American Military Quotes

• Were the Soviet Union to sink tomorrow under the waters of the ocean, the American military-industrial establishment would have to go on, substantially unchanged, until some other adversary could be invented. Anything else would be an unacceptable shock to the American economy.

  George F. Kennan

  Military, Ocean, Government

  Foreword to 'The Pathology of Power' by Norman Cousins in 1987. "At a Century's Ending: Reflections 1982-1995". Book by George F. Kennan, p. 118, 1996.

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• I submit that those who run the American military at the top, and those whose boots are on the ground and who run the machinery and equipment, are sending a signal: You asked us to do something. Give us some time and we will solve the problems and we will do it.

  Pete Domenici

  Running, Military, Giving

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  I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.

  Nathan Hale

  Inspirational, Life, Country

  Before being executed as a spy by the British, 22 September 1776, in Henry Phelps Johnston 'Nathan Hale, 1776' (1914) ch. 7.

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• **** the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!

  David Farragut

  War, Military, Marine

  At the battle of Mobile Bay, 5 August 1864 ('torpedoes' were mines). Capt. A. T. Mahan 'Admiral Farragut' (1892) ch. 10

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• A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.

  John Stuart Mill

  Freedom, War, Military

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• War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse.

  John Stuart Mill

  Military, War, Patriotic

  "The Contest in America", Fraser's Magazine, February 1862.

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• Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.

  John F. Kennedy

  Inspirational, Memorial Day, Freedom

  Inaugural Address, 20 Jan. 1961

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• How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!

  Maya Angelou

  Strong Women, Veterans Day, Courage

  "Celebrating Our She-roes" by Jill S. Tietjen, www.huffingtonpost.com. June 10, 2014.

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• Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!

  William H. Prescott

  Memorial Day, Military, War

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• Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die.

  Gilbert K. Chesterton

  Courage, Veterans Day, Strong

  Gilbert K. Chesterton (2013). “The Essential Gilbert K. Chesterton”, p.69, Simon and Schuster

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• American soldiers in battle don't fight for what some president says on T.V., they don't fight for mom, apple pie, the American flag...they fight for one another.

  Hal Moore

  Mom, Military, Fighting

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  War is cruelty. There is no use trying to reform it. The crueler it is, the sooner it will be over.

  William Tecumseh Sherman

  Death, Military, War

  "The Civil War Generation". Book by Norman K. Risjord, p. 143, 2002.

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• Among the men who fought on Iwo Jima, uncommon valor was a common virtue.

  Chester W. Nimitz

  Military, War, Marine

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• So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Courage, Badass, Military

  Address at the Sorbonne, Paris, 23 Apr. 1910. Richard M. Nixon quoted this passage in his address to the nation announcing his decision to resign the presidency, 8 Aug. 1974. See Theodore Roosevelt 1; Theodore Roosevelt 2; Theodore Roosevelt 5

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• Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never -- in nothing, great or small, large or petty -- never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense.

  Winston Churchill

  Life, Inspiring, Graduation

  Speech at Harrow School, Harrow, England, 29 Oct. 1941

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• Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!

  William Shakespeare

  Dog, Military, War

  'Julius Caesar' (1599) act 3, sc. 1, l. 270

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• It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; . . . who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Motivational, Courage, Strong

  Address at the Sorbonne, Paris, 23 Apr. 1910. Richard M. Nixon quoted this passage in his address to the nation announcing his decision to resign the presidency, 8 Aug. 1974. See Theodore Roosevelt 1; Theodore Roosevelt 2; Theodore Roosevelt 5

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• Once we have a war there is only one thing to do. It must be won. For defeat brings worse things than any that can ever happen in war.

  Ernest Hemingway

  Veterans Day, Memorial Day, Military

  Ernest Hemingway, William Kozlenko (1942). “Men at War: The Best War Stories of All Time”, New York : Crown Publishers

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• Never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.

  Winston Churchill

  Being Strong, Encouraging, Courage

  Winston Churchill (2012). “Churchill: The Power of Words”, p.395, Da Capo Press

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• It is not the critic who counts...The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena.

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Success, Courage, Badass

  Address at the Sorbonne, Paris, 23 Apr. 1910. Richard M. Nixon quoted this passage in his address to the nation announcing his decision to resign the presidency, 8 Aug. 1974. See Theodore Roosevelt 1; Theodore Roosevelt 2; Theodore Roosevelt 5

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• It is not the critic who counts

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Courage, Military, Failure

  Address at the Sorbonne, Paris, 23 Apr. 1910. Richard M. Nixon quoted this passage in his address to the nation announcing his decision to resign the presidency, 8 Aug. 1974. See Theodore Roosevelt 1; Theodore Roosevelt 2; Theodore Roosevelt 5

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• Get the hell out of my way!

  Ayn Rand

  Strength, Courage, Philosophy

  Ayn Rand (2011). “Ayn Rand Novel Collection”, p.2340, Penguin

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• It is God's job to forgive Osama Bin Laden. It is our job to arrange a face to face meeting.

  Norman Schwarzkopf

  Jobs, Military, Forgiving

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• The most persistent sound which reverberates through man's history is the beating of war drums.

  Arthur Koestler

  Veterans Day, Military, War

  Janus (1978) prologue

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• In war there is no substitute for victory.

  Douglas MacArthur

  Memorial Day, Inspirational Sports, Motivational Sports

  Sylvanus Thayer Award Acceptance Address, delivered 12 May 1962, West Point, NY

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