The Ranger Standard: A "Violence Of Action" Excerpt This is an excerpt from Violence of Action: The Untold Stories of the 75th Ranger Regiment in the War on Terror by Blackside Concepts founder Marty Skovlund. You can pick up the full version on Amazon.com, the West Point Book Store, and major retail bookstores. _____ The 75th Ranger Regiment became the workhorse of the … [Read more...]
What Does the SOF Community Think about “The Bin Laden Shooter?”
What Does the SOF Community Think about "The Bin Laden Shooter?" by Scott Faith This first appeared in The Havok Journal November 8, 2014. Fans of The Havok Journal have been blowing up our email inbox and Facebook pages recently with comments and questions about the Special Operations Community's reaction to Rob "The Shooter" O'Neill's claim to have been the man who … [Read more...]
Stepping out of the Shadows: A Review of “Violence of Action”
Stepping out of the Shadows: A Review of "Violence of Action" by Scott Faith This first appeared in The Havok Journal November 19, 2014. "Ranger Veterans Should Step Out of the Shadows" read a recent headline in one of my favorite blogs, Task and Purpose. Being a regular reader of T&P as well as part owner of a company that just launched a book about Rangers in … [Read more...]
Haditha Dam: A “Violence of Action” Excerpt
Haditha Dam: A "Violence of Action" Excerpt The following excerpt was taken from Violence of Action: The Untold Stories of the 75th Ranger Regiment in the War on Terror. All of the Rangers on our hill were either in fortified positions or buildings so the rounds that fell didn’t score a direct hit, and no one was wounded on the initial barrage to our position. We … [Read more...]
Nothing Prepares You for War
Nothing Prepares You for War by Noah Smith, The War Horse. We were sailing into the sky, the loud buzz of the plane engine beating against the air. We flew over a vast desert that stretched in front of us. My god, it was beautiful. My colleague, a lifetime adventurer, leaned over and asked, “Aren’t you going to miss it?” He knew the answer, and I do. Every day I miss … [Read more...]
The Ugly Truth About Torture
The Ugly Truth About Torture by Leonard O. Benton Morals are a construct. We are not born with them, we learn them based on societal agreed upon rules. We evaluate our standards against what is common. Morals change; what is acceptable today is unacceptable or not tomorrow and so forth. Before you get all riled up about whether or not someone was bent around the edges … [Read more...]
The Death of a Ranger
EDITORS NOTE: I am honored to introduce guest contributor, Johnny B, who is both a former Ranger and a poet. I have read some of his other work and it is equally as stirring. I don't think I am alone when I say "This one hits home." The Death of a Ranger So, you heard a Ranger died today What a tragic waste, you said That he should die in a foreign land With so much of … [Read more...]
What A Runner Could Learn From A Ranger Mom
This article was originally re-posted on Havok Journal on 30 April 2015. _____ by Kenneth Posner A long time ago, I was a U.S. Army Ranger. It was just about the toughest thing I ever did. Honestly, I wasn’t very good; my path ended up taking me to Wall Street, which was a better fit for my skills. But I’m proud to have served my country as best I could, and I remain … [Read more...]
#VanLife: Don’t Judge A (Ranger) Book By Its Cover
We have been making our way out to Sequoia National Park, but because I have a ton of work to catch up on, we have been in a small town in California for the last two days. Although the weather has been a bit overcast - it's been a nice stop, and a pleasant town. As a writer and independent film producer that is on the road, I find myself in a local coffee shop or Starbucks for … [Read more...]
The Ranger
You can’t put your finger on it, and you can’t quite identify what it is. It is a certain presence that resides permanently around him. He stands straight, the type of posture that is rarely seen in men today. The posture silently screams self confidence. It is the kind of confidence that comes from going out night after night to hunt other men. Men that hunt back. His back is … [Read more...]
