No VAcancy

“There’s a comfort in being scared, when you’re the only one who dares to make the gun smoke black in a white washed town”-Letlive.    We’ve sat back and watched the whole VA debacle unfold in the ...

American Snipers

I love hearing about veterans helping each other, but to me that is how it should be. We’re SUPPOSED to take care of each other. When I find groups of people who have never been in the military goi...

How to: Get a job (as a veteran)

From "The Fish Pond" Being involved in business outside of the military has given me some great insight on what I'll be doing after, how to help fellow vets in transition, and how successful people...

The SARC

“I think he’s just got a bloody nose, and he’s being weak. Throw him back in the pool.” Those were the first words I heard from a SARC when I was just a roper in BRC. I was sick as hell and coughin...

The Riddle Of Steel

“The restless children sit and mourn the graves Of those they've never seen before. Will they be buried here among the dead? In the silent secret” -Coheed & Cambria 13 years ago, I came to Iraq...

ISIS, Iraq, And The Forgotten Fight

The current situation in the middle east is a troubling one. The facts are often misconstrued for political gain and the general public’s understanding of those facts is even more misconstrued if t...

Assets & Liabilities

“Well friend they told me you were dead, the news broadcast your funeral, 500 channels focused in.”-Thrice  One of the most important lessons I’ve learned over the years is there are only two types...

GWOT Veteran Homelessness

“I never thought it would be me.”   The statement is still ringing in my head. It packs an incredible punch like few other single statements have in my life.  It hurts me to think about it in ways...

The Silent Warrior Scholarship Fund

The Silent Warrior Scholarship Fund was started in 2010 by Reconnaissance Marines to honor the memory of their fallen brothers.  After returning home from Afghanistan a small group of men were pre...

The GWOT: Over simplified

"Oh you just got back from Aghanistan? That's like, in Iraq right?"   I almost thought the poor young lady was joking, she wasn't.  We were at lunch with a group of friends, and one of them had tol...

Why Oh Why, Didn't I Take the Blue Pill?

One of the most annoying interactions I have with people is in reference to PTSD and the “symptom” of “hyper vigilance.” I can’t tell you how many times people ask me if being around crowds is frig...

Hammers And Nails

“All my life I’ve been chasing something, I feel fate breathing down my neck. If the road I’m on somehow leads me nowhere, no retreats men, no regrets.”-The Parlor Mob Over the last 12 years, I’ve ...

Read the Labels, Kids!

“Let’s go crazy, let’s get nuts, slip on a purple banana ’til they throw us in the truck”-Prince  On April 2, 2014, Specialist Ivan Lopez took a Smith & Wesson .45 and went on a shooting s...

Long Division

Last week, I discussed the issue of the public’s perception of you as a veteran. I think it’s time we examine the other side of that challenge coin. There exists a rift in our generation, between t...

Military Regulations: Winning Battles Since 1775

Ahhhh, military regulations. Few topics evoke a more volatile cocktail of insatiable, fanatically polar opinions. Casually mentioning the subject from the top of a four-stack bunk in a lower d...