What will Veterans Day Mean to the Veterans of the #EndlessWar? by Tyler Mac This year the war in Afghanistan is 18 years old. Soldiers who were born in 2001 are now eligible to enlist and fight in Afghanistan against an enemy that attacked U.S. soil before or soon after they were born. The Iraq war will be 18 years old in 2021. That war hasn’t ended, with thousands still … [Read more...]
Setting the Right Example: Removing the Military Death Penalty
Setting the Right Example: Removing the Military Death Penalty by Tyler Mac The United States Armed Forces has an opportunity to take a firm stance on a divisive, emotional social issue involving capital punishment; namely the ability of our Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) system to hand out death penalty sentences. It is unsettling to see the military involved in … [Read more...]
Transition Dispatch: Part Two
Transitioning out of the military is a big decision. It is fraught with memory. It is emotional, physically, mentally, and spiritually draining to search for a job or experience that fulfills us the way a nighttime helicopter assault used to. Many of our peers struggle adjusting to civilian life. Some find solace in weightlifting or metal working. Others take a destructive … [Read more...]
Transition Dispatch: Part One
This is Part One of a three-part series on transition from the active duty military. As I go through the transition from military to civilian life, I’m more cognizant of things surrounding the transition process. It is surprisingly smooth (I have yet to do the Veterans Affairs medical process so we’ll see). I notice weird things, small things, things to remember, things to … [Read more...]
The Things I Carried: A Special Forces Officer Reflects
On October 2, 2015, I gave notice to my boss: it’s time to do something different after ten and half years in the Army. In the spirit of a writer from my Dad’s generation, I look back on the things I carried: A great admiration for then-Captain Craig Whiteside, West Point TAC officer. Our cadet squad was shorthanded due to multiple injuries. He volunteered as a squad … [Read more...]
A Veteran’s Music Tribute: Thank You for Being There
2016 was already a rough year for music fans around the world. Last December, former Stone Temple Pilots front man Scott Weiland was found dead of a drug overdose on his tour bus. Three days after Christmas, an aggressive cancer took metal rocker Ian Frasier “Lemmy” Kilmeister of Mötorhead. Heart failure took Crooner Natalie Cole on New Years Eve 2015. Music and culture icon … [Read more...]
Blunting the Tip of the Spear: What The SECDEF Really Said, And What It Will Cost.
Editor's Note: About a year ago, Special Forces officer Tyler Mac penned this predictive analysis of the SECDEF's plans to support the ground war in Iraq. One year on, how accurate was his analysis? _____ On October 22, 2015, U.S. Special Operations Forces, in concert with Iraqi Peshmerga partners conducted a hostage rescue mission at the request of the Kurdistan … [Read more...]
Dear Congress, Please Formally Declare War This Time.
Editor's Note: With the slow creep of American forces back into Iraq, I thought it was time to re-post this plea from a now-former Special Forces officer. _____ Dear Congress, Once again you beat your war drums, clamoring for military action against a foreign enemy. If you and the President want to use of military force against ISIS, Boko Haram, or whomever you hate this … [Read more...]
Remember, Bowe Bergdahl Is a US Soldier; He’s One of Us.
One of America’s most infamous soldiers is in the news again. Yesterday, General Robert Abrams—against the findings of the Article 32 investigating officer—recommended Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl face a court martial stemming from his departure from his base camp in 2009. Shortly after he left his base, he was captured by the Taliban and spent five years in captivity until a … [Read more...]
#GameOn: The Day France Went to War
#GameOn: The Day France Went to War by Tyler Mac On Sunday November 15, 2015, France launched air strikes against the Islamic State (IS) in Raqqa, Syria, “destroying a key IS command centre and training camp.” The air strikes came less than 48 hours after eight IS militants conducted a series of coordinated complex attacks in Paris, killing 128 people, wounding over 350. … [Read more...]
