Martin Dempsey
Strategy is, at some level, the ability to predict what's going to happen, but it's also about understanding the context in which it is being formulated. And then you have to be open-minded to the fact that you're not going to get it right at the very beginning.
I've been in the group that believes it's in our national interest to close Guantanamo. It does create a psychological scar on our national values. Whether it should or not, it does.
What will eventually cause the defeat of ISIL is that it will collapse under its own contradictions, frankly. When the populations in which it tries to maneuver realize that that ideology is not to their future benefit.
If someone uses the uniform, whatever uniform, for partisan politics, I am disappointed because I think it does erode that bond of trust we have with the American people.
A military leader should always understand, of all human endeavors... the one that's the most unpredictable and the most costly is warfare.
America is the world's engine but also its conscience. We are the petri dish of diversity and inclusiveness.
History will find some of you but not all of you. Because you can't know which of you will make history, you must do your best to be ready.
The America I know is trusted, sometimes guardedly, but among those who aspire to improve the lives of their citizens, among those who feel vulnerable, and among those who want an equal voice in a partnership, we remain the partner of choice. The America I know leads, sometimes cautiously, but always ethically.
My mother cried when I told her I really didn't want to go to West Point. So I went.
The more we can treat people equally, the more likely they are to treat each other equally.
The American people should not wonder where their military leaders draw the line between military advice and political preference. And our nation's soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines should not wonder about the political leanings and motivations of their leaders.
In my 39 years in the military, I have learned that you are not a profession just because you say you are. You have to earn it and re-earn it and re-evaluate it from time to time.
Relieving the risk of a nuclear conflict with Iran diplomatically is superior than trying to do that militarily.
I graduated from West Point in 1974. It was an all-male institution. I went back to teach at West Point in 1984 and found the place far better than it was when I had been a cadet... I attributed a good amount of that to the fact that we opened up the academy to women.
ISIL is inspiring groups that already exist to rebrand themselves, but in rebranding themselves into a more radical ideology. That's what makes it dangerous.
Sometimes we wait for thunderclaps, drumrolls, and clarion calls to alert us to what's important when, actually, it's most often the subtle and persistent signals around us that make the most difference.
I worked hard at whatever task I was given and embraced leadership opportunities, whether as a crossing guard, an altar boy, or a general.
My belief is that when the military is used as the sole instrument of power, that never has a good outcome. If there's no one to take ownership and develop that failed state, human suffering can be even worse than that created by the conflict itself.
We do have an obligation to deter conflict and to prepare for it should it occur.Collection: Conflict
You might argue that we have become a little too forgiving because, if a perpetrator shows up at a court-martial with a rack of ribbons and has four deployments and a Purple Heart, there is certainly the risk that we might be a little too forgiving of that particular crime.Collection: Military
If there are threats to the United States, then I would of course go back to the president and make a recommendation that may include the use of U.S. military ground force.Collection: Military
This is a major strategic challenge affecting not only our military, but ultimately, America's leadership in the global world order, we are at a point where our national aspirations are at risk of exceeding our available resources.Collection: Leadership
I think what happened is, we have gotten a little careless maybe and sloppy over the last 10 years with the mechanisms that used to provide oversight, checks and balances, a safety net, if you will, for professionalism.Collection: Thinking
We became consumed with preparing to go on a deployment, going on the deployment, coming back, and getting ready to go again. We stopped sending young men and women to our professional military education when they should have gone. We stopped doing things like command climate surveys. We got sloppy with contracting oversight.Collection: Military
And we have got to go back - I will tell you what we have got to do. We have got to go back to the small disciplines that really make a difference in defining ourselves as a profession. And we will.Collection: Discipline
You know, we live here in America and sometimes don't understand the realities of geography and demographics in Eastern Europe.Collection: Reality
We do have treaty obligations with our NATO allies.Collection: Obligation