Salute

Thanks to the initiatives taken under President George W. Bush and to the international cooperation under President Obama, the United States has finally located Osama Bin Laden. I salute our brave men and women, some who have made the ultimate sacrifice, and our often forgotten intelligence community for making this possible! William T. Capps Jr., Laurel

The opera world has been giving a little extra attention to a couple of giants born in 1813, Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner. Locally, that bicentennial salute has included memorable concerts by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra featuring excerpts from Wagner's mountainous operas. And this week, Lyric Opera Baltimore offers a production of one of Verdi's earliest masterworks for the stage, "Rigoletto. " The "Rigoletto" staging brings tenor Bryan Hymel back to town after his Lyric debut last season, when he made a formidable impression in Gounod's "Faust.

Veterans eat for free on Friday at the the new Mission BBQ. The Veterans Day celebration will include a specially made cake by Charm City Cakes, modeled after Bam Bam, the mammoth mobile unit Mission BBQ sends out to fundraisers and charity events. Mission BBQ is at 7748 Governor Ritchie Highway in Glen Burnie. For information call 410-773-9888 or go to mission-bbq.com. Michael Tabrizi is hosting his third annual Salute the Troops dinner on Wednesday night at his self-named Inner Harbor restaurant.

The happy convergence of Midweek Madness time with Barbra Streisand's 71st birthday means a little levity is in order. I always did have a soft spot for every moment of "Color Me Barbra," because it was the first Streisand album I owned and the beginning of a life-long, unrequited romance. The TV special that generated that album includes this comic gem -- a harried Marie Antoinette getting a hurried last song in.

Only in minor league baseball could you find an event titled “Salute to Bacon Night.” On July 13, the Norfolk Tides -  the Orioles' Triple-A team - are attempting to set the record for largest BLT ever created as part of this bacon-themed night. The sandwich is going to be more than 300 feet in length, topping the record of 224 feet and 3 inches that was set last year in Missouri. The sandwich won't go to waste, though. Slices of it will be for sale throughout the game, with all proceeds going towards the Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia.

She was on her way to the food court, still deciding between a sandwich and a slice of pizza for dinner, when Sabaheta Alek-Finkelman spotted the men and women in uniform. "Would you like to record a shout-out to the troops overseas?" asked Army Spc. Nicholas Lomison, 19, in his friendliest salesman's voice. "It's free, you know. " Alek-Finkelman didn't hesitate. "Hello, military," she said into a camera and microphone set up near the Chili's Too at the Arundel Mills mall.

Please send old photos of people golfing, within the next week, to Way Back When, Sun Magazine, 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, Md. 21278. You must include caption information and your daytime phone number. Also, enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope if you'd like your photo returned. If your photo is your only copy, please send a good-quality duplicate, not the original.

The "Shock Trauma Gala 2000" was more than a celebration of life. It was a celebration of 30 years of saving lives. About 1,000 guests gathered in the Towson Center to salute and support the Maryland Shock Trauma Center, raising $157,000. After a gourmet dinner, the highlight of the evening came when Hero Awards were presented to Maryland police officers, firefighters and emergency medical systems workers who helped save lives in the past year. Honorees included Shock Trauma surgeon Dr. Carnell Cooper and attending physician Dr. Neal Reynolds; Lutherville firefighters P. Adam Zoltowski, George Goeb and Lt. Tony Tulio; and Shock Trauma nurse Sue Murawski.

THEIR average age was 31. They were skilled craftsmen. Many had wives and children. Many more had been employed at high wages in shipyards and war plants. And few were subject to the draft. And they're due a smart salute on Labor Day because many of them were laborers. Their story was first told by William Huie in "Can Do!: The story of the Seabees" in 1944. They were steam fitters and lumberjacks, surveyers, welders, demolition men, machinists, plumbers, electricians, longshoremen, carpenters and road graders.

Jerry F. Barnes, state's attorney for Carroll County, yesterday become the first county prosecutor in Maryland to receive a state police superintendent's salute.Barnes, 48, received the citation from Maj. Gary Cox, central region commander, and Lt. Lawrence E. Faries, commander of the Westminster barracks, on behalf of Col. David B. Mitchell, state police superintendent. The award was presented in Barnes' office.Cox praised Barnes for his dedication and cooperation, recalling that the state's attorney once left his sickbed to answer legal questions and offer advice on filing charges.

