And his rather stark assessment of what her life would be like at Mount Vernon seems to have done the trick-Mary Washington stayed put.

That stark assessment, unvarnished by political spin, now stands as the appropriate legal conclusion about his conduct.

His comments came during an unusually stark assessment of his tenure at the department and reflected his frustration with the city's failure to address a growing problem.

"No one knows the foster parents," was one of the stark assessments of the workers, according to state records that were made public as a result of a court order.

He followed up with an even starker assessment: "I don't actually see how they can keep their cities going."

The stark assessment from a top Clinton Administration official bolstered Republican criticism of President Clinton's efforts to contain the Iraqi leader.

He said three envoys he sent to the region last week returned Wednesday night with a stark assessment.

The analysis within this paper offers a stark and unremitting assessment of the climate change challenge facing the global community.

The stark assessment comes ahead of a gathering of European leaders in Brussels that has been billed as a summit that cannot afford to fail.

Yet at the news conference, Mr. Sudarsono gave a starker assessment, suggesting that the plan might be carried out only if it was limited in scope.