General Mattis Farewell Letter to Troops
Retired General Mattis released his farewell letter to troops and civilians of the Department of Defense. The Deputy Secretary of Defense took over as acting Secretary of Defense as of yesterday evening.
From the Military times:
MEMORANDUM FOR ALL DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EMPLOYEES
SUBJECT: Farewell Message
On February 1, 1865, President Lincoln sent to General Ulysses S. Grant a one sentence telegram. It read: “Let nothing which is transpiring, change, hinder, or delay your military movements, or plans.”
Our Department’s leadership, civilian and military, remains in the best possible hands. I am confident that each of you remains undistracted from our sworn mission to support and defend the Constitution while protecting our way of life. Our Department is proven to be at its best when the times are most difficult. So keep the faith in our country and hold fast, alongside our allies, aligned against our foes.
It has been my high honor to serve at your side. May God hold you safe in the air, on land, and at sea.
James N. Mattis
You can read more here.
Category: None
Short and sweet… I hope this isn’t the last we hear of Jim Mattis.
I say a presidential run should be the next move.
I believe he will head up the military tribunal!
Short, direct and to the point.
That’s good enough for me.
BUT, But, but, he didn’t leave like a liberal would have, slinging feces in all directions, undermining those remaining in position, screaming about a lack of fairness. That short letter is sure to jerk the chain of the unhinged Trump Derangement Syndrome sufferers. They’ll need a safe space and new pacifiers.
Hopefully the next Secretary of Defense doesn’t believe man-made climate change is a real threat, that transgenders are a valuable addition to our combat power, or that our allies are dependable.
Well done, sir. May whatever life brings you next be met with the same class you have displayed so far.
And thank you.
So now General Mattis will settle down, write his memoir, and fade into history.
Yeah, no. I don’t think so either.
On second read, a few things jump to my attention.
1) He starts with Pres Lincoln and GEN Grant, whose approach to warfare may be seen too pragmatic and too harsh by today standards. I suspect something here. Red flag went up, but I cannot put my finger on it.
2) The “remains undistracted from our sworn mission” statement. What’s the implication here? Again, red flags went up.
3) The “allies” line. Clearly a rebuke to Trump on the ne of their key points of disagreement. Shirley he could have leave this out, or reword it to focus on our own people. This line makes me suspect those who argued Mattis is a globalist may have been right.
4) The “air, land and sea” line. Is this a rebuke to the space force initiative which is probably the best evidence we have of how long sighted is the strategic thinking of Prez Trump?
I am sure a 3rd reading will bring more small details to my attention.
One an often read into simple messages what one may be seeking.
Not meant as a zing. Just try to take it neutrally, as written.
He used eight periods 𝒂𝒏𝒅 eight commas. This is an allusion to something. Maybe the eight periods of human development? Suggesting that he believes we are about to transcend our physical bodies and become creatures of pure energy.
He also used only one colon. Which could be suggesting that I’m talking out of my ass here.
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. GEN Mattis is a man that uses words at face value. There’s no hidden message.
The brevity of the message is clearly meant as disrespect towards the President.
Have you been huffing floor wax while surfing conspiracy websites again?
Reading your reaction, Slow Joe, my response to your observations is that you are over-reacting. Looking for mice where are none.
My letter indicating that I was retiring was as follows;
I’m retiring on [such & such date].
All my stuff is filed away.
I don’t want a retirement party.
I’ve enjoyed working here.
See you around some day and thanks for all the fish.
Thanks for all the fish. Brilliant!
At my job I put in a letter of interest for a position once and in the midst of all the reasons I’m great I snuck in “I have been a member of eBay since 1998 and have a 100% positive feedback rating.” I figured I’d hear about that from somebody. Never happened. Future letters of interest were just “Consider this my letter of interest.” No need to waste my time if nobody will read the freaking thing.
And a 33rd reading will reveal how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.
As Freud is alleged to have said; “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar”.
