Aggression

It looked as if the featured bout in the 15th annual Radnor Holiday Wrestling Tournament was going to end prematurely Saturday night. Haverford School's Chris Arcuri had landed hard on his face in the early moments of his 135-pound tussle with Radnor's John McClain, and Arcuri later admitted he was "seeing stars. " As it turns out, the bout indeed was a brief one. But it was not because Arcuri could not finish. No, Arcuri did what all the really good wrestlers do. He gathered his senses, took his aggression up a notch, clamped a headlock on McClain and eventually used a cradle to deck his opponent with 13 seconds left in the first period.

Last Saturday afternoon in Maine, President Bush held a televised press conference concerning Bosnia. Margaret Thatcher, watching in Switzerland and about to tape an interview for an American Sunday morning program, seethed. When Bush was asked about helping to arm Bosnia's elected government that is resisting Serbian aggression, his response was almost flippant. He said there were too many, not too few, arms in that region. Moments later, Thatcher said: "It isn't really good enough to say there are a lot of weapons in the region.

The Green Party of New Jersey regrets the bombing of Afghanistan by the United States and Britain. This aggression on the part of the U.S. and British governments can lead only to an increase in the cycle of violence and the loss of innocent civilian lives. We urge an end to this use of military force. We believe that part of the resolution of the problem of terrorism in general lies in a culture of justice in international affairs. We believe that justice for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks should be sought through diplomatic channels and in a specially convened world court of international law, modeled on the international criminal court proposed by the 1998 United Nations conference that met in Rome.

MIAMI - Playoff basketball is all about physicality. When the games often slow down to half-court affairs, the bigger and the stronger usually come out the victors. That certainly was the case Saturday as the Miami Heat took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven, opening-round series against the 76ers with a 97-89 victory. Miami won the game mainly due to two areas, rebounding and getting to the foul line. The Heat went 31-for-39 from the line compared to the Sixers' 12-for-15 and took the rebounding edge by 52-39.

What are little girls made of? Is it really sugar and spice, or could there be a few snails and puppy dog tails? From fashions to cars to role models, we're encouraging girls to toughen up. We shouldn't be surprised, then, when they act like boys, but we may be underestimating how far they will go. Before society supplies a direction, it should update its ideas about girls and aggression. Seniors from Glenbrook North High School in Illinois invited the juniors off campus on May 4 for a "friendly initiation" - a powder puff football game.

Iraqi officials said yesterday that they had offered to allow U.N. weapons inspectors to return here to deprive President Bush of an excuse to attack. "The pretext that has always been used by them to launch an aggression has been dropped," said Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, a top aide to Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Iraqi leaders say Bush's demands that Baghdad prove it is not developing weapons of mass destruction are a ruse. Washington's real aim, they say, is to overthrow Hussein's regime and gain control of Iraq's oil resources.

James Darling understands what's happening. That's what makes it so tough. It's as if his own best traits as a football player are causing all the trouble. Darling is aggressive, and opposing teams have found ways to use that against him. The third-year linebacker prides himself on being a big hitter, and that has led him to miss ordinary tackles by going for the kill shot. The defensive coaches want Darling to use his hands better, in tackling as well as in picking off stray passes.

If that performance evaluation you had recently left you angry enough to call your boss an unkind name or two behind his back, you're not alone. Workplace aggression against supervisors is on the rise, said Deanna Geddes, an assistant professor of human resource administration at Temple University. And often, the spark is a poor performance appraisal, said Geddes, who recently completed a study on the matter. But actual headline-grabbing violence, such as shooting the boss or coworkers, is rare.

DEAR ABBY: I'm writing because I'm afraid I will never be able to have a normal, healthy relationship with a man. Until recently, I was the victim of a physically, verbally and sexually abusive father. Now I find myself unable to speak around even the most nonthreatening boy. At even the slightest hint of aggression or anger I flinch and run away. I'm afraid I will never escape the shadow of what he did to me. What should I do? - Shy and Battered in New Jersey DEAR SHY AND BATTERED: For you to move from victim to survivor will take professional help.

It was business as usual, almost, for KrystinRuppert in a recent Garden State Athletic Conference women's soccer game. The Camden County College stopper was harassing the opponent's leading scorer to the point of distraction, then frustration. Suddenly, it reached a new level, and Ruppert found herself on the receiving end of an elbow in the face. "That really hurt," Ruppert said, able to laugh about it a few days later. "They usually don't swing at me. They'll push me sometimes but never take a swing.

