Secretary of Defense Mattis might be the first cabinet official to have his job thanks to Facebook memes. While cool Mattis quotes became fodder for veterans and their boosters he became a legend. A legend created by Mattis himself. Military leaders historically used the press before to achieve psychological aims at home and abroad. Napoleon so deftly controlled his image that disasters like the Egyptian campaign were sold as victories at home. The problem with propaganda is that it is an omnidirectional weapon that harms friend and foe alike. Unlike many famous generals in history Mattis has never won a war, nor waged a decisive campaign. He found victory in the minds of the American people by creating a legend based upon his selflessness, standards, and intelligence. When you look closely you find that all of these were overhyped and distorted. Mattis’ story remains essentially unchallenged. I believe that no public figure is above scrutiny and I write this in the spirit of openness and accountability.
On Christmas day of 1998 General Krulak was delivering cookies to the unlucky Marines who had guard duty in Quantico, VA. He was surprised to learn that then Brigadier General Mattis was the duty officer. Mattis explained that he took the shift from a young Major so he could spend time with is family. It’s a story of self-sacrifice and kindness that warms the heart. Until you start to look. First off Mattis is a lifelong bachelor. You can’t really say that you’re sacrificing your time when you have nothing better to do. Second General Krulak delivered cookies every Christmas which means that Mattis knew his boss would see his kind gesture. What at first glance is a selfless act came at no personal cost to Mattis and gained the favor of his commander.
Tom Ricks is an influential author, reporter, and columnist for national security affairs. His books are best sellers and he frequently contributes to such high profile publications as Foreign Policy Magazine, The Atlantic Monthly, and The Washington Post. In “The Generals” he laments the American military’s refusal to fire generals for incompetence. He cheerfully approved Mattis’ firing of 1/1 commander Colonel Joe Dowdy as a return to the standard of accountability.
Dowdy’s regiment encountered unexpected resistance from the Fedayeen Saddam in the city of Al-Kut. The Fedayeen were loyal to Saddam personally they operated as stay behind guerrillas. The Fedayeen fought the initial invasion of Iraq more effectively than the Iraqi Army or Republican Guard and were the first major force in the subsequent guerrilla war. The CIA reported the capabilities of the Fedayeen, but bureaucratic processes devalued this intelligence for the invasion plan. No invasion plan considered the Fedayeen at all.
Generals Mattis and Kelly were disappointed that Colonel Dowdy wasn’t moving as fast as the plan demanded. When he couldn’t complete his fighting on schedule Mattis relieved Dowdy of command. For added humiliation Mattis ordered Dowdy to surrender his pistol. This reflects poorly on the competence and character of Mattis. Mattis is a voracious reader who served during the abortive reforms of commandant Al Gray should have known the difference between a command push and a recon pull. Reviewing the doctrine of maneuver warfare reveals that unplanned delays, like what Colonel Dowdy encountered, are both inevitable and opportunities for tactical maneuver by adjacent units. Mattis’ inability to grasp the intelligence on the ground made a mockery of his intent to be a general that briefed his staff. His unwillingness to make a bold tactical adjustment reveal incompetent officership and lazy scholarship. Tactically the firing was a blunder. Morally the firing was cruel. By stripping Colonel Dowdy of his pistol in a hostile country Mattis’ revealed a deep contempt for his subordinate as a person. The fact that this incompetent and immoral act added to the Mattis mystique is as deep an indictment of his boosters as himself.
As Secretary of Defense Mattis has publicly contradicted his commander in chief’s decisions. Adding conditions post hoc to the summit with Kim Jong Un unilaterally. He approved the National Defense Strategy Summary of 2018 which reoriented the US military toward antagonizing great powers with conventional capabilities that rival our own. This relegates the wars against non-state terror groups to secondary importance despite their hostile operations. He also fired a Pentagon fraud inspector while facing independent inquiries that he favored Amazon for technical products. Somehow this self-serving insubordination was celebrated as "independence" when Mattis finally resigned as Secretary of Defense. The Mattis myth makes all of this shocking, but the Mattis record makes it all predictable. The Mad Dog turned out to be a Paper Tiger.
Most certainly overrated. A lot of boomers want a Bonaparte figure and will create one if they don't have one. Trump is also responsible for this because he'd give speeches where he'd say things like "What ever happened to generals like Patton and MacArthur?" to a bunch of whooping boomers who only know about those (also overrated) generals because of the History Channel. I think he also picked Mattis to be defense secretary because of the "Mad Dog" image.
I think his original nickname was actually "Chaos" which is a clever reference to navigating a chaotic battlefield environment, if I remember right, but normies don't understand what that means and would just flip out about "chaos!?! We don't want that!"
Cameron Perry
yeah, he's basically just typical jarhead brass. nothing special about him at all
Cooper Anderson
YFW Trump only picked him because of the nickname "maddog"
Searched this thread for 'homosexual.' No results. I became disappointed in this community.
