I have had the honor of working with some of the finest reporters in the world.
Their names might not mean much to you, because they didn't win politically correct Pulitzer Prizes.
But trust me, they are among the best of the best.
Back in my days in Los Angeles in the 1980s, there was Merle Linda Wolin. First, she went undercover to expose the horrific sweatshop conditions that existed back then – and probably still exist today – in the garment industry. Then we sent her to be the Latin American bureau chief where she risked her life to expose the corrupt chief of police of Mexico City.
Her instincts were leftist. She had been one of the founders of Mother Jones magazine. But it never affected her reporting. For instance, we sent her to report on the Sandinista regime in Nicaragua – the heroes of the American left. She proceeded to expose them as the corrupt tyrannical leaders they were. Later, as a freelancer, Premier magazine, Hollywood's glitzy journal, sent her to Cuba to report on Fidel Castro's highly touted film "industry." What she found was an industry run by Cuban intelligence agents and supported by useful idiots like Robert Redford and Oliver Stone. Needless to say, the piece never saw the light of day in Premiere.
Then there was Paul Sperry, WND's former Washington bureau chief. He is a journalist who understands the watchdog role of the press. He dug deeply and, in the years he worked here and continuing to this day, he ferreted out fraud, waste, abuse and corruption in government like no other reporter I have ever seen.
There's another young journalist in this tradition working for WND today. His name is Aaron Klein, our Jerusalem bureau chief. He is, without a doubt, the bravest and most courageous and determined reporter with whom I have ever been associated.
His scoops are legion. But his trademark is interviewing the most dangerous people on the planet – Middle East terrorists. They tell him what they really think, what their real goals are and why they do what they do.
Most remarkable of all is that Aaron Klein is an Orthodox Jew, who puts his life on the line every time he steps out the doorway of his Jerusalem apartment.
I tell you all this because Aaron Klein has a new book out that is simply amazing. It's a must-read. It's called "Schmoozing With Terrorists," and it is much more than a collection of anecdotes from his years of reporting for WND.
It's a book that explains fundamentally what America and the civilized world are up against in this war with Islamic fanaticism.
If you want to get inside the heads of the enemy we face, this is the book you must read.
Sometimes sobering, sometimes comical, it is always riveting reading.
More than any previous work, it shows just how encouraged America's enemies are by the antics of celebrities in the U.S. who tend to blame their own country first. It also illustrates the failure of American foreign policy and Israeli policy in dealing with Mideast terrorists.
Do I have a financial interest in this book?
You bet I do.
I published it. I employ its author. I very much want it to be a success. Not because it will enrich me or my company, but because it will enrich the understanding of anyone who reads it – because it will help us win the global battle we are in for the long haul whether we like it or not.
Maybe the title sounds eclectic or irreverent to you. Don't be misled. There are serious lessons about the state of our world in this book.
I urge you to support good journalism – and one very good journalist – by buying "Schmoozing With Terrorists."