Warrior-Mentor
11-29-2008, 22:26
I’d like to first recognize Medal of Honor recipient and Honorary Colonel of the
Regiment, Colonel Roger Donlon and his wife Norma who are with us here today… as well as the numerous other distinguished current and former members of the
Special Forces Regiment, CSM (Ret.) Ron McCan and many members of the Special
Forces Association, and many other friends of SOF who are here to celebrate with
us. All are strong and reliable supporters of the Special Warfare Center and
the Special Forces community. Thank you all for all that you do.
To the families and friends of our graduating class, your nurturing and support
contributed importantly to the success of the men who will share the spotlight
today...the newest members of the United States Army Special Forces. I will
talk a little about what they went though to get here today and what they will
do after today’s spotlight fades into the reality of operational demands, but
let me make clear up front that these men are and will remain products of the
character and values instilled in them long before they arrived at Ft Bragg --
and we thank you for that.
And to you, the wives who are here with us today…we realize that when we ask
something of your husbands, we are also asking much of you …and we fully realize
that never before have we asked as much of them …or of you…as we are asking now.
I speak for countless others when I say you have earned our thanks and a deep
and abiding respect for what you do, not just for your willingness to endure
your husband’s deployments, but for upholding the standards of honor and courage
that are the hallmarks of this regiment.
Most of these men joined the Army after 9/11…after this nation went to war. All of them volunteered for Special Forces duty roughly three to four years into the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Sixty per cent of them are combat veterans of those two conflicts, and two of them have already been decorated for valor. So all of these men knew full well what they were getting into. And with many paths available, they chose this one… a path that provides them skills and
knowledge to operate, fight, survive, and succeed in the world’s most austere,
chaotic, and demanding environments. A path that puts them in fierce combat
against our most hardened and determined enemies…in close and enduring
relationships with our committed friends…and in almost total reliance upon each
other. And it was a path that was certain to test them to their limits in what
is arguably the Army’s most physically and mentally challenging course.
We count 74 graduates today, only 41% of the Soldiers who began this course over one year ago. That is only 41% of those who had to first pass a rigorous assessment program that selected them to begin the training because of their high potential to complete the program.
Over the past year, they’ve spent endless days and nights patrolling over the wooded, Carolina sand-hills, developing the tactical skills that they soon will be expected to use themselves, and to teach to foreign militaries throughout the world. They’ve spent countless hours working to master over one thousand critical tasks specific to their assigned specialties, as well as the hundreds of advanced
war-fighting tasks common to all Special Forces Soldiers. They’ve had to do all
of this while working to demonstrate a proficiency in a foreign language before
they graduate. And they’ve had to do much of it under wet, cold, dark,
sleep-deprived conditions. No other branch of the Army asks this much of its
new members…not even close.
So this is a good time to recognize the cadre and staff of the 1st Special
Warfare Training Group. A few of these dedicated officers and noncommissioned
officers are here today, but many are already back in the field, instructing a
new class of students, or preparing themselves for the next class they will lead
and teach.
These men represent the expertise and the continuity of this force.
Most have returned from numerous combat deployments and many months away from their families to spend long hours in the classroom and in the field in and
around Fort Bragg. For their commitment to their mission and our people please
join me in a round of applause for the 1st Special Warfare Training Group Cadre.
And now to you men: the newest members of the Special Forces Regiment. I want you to realize the significance of where you sit today, and what you mean to the nation, and to the U.S. Special Operations Command. Like other members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps components of the joint SOF team, you will be expected to carry out missions such as special reconnaissance, direct
action, foreign internal defense, and counter-insurgency in hostile or
politically sensitive environments. You will fight and you will teach others to
fight. You will run to the sound of the guns and you will move quietly well
ahead of the sound of the guns. You will depend on your skills, your wits, and
your teammates.
You will move quickly to embrace and apply new technologies and you will hold true to the low-tech unconventional warfare missions for which Special Forces were initially established...and which remain the primary mission of the Special Forces today. No one else does unconventional warfare…no one else can do unconventional warfare…no one else should do unconventional warfare.
Unconventional warfare requires one to be a skilled advisor, possessing the
characteristics of open-mindedness, empathy, self-reliance, and patience. It
requires proficiency in cross-cultural communications, the ability to build
rapport with tribal leaders and foreign military commanders; the ability to see
problems through other people’s eyes, and to gain the trust and confidence of a
wary civilian populace.
