POST SCRIPTS

Francisco Santos admitted his country still faces a tough battle against corruption and drug lords, but said it is not afraid to deal openly with the ghosts of decades of violence in the interest of moving forward. ** Santos said left-leaning, anti-trade, anti-globalization forces, aligned with the radical left in his own country, are following a rigid agenda that is not giving proper credit to progress in Colombia. ** "The argument is flawed because if there's something that works, it's engagement. If there's a country that has been open to engagement and scrutiny, it's Colombia," said Santos, a former journalist who was kidnapped by rebel paramilitaries in 1990 and had to flee the country a decade later because of death threats. ** "Are there human rights abuses? Yes. But look, we acknowledge them. We deal with them and we put those who abuse their power in jail."

What makes democrats align with our enemies while punishing those who want to be our friends? The human rights excuse in this case just doesn't hold water...anybody care to weigh in?