Hudson Morgan
Kek
Adam Murphy
>Tactically the firing was a blunder. Morally the firing was cruel. Aww muh poor baby neo-con got stripped of his command. BOO-FUCKIN'-HOOOOOO........
Isaac Peterson
Trump is learning on the job, he's got 5 more years, God-willing, to get the job done.
Dominic Bailey
>Mad Fag Mattis Meme it!
Jacob Russell
lol
Brandon Harris
>Mexicans are now crossing the Afghan border. Please make it stop.
Ayden Ross
Mattis is a cool kat He left. what's the big deal?
Ryan Taylor
Yeah haha find some gay porn and photoshop mattis' head on it haha that would be so funny hahaha man somebody better do it quick, haha i'm waiting
Jordan Howard
He slammed the door behind him. Read PTG has every reason to come after this guy.
Joseph Martinez
MATTIS AND KRULAK AND ALL HIGH LEVEL MARINES ARE LITERAL FAGGOT CHERRY MARINE JEW AGENTS GOOGLE KAY GRIGGS
Bentley Collins
Why didn't he let him wrap up until February? He could have taken his time to carefully select someone qualified. How did he come to such a quick decision to let him go and replace him?
Kind of interesting: youtube.com/watch?v=Cwark7uIhIM In the minutes after 25 min in, she says the USMC are "German existentialists" and a mercenary force. This was back when we had intelligent Americans.
Ian Parker
Mattis wanted to go to war with Russia. Thank God Trump has better sense.
Chase Sanchez
BUMP
Chase Bennett
>Facebook memes gave this homosexual a chair. Boomers were a mistake
Adam Sullivan
I liked mattis because he trully enjoyed killing the enemy and these muslims. I heard him talking about encircling some group on the battlefield and the erotic feeling nattis had from being able to annihilate their bodies was nice
That said he has boomer values and lacks the genius of trump. So henis in fact a dangerous establishment republican. It is these republicans that r the most dangerous.
He wants war in syria. And mad that he has to drop the alliances he developed. But trump has big picture and the ability to make deals beyond the mere war that mattis envisions
Logan Gonzalez
she calls them zionists as well
Gabriel Richardson
>What ever happened to generals like Patton and MacArthur? Patton was murdered by kikes.
Lincoln Gray
Fact is his plan in Afghanistan had failed miserably with the Taliban holding more land in the last two years and a huge Afghan army killed ratio...those are facts..Weird he enlisted in 68 and went to college...just like Kelly...thus avoiding combat...think about that...Jim Webb who wrote Fields of Fire lived nam and agrees with Trump that these wars are futile
Logan Hughes
edgy mattis memes are the irl equivalent of coldsteel the hedgeheg
majority of military welfare queens that think mattis is awesome were one more bullying and a trenchcoat away from shooting up some place
He realized Mattis wasn't trustworthy and could fuck everything up for him
Ryder Lopez
Is this the work of the world famous all-volunteer Trump propaganda group known as r/Jow Forums/Pol?
Luis Phillips
You are correct. I'm only an hour in, but the general jist is that the USM is full of homosexuals, is broadly non-Christian, and has homosexual initiation ceremonies. The intelligence community is the worst of them all. Incredible. Why wasn't this bigger news? What happened to this lady?
Josiah Flores
I never actually trusted Mattis much to begin with. He had a very phony aura around him and reminded me of a lot of veterans I've met in real life, phony and self serving. He acted like he was somehow better then everybody else in America because they did some time in the middle east killing innocent sand people. He never struck me as very bright and more fo someone who benefited from being a +120 IQ in a field where much of that doesn't exist.
Gavin Smith
Not much because it's bullshit
Christopher Reed
I got that impression as well. Someone who generates a lot of talk but not much in the way of results. The fact he's a closeted homosexual doesn't lend to his credibility either.
Robert Anderson
Prove it to me. This woman has a lot of credibility to me. She is well spoken, is a scholar of Scottish history, loves her state of Virginia, loves Christianity, has minimal hysteria for her sex and the gravity of her disclosures. You're just a monster behind a keyboard. Holy smokes, she even talks about THE US MILITARY GETTING MUSLIM BOYS TO HAVE BUTT SEX AT 1:16:00. So please, provide your disproof.
Luis Watson
not surprised fucking four eyes sounds like a geek when he talks, how is he a marine? because he can aim and hit a target? he's not a real soldier just an asshole with a high rank
Any retard can tell tranny troops are huge liabilities.
Ryder Moore
It's amusing how you retards try to slander people once it's known they think trump is a fucking moron. Is your identity really that wrapped up in the ego of an impotent, orange nigger?
Andrew Green
bunch of fucking cultist morons. mattis was probably the only reasonable person left in the cabinet. the Taliban and ISIS are cheering now.
Ethan Smith
RINOs are here to make sure proper respect of the military is kept AT ALL TIMES. Hear that boys, no criticism. Haha fuck you, go jump out of a plane without a parachute.
