Mad Dog Mattis Quotes

General Mad Dog Mattis, a true inspirational leader! 

Nick Names: Warrior Monk, Mad Dog, Chaos (his radio call sign)

Current Position:  United States Secretary of Defense.

General James Norman Mattis is a retired United States Marine Corps general,  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Mattis 

 

Quotes:

"Marines don't know how to spell the word defeat."

 

"You cannot allow any of your people to avoid the brutal facts. If they start living in a dream world, it’s going to be bad."

 

"Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet."

 

"The most important 6 inches on the battlefield is between your ears."

 

"You are part of the world's most feared and trusted force. Engage your brain before you engage your weapon."

 

"I don't lose any sleep at night over the potential for failure. I cannot even spell the word."

 

"We've backed off in good faith to try and give you a chance to straighten this problem out. But I am going to beg with you for a minute. I'm going to plead with you, do not cross us. Because if you do, the survivors will write about what we do here for 10,000 years."

 

"You cannot allow any of your people to avoid the brutal facts. If they start living in a dream world, it's going to be bad."

 

"If in order to kill the enemy you have to kill an innocent, don't take the shot. Don't create more enemies than you take out by some immoral act."

 

"I come in peace. I didn't bring artillery. But I'm pleading with you, with tears in my eyes: If you fuck with me, I'll kill you all."

 

"The first time you blow someone away is not an insignificant event. That said, there are some a--holes in the world that just need to be shot. There are hunters and there are victims. By your discipline, you will decide if you are a hunter or a victim."

 

"A country that armed Stalin to defeat Hitler can certainly work alongside enemies of Al Qaeda to defeat Al Qaeda."

 

"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil. You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them. Actually it's quite fun to fight them, you know. It's a hell of a hoot. It's fun to shoot some people. I'll be right up there with you. I like brawling."

 

"There are some people who think you have to hate them in order to shoot them. I don't think you do. It's just business."

 

"PowerPoint makes us stupid."

 

"Find the enemy that wants to end this experiment (in American democracy) and kill every one of them until they're so sick of the killing that they leave us and our freedoms intact."

 

"Treachery has existed as long as there's been warfare, and there's always been a few people that you couldn't trust."

 

"Fight with a happy heart and a strong spirit."

 

"For the mission's sake, for our country's sake, and the sake of the men who carried the Division's colors in past battles — 'who fought for life and never lost their nerve' — carry out your mission and keep your honor clean. Demonstrate to the world there is 'No Better Friend — No Worse Enemy' than a US Marine."

 

"The first time you blow someone away is not an insignificant event. That said, there are some assholes in the world that just need to be shot. There are hunters and there are victims. By your discipline, cunning, obedience and alertness, you will decide if you are a hunter or a victim. It’s really a hell of a lot of fun. You’re gonna have a blast out here!"

  •  Addressing a gathering of 200 Marines in al Asad, as quoted in the Armed Forces Journal article "Fiasco", published on August 1, 2006.

John Dickerson: "What keeps you awake at night?"

James Mattis: "Nothing, I keep other people awake at night."

  • Exchange in an interview between John Dickerson and James Mattis on CBS' "Face the Nation" on May 28, 2017.

"There is only one ‘retirement plan’ for terrorists."

  • Speaking on the subject of combating insurgents.

 

 

 "When you were the commander of the Central Command, how much time, worry did you have on Iran? Was that your primary concern?"

 "I don't have worry and stress. I cause worry and stress."

  • CNN journalist Wolf Blitzer and James Mattis on July 20, 2013, in an interview conducted live on CNN about Mattis, his experiences as a senior commander in the Marine Corps, and his perspectives on modern issues of defense.

 

 

For all the ‘4th Generation of War’ intellectuals running around today saying that the nature of war has fundamentally changed, the tactics are wholly new, etc., I must respectfully say, ‘Not really’: Alexander the Great would not be in the least bit perplexed by the enemy that we face right now in Iraq, and our leaders going into this fight do their troops a disservice by not studying — studying, vice just reading — the men who have gone before us. We have been fighting on this planet for 5,000 years and we should take advantage of their experience. ‘Winging it’ and filling body bags as we sort out what works reminds us of the moral dictates and the cost of incompetence in our profession.