It requires diplomacy, flexibility, and adaptability, just as much as it requires proficiency in small unit tactics and operational planning. While high-tech, short-duration assaults to capture or kill high-value targets are necessary and urgent, it is the long-term, behind the scenes, persistent engagement activities that will have the most enduring effects.
And this nation counts on its Special Forces to best balance the Direct and
Indirect Approaches to warfare.
We are living in the new normal. We are not going back to the way it was before
9/11, and in words used by the Secretary of Defense, we are not going to kill
our way to victory.
Our surest chance of success is to work with and through foreign nations; to
prevent the eruption of violence in places like trans-Sahara Africa, Southeast
Asia, and Latin America…to encourage stability and to build capacity and
resolve. In most places you will be at the leading edge of the effort.
Today, Special Forces soldiers from recent graduation ceremonies woke up in 44
countries throughout the world. Many are working from remote bases in
Afghanistan, bearded in accordance with local tribal custom, negotiating with
village elders or advising their counterparts in the Afghan National Army.
Others can be found in a coat and tie, working as part of an embassy country
team, serving as the face of SOF to a US ambassador. Still others may be
distributing medical care and supplies to villagers in the Philippines. This is
the world you are about to enter. Your training has prepared you well; it is
now time to go and do.
To the families and friends of our graduates here, you can be very proud of what
they have done, and feel protected knowing that the security of the nation, of
all of us, rests on their broad shoulders.
You graduates have proven yourselves worthy of this nation’s trust and
confidence. And you will continue to develop the individual and collective
capabilities that made Special Forces so awesome.
You will witness…and some of you will perform…almost unbelievable acts of valor
and selflessness. You will endure great physical and emotional hardship, you
will celebrate achievements so unique that only those who shared them with you
can understand them.
We will ask much of you, and you will deliver. The Regiment’s tradition is
glorious and its standards are high. You will exceed them.
You are beginning a great adventure. I envy you and, like everyone here today,
I pledge my full measure of support.
But for now, celebrate this day. You have earned it. It’s been a long time
coming.
Ladies and Gentleman, distinguished guests, please join me in congratulating our
newest Special Forces Soldiers.
“De Oppresso Liber”
We applaud your accomplishments and thank you for your service.
Regiment, Colonel Roger Donlon and his wife Norma who are with us here today… as well as the numerous other distinguished current and former members of the
Special Forces Regiment, CSM (Ret.) Ron McCan and many members of the Special
Forces Association, and many other friends of SOF who are here to celebrate with
us. All are strong and reliable supporters of the Special Warfare Center and
the Special Forces community. Thank you all for all that you do.
To the families and friends of our graduating class, your nurturing and support
contributed importantly to the success of the men who will share the spotlight
today...the newest members of the United States Army Special Forces. I will
talk a little about what they went though to get here today and what they will
do after today’s spotlight fades into the reality of operational demands, but
let me make clear up front that these men are and will remain products of the
character and values instilled in them long before they arrived at Ft Bragg --
and we thank you for that.
And to you, the wives who are here with us today…we realize that when we ask
something of your husbands, we are also asking much of you …and we fully realize
that never before have we asked as much of them …or of you…as we are asking now.
I speak for countless others when I say you have earned our thanks and a deep
and abiding respect for what you do, not just for your willingness to endure
your husband’s deployments, but for upholding the standards of honor and courage
that are the hallmarks of this regiment.
Most of these men joined the Army after 9/11…after this nation went to war. All of them volunteered for Special Forces duty roughly three to four years into the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Sixty per cent of them are combat veterans of those two conflicts, and two of them have already been decorated for valor. So all of these men knew full well what they were getting into. And with many paths available, they chose this one… a path that provides them skills and
knowledge to operate, fight, survive, and succeed in the world’s most austere,
chaotic, and demanding environments. A path that puts them in fierce combat
against our most hardened and determined enemies…in close and enduring
relationships with our committed friends…and in almost total reliance upon each
other. And it was a path that was certain to test them to their limits in what
is arguably the Army’s most physically and mentally challenging course.
We count 74 graduates today, only 41% of the Soldiers who began this course over one year ago. That is only 41% of those who had to first pass a rigorous assessment program that selected them to begin the training because of their high potential to complete the program.
