評論
打印
Like Eisenhower, this generation of men and women in uniform know all too well the wages of war and that includes those of you here at West Point
同艾森豪威爾一樣 這一代身著軍裝的年輕人 也都非常清楚戰爭的代價 你們西點人肯定知道這一點
Four of the servicemembers who stood in the audience when I announced the surge of our forces in Afghanistan gave their lives in that effort
在我宣布阿富汗增兵計劃時 站在臺下的聽眾中 有四名軍人 為這一計劃獻出了生命
A lot more were wounded I believe America's security demanded those deployments
受傷的人數就更多了 我相信 美國安全需要這些布署
But I am haunted by those deaths
但我對這些逝去的生命無法釋懷
I am haunted by those wounds
我對這么多人的負傷無法釋懷
And I would betray my duty to you and to the country we love if I ever sent you into harm's way simply because I saw a problem somewhere in the world that needed to be fixed
我將背離自己的職責和對祖國的熱愛 如果我將你們置于險境 僅僅因為我認為世界某地有問題需要解決
or because I was worried about critics who think military intervention is the only way for America to avoid looking weak
僅僅因為我害怕軍事干涉主義者的批評 僅僅因為我害怕美國示弱 助長敵人的囂張氣焰
Here's my bottom line: America must always lead on the world stage
總而言之 美國必須在世界舞臺上扮演領導角色
If we don't, no one else will
如果美國不站出來領導 誰都不會站出來
The military that you have joined is and always will be the backbone of that leadership
你們加入的軍隊無論現在還是將來 都將一直是美國領導權的支柱
But U.S. military action cannot be the only or even primary component of our leadership in every instance
不過軍事行動 不能成為美國實現領導權的唯一手段 軍事行動甚至連主要手段都不應當是
Just because we have the best hammer does not mean that every problem is a nail
不能因為我們手中擁有最好的鐵錘 就把每個問題都當成釘子
And because the costs associated with military action are so high
原因在于 軍事行動的代價太過高昂
you should expect every civilian leader and especially your Commander-in-Chief to be clear about how that awesome power should be used
每一位文職領導人 特別是三軍統帥 應當清楚該如何使用強大的軍事力量
So let me spend the rest of my time describing my vision for how the United States of America and our military should lead in the years to come
下面請允許我將剩下的時間 用來描述我所理解的美利堅合眾國應當如何在未來使用軍事力量
