We can never descend to the level of those who killed us. We will (respond) with precision. We will rip them up and bring them to justice . . . The real question for us is, "Do we have the will -- the will to stay the course?"

Most missions respond or are prepared to respond to 'troops in contact' situations where the precision firepower of a combat aircraft may be required. Often, these missions don't require actual weapons deliveries, but rather a mere 'show of force' a combat aircraft produces.

Never invest in any scheme that is based on a metaphor, or anything with the word, “next”, in it (e.g., “this kid is the next Elvis Presley”, “this will be the Lake Lucerne of the Southwest”). You will lose your shirt.

That's what happens -- 270 people killed, and I may have the great pleasure of seeing these guys convicted, imprisoned and [yet] I may live long enough to see them come out of prison.

While we are not and cannot become the world's policeman, neither can we become a prisoner of world events, isolated and tucked safely away in a continental cocoon.

For while the threat of nuclear holocaust has been significantly reduced, the world remains a very unsettled and dangerous place.