Every time I swear I will never post on TAH again, someone writes an incredibly uninformed or simply illogical post.
As you are clearly an idiot and/or a troll, I am hesitant to respond, but I simply cannot restrain myself:
1. So, basically, you have no point. Why bother writing this? When you figure out what your red flag is, tell us about it. On second thought, please don’t.
2. “Our sworn Mission”. Nothing secret here. Individuals take an oath to support and defend the Constitution. The fact that the oath is to the Constitution and not to the president should be well known to all on this board, and it is a cornerstone of American military service in contrast to the military of most of the world.
3. Allies. Maybe it is a rebuke. Maybe it is just reinforcing the fact that the US has relied on the support of allies even before we were the US, and that continues today. Everywhere we have a troop deployed we are working with an ally.
4. We do not have a Space Force, so it would be kind of silly to give them a shout out, wouldn’t it? We do have Space Components of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, and of course there was US Space Command from ’85-’02, which was re-established in 2018, no doubt because Mattis was able to successfully explain that a new military service (i.e. the Space Force) was a remarkably bad idea. So, no, not a slam, and no, not a ‘long sighted strategic’ move on Trump’s part.
Please, read a book, or learn to use the internet. I hear they have it on computers now.
By the way, it is ‘Surely’, not ‘Shirley’, although I am a huge fan of Airplane.
…and don’t call me Shirley.
Classy, didn’t expect any different.
Best farewell message I’ve seen from a departing SECDEF in many a year. From what I’ve read, the Department is in good hands with the Acting.
God speed to both!
I just wish Trump would have listened more and Twittered less.
Still would not be surprised with something else developing between the two. Something positive for all of us. Well, not for snowflakes and lefty fools but good for the country.
No, I’m not expecting anything. Just have learned that while Trump is pretty much a “what you see is what you get” kinda guy, he also seems to have a few aces up his sleeves.
I suppose it’s too much to hope for to read a Clinton (either one) farewell letter *sigh*.
He shouldn’t have much to say when he leaves, he said it in his resignation letter. The president decided 2200 troops in the barren northeast corner of Syria were no longer needed to “defend” us from a country whose GDP doesn’t equal the output of Rhode Island…and that was a bridge too far for the Mad Dog who decided it was time to run away. His fear of Russia and Iran swooping into the “power vacuum” seems a bit silly as well, Russia’s GDP and Iran’s combined don’t Texas’ GDP in a bad year.
It seems something else is in play when it comes to Trump. Something else that explains why there have been so many who leave his administration under fire or in protest.
I suspect it has to with Trump himself and his penchant for doing what he wants because it’s always worked for him before and disregarding the opinions of those with whom he disagrees.
The Washington Power Elite are used to presidents who are amenable to suggestion, pliable if you will when “advised” on how to react. Trump strikes me as a guy who will easily ignore an “expert” if the expert offers advice Trump doesn’t find inline with his own thoughts.
I suspect Mattis and the other “adults in the room” who’ve quit have done so because they are not at all used to being ignored and disregarded during their careers.
Please don’t misunderstand this observation to in any way denigrate Mattis whom I respect dearly, I just find it really interesting to watch so many of the DC power crowd get blown out of the Executive branch largely because they aren’t prepared for a guy who doesn’t much care for opposing viewpoints.
Spot on.
One thing about Trump that everyone should easily agree upon is that he will act however he needs/wants to to achieve his stated ends. In that way, he is more than predictable. No amount of wishful thinking will change that – he has been successfully operating this way forever.
In the end Mattis was no different than the status quo of perpetual war gloablists. That’s a shame considering his meme status he achieved. To go out as a globalist pimping the US military out to fight foreigners wars was sad to see but apparently there is a lack of U.S. Leadership that doesn’t want this regardless of the damage its doing.
Thanks for your service, Mattis. I like many vets are just disappointed that in the end you fell in your sword for foreigners instead.