I KNOW WHAT A WORLD WITHOUT NUCLEAR WEAPONS LOOKS LIKE IT'S NOT A VERY NICE
WORLD, BECAUSE A WORLD WITHOUT NUCLEAR WEAPONS IS THE WORLD BEFORE 1945 AND IF
YOU JUST THINK ABOUT THE SIX YEARS PRIOR TO AUGUST OF 1945 WHEN THE FIRST NUCLEAR
WEAPON WAS EMPLOYED AND WE'VE BEEN IN THE NUCLEAR AGE EVER SINCE BUT IF YOU LOOK
AT THE WORLD THE SIX YEARS PRIOR TO AUGUST OF 1945 IN THOSE SIX YEARS
SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 60 AND 80 MILLION PEOPLE WERE KILLED IN THAT SIX YEAR
PERIOD IF YOU DO THE MATH THAT'S SOMEWHERE OVER 30,000 PEOPLE A DAY WERE
BEING KILLED DURING THE SIX YEARS OF WORLD WAR II THAT'S A WORLD I DON'T
WANT TO LIVE IN
NUCLEAR WEAPONS HAVE HELPED KEEP THAT MAJOR POWER CONFLICT
DOWN AND HAVE HELPED ELIMINATE THAT MAJOR POWER CATASTROPHE THAT WON WORLD
WAR II THAT'S WHAT NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROVIDE, THAT STRATEGIC DETERRENT TO PREVENT
MAJOR POWER CONFLICT IT DOESN'T ELIMINATE CONFLICT, CONFLICT WILL ALWAYS
EXIST SOMETIMES IT WILL GET TO BE VIOLENT BUT IT HAS KEPT DOWN THE MAJOR
POWER CONFLICT ALL THE WAY THROUGH.
MODERNIZATION IS CRITICAL TO THE FUTURE OF OUR DETERRENT CAPABILITY SADLY WE'VE
DELAYED THE MODERNIZATION OF THOSE PROGRAMS REALLY TOO LONG BUT WE'VE PUT A PROCESS
IN PLACE THAT IS VERY BUREAUCRATIC AND VERY SLOW AND VERY DELIBERATE IT
PREVENTS BIG MISTAKES BUT IT ALSO PUTS HUGE SCHEDULE INTO PROGRAMS AND WHEN YOU
HAVE ADVERSARIES THAT ARE GOING FAST YOU DON'T HAVE THE TIME TO TAKE TO GO
THROUGH THAT VERY DELIBERATE PROCESS BECAUSE IF IT TAKES YOU 25 YEARS TO
BUILD A CAPABILITY WHICH IS WHAT IT'S GOING TO TAKE US TO BUILD A NUMBER SPACE
CAPABILITIES A NUMBER OF MISSILE CAPABILITIES IF IT TAKES YOU 25 YEARS AND THE
ADVERSARY CAN DO IT IN 10 YEARS IN 50 YEARS YOU'VE HAD TWO CYCLES AND THEY'VE
HAD FIVE THEY'RE THREE CYCLES AHEAD OF YOU WE CANNOT BE BEHIND OUR ADVERSARIES ANYMORE
WE HAVE TO MOVE QUICKLY AND WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THE RISK WE HAVE TO TAKE
APPROPRIATE RISK NOT CRAZY RISK BUT APPROPRIATE RISK AND GIVE THE AUTHORITY
AND RESPONSIBILITY TO THE PEOPLE THAT CAN MOVE FAST AND THEN AMERICAN INDUSTRY
WILL MOVE FAST JUST LIKE WE'VE ALWAYS DONE
ONE OF MY FAVORITE STORIES IS GENERAL SCHREIBER AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SPACE
PROGRAM AS HE'S BUILDING THE CORONA SATELLITE PROGRAM THE FIRST SPY
SATELLITE IT DIDN'T WORK UNTIL THE 13TH ATTEMPT 12 FAILURES IN A ROW AND THEN
FINALLY WORKS THE 13TH TIME HE HAD THINGS BLOW UP SOMETIMES WHEN THE
SATELLITE MADE IT TO SPACE THEN IT DIDN'T MAKE IT BACK TO EARTH
SPLASHED IN THE OCEAN MULTIPLE TIMES THINGS BROKE ALL OVER THE PLACE BUT EACH
TIME HE DID THAT THEY LEARNED AND THEY DIDN'T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKES AGAIN THEY
LEARNED FROM THE MISTAKES THEY MADE AND BECAUSE OF THAT THEY WERE ABLE TO TURN
IT FAST AND THEY WERE ABLE TO TEST ON A VERY RAPID SEQUENCE IN TODAY'S DAY AND
AGE YOU CAN IMAGINE THE HEADLINES OF THE PAPER IF YOU HAD ANY PROGRAM THAT FAILED
12 TIMES IN A ROW IT WOULD JUST BE A DEATH KNELL THE PROGRAM WOULDN'T BE
ALLOWED TO EXCEED BUT THAT'S ACTUALLY HOW YOU GO FAST YOU GO FAST IN THIS
BUSINESS WHICH IS A VERY DIFFICULT BUSINESS BY PUSHING THE ENVELOPE
LEARNING INSTRUMENTING THE TEST SO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT HAPPENS AND WHAT
GOES WRONG AND THEN GO FAST
SO THE THREE PRIORITIES FOR THIS COMMAND ARE I THINK PRETTY SIMPLE AND STRAIGHTFORWARD
PRIORITY ONE ABOVE ALL ELSE WE WILL PROVIDE A STRATEGIC DETERRENT
