Hypervigilance: Are You Always Alert?We were in the middle of Subject Control and Arrest Techniques in the Police Academy when I earned the name “Code Red.” If my bearing and violence in movement to complete tasks wasn’t enough of a giveaway that I had recently served in the military, then my “hypervigilance” would dispel any doubts. I was the recruit that assessed … [Read more...]
Gift Ideas for Veterans: The Semi-Auto Rubber Band Gun
Gift Ideas for Veterans: The Semi-Auto Rubber Band Gun by Scott FaithThis Christmas season, we're going to help you shop for the military veteran who has everything.This is too cool: a Walther PPK-style multi-shot rubber band gun. I mean, what veteran wouldn't want a James Bond-style semi-auto rubber band gun?This is WAY cooler than that "gun" you used to make … [Read more...]
A Civilian’s Military Benefit, A Daughter’s Perspective
A Civilian's Military Benefit, A Daughter's Perspective By: Brooke HickcoxI remember my dad was driving me to school one morning when I was 11 years old. Our island didn't have patrol cars yet, he drove his beige Bronco with blue lights in the grill, a surf rack on the hood, and a CB in the dash. I got to say “10/4” a lot. We were driving down a road when we came to a stop … [Read more...]
Ranger School Is Not A Leadership School
Ranger School Is Not A Leadership School by Major John SpencerEditor's Note: This is another excellent article from Major John Spencer at the Modern War Institute (MWI). This article was originally posted on the Modern War Blog, where you can read Major Spencer's biography and see what qualifies him to write an article like this. While there, you can also check … [Read more...]
There’s an “I” in “Team,” It’s in the A-Hole.
There's an "I" in "Team," It's in the A-Hole. by Leonard BentonWhen I spent my time in the military, I started out with the idea that I was going in for the long haul. That was my intention up front and my goal. There were hurdles and challenges, but from the outset, I knew what the gains were — if I completed the task.That was back in the age before the internet, when … [Read more...]
“Ripper Street:” A Note to the Wayward Sons of GWOT
Written by Special Guest Author: Chris Duplantis This article first appeared in The Havok Journal on 5 December 2017. Self-regard……They looked out from their caves across unsheltered plains and knew all that lay out there was savage and hostile to their existence on that Earth. And they saw the threat and felt only the urge to stride out, to find food, … [Read more...]
Don’t Be A Jerk: Veterans, Civility, And “Nationalism” In The Age Of Trump
Don’t Be A Jerk: Civility And Nationalism In The Age Of Trump by Nathan K. PlayerThe veteran community understands that we live in troubled times. It’s okay, we can admit it. Just look around you. In the last two years the “normal” in America has been turned upside down. It doesn’t matter if you support POTUS or hate him, we have all lost friends and been rudely awakened … [Read more...]
The Fall of Rome: Even the Legions Experienced Toxic Leadership
INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUMUT: GENERALIS FLAVIUS AETIUS LEGATUS AUGUSTI PRO PRAETOREEX: GENERALIS GNAEL MALLIUS MAXIMUS LEGATUS LEGIO UNDECIMA CLAUDIASUBJECT: CONSULEM LEGIONESQUE ROMANAS CONSUMPTIDIEM: MCLXXXV AB URBE CONDITACC: GENERALIS FLAVIUS RICIMER LEGATUS … [Read more...]
A Ranger’s Path of Self Development
Special Guest Author: Kasey Pipitt“Waking up to who you are requires letting go of who you imagine yourself to be. -Alan WattsAbout two months ago I had a spiritual awakening, if you will. I got to a point where I was sick of who I had been for the last six years and I wanted a change. My ego was out of control, I was angry, sad, and I needed a way out of this pit of … [Read more...]
No One Likes Being a “Has Been”
“I Was” . Depending on what your profession was these can be the two saddest words in the English language. No one likes being a “has been”. For those who served their country this is especially true. When the glory days of riding in helicopters, shooting belt fed weapons and facing deadly threats are in the past, we feel diminished. For some, being an, “I was” is intolerable, … [Read more...]