Over the past year, they’ve spent endless days and nights patrolling over the wooded, Carolina sand-hills, developing the tactical skills that they soon will be expected to use themselves, and to teach to foreign militaries throughout the world. They’ve spent countless hours working to master over one thousand critical tasks specific to their assigned specialties, as well as the hundreds of advanced
war-fighting tasks common to all Special Forces Soldiers. They’ve had to do all
of this while working to demonstrate a proficiency in a foreign language before
they graduate. And they’ve had to do much of it under wet, cold, dark,
sleep-deprived conditions. No other branch of the Army asks this much of its
new members…not even close.
So this is a good time to recognize the cadre and staff of the 1st Special
Warfare Training Group. A few of these dedicated officers and noncommissioned
officers are here today, but many are already back in the field, instructing a
new class of students, or preparing themselves for the next class they will lead
and teach.
These men represent the expertise and the continuity of this force.
Most have returned from numerous combat deployments and many months away from their families to spend long hours in the classroom and in the field in and
around Fort Bragg. For their commitment to their mission and our people please
join me in a round of applause for the 1st Special Warfare Training Group Cadre.
And now to you men: the newest members of the Special Forces Regiment. I want you to realize the significance of where you sit today, and what you mean to the nation, and to the U.S. Special Operations Command. Like other members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps components of the joint SOF team, you will be expected to carry out missions such as special reconnaissance, direct
action, foreign internal defense, and counter-insurgency in hostile or
politically sensitive environments. You will fight and you will teach others to
fight. You will run to the sound of the guns and you will move quietly well
ahead of the sound of the guns. You will depend on your skills, your wits, and
your teammates.
You will move quickly to embrace and apply new technologies and you will hold true to the low-tech unconventional warfare missions for which Special Forces were initially established...and which remain the primary mission of the Special Forces today. No one else does unconventional warfare…no one else can do unconventional warfare…no one else should do unconventional warfare.
Unconventional warfare requires one to be a skilled advisor, possessing the
characteristics of open-mindedness, empathy, self-reliance, and patience. It
requires proficiency in cross-cultural communications, the ability to build
rapport with tribal leaders and foreign military commanders; the ability to see
problems through other people’s eyes, and to gain the trust and confidence of a
wary civilian populace.
It requires diplomacy, flexibility, and adaptability, just as much as it requires proficiency in small unit tactics and operational planning. While high-tech, short-duration assaults to capture or kill high-value targets are necessary and urgent, it is the long-term, behind the scenes, persistent engagement activities that will have the most enduring effects.
And this nation counts on its Special Forces to best balance the Direct and
Indirect Approaches to warfare.
We are living in the new normal. We are not going back to the way it was before
9/11, and in words used by the Secretary of Defense, we are not going to kill
our way to victory.
Our surest chance of success is to work with and through foreign nations; to
prevent the eruption of violence in places like trans-Sahara Africa, Southeast
Asia, and Latin America…to encourage stability and to build capacity and
resolve. In most places you will be at the leading edge of the effort.
Today, Special Forces soldiers from recent graduation ceremonies woke up in 44
countries throughout the world. Many are working from remote bases in
Afghanistan, bearded in accordance with local tribal custom, negotiating with
village elders or advising their counterparts in the Afghan National Army.
Others can be found in a coat and tie, working as part of an embassy country
team, serving as the face of SOF to a US ambassador. Still others may be
distributing medical care and supplies to villagers in the Philippines. This is
the world you are about to enter. Your training has prepared you well; it is
now time to go and do.
To the families and friends of our graduates here, you can be very proud of what
they have done, and feel protected knowing that the security of the nation, of
all of us, rests on their broad shoulders.
You graduates have proven yourselves worthy of this nation’s trust and
confidence. And you will continue to develop the individual and collective
capabilities that made Special Forces so awesome.
You will witness…and some of you will perform…almost unbelievable acts of valor
and selflessness. You will endure great physical and emotional hardship, you
will celebrate achievements so unique that only those who shared them with you
can understand them.
We will ask much of you, and you will deliver. The Regiment’s tradition is
glorious and its standards are high. You will exceed them.
You are beginning a great adventure. I envy you and, like everyone here today,
I pledge my full measure of support.
But for now, celebrate this day. You have earned it. It’s been a long time
coming.
Ladies and Gentleman, distinguished guests, please join me in congratulating our
newest Special Forces Soldiers.
“De Oppresso Liber”
We applaud your accomplishments and thank you for your service.