great idea. Let's see now, who can we pick on? I know, our favorite - big oil."

"That's a great idea. Big oil is always worth a headline or two. They make lots of money because they provide us with always available, cheap fuel to heat our homes, run our cars, our factories, our hospitals, our schools, our power plants, and keep just about everything else in the economy chugging along."

"I'll call one of our editors right now and tell him we are doing a story on big oil profits."

"Great we need the work."