PRIORITY TWO IF DETERRENCE FAILS WE WILL PROVIDE A DECISIVE RESPONSE AND PRIORITY
THREE WE'LL DO IT WITH A COMBAT-READY FORCE WHENEVER I SAY THOSE PRIORITIES
WHAT PEOPLE HEAR WHEN I SAY THAT IS THEY THINK ABOUT OUR NUCLEAR CAPABILITIES
THAT'S PROBABLY WHERE YOUR HEAD WENT THAT'S WHERE MOST PEOPLE HEAD GO WHEN I
SAY WE WILL PROVIDE A STRATEGIC DETERRENCE IF DETERRENCE FAILS WE'LL
PROVIDE A DECISIVE RESPONSE WE'LL DO WITH A COMBAT-READY FORCE EVERYBODY GOES
TO THE NUCLEAR CAPABILITIES BUT IT ACTUALLY APPLIES TO EVERY ELEMENT OF
THIS COMMAND NUCLEAR SPACE CYBER MISSILE DEFENSE
GLOBAL STRIKE ELECTRONIC WARFARE INTELLIGENCE TARGETING ANALYSIS ALL OF
THOSE CAPABILITIES WE BRING TO BEAR ON THE FIGHT TODAY WE NEED TO IN THE FUTURE
AND THAT'S THE VISION FOR THIS COMMAND WE NEED TO MOVE WHERE ALL OF THOSE
CAPABILITIES ARE INTEGRATED TO PROVIDE A SINGLE DETERRENT EFFECT A SINGLE
DECISIVE RESPONSE IF WERE THREATENED ALL THOSE CAPABILITIES TOGETHER WILL BE MUCH MORE
POWERFUL THAN EACH OF THEM SEPARATELY AND THAT APPLIES TO THE NUCLEAR
CAPABILITIES AS WELL
FROM AN INSURANCE PERSPECTIVE ASSURANCE IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS WE
DO FOR OUR ALLIES WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR ALLIES LIKE THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA OR
JAPAN WE HAVE CAPABILITIES HERE THAT PROVIDE
AN EXTENDED DETERRENT FOR THOSE TWO ALLIES IN A NUMBER OF OTHER ALLIES
AROUND THE WORLD IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE ALWAYS ASSURE THEM THAT WE WILL BE THERE
WITH THE CAPABILITIES THAT WE HAVE IF THEY'RE EVER ATTACKED WITH NUCLEAR
CAPABILITIES THAT'S WHAT EXTENDED DETERRENCE MEANS AND SO WE HAVE THE RESPONSIBILITY
TO ASSURE OUR ALLIES THROUGH DEMONSTRATIONS THROUGH PARTNERSHIP
THROUGH EXERCISES THAT WE WILL ALWAYS BE THERE IF THERE'S A CHALLENGE THAT THEY
FACE AND THERE IS A CHALLENGE RIGHT NOW WITH NORTH KOREA AND IT'S VERY IMPORTANT
FOR THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA AND FOR JAPAN THAT THEY KNOW
THAT WE WILL BE THERE AND WE WILL BE
THE GREATEST GIFT TO COMMANDERS GIVEN IS THE SONS AND
DAUGHTERS OF OUR NATION AND THEY COME TO WORK EVERY DAY SO IF YOU GO ON BOARD A
NUCLEAR SUBMARINE WHETHER IT'S THE TENNESSEE OR THE ALABAMA WHATEVER
ELEMENT OF OUR FORCE AND YOU GO UNDERWAY ON THAT SUBMARINE YOU'LL HAVE
SOME NUMBER OVER 100 SAILORS THAT ARE UNDERWATER FOR MONTHS AT A TIME
UNDER THE WATER SILENT SERVICE ALWAYS READY ALWAYS CAPABLE AND THEY ARE SO BRIGHT
SO ENERGIZED SO MOTIVATED THEY UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED
TO DO EVERY DAY WHEN THEY COME TO WORK THEY ARE READY IF YOU GO TO THE MISSILE
FIELDS OF MONTANA NORTH DAKOTA COLORADO ANYWHERE YOU GO YOU GO INTO A LAUNCH
CONTROL CENTER YOU'LL FIND TWO YOUNG AIR FORCE OFFICERS SITTING ALERT 24 HOURS
READY AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE TO RESPOND AND THEY ARE HIGHLY MOTIVATED THEY
UNDERSTAND THAT THEY'RE DOING THE MOST IMPORTANT JOB THEIR COUNTRY HAS TO GIVE
AND THEY'RE DOING THAT AND THEY'RE READY IT'S JUST IT IS THE GREATEST FEELING IN
THE WORLD THAT IS THE BEST PART ABOUT BEING A COMMANDER WITHOUT A DOUBT THE
BEST PART OF BEING A COMMANDER IS ACTUALLY SEEING THE YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN
WHO DO THIS MISSION EVERY DAY THE SOLDIERS SAILORS AND AIRMEN AND MARINES
WHO SIGN UP TO DO SOME OF THE MOST DIFFICULT JOBS THAT OUR COUNTRY HAS AND
MAN THEY DO IT THEY LOVE IT AND THEY'RE GOOD AT IT
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