The rescue of three Americans from the jungles of South America is a terrific Fourth of July present to the nation. (And John McCain gets high marks for timing in being present for the happy event.) American contractors Keith Stansell, Thomas Howes, and Marc Gonsalves had been captured by the Colombian communist guerrilla group FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) when their antinarcotics surveillance plane crashed in rebel territory five years ago. At the time, considering the weakness of the Colombian government, the growing strength of the neighborhood bully Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, and the terror that FARC inflicted upon the Colombian people, the future looked grim for them and for the hundreds of hostages held in various remote areas. Ingrid Betancourt, a former presidential candidate who was likewise snatched and held by FARC, was freed with the Americans on July 2.

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The rescue operation involved deception. Colombian army officers disguised themselves as FARC guerrillas in order to fly the hostages by helicopter to a supposed meeting with the FARC commander. When she saw them sporting Che Guevara T-shirts, Betancourt told reporters, “I thought, ‘This is FARC.’” Hmm, is this the same Che Guevara that adorns so many dorm rooms and faculty lounges at America’s leading institutions of higher learning? It is. The same Che whose photo, superimposed over a Cuban flag, decorated the Houston Obama for president office? Obama may not have known of this, but it gives you the flavor of some of his enthusiasts.

FARC has terrorized Colombia for more than 40 years. What began as a communist insurgency gradually morphed into a communist/terrorist/narco gang whose favorite tactics included burning villages, torture, and kidnapping. In one case, the entire congregation of a remote church was abducted on a Sunday after worship. In other cases, they came for specific individuals whose parents could pay ransom. Ten-year-old Laura Ulloa was riding to school when armed guerrillas stopped and boarded the bus, demanding to know which one was Laura, and carried her off.


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