Transition Dispatch, Part Three: A Former Special Forces Officer's Life after the Military by Tyler Mac It has been nearly two months since I picked up my DD-214 at Fort Bragg. My entry into civilian life is going well, partly due to familiarity with the area I returned to, but mainly because my current professions are nested with my core values. Your core values are … [Read more...]
Transition Dispatch: Part Two
Transition Dispatch: Part Two by Tyler Mac 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 … [Read more...]
Transition Dispatch: Part One
Transition Dispatch: Part One by Tyler Mac 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 do. It is not even the difference … [Read more...]
The Things I Carried: A Special Forces Officer Reflects
The Things I Carried: A Special Forces Officer Reflects by Tyler Mack 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 … [Read more...]
The Duality of Man
The Duality of Man by Tyler Mac A saint one moment, cheerful and glad Leviathan in an instant, destructive, sad. Dealing with comrades’ death through tears And of our own death, we live in fear Yet with renewed vigor, we’ll boast and we’ll pray To visit death upon our enemies. To Kill. To Maim. On one extreme, love: for family, for friends On the other side... … [Read more...]
“Quick Win” New Year’s Resolution: Estate Planning
“Quick Win” New Year’s Resolution: Estate Planning by Tyler Mac New Year’s Resolution remain popular for goal setting and life renewal. Joining the gym, losing weight, spending more time we family; it is a chance to turn over new leaf. Thankfully, a resolution doesn’t have to be a year-long endeavor. It can be a “quick win;” something rapidly and economically achievable … [Read more...]
What will Veterans Day Mean to the Veterans of the #EndlessWar?
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...]
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...]
