GL: Merely "able"? He virtually created the Red Army and I don't think there can be much doubt that if Trotsky had still been in charge the army would have responded better and quicker to the Nazi invasion. I mean, I doubt that he would have purged _35,000_ Red Army officers in 1937-38, as Stalin did. Hk: In the best tradition of Thurston, Arch Getty et al, I suggest you seriously verify your numbers. By the bye, you might also check out Lenin's correspondences with both T & S on the fronts; Mark von Hagen's history of the Red Army, and "Stalin's Generals Speak". Hari Kumar