thedrifter
06-07-09, 09:17 AM
Marine general: Threats of World War II no different today
A military leader visits the First Coast to honor veterans of Midway.
By Timothy J. Gibbons
Story updated at 3:02 AM on Sunday, Jun. 7, 2009
Marine Gen. James Mattis spoke Saturday night at a Navy League commemoration of the Battle of Midway.
Mattis serves two roles in the military: As commander of the U.S. Joint Forces command, he oversees the effort to have the various services work together, focusing on training and operating as one force. As NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, he focuses on a different sort of inter-operability, looking to transform the alliance's military structure, forces and capabilities to help the partner nations work together more effectively.
The Times-Union spoke with the general for a few minutes before the event.
Why is it important to remember the veterans of Midway?
I think there's a general reason and a specific reason. The only reason we have people like you with the freedom of the press is because of the veterans. The only way we keep these freedoms is because we have veterans willing to defend these ideas. As for the specific, you have to remember the time during World War II ... We had had nothing but defeat. But out of this, the U.S. Navy - and the U.S. Marines and the U.S. Army Air Corps - turns around and breaks the back of the Japanese fleet. That's a very specific reason to remember what these guys did.
How do you compare the threats America faces today compared with those of World War II?
It's the same threat, really. It's the threat of tyranny. This time it's dressed up in false religious garb. But it's the same tyrants. It's the same old thing, but it's always got its own time. The threat to freedom will be consistent, because freedom threatens a lot of people by its existence.
Where do you see the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan going?
Oh, we've won the war in Iraq; now we see if we can win the peace. The enemy's back is broken. Afghanistan is going to be tough. The enemy is feeling brave, but we'll throw them back. We now are getting enough troops there so we don't have to move in and move out [of won territory]. We'll win.
In your testimony to the House Armed Services Committee and elsewhere, you've stressed the need to prepare and remain prepared for irregular conflict. How does the military do so and still maintain its conventional capability?
It's not either-or. The kind of skills you need in smaller units, they combine into larger units. You have more highly capable smaller units you're amalgamating. It goes back to war being a human endeavor. We want the best technology, but it comes down to human efforts. We don't get the option with America at this point in history to select one preclusive view of war. It's a balancing act.
Over the past several years, there's been a focus on the technological edge the U.S. military has. You've pushed back against that, stressing the human element. How would that sort of shift in focus play out in coming years?
You need this tension between emphasizing purely human factors and technology. You don't want to send cavalry against tanks. You need this balancing act. I think it's balancing out pretty well. We're going to see a lot more emphasis on training and education.
Your focus now is, of course, on joint and international issues. As a Marine officer, though, what do you see as the future of the corps and, to broaden the question a bit, of the Navy?
I think the Navy, because of its ability to operate offshore, gives us a great opportunity to not put a large footprint of troops ashore. By using the Navy and its seabasing, by taking advantage of its asymmetrical strengths, we can threaten our enemies and reassure our friends. The Marines are an expeditionary force. In this age, if we don't have expeditionary units that can organize and train and operate in collaboration with other nations, we're really going to be in a hurt locker. We have to make sure what we're doing is expeditionary. The Marine Corps is uniquely organized, trained and equipped for that mission.
timothy.gibbons@jacksonville.com,
Ellie
A military leader visits the First Coast to honor veterans of Midway.
By Timothy J. Gibbons
Story updated at 3:02 AM on Sunday, Jun. 7, 2009
Marine Gen. James Mattis spoke Saturday night at a Navy League commemoration of the Battle of Midway.
Mattis serves two roles in the military: As commander of the U.S. Joint Forces command, he oversees the effort to have the various services work together, focusing on training and operating as one force. As NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, he focuses on a different sort of inter-operability, looking to transform the alliance's military structure, forces and capabilities to help the partner nations work together more effectively.
The Times-Union spoke with the general for a few minutes before the event.
Why is it important to remember the veterans of Midway?
I think there's a general reason and a specific reason. The only reason we have people like you with the freedom of the press is because of the veterans. The only way we keep these freedoms is because we have veterans willing to defend these ideas. As for the specific, you have to remember the time during World War II ... We had had nothing but defeat. But out of this, the U.S. Navy - and the U.S. Marines and the U.S. Army Air Corps - turns around and breaks the back of the Japanese fleet. That's a very specific reason to remember what these guys did.
How do you compare the threats America faces today compared with those of World War II?
It's the same threat, really. It's the threat of tyranny. This time it's dressed up in false religious garb. But it's the same tyrants. It's the same old thing, but it's always got its own time. The threat to freedom will be consistent, because freedom threatens a lot of people by its existence.
Where do you see the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan going?
Oh, we've won the war in Iraq; now we see if we can win the peace. The enemy's back is broken. Afghanistan is going to be tough. The enemy is feeling brave, but we'll throw them back. We now are getting enough troops there so we don't have to move in and move out [of won territory]. We'll win.
In your testimony to the House Armed Services Committee and elsewhere, you've stressed the need to prepare and remain prepared for irregular conflict. How does the military do so and still maintain its conventional capability?
It's not either-or. The kind of skills you need in smaller units, they combine into larger units. You have more highly capable smaller units you're amalgamating. It goes back to war being a human endeavor. We want the best technology, but it comes down to human efforts. We don't get the option with America at this point in history to select one preclusive view of war. It's a balancing act.
Over the past several years, there's been a focus on the technological edge the U.S. military has. You've pushed back against that, stressing the human element. How would that sort of shift in focus play out in coming years?
You need this tension between emphasizing purely human factors and technology. You don't want to send cavalry against tanks. You need this balancing act. I think it's balancing out pretty well. We're going to see a lot more emphasis on training and education.
Your focus now is, of course, on joint and international issues. As a Marine officer, though, what do you see as the future of the corps and, to broaden the question a bit, of the Navy?
I think the Navy, because of its ability to operate offshore, gives us a great opportunity to not put a large footprint of troops ashore. By using the Navy and its seabasing, by taking advantage of its asymmetrical strengths, we can threaten our enemies and reassure our friends. The Marines are an expeditionary force. In this age, if we don't have expeditionary units that can organize and train and operate in collaboration with other nations, we're really going to be in a hurt locker. We have to make sure what we're doing is expeditionary. The Marine Corps is uniquely organized, trained and equipped for that mission.
timothy.gibbons@jacksonville.com,
Ellie