It's telling how applicable and true this statement still is in today's global war on terror.

"As I said last night in Dallas, our military serves to protect our freedom and keep the peace. None of the four wars in my lifetime and none of the wars that you have seen came about because we were too strong. History shows that weakness invites tyrants to believe that the price of aggression will be cheap. And while military strength alone is not enough to ensure a more secure world, without military strength, there can be no effective diplomacy, no meaningful negotiations, no real security, no lasting peace."

Ronald Reagan
National Convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Chicago, Illinois
August 24, 1984