Sure he's a crazy bigot, but he had a point

With all the talk of capturing Ratko Mladic this week (see, this is why you read me, I'm cutting edge), I feel the need to point out that this isn't the first time we've pretended we couldn't find Serbian war criminals. Below is a copy of a letter Jesse Helms sent to Madeleine Albright back in 2000 when it was not just Mladic and Karadzic on the loose, but Milosevic too (the clock's ticking Radovan, in a few years, they'll be coming for you too!).

The Honorable Madeleine Albright Secretary of State U.S. Department of State Washington, D.C. 20520

Dear Madam Secretary:

I am fascinated by the "wanted" poster that the Department of State is placing in public buildings in Bosnia, Serbia, and other parts of Europe. The poster states that up to $5,000,000 will be paid for information leading to the transfer to, or conviction by, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia of Slobodan Milosevic, Radovan Karadzic, or Ratko Mladic.

I have the information that you are looking for.

Mr. Milosevic and Mr. Mladic both are residing in Belgrade. Mr. Milosevic recently laid a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Soldier on Mount Avala (to mark the first anniversary of the NATO bombing of Serbia). His address is: Presidential Palace, 15 Uzicka Street, Dedinje district, Belgrade.

Mr. Mladic is apparently unaware that he should be in hiding - he took a leisurely afternoon stroll down Knez Mihailova Street on Friday, March 24, waving at Belgraders as he walked along, and was spotted just this weekend at the Belgrade stadium taking in a soccer match.

Mr. Karadzic remains in the Pale area of Bosnia - living in the midst of thousands of NATO peacekeepers - where he has been seen regularly in public in recent months.

Reward payment should be made to Rev. Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse, a well-known and highly respected charitable organization in North Carolina. (Franklin is Billy Graham's son).

Kindest regards.

Sincerely,

____________________ JESSE HELMS

cc: The Honorable Lawrence Summers U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Rewards for Justice Diplomatic Security Service U.S. Department of State

(You'll note the "cc" makes it particularly timely, everything old is new again.)