20 years ago today I walked across the stage at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis and received my diploma and commissioning certificate from then Defense Secretary William Cohen. Tucked neatly inside […]
These 20 Years
On Service
Early one morning in June of 2005 I received a panicked phone call from the wife of a friend of mine. She asked me if I had any information on the rumors […]
The Cost of Veteran Value Signaling
The 22-a-day number is not real. The number publicized to show how many vets commit suicide every day is not real. The actual number is something less than that. And a deeper […]
Can We Question Someone’s Service?
We’ve already had a few dust-ups over the claims of service that some veterans running for congress have made. Over 400 have run or are running in this year’s midterms, a significant […]
Honest Thoughts on Military Service
There are more. Here are 13: 1- I’ve never duplicated the relationships I have that came out of serving together. No matter where or when, seeing someone I gutted out a deployment […]
A Story About a Band
Navigating the half dozen outposts between where I had spent the last six months in Iraq and the last checkpoint out of theater took me a day and a half of helo […]
The Gap
There’s a space between what I once was and what I am now. When I ask others to travel it with me, they can’t. It’s not their fault. It’s just too far. About […]
Why We Served
A few weeks ago, a reader posted a question in the comments section of an essay I wrote on the topic of Confederate monuments. I’ve said just about all that I think […]
The Art of the Aggressive
A few weeks ago, I sat down to do a podcast with retired SEAL, fellow writer and friend Andy Stumpf. He asked me a good question. And I gave him an ok […]
To The Fightin’ Fitz
We don’t write books or make movies about the men and women who drive ships any more. But maybe we should.