By Anonymous Mommy, Mommy!" he said with the oh-so-cute voice only a preschooler has. "There's one! Can we do it?" You hear this and immediately Continue Reading
Law Enforcement
Combat to Cop
Stripping away the weight of armor, ammo, radios, rifle, and all the cumbersome gear, my mind raced, and my body was invigorated. Regardless of how Continue Reading
We Convince Ourselves of an Open Secret
We go from one to the next. We convince ourselves we are impervious. We can shuffle from one to another without one affecting the Continue Reading
Awareness. Flexibility. Action.
There is a tendency in modern training to overcomplicate decision-making. We build frameworks, create models, and teach step-by-step processes as if Continue Reading
Bittersweet Reflection
I stand on the precipice of change. I have spent over half a decade pursuing this dream that now feels all but inevitable. As I stand here, its taste Continue Reading
Learn How to Fight… Because the Terrorists Are
There is a comforting lie we tell ourselves in polite society, especially when it comes to violence: someone else will handle it. The police. Continue Reading
Teamwork/The Maxim
We each brought to the battlefield our own knowledge, experiences, and equipment. A fair fight was never a fight we sought. The odds should always Continue Reading
Warrior’s Guilt
By adolescence, I viewed death as a rapidly approaching inevitability. I viewed my life’s value in its destruction. I sought only an honorable end, Continue Reading
What’s It Like to Take Human Life?
Words like these often flow from a place without fore- or afterthought. They exist only at the moment they flow from my brain to my fingers or Continue Reading
Weaponizing a System That Thrives on Anonymity
The once sanctuary, the seemingly last vestige of honest relief, tainted from within. To be denied the right of comedic relief from the horrific Continue Reading
Jake: My Liberator, My Tormentor
These words are always tormentingly liberating. I fear every phrase, wondering if some passing reader might one day recognize my same Continue Reading
Certified but Unprepared
Editor’s note: Citation superscripts have been removed to align with The Havok Journal’s formatting. Full references remain listed at the Continue Reading