European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 23, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday january 23, 1994 commentary the stars and stripes Page i what newspapers Are saying at Home the following editorial excerpts Are selected from a Cross Section of newspapers throughout the United states. The editorials Are provided by the associated press and United press International. Los Angeles times Bobby Ray Inman s startling announcement that he has withdrawn As president Clinton s nominee for Secretary of defense presents the sad Story of a highly qualified person who has decided to pass up one of the most important government posts rather than face the close scrutiny of his life that for better or worse those who would hold High office must now  what prompted the retired Admiral to step aside was not evidently any policy difference with the president there is no Daylight Between the two of us at All nor any concern that his nomination would receive less than overwhelming Senate approval. It was instead he indicated his feeling that after 30 years of highly praised Public service most of it in uniform he did not feel that he had to defend anew his character conduct or skills before those who might question them. A. Our Early guess is that Bobby Ray Inman who was never really eager to be Secretary of defense answered Clinton s Call out of duty rather than overwhelming conviction and that in the end his real feelings dictated the dramatic action he took. Not unique among those tapped for High office Inman May have decided that the game just was t Worth the Candle. The new York times there is no Point in piling on. By withdrawing his nomination for Secretary of defense Bobby Ray Inman wrote a sad puzzling end to a useful career in the Navy and the intelligence agencies. There was no politician or commentator so contrarian As to believe his improbable parting charge of a conspiracy Between sen. Robert Dole and our colleague the columnist William Safire. Adm. Inman and his critics Are today experiencing a shared sense of release that he will not be in charge of the Pentagon. Strain had lingered from the Day that he appeared in the Rose Garden with president Clinton and asserted that he had had a hard time finding a Comfort level with his new Boss As commander in chief. A. The new Secretary must have minimal tolerance for strategies that do not address tomorrow s dangers and its opportunities in arms control peacekeeping and transforming East bloc Milit Aries. That will take a nominee of staying Power and judgment. The Sun ,. Baltimore the nation can consider itself fortunate that retired adm. Bobby Ray Inman will not be the next Secretary of defense. While we welcomed his nomination and mistakenly described him As Cool and orderly his bizarre withdrawal from consideration revealed he is anything but. -. " Austin Texas american statesman one thing you can count on in the military is tradition. It has been a Blessing and a curse through the Ages. _. It has been no Surprise that the american military has been slow to react to changes in the society it protects. But when change is finally adopted the traditions of order and discipline help ensure that the change takes place that certainly is one of the things the Gav Community is counting on once the inevitable break is made with hidebound anti homosexual military policy. And the same principle should apply to opening up More jobs for More women in the armed services. Chicago Tribune nature is a kind Parent Beneficent and life giving a but a cruel one As Well. This is easily explained by science yet eternally mystifying nonetheless in that humans cannot Ever quite reconcile to it. And rarely has the dark Side of nature s nature seemed so overwhelming As it was monday when Border to Border from West to East and North to South the nation was subdued in its powerful capricious terrible and unforgiving clench. A Long rumbling earthquake. Stunned Southern Asp you feel 6eh. The  California toppling buildings and freeways rupturing Gas lines and water Mains and spawning a terrifying wave of fire flood death and injury. From the great Plains through the great lakes to the Northeast and As far South As Florida bitter cold frightening dangerous cold spread relentlessly accompanied by gales that dropped wind chills to As Low As 100 below Zero. Sometimes it is cruel yes but there also is this it too shall pass for nature is at once also Beneficent. The land will heal the cold will recede the Snow will melt and the Rivers run again. Thre is nothing we can do about that either but rejoice and be glad. The Washington Post instantly Independent counsel Lawrence Walsh s report on Iran Contra became another log on the fire of controversy that raged during the whole seven years of his probe of the Reagan administration s greatest embarrassment. His summary is certainly flawed by Walsh s readiness to characterize As crimes alleged acts by officials who were not tried or convicted of them. But there is value in his depiction of a major episode in which the american government moved out from under the control of Law. Notwithstanding his excesses the 82-year-old Walsh a longtime Republican and a former Federal judge performed a service vindicating the appointment of a special prosecutor. The Blade Toledo Ohio in even the oldest governmental institutions in the United states the potential for the abuse of Power remains alive. Take the . Supreme court. The problem for the nation s highest court is not one of top to Bottom corruption. In this instance it s a Small matter a situation in which the court s Security Force is being asked to perform personal chores for some of the justices and their families. It ought to Stop. The 80-member court police Force which represents about one fourth of the High court s total employees earns Federal paychecks. But they have no business pushing a supermarket cart for the wife of a retired Justice running out to the Airport to pick up relatives of justices or performing other personal errands. The Clarion Ledger Jackson miss. Fresh from a trip abroad focusing on foreign policy items president Clinton finds Domestic issues awaiting. The state of the Union is Clinton s Chance to shape his Agenda and put the spin he wants on his programs hoping to drum popular support. St. Petersburg Fla times in Symbol As Well As substance president Clinton did about As much As possible to help Russia s reformers however you on a time to f/6htrkwualemplfl equal apr anti during his diplomatically delicate visit to Moscow unfortunately the United states and other Western governments have come to realize that they can do Only so much to help Russia make the transition to democracy and a free Market Economy. The Herald Everett Wash. Nuclear tensions remain much reduced from the Days of the cold War. But it is Uncertain How Well the Clinton administration is doing with its efforts to preserve the improvements. The end of tensions Between the West and the former soviet Union brought a blessed reduction in the fear of nuclear War. Yet it also opened the door for new concerns. Log Cabin Democrat Conway Ark. Bowing to intense pressure president Clinton has asked for appointment of an Independent counsel to investigate the Clinton 1980s investment in Whitewater development corp. For several months. Republicans have demanded an Independent investigator but the White House considered the request partisan politics. Avoiding the appearance of impropriety regardless of wrongdoing is always the Best move. The Huntsville Ala times modern America is beset by doubt doubt that we can make it through the decade without going broke doubt that our children will be properly educated doubt that we can walk to our cars in a parking lot at night without being attacked. The birthday of Martin Luther King is an expression of optimism an optimism that can be appreciated Only in a climate of adversity. Elpaso Texas Herald Post a certain Type of Kook slashes Monet or throws acid on Rembrandt. Not the artists themselves but their paintings. Alas the mania to mar the Beautiful is evolving. Now live athletes artists of motion Are targets. Society must raise the Cost. Enough outrages. Nancy Kerrigan s assailant must spend More time on ice than she Ever will. The Plain dealer Cleveland just a few months ago Britain France and Canada were dead set against the idea of nato air strikes to punish the bosnian serbs. The logic went that angering the serbs by attacking their artillery from the air would bring reprisals on . Peacekeepers on the ground. Now the French Are clamouring for air strike because their soldiers Are getting Hurt which proves that a civil War zone is no place for an innocent bystander