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Letter to All Hands,
We are going back into the brawl. We
will be relieving the magnificent
Soldiers fighting under the 82nd
Airborne Division, whose hard won
successes in the Sunni Triangle have
opened opportunities for us to
exploit. For the last year, the 82nd
Airborne has been operating against
the heart of the enemy's resistance.
It's appropriate that we relieve
them: When it's time to move a piano,
Marines don't pick up the piano
bench - we move the piano. So this is
the right place for Marines in
this fight, where we can carry on the
legacy of Chesty Puller in the
Banana Wars in the same sort of
complex environment that he knew in his
early years. Shoulder to shoulder with
our comrades in the Army, Coalition
Forces and maturing Iraqi Security
Forces, we are going to destroy the
enemy with precise firepower while
diminishing the conditions that
create adversarial relationships
between us and the Iraqi people.
This is going to be hard, dangerous
work. It is going to require
patient, persistent presence. Using
our individual initiative, courage,
moral judgment and battle skills, we
will build on the 82nd Airborne's
victories. Our country is counting on
us even as our enemies watch and
calculate, hoping that America does
not have warriors strong enough to
withstand discomfort and danger. You,
my fine young men, are going to
prove the enemy wrong - dead wrong.
You will demonstrate the same
uncompromising spirit that has always
caused the enemy to fear America's
Marines.
The enemy will try to manipulate you
into hating all Iraqis. Do not
allow the enemy that victory. With
strong discipline, solid faith,
unwavering alertness, and undiminished
chivalry to the innocent, we will
carry out this mission. Remember, I
have added, "First, do no harm" to
our passwords of "No Better Friend,
No Worse Enemy." Keep your honor
clean as we gain information about the
enemy from the Iraqi people.
Then, armed with that information and
working in conjunction with
fledgling Iraqi Security Forces, we
will move precisely against the
enemy elements and crush them without
harming the innocent.
This is our test-our Guadalcanal, our
Chosin Reservoir, our Hue City.
Fight with a happy heart and keep
faith in your comrades and your unit.
We must be under no illusions about
the nature of the enemy and the
dangers that lie ahead. Stay alert,
take it all in stride, remain
sturdy, and share your courage with
each other and the world. You are
going to write history, my fine young
Sailors and Marines, so write it
well.
Semper Fidelis,
J.N. Mattis
Major General, U. S.
Marines
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