It's sort of a new attitude - just one word, really. And Lauren Moses was thinking it as she walked to midcourt for the opening tip. "I'm just thinking: attack," the 6-foot-1 forward said. "That's been on my mind in every part of the game recently. " The ball went up. Dominique Ward tapped it to Moses, and as a quarterback would, Moses threw a laser down court, where Sabrina Jackson was waiting to lay the ball in. Four seconds was all it took for the Rancocas Valley girls' basketball team to set the tone in Wednesday night's 74-55 home win over Willingboro.

Former Wells Fargo & Co. investment banker John Femenia was charged in Charlotte, N.C., last week with leading an $11 million insider-trading ring that paid kickbacks in cash and gold for tips on corporate mergers. In Santa Ana, Calif., former Major League Baseball player Doug DeCinces was charged last month with making $1.3 million on tips he got from an executive at a medical eye-products company. In Newark, N.J., U.S. prosecutors charged executives at three health-care companies Nov. 19 with trading on illegal information.

DENNIS KELLY has heard the whispers from teammates for the last week. He is now starting to believe them. "Some players have talked about it, just saying, 'If you're in there, you're in there for a reason,' " Kelly said. "They are telling me to approach it like you can take it, so that's what I'm doing. " Kelly, a Purdue-produced rookie, replaced Danny Watkins at right guard last week for his first career start. Eagles coach Andy Reid said Thursday that Kelly is likely to remain the starter on Monday night in New Orleans since Watkins is still struggling with a chronic ankle injury.

All people wish to kill. Killing for food, land, money, political advantage, religious principle, sexual partners, and even amusement are all part of our complex heritage. Children around the world play at hunting, war, and "cops and robbers. " The wish to kill also informs our language: a successful comedian "kills" the audience; a sports team that wins big "slaughters" its opponents. What distinguishes us from each other as individuals is how we handle these universal wishes. The recent presidential debates provided an instructive illustration.

The campaign's only vice presidential debate began Thursday with Rep. Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) accusing the Obama administration of weakness abroad, and Vice President Biden mocking his arguments as "malarkey" and "loose talk. " And the tone stayed combative from there as the two sparred for 90 minutes over taxes, entitlements and the role of government while seated next to each other at a table onstage at Centre College in Danville, Ky. As if determined to counteract President Obama's listless performance in last week's debate, Biden was aggressive, often talking over the calmer Ryan.

MARTY Mornhinweg was just baiting us Thursday. Reporters kept asking the Eagles' offensive coordinator about taking a more conservative approach, in light of a dozen turnovers in three games (one of them on a punt return, granted). Mornhinweg was defiant, resolute. "We go after people, now," Mornhinweg said. "Look, look, look - I tell the players, we're going to be aggressive. You can be aggressive in the running game or the passing game, but we're going to be aggressive. I want them to be aggressive.

LAKEPORT, Calif. - Brawny and mustachioed, Francisco "Frank" Rivero strides down Main Street in this resort town, wearing his badge, gun and pine green uniform, headed for radio station KPFZ. It's time for another hour of "Straight Talk With the Sheriff," when Rivero takes on his critics. At any given time, they include the chairman of the Lake County Board of Supervisors, the district attorney, motorcycle gangs, an army of marijuana growers and both local newspapers. He's been called a thug, a liar, a bully, a cowboy, and the Cuban John Wayne for his swaggering brand of justice.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Demetress Bell doesn't have to go far to find out what it's like to play left tackle for the Eagles, with Howard Mudd as his offensive line coach. Bell, 28, is sharing a dormitory room at training camp with the man he is replacing and whose very large cleats he must step into. "I've got Jason Peters in my dorm room and Howard Mudd in the classroom," Bell said. "What else could you want?" Peters, whose ruptured Achilles tendon led to the Eagles' acquiring Bell in early April, reported to Lehigh University just like the rest of his teammates, even though he is likely out for the season.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Demetress Bell doesn't have to go far to find out what it's like to play left tackle for the Eagles, with Howard Mudd as his offensive line coach. Bell, 28, is sharing a dormitory room at training camp with the man he is replacing and whose very large cleats he must step into. "I've got Jason Peters in my dorm room and Howard Mudd in the classroom," Bell said. "What else could you want?" Peters, whose ruptured Achilles tendon led to the Eagles' acquiring Bell in early April, reported to Lehigh University just like the rest of his teammates, even though he is likely out for the season.