Browsing Category
The War Horse
Can I Be Like the Hummingbirds, With the Strength to Fight Another Day?
I watch a hummingbird chase a grackle into the treetops. At first glance, I think it’s being chased by a large, fast-flying insect. The mangy grackle looks like it’s been through hell and shouts a warning that sounds like it’s choking on a…
Wounded Knee Massacre ‘Tarnishes’ Integrity of Medal of Honor
When Rep. Kaiali’i Kahele, a lieutenant colonel in the Hawaii Air National Guard, thinks about the men, women, and children massacred by the U.S. Army more than a century ago at Wounded Knee, it brings home memories of other wrongs.In 1893,…
Invisible Service–Military Families Bear Burden of American Freedom
With some trepidation, I raised my right hand and joined the Army in 1976. I told myself I did it to pay for college, but there were probably other reasons—a sense of duty and a nagging obligation to pay back the debt I owed to generations…
Preying on Patriots—Scams More Likely to Target Troops, Vets
Go Navy Tax Services seemed like a great option for sailors looking for help during tax season. Situated just outside the gates of Naval Base San Diego, one of the country’s biggest Navy bases, it was local, it was convenient, it was…
Firefly Friends Guided Me out of the Darkness of Formidable Loss
It was one of those rare moments—when your heart is filled to the brim with so much happiness that it feels as if it could burst in an instant. The explosion itself would be magnificent: golden glimmers of joy twinkling in the air you could…
Kelly Kennedy: Breaking the Burn Pits Story
Last week, the U.S. Senate passed the PACT Act, which expands healthcare and benefits for millions of veterans exposed to toxins during their military service. Notably, the measure extends presumptive status for multiple medical conditions…
No One Promised Tomorrow so We Lived for Today. But Before Victory Came, I Flamed Out.
Paso Robles, California, just after midnight, pulling into the Courtyard by Marriott parking lot in a junked-up old limousine, courtesy of the Pine Street Saloon. Another day of training in the books— and another night spent letting loose…
I Had Seen What ‘Lock and Load’ Meant to This Drunk and Rowdy Rabble, and I Wanted Out
By the time “Let’s lock and load the ensign” reached a crescendo, I was already crawling under the chief club’s tables, hoping for a quick reprieve from the chief petty officer’s initiation. It was Friday afternoon, 14 March 1980, at Naval…
Information Is a Weapon, Same as a Gun. We Can Measure the Value of Both in Blood.
Photos and Text by Nathan WebsterBone shards poke through the skin of the Iraqi sheepherder’s foot. A rifle round had entered the sole, exited through the top. Off-white splinters surround a small hole. Blood drains in a flow between his…
Note to Self: When They Come for You in the Night, Don’t Give Up. Fight Back.
Greetings,This may be hard to wrap your mind around, but this is the older you. I wanted to take some time to explain a few things, put some things into perspective, and, I hope, provide some guidance that may positively impact your…
Play Hard. Get Dirty. Use Good Saop.