March 19 this past week marked the 10th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq originally named Operation Iraqi Liberation (OIL) later changed to Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Just to note some of the “Shock and Awe” for our $3 trillion to $5 trillion dollar investment: 4,489 dead U.S. soldiers, 32,220 U.S. wounded. This does not include dead or wounded U.S. civilians or private contractors nor the 300,000 plus brain injury and PTSD cases.

An Iraqi man charged with detonating a homemade explosive device outside a Social Security Administration office building in Casa Grande has been indicted by a federal grand jury.

‘The Dictator” is a comedy with an absolutely splendid setup. Sacha Baron Cohen plays Admiral General Aladeen, the dictator of a fictional country known as Wadiya. Aladeen abuses his authority to have people executed, even if they merely bump into him while walking down the stairs. He has additionally slept with virtually every major celebrity, from Megan Fox in a hilarious cameo to Arnold Schwarzenegger. When he ventures to New York though, Aladeen is betrayed by his subjects and replaced with an identical double, also portrayed by Cohen. His top advisor, played by Ben Kingsley, plans on using the double to finally bring democracy to Wadiya. Meanwhile, Aladeen is cast onto the streets of New York, stripped of all power. Imagine “Trading Places,” only with Saddam Hussein.

‘The Dictator” is a comedy with an absolutely splendid setup. Sacha Baron Cohen plays Admiral General Aladeen, the dictator of a fictional country known as Wadiya. Aladeen abuses his authority to have people executed, even if they merely bump into him while walking down the stairs. He has additionally slept with virtually every major celebrity, from Megan Fox in a hilarious cameo to Arnold Schwarzenegger. When he ventures to New York though, Aladeen is betrayed by his subjects and replaced with an identical double, also portrayed by Cohen. His top advisor, played by Ben Kingsley, plans on using the double to finally bring democracy to Wadiya. Meanwhile, Aladeen is cast onto the streets of New York, stripped of all power. Imagine “Trading Places,” only with Saddam Hussein.

“The Dictator” is a comedy with an absolutely splendid setup.

Despite the many suspicious aspects of the late February shooting of an unarmed black teenager, a mind-boggling logical fallacy by the local police department has protected the killer from arrest. According to a CNN report, the local Sanford, Fla., police failed to arrest shooter George Zimmerman in this highly suspicious killing because they had no evidence rebutting Zimmerman’s claim that he acted in self defense.

Wow ... did you hear the president's voice recently when he sang the first lines of "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green? This is one cool dude. In addition to being the "Leader of the Free World" and the "Commander in Chief" of the United States of America, he can also sing, not to mention his hoops skills. How do ya think Jennifer, Randy and Steven would judge the prez if he stepped out on the stage in the first round. I'm thinkin' that he's goin' to Hollywood!

Wow...did you hear the president's voice last week when he sang the first lines of "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green? This is one cool dude. In addition to being the "Leader of the Free World" and the "Commander in Chief" of the United States of America, he can also sing, not to mention his hoops skills. How do ya think Jennifer, Randy and Steven would judge the Prez if he stepped out on the stage in the first round. I'm thinkin' that he's goin' to Hollywood!

Motivational speaker Susan Stamper Brown has motivated me to respond to her commentary, “America’s sacrifice gives Iraq people a chance for peace”. As a marine veteran I appreciate her desire to honor the troops. However, any pretense of our making Iraq a better place by making war on it for nine years is sad, to say the least.

The response to President Barack Obama’s Oct. 14 announcement that U.S. military boots were on the ground in Africa to assist in another “overseas contingency” “non-war” operation in Africa is another example of the left’s ever-evolving definition of war based upon which political party is in control.

The covert assassination of American-born and high-ranking member of al-Qaida, Sheikh Anwar Al-Awalaki, marks another victory in America’s war on terrorism. In addition to taking out Osama bin Laden, President Barack Obama has demonstrated a determined commitment to the security of our nation. By “terrorizing the terrorists,” he has turned the war on terrorism abruptly around. Now it’s the terrorists who are on the run and fearing for their worthless lives.

Two hours with Saddam Hussein's psychotic, bloodthirsty butcher of a son. Now there's some true counterprogramming to the big, splashy summer fare out of Hollywood.

"SRP raised every account $10 last month and the year before that it was a $5 raise. $10 to us amounts to a 9% raise. Where is this extra money going at SRP. Are you telling me that with their hundreds of millions of dollars that they can't build a transformer to handle the triple-digit weather they have had to deal with since the day they started generating electricity? Saddam Hussein's Power Company in Bhagdad, Iraq, was more efficient."

SAN FRANCISCO - Combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder are more likely to have dementia, cardiac problems and structural changes in the brain as they get older than veterans without PTSD, according to new research.

Memorial Day 2011 brought the usual large number of special military programming and garnered a few comments to the effect that we ought to be honoring those who have fought and are fighting "for our freedoms." Certainly over the years there are many who have fought and are fighting for freedom. The list would include those who engaged the British after 1776 and again in 1812, those who fought against slavery here after 1861 as well as elsewhere at other times and places. Today's updated list adds "dissidents" expressing their views in foreign countries and much of the youth in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Bahrain, Yemen, Syria and even Iran. But can we include on that list those "coalition soldiers" stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan?

LOS ANGELES — Movie screens this summer are not entirely booked with superheroes, kiddie fare and goofy buddy flicks. Plenty of mature dramas and comedies about dealing with — or escaping from — the problems of real life arrive alongside the season's big studio offerings.

Twenty years ago, U.S. warplanes began bombing Iraqi positions in the first shots of what would be a brief and successful campaign to end the occupation of Kuwait.

With the announcement from Iraqi Prime Minister al Maliki that U.S. troops must be withdrawn from Iraq by the end of 2011 as originally negotiated, the TV pundits, both liberal and conservative, are shouting “foul” and are left to ponder serious questions giving rise to grave doubts.

Democrats will lose even more congressional seats two years from now, former George W. Bush political aide Karl Rove predicted Tuesday.

BAGHDAD — Suicide bombers struck near three hotels popular with Western journalists and businessmen Monday just as Iraq announced the execution of Saddam Hussein's notorious cousin known as "Chemical Ali." At least 37 people were killed and more than 104 injured, security officials said.

BAGHDAD — Saddam Hussein's notorious cousin "Chemical Ali" was convicted Sunday and sentenced to hang for ordering the most infamous of his crimes, the attacks against the Kurdish town of Halabja that killed more than 5,000 people in clouds of poisonous gas.

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WASHINGTON — Saddam Hussein was telling the truth, this time. The United States just didn't believe him. So it took the most powerful military in the world 18 years to find the remains of the only U.S. Navy pilot shot down in an aerial battle in the 1991 Gulf War.