Having read the various accounts of Condoleeza Rice's appearance before the 9-11 commission, I have nothing but praise. Partisan observers will detest what she said and mainly feel she was nothing more than an apologist for the President. But, an objective observer which I feel I am, I will have to say that she was remarkable.

In my view, she should be the hero of every woman in America. She stood her ground, and did not waiver against the onslaught of a pack of dogs nipping at her heels.

Bob Kerrey, the former senator from Nebraska, became so lathered that he actually called Condi, "Ms. Clarke." Give me a break! Condi coolly said, " I don't think I look much like Mr. Clarke." She was decisive and didn't give any ground to her inquisitors and bested them in every direction.

Did she shed any light on 9-11; no, and in a sense, there's nothing left to say. Could we have prevented it?-Had we been able too, we would not have known it. This is what makes the commission so brainless. How could you know you prevented something if it never happened? Could we have done more? Sure, we could always have done more! Could we be better citizens, better Americans, better human beings? Sure!

I think probably what struck me most is the criticism of the 9-11 victims families. Their criticism appears somewhat disingenuous, understanding that the spokesperson doesn't speak for all 9-11 victims. As Dr. Rice (my God, the woman reads Russian for fun and is a concert pianist) said, "Any of us would have moved heaven and earth to prevent 9-11."

But, as tragedies go, we have, as a country, tried to make up for the tragedy and in the only way we could-Money! There is no way to compensate for the death of a loved one: it cannot be done. But, in comparison (which is always never good) there seems to be no other way. Compared to a young soldier killed in Iraq or Afghanistan or in any war torn country, his/her compensation is pitiful compared to a victim of 9-11. A death, a tragedy, a loss is the same; not one life is worth more than another. Does a stockbroker's life mean more than a soldier, a homeless man or family, or a dead child. I don't think so. I hate the concept of "move on" as each person has to decide for themselves, but demanding answers when there are none does not solve a thing. Our country would be better served with "two Motrin and driving on."

Condoleezza Rice is one classy, brilliant, and articulate person. George W. would do well to up her stock and do the smart thing and replace Dick Cheney with an honest, forthright human being who doesn't have some scandal stalking her. Escalating Violence: CEASE FIRE! ARE WE CRAZY? by John Henry Lee

The very idea that we would back off from taking the fight to the insurgents in Iraq is unthinkable to any military person. The fact that we are at a full scale war should not surprise anybody. It has been only a matter of time. The idea that the Sunni and Shite Muslims would forget their hatred for each other and turn it toward us is only surprising that it has taken this long. The absolute naiveté of our military planners that this was going to happen is baffling beyond all words.

I would not say, "I told you so" because no one listens to me anyway; but from the beginning, I have been amazed that we have operated like some sort of naïve Robin Hood with all the powers that be in that part of the world. In this case, the various religious leaders were waiting in the weeds. We are at war. And, it does no real good for those like Kennedy to want to put a Vietnam on it, even if it is true. This is a time for us as a people to unite.

This week on the News Hour on NPR, I was appalled at the comments. "Hopeless, no way out, damned if we do, damned if we don't;" all relatively true, but it is the nature of war. Arguing about the wheres, whys, and what ifs will not help us at this point. And, to think of asking for a cease fire-Unthinkable! Forget it! I have great faith in the Marines that they are doing the right thing in Fallujah. They had the city locked down; they are taking it block by block and they are not letting charades like a mosque to provide the terrorists sanctuary. When a mosque, a church, whatever is used to wage war, it no longer has meaning as a religious building or sanctuary. The terrorists are clothed like civilians; and therefore, this makes it extremely difficult. There will be civilian casualties; sad and yet, the flip side of the coin is that we have no choice.

The Arab world has no respect for a soft approach. Forget it, anything but to root out and destroy the terrorists simply invites terrorism to get worse.

There are three imperative things that should be done immediately in my view. (1) More troops. I would immediately deploy the 82d Airborne Division in a massive jump into Iraq in a show of force. (2) have an almost total news blackout. There is no way to have a the open access for the media in in a time like this. The news media is only interested in a story and it interferes with our mission at this point. Let the media return to pre-embedded days, where they can get their correspondence out the old fashion way-wires or whatever. But this openness now in the midst of war- No Way! The media interviews Iraqis, broadcasts it to American and we appear in the worst possible light. (3) The president needs to totally concentrate on the war and forget whether he will be elected or not elected. He needs new and better ideas. Get rid of Rumsfeld. This, if nothing else, proves that Rumsfeld has his head up his fourth point of contact. The president needs the same type of decisiveness that he exhibited after 9-11. The American people who care will support him. We must get this done and get it done forcefully. Airborne.