We have embarked on a long and arduous voyage, one that will test our mettle as a nation and as a people. Each one of us, in uniform or out, young and old alike, has role a to play. While we must go on, we must not forget those who will never grow old. They remind us that freedom is not free and that our liberties, once held lightly, are burnished daily by sacrifice and service. We must fight for freedom.
At our Sixth Warfare Exposition and Symposium in Virginia Beach, we actively discussed the challenges ahead and the shape of events to come. Many of you have logged into eForum at www.navalinstitute.org with thoughtful exchanges. Last month, as we all fought through layers of disbelief and grief to renewed determination and firm resolve, we brought you timely commentary, analysis, and insight under the title "Freedom Isn't Free."
This month, we continue to encourage the dialogue under the banner "Fight for Freedom." Sixteen of you specifically address issues related to the initial 11 September attack and the subsequent counterattack. In addition, to honor the Marine Corps' 226th birthday, we are publishing the Marine Corps Essay Contest winners in this issue.
Warrior-scholars soon will have another special opportunity. The Arleigh Burke Essay Contest, once known as the General Prize Essay Contest, has a I December deadline. Details, including the prizes, are on the Web site. Somewhere, in a temporary office in Washington, in a ready room, or on patrol, some of you will rise to the challenge. Beginning this year and continuing for the next four years, I am pleased to announce that the Northrop Grumman Corporation will underwrite the costs of judging, editing, and publishing the winning essays. At the same time, Boeing will fund our Joint Warfighting Essay Contest for the next five years. Both expressions of support for the ideals of the U.S. Naval Institute are most welcome.
All of us are steaming at top speed to make sure you have the right stuff on which to think and ponder. We are working hard to enhance the fundamental benefits of membership-an independent forum at the heart of our magazines, books, and seminars-to make them even more relevant for your professional and intellectual needs. Beginning in January 2002, we will increase dues for the first time since 1998, to $39 for an annual domestic membership. Several years of rising postal and production costs have taken their toll; our objective is to maintain the quality you expect in every aspect of our publications.
In the aftermath of 11 September, some have called for a restriction of our ability to communicate in the guise of protecting information. Operational intelligence and tactical dispositions are understood to be sensitive by responsible journalists. But we must not allow terrorism, however savage, to blunt the keen edge of freedom. Let's not forget what freedoms we are fighting for. Keep reading, thinking, and writing.