Let me respond to some of your thoughts:

"It seems that your definition of a successful GM is limited to one who gives nothing in return for star players."

I'm not sure what I said that gave you that idea, but you are wrong.  I would define a successful GM as one who does all he can to put a winning team on the field.  In this regard, Brian Sabean (pre-10/2002) was a successful GM.  Brian Sabean (post-10/2002)...not very successful.  Through the end of 2002, Sabean made a series of good, sometimes great, sometimes spectacular deals.  But for the past nearly four years now, Sabean's trades have been mostly mediocre to poor to disastrous.  

I did like the Foppert/Yorvit-for-Winn trade.  And I loved the Edgardo Alfonzo-for-Finley trade, but mainly because the sight of Edgardo in a Giants uniform was beginning to make me want to gouge my own eyes out with a serving spoon.

"certainly Sabean's record has many examples of trades in which the Giants got the better of the deal (Williams for Kent, the Schmidt trade, etc.)"

Look, I wrote a long post.  A very long post.  It probably got a little boring so you skipped over some parts.  Maybe a lot of parts.  Anyway I'm sorry for not being more brief, but had you read my post in its entirety, you'd see that I do credit Sabean for many of his trades, pre-2002.  I think the Kent and Schmidt trades were nothing short of spectacular.  Furthermore, I've always disagreed with those who didn't want to give Sabean his due for the Kent trade, because they said "he lucked out on Kent/Tavarez was the key to the deal".  My thinking has always been this: Who cares why he made the deal?  Why he made a deal or what should have happened really doesn't matter.  All that matters is how the players performed.  Anyway, the Kent/Williams deal was a great trade and set the stage for the Giants' success of the late 90's and early 2000's.

"Secondly, you want all GMs to build teams through the development of position players drafted by their own organization.

I don't care what other GMs do.  What I would like to see the Giants' GM do--and what I think would greatly enhance their chances of winning a World Series--is to draft and develop position players at least as effectively as they are drafting and developing pitchers.  More effectively would be better.  I mean, as long as the Giants are going to have a farm system with all the scouts and teams, and managers, coaches, and instructors (roving and otherwise), and as long as they're going to draft, sign and bring up all those position players, why not actually have a few of 'em be good once in a while?  Don't you think that might be a good thing?

Look at it this way: Had the Giants had one decent middle infielder, first baseman, third baseman, or outfielder coming up these past five years or so, Sabean doesn't need to go out and sign Michael Tucker, or Edgardo Alfonzo, or Ray Durham, or Omar Vizquel, or Mike Matheny or Randy Winn.  With the possible exception of Dreamy, those are all pretty much replacement level players at best.  But because the Farm System cupboard was bare, Sabean was forced to overpay in $$ and years to bring those guys in, and he was unable to bring in the type of player who could really give the lineup some punch.

The thing is, through the end of 2002, Brian Sabean was doing a good job of putting productive hitters on the team.  J.T. Snow (for a while), Jeff Kent, Ellis Burks, Rich Aurilia, and even Ray Durham (after a fashion).

Giants' .800+ OPS Hitters (starters or 300+ PA):
> > > > > > > > > OPS
1997: J.T. Snow    (.897)
       Barry Bonds (1.031)
1998: Jeff Kent    (.914)
       Barry Bonds (1.047)
1999: J.T. Snow    (.821)
       Jeff Kent   (.877)
       Barry Bonds (1.006)
       Marvin Benard (.816)
       Ellis Burks (.963)
2000: Bobby Estalella (.825)
       J.T. Snow    (.824)
       Jeff Kent    (1.020)
       Barry Bonds  (1.128)
       Ellis Burks  (1.025)
2001: Jeff Kent     (.876)
       Rich Aurilia (.941)
       Barry Bonds  (1.378)
2002: Jeff Kent     (.933)
       Barry Bonds  (1.381)
2003: J.T. Snow     (.805)
       Ray Durham   (.807)
       Barry Bonds  (1.278)
2004: J.T. Snow     (.958)
       Ray Durham   (.848)
       Barry Bonds  (1.421)

2005. Moises Alou   (.918)
      
2006. Barry Bonds   (1.004)

"This, of course, leaves out minor-league players originally drafted by other organizations (Auriela, etc.)..."

"Aurilia, etc."?  Well, Aurilia came to the Giants in December 1994, before Sabean was GM.  But OK, maybe Sabes helped engineer the deal somehow.  What I'm wondering about are those "et ceteras". Can you name some "et ceteras" for me that Sabean dealt for after he became GM in 1996?  I mean, the only et ceteras I can think of are John Johnstone and Felix Rodriguez. And you know what? I'd say those were OK trades. Not great, but definitely good. But again, my point isn't that Sabean has never made good trades. My point is he's not making good trades now.  
"There are many ways to build a team and your standard is only one of them."

I think a better way of putting it is, there are many venues from which a GM can bring in productive players (or players who will be productive once they've been developed in the farm system).  A simple list of venues would include:

~Amateur Draft
~International Free Agents
~Minor League and "Scrap Heap" Free Agents
~"A-List" Free Agents
~Trades

The point is, there are potentially great players in each of these venues.  A smart, effective GM maximizes his supply of talent by finding and developing players from each of these areas.  Sabean's problem is he develops no position players from the amateur draft, he doesn't find as many gems in the "scrap heap" as he once did, his trades have been weak since 2002, and he has completely ignored the international arena.  

The most significant result of this approach is, the Giants have a miserable farm system, completely bereft of talented postion players. Sabean has gotten away with this up to now because:

1. He used to be able to snooker other teams into taking his overrated pitching prospects for their talented veterans.
   
2. He once made a practice of pulling off gutsy and creative trades to bring in players like J.T. Snow, Jeff Kent, Ellis Burks and Robb Nen.
   
3. He did a very good job of pulling productive players off of other teams' scrap heaps. Players like Benito Santiago, David Bell, Reggie Sanders, Kenny Lofton, Andres Galarraga, Tim Worrell, Brian Johnson, Joe Carter, Kirk Rueter (that was '96, so not sure if Sabes gets credit for this one) came very cheap and were all productive.  Sabean pulled off these kinds of deals over and over again the first several years he was GM.
   
4. Barry Bonds was the kind of hitter that none of us have seen in our lifetime.  He was a colossus.  He was like having two, no three, no four, no five sluggers in the lineup.  OK, maybe just four.

"...they have had the best player in baseball and the idea has been to win now.

I get that, and I am fine with that.  But I still don't see why winning now with Bonds and developing a few hitters in the farm system have to be mutually exclusive.

"...to accuse anyone who says a good thing about what the Giants have done over the last nine plus year of being "apologists" for Sabean is just plain horseshit. Step back from the rhetoric and try to see both sides to the argument.

Who said this? "Pre-October '02, Brian Sabean was a prescient, nervy, vervy, imaginative and energetic GM."  HINT: It was just a few sentences above the beginning of your post.  I've said lots of good things about Sabean.  I do see both sides of the argument.  Heck, I've been on both sides of the argument.

But now, I just think the time has come to recognize that maybe Sabean has lost his fastball.  It happens.  Most GMs aren't good for more than a few years.  It's a tough job and I think it takes a lot of time and energy to really excel in the role.  And I really do think it's time for Sabean to step aside and for Magowan to bring in a 5-Venue GM.  Not just one who develops pitchers and writes checks to cover up the holes in his scouting department and farm system.