Report:Wargames Conclusion Ceremony

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The exciting part of the evening commenced with Ackbar's first words. In them, he addressed the criticisms that had been directed at the military in general, and in particular his branch of it. The vow that he made is certain to increase his popularity in the entire military and earn him no small amount of praise from civilians. Analysts have found countless possible meanings for his comments for those, and I quote, "loyal Republican souls under Imperial tyranny", but the simplest one is that it is a general one signaling an increase in the Republic Military's activity.

''"There are some who do not agree with the wargames, and others who have said that the resources used for these exercises would have been better used elsewhere. My colleagues in the high command of the military, and myself more specifically, will address those concerns once more. The wargames have been designed to increase our capacity to best and defeat Imperial forces."

''"In past times, and particularly these recent years, the effectiveness of the military has been put into question. There have been recommendations for our military that involved outright dismantling it, or even enforcing a paycut for those brave beings that were fighting for the safety of all citizens of the New Republic."

''"But it is not my place to respond to those criticisms with anything else other than that single phrase, nor is it mine to single out those who made it. Despite calls to be as acrimonious as some have been, on both sides, despite advice from others that I join in the...debate. I will not do so, and I speak for all my colleagues in the Directorship of the military when I say this. It is our responsibility to behave as we are expected to, and we are expected to provide an example for each and every member of the military we command, and it is our responsibility to live up to the reputation for constructive debate as well as respect shown by other members of the Republic's government. Notably the Chief of State, and Senator Ackinbrac."

''"This is the vow that all of us in the Admiralty and other branches' commanders give to you. From this day forward, each and every action of the Republic's military will be done with utmost professionalism, with great pride, and with extreme skill. There might be setbacks, and there might even be losses, as is common in any war, but we will never give up, we will never lose heart, and we shall never retreat. From this day, the Republic's military will live up as it has in the past to its reputation for excellence. Each and every one of us, from the most recent recruit to the highest General or Admiral, will strive to live up to that trust placed in us by those citizens we are protect. We /will/ live up to their trust, and we will make certain that the horrors commited by the Empire never again reoccur, the days of Cochran or Sluis Van are over. And to those loyal Republican souls under Imperial tyranny, you have not been forgotten, your lives are still dear to us. And at this very moment we work to liberate you from the yoke of petty upstart tyrants."''

''"It is said that when the Republic was forced to retreat from Coruscant that we yielded too much. That we were too easily willing to accept defeat and fall back. It is said that we are so entrenched in defending our borders that we no longer look to the stars, nor look to our neighbors, with the hope of some day defeating the darkness that the Empire brings. It is said that we have become lazy, or worse - indifferent - to the war that continues tirelessly." She pauses, her gaze sweeping over the crowd, "I often wonder - those who say these things, do they believe what they say? The republic is not the land, nor the planet, the skies above or the oceans. The republic is not commodities, wealth, titles, houses, or even the very clothing on our backs, the food that we eat. The republic is the people, and even if all else is yielded - surrendered - the Republic stands and does so with each breath that we take, each measure that we fight. The republic is represented in this room. I ask you all to look around you, see the faces of the people that you stand beside, the soldiers who wear the uniform of the Republic. I remind you, on and all, that ours is a civilian militia comprised entirely of volunteers. Not conscripts. Soldiers who have volunteered to do their part to fight for the freedoms that we so cherish. The freedom to say aloud the very comments that cast such despite upon the government itself. Upon our military."''

She falls silent again, letting her words settle before continuing, "Perhaps there is something to be said when the people no longer believe that we represent their beliefs, their ideals, or that we no longer understand what they endure on a daily basis. To that end, I will be calling for general elections to be held within the next few months. All senatorial seats will be open for discussion, ambassadors will be invited to attend - even from Imperial held worlds. It is time to clean house, ladies and gentlemen. And every office, mine included, is left to the people themselves to determine who best does the task at hand. For this is not a job for the weak of heart or mind, it is not a task for those who seek only to vote for themselves bread and circuses. The military fights for these freedoms, and it is the responsibility of the people to make sure that the freedoms that we fight for are tended too - and represented equally."

''"For anyone who doesn't know me or hasn't somehow figured it out already, I am a Jedi. As well as serving the Republic military as a brigadier general in the Reserves, I am honored to serve as Chief of State Organa-Solo's advisor on the subject of Jedi Affairs. And I am an Ambassador." He lifts a hand and waves it, shaking his head as if they mean nothing, and he looks to Leia. "I overheard a conversation earlier tonight about our soldiers. Someone said that soldiers are soldiers no matter which side they fight for. That they are all the same, regardless of their allegiance, and that in the end, there are only so many ways to win." He shakes his head again, "Let me tell you why the New Republic will win this in the end. It's because of hope. It's because of conviction. It's because of the conviction that what we fight for is right. There are those in the Empire who believe what they fight for is right, but what we fight for is freedom. What we fight for is our children. And our grandchildren. Our wives. Our husbands. Our parents. So that tomorrow will be better than today. So that we can live the way we /want/ to live, according to our own order, without an unnatural order being imposed on us by someone else. We fight so that those we love can live without fear that a government -- a government that FEARS /THEM/ -- might murder them and destroy their entire world in order to quiet their voices of dissent."

''Enb'Zik he takes a breath while he lets those things sink in. His eyes go from person to person in the audience as he collects himself and gets back to his point: "That is why we will win. And that is why the Jedi work alongside the New Republic - because the Republic does what is /right/ for everyone, and not for just a few in power."

He finally turns back to Ackbar and Riekkan, "Gentlemen, I thank you for this award, whatever award it may be. I daresay every man or woman who has ever sacrificed his or her time with family, his or her career, his or her financial well-being, his or her /dreams/ in life in order to take up arms and defend the dreams and freedoms of others... deserves to be up here to receive it."

''He makes his way up to the podium and sets his cane in front of him behind it, using the podium itself as something to balance on instead, giving a small smile to the people around him. "Usually I'm the one /giving/ these things, not receiving them. Personally, I think that putting someone up on the podium without prior notice is one of the worst things you can do to someone. That's something that should be reserved for trial lawyers and students," he says, pausing for a small smile. "Joking aside, however...when I was on Coruscant, I stayed as long I could. From my house--or what used to be my house, it's probably inhabitated by a nephew of the planetary governor now--I could see some of the fiercest fighting. On one of the roads going off the one beneath my balcony, I could see a squad holding their position against numbers at least four times their own. They did quite well in the urban setting, moving in between buildings and alleyways in little ambushes...but it wasn't enough. They got picked off here and there by lucky shots from the stormtroopers until only one of them was left. That one managed to get all of his wounded comrades together behind him against a wall and set up a heavy weapons emplacement. He held his ground for five hours. One man against what had to be hundreds. I never knew what happened to that squad, but I know that they did their duty. I know that they have something the stormtroopers didn't. And that something was compassion. That something is the most important that we have. That something is why we are here today."

''"Those unknowns deserve this much more than I do. And because they are unknown, I want everyone here to think for a minute. Acts of bravery like this are not the exception. They are the norm. That is one of the things that I respect our military so much for. Their courage and compassion in the face of impossible odds. Those two things combined are what make impossible odds possible to beat, and those two things combined are our future. So dwell on that when you're at home tonight, or whenever someone is recognized for something that they do..." Lemos looks around the room pointedly, then at the other people on the podium.''