FDR

Never again must our soldiers and sailors and marines--and other soldiers, sailors and marines--be compelled to fight from island to island as they are fighting so gallantly and so successfully today.

Essential to all peace and security in the Pacific and in the rest of the world is the permanent elimination of the Empire of Japan as a potential force of aggression.

They involve the restoration of stolen property to its rightful owners, and the recognition of the rights of millions of people in the Far East to build up their own forms of self-government without molestation.

It was well worth traveling thousands of miles over land and sea to bring about this personal meeting, and to gain the heartening assurance that we are absolutely agreed with one another on all the major objectives--and on the military…

And now we have supplemented faith with definite knowledge.

We came to the conferences with faith in each other.

At Cairo and Teheran we devoted ourselves not only to military matters; we devoted ourselves also to consideration of the future-- to plans for the kind of world which alone can justify all the sacrifices of this war.

Within the past year--within the past few weeks--history has been made, and it is far better history for the whole human race than any that we have known, or even dared to hope for, in these tragic times through which we pass.

Today I express a certainty--though the cost may be high and the time may be long.

During the past years of international gangsterism and brutal aggression in Europe and in Asia, our Christmas celebrations have been darkened with apprehension for the future.

Nobody knows when total victory will come--but we do know that the harder we fight now, the more might and power we direct at the enemy now, the shorter the war will be and the smaller the sum total of sacrifice.

Because the nation's needs are greater than ever before, our sacrifices too must be greater than they have ever been before.

It is for you to decide under the guidance of your own conscience.

This Third War Loan, which we are starting tonight, will also succeed--because the American people will not permit it to fail.

They know there can never be any economic justification for failing to save freedom.

This is an expensive war--expensive in money; you can help it--you can help to keep it at a minimum cost in lives.

The money you lend and the money you give in taxes buys that death-dealing, and at the same time life-saving power that we need for victory.

We are determined to provide our troops with overpowering superiority--superiority of quantity and quality in any and every category of arms and armaments that they may conceivably need.

Nor will we be satisfied to send our troops with equipment only equal to that of the enemy.

So it is up to you--up to you, the Americans in the American homes--the very homes which our sons and daughters are working and fighting and dying to preserve.

We must put into War Bonds money which we would not normally save.

We cannot afford to be niggardly with any of our resources, for we shall need all of them to do the job that we have put our shoulder to.

And, by the same token, every responsible leader in all the United Nations knows that the fighting goes on twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and that any day lost may have to be paid for in terms of months added to the duration…

I think that our main emotion will be one of grim determination that this shall not happen again.

The great news that you have heard today from General Eisenhower does not give you license to settle back in your rocking chairs and say, "Well, that does it.