William F. Smith: “it will take weeks, months, perhaps years, for us to understand the magnitude of the terrorist attacks. Our lives will…”

“it will take weeks, months, perhaps years, for us to understand the magnitude of the terrorist attacks. Our lives will be changed as we struggle to find a balance between the need for increased security and the necessity of protecting our freedoms. I was driving to work at the Rayburn House Office Building yesterday morning with my window down because of a broken air conditioner. As I came abreast of the Pentagon, which was on my right, I thought I heard a muffled boom and then, after a few seconds, saw a billowing black cloud of smoke. A few minutes later, when I stopped at the entrance of the Rayburn garage, a Capitol Hill policeman told me, ``They just hit the Pentagon,'' and pointed to the same black cloud of smoke I had just passed. It will take a while for our government to resume normalcy and for our country to regain its confidence. I used to tell Sunday School students that ``confidence'' comes from the Latin, ``con fides,'' which means ``with faith.'' That is how we will have to proceed.”