  • Nov. 20, 2003, Addressing the detractors of untested Marine tactics in Iraq

For decades, Saddam Hussein has tortured, imprisoned, raped and murdered the Iraqi people; invaded neighboring countries without provocation; and threatened the world with weapons of mass destruction. The time has come to end his reign of terror. On your young shoulders rest the hopes of mankind. When I give you the word, together we will cross the Line of Departure, close with those forces that choose to fight, and destroy them. Our fight is not with the Iraqi people, nor is it with members of the Iraqi army who choose to surrender. While we will move swiftly and aggressively against those who resist, we will treat all others with decency, demonstrating chivalry and soldierly compassion for people who have endured a lifetime under Saddam’s oppression. Chemical attack, treachery, and use of the innocent as human shields can be expected, as can other unethical tactics. Take it all in stride. Be the hunter, not the hunted: never allow your unit to be caught with its guard down. Use good judgment and act in best interests of our Nation. You are part of the world’s most feared and trusted force. Engage your brain before you engage your weapon. Share your courage with each other as we enter the uncertain terrain north of the Line of Departure. Keep faith in your comrades on your left and right and Marine Air overhead. Fight with a happy heart and strong spirit. For the mission’s sake, our country’s sake, and the sake of the men who carried the Division’s colors in the past battles-who fought for life and never lost their nerve-carry out your mission and keep your honor clean. Demonstrate to the world there is "No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy" than a U.S. Marine.

  • Mattis' words in a message to the 1st Marine Division in March 2003, on the eve of the Iraq War, as quoted in "Eve of Battle Speech" in The Weekly Standard (1 March 2003); also quoted in War Stories: Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003) by Oliver North, p. 53

 
Demonstrate to the world there is "No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy" than a U.S. Marine.

Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.

  • One of the rules Maj. Gen. James Mattis gave his Marines to live by in Iraq, as quoted in Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq (2006) by Thomas E. Ricks; as excerpted in Armed Forces Journal (August 2006)
 
Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.

 

  • I come in peace. I didn’t bring artillery. But I’m pleading with you, with tears in my eyes: If you fuck with me, I’ll kill you all.
    • After the invasion of Iraq -and after sending his tanks and artillery home- Mattis sent this message to the Iraqi leaders in every area his men served in, as quoted in Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq (2006) by Thomas E. Ricks; as excerpted in Armed Forces Journal (August 2006)
  • None of the widely touted new technologies and weapons systems "would have helped me in the last three years [in Iraq and Afghanistan]. But I could have used cultural training [and] language training. I could have used more products from American universities [who] understood the world does not revolve around America and [who] embrace coalitions and allies for all of the strengths that they bring us."
    • Speaking at a professional conference on military transformation, urging the Pentagon to invest in efforts that would "diminish the conditions that drive people to sign up for these kinds of insurgencies." Breaking the Warrior Code (February 2005)

 

 In this age, I don’t care how tactically or operationally brilliant you are, if you cannot create harmony—even vicious harmony—on the battlefield based on trust across service lines, across coalition and national lines, and across civilian/military lines, you need to go home, because your leadership is obsolete. We have got to have officers who can create harmony across all those lines.
 

At the May 2010 JFCOM Conference Ares blog, Aviation Week (June 2010)

PowerPoint makes us stupid.

  • Referring to the ubiquitous presentation software at a brief in North Carolina in April 2010, as quoted in We Have Met the Enemy and He Is PowerPoint (2010) by Elisabeth Bumiller, The New York Times

Treachery has existed as long as there’s been warfare, and there’s always been a few people that you couldn’t trust.

  • In response to a question during a congressional hearing about whether the U.S. should modify its Afghan strategy in response to six U.S. soldiers being killed by Afghan soldiers between Feb. 23 and March 1. As quoted in Key commanders have their say on Afghanistan (2012) by Walter Pincus, The Washington Post

 

 

Treachery has existed as long as there’s been warfare, and there’s always been a few people that you couldn’t trust.

  • In response to a question during a congressional hearing about whether the U.S. should modify its Afghan strategy in response to six U.S. soldiers being killed by Afghan soldiers between Feb. 23 and March 1. As quoted in Key commanders have their say on Afghanistan (2012) by Walter Pincus, The Washington Post

First Message to the U.S. Department of Defense

Message sent from Mattis on January 20, 2017, the day he was sworn in as U.S. Secretary of Defense. Release No. NR-020-17.

  • It’s good to be back and I’m grateful to serve alongside you as Secretary of Defense. Together with the Intelligence Community we are the sentinels and guardians of our nation. We need only look to you, the uniformed and civilian members of the Department and your families, to see the fundamental unity of our country. You represent an America committed to the common good; an America that is never complacent about defending its freedoms; and an America that remains a steady beacon of hope for all mankind. Every action we take will be designed to ensure our military is ready to fight today and in the future. Recognizing that no nation is secure without friends, we will work with the State Department to strengthen our alliances. Further, we are devoted to gaining full value from every taxpayer dollar spent on defense, thereby earning the trust of Congress and the American people. I am confident you will do your part. I pledge to you I’ll do my best as your Secretary. MATTIS SENDS

 

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