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The War Horse
Come Thanksgiving, I Will Think of His Sacrifice and the Human Cost of War
Family time eluded me for much of 2010. As my unit prepared to join the ever-growing number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, the Marine Corps kept us busy training in North Carolina and Arizona.First Lt. William Donnelly IV training in the…
The Story Behind Operation Pineapple Express, a Daring Rescue Effort in Afghanistan
The abrupt departure of the final American troops from Afghanistan last year after two decades of war plunged Kabul into anguished chaos. Watching coverage of the withdrawal at home in Tampa, Florida, Scott Mann sank into furious…
Nobody Leaves War Emotionally Healthy. The Path to Recovery Is Unique to Each Person.
The U.S. military always takes care of its own when Thanksgiving rolls around, no matter what part of the world you’re in. In November 1968, that place was the fishing village of Rach Gia, where I spent the final five months of my year-long…
Climate Change Makes Things Harder for Unhoused Veterans
On a Friday afternoon in early September, the temperature stood at 94 degrees at Windsor Veterans Village just north of Santa Rosa, California—sweet relief from earlier in the week, when the mercury soared to 114 degrees. The sky looked…
We All Have Stories. After All, We Didn’t Just Watch History, We Made It.
We all have stories. After all, we didn’t just watch history, we made it.We lost friends. We saw heroes. Some of us were heroes. We knew sacrifice and pain and sometimes we saw God at the strangest times.Many of us carry a heavy burden and…
War Horse Managing Editor Recognized by VA Secretary for Toxic Exposure Reporting
Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough thanked The War Horse’s managing editor Kelly Kennedy for her dogged reporting on the health problems caused by exposure to toxic burn pits during a speech at the National Press Club…
Veterans-Turned-Poll Workers Defend Democratic Elections Against Threats Foreign and Domestic
When Kate Germano—a retired Marine who served for 20 years, including as the commanding officer of a training battalion at Parris Island, South Carolina—returned home from her stint working as an elections judge in 2020, she looked at her…
War Horse Sues Marine Corps for ‘Black Book’ Tracking Officer Misconduct
The War Horse News has sued the Navy and Marine Corps, alleging that they broke the law by denying requests for a database of public information about officer misconduct.On Friday, The War Horse filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court…
The Joy and Misery of Survival Took Root in My Soul. Neither Has Extinguished.
Even without my helmet and body armor, the district council chamber felt oppressive. The meager window units could not defeat the heat in southern Baghdad, at least not within the fading grandeur of this marble and columned space. I did my…
Congress Urges DoD, VA to Defend Troops and Veterans Against Extremists Who Want to Recruit Them
The House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs recommends the Defense Department and Veterans Affairs work more actively to identify, prevent, and combat the problem of violent extremism among veterans and military members as they approach the…
Play Hard. Get Dirty. Use Good Saop.