Last Friday was the 80th birthday of one of my vocal idols, Montserrat Caballe. I offer these belated good wishes with a sampling of the Spanish soprano's radiant tone and sublime musicality in a Strauss song. They just don't make 'em like this anymore.  Feliz cumpleanos, Madame Caballe.

Don't let it be said that Baltimore isn't at the forefront of the environmental protection movement.  According to "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," Charm City is almost single-handedly helping to save a certain species from extinction.  Unfortunately, it isn't the polar bear. It's the, ahem, crab. And, no, not that crab.         Thanks to Brazilian waxes and similar trends, the ecosystem of pubic lice is endangered, the show's Jessica Williams reports.

Lefty Driesell's career at Maryland was coming to an end when a sportswriter who had spent the first 10 years of his career in New York showed up to cover the Terrapins for The Baltimore Sun. It was the summer of 1985 and there were rumors that Driesell might be going back home to Norfolk to coach Old Dominion. Driesell, who was coming off the Terps winning an ACC tournament championship two seasons before, had told a paper down there that there was “a 50-50 chance” he would be leaving College Park after 17 seasons to coach the Monarchs.

It's about time Maryland got its own comic book. Well, maybe not its own comic book, but at least prominent display on the cover of a comic book. This month's first issue of DC Comics' "Justice League of America," available Feb. 20, is being published with a series of alternate covers. The cover itself is a variation on the iconic World War II photo of soldiers raising the U.S. flag on Iwo Jima. In  Justice League of America's version, members of the league (including Catwoman, Green Lantern and Green Arrow)

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell opened up his annual Super Bowl news conference with a tribute to former Ravens owner Art Modell and NFL Films creative force Steve Sabol, both of whom passed away since last year's Super Bowl. “There are two important people who are not here, but very much on our minds," Goodell said. "Art Modell, the legendary former owner of the Ravens, who passed away in September. Art's spirit is certainly here this week, and his name will be on the Ravens jersey on Sunday, as it has all season.

Ravens strong safety Bernard Pollard lived up to his intimidating reputation as one of the hardest hitters in the NFL, knocking New England Patriots running back Stevan Ridley out of Sunday's AFC championship game with a devastating fourth-quarter tackle. During the Ravens' 28-13 AFC victory at Gillette Stadium, Ridley was down on the ground for several scary minutes before finally walking off the field under his own power. "Bernard, man, he's a hitter," Ravens free safety Ed Reed said.

ARLINGTON, Va. -- On a sunny, windswept hillside where the cherry trees are budding, the Army gave a final salute yesterday to Maj. Marie Rossi.Ten days after Major Rossi's big Chinook helicopter crashed onto a stormy desert half a world away, her husband kissed the folded flag that had covered the casket at Arlington National Cemetery."

John Heim, the coordinator of the Babe Ruth Museum's centennial celebration, spoke with The Sun's Jamison Hensley about the weekend salute to Babe Ruth from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1, which ends the yearlong salute to Ruth's 100th birthday.What will the weekend include?There will be a card show for the three days, a memorabilia show at the [Fifth Regiment] Armory and a gala on Sept. 30.Who came up with the idea of a year-ending celebration?The card show was my idea and originally planned from the start.

The news of Ravens legendary middle linebacker Ray Lewis' upcoming retirement triggered plenty of strong reactions around the league. Respect, homage and sadness were all expressed upon learning that the defensive icon will walk away from the game after 17 years, two NFL Defensive Player of the Year awards and one Super Bowl victory where he was honored as the Most Valuable Player for his hard-hitting contributions. "It will definitely be a blow to the league to lose another guy like Ray Lewis," Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson said.

World War II veteran John Dicks, 86, has already given his country so much. And yet he finds that he wants to give more. The Baltimore resident volunteers two days a week at the Loch Raven VA Community Living & Rehabilitation Center, a facility within the VA Maryland Health Care System, providing rehabilitation to Maryland veterans. "I generally work five hours a day," Dicks said. "I work in the therapy department. We give them exercise. We give them therapy to get them ready to go home.