Podcasts about War college

Listen to ASCO's Journal of Clinical Oncology Art of Oncology article, "A Whipple of Choice” by Dr. Carl Forsberg, who is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and History at Air Force War College. The article is followed by an interview with Forsberg and host Dr. Mikkael Sekeres. Dr Forsberg shares his experience with an uncommon cancer treated by a new therapy for which no directly relevant data were available. Transcript Narrator: A Whipple of Choice, by C. W. Forsberg, PDH I sat across from a hepatobiliary surgeon on a gray October afternoon. “To be frank,” he told me, “we don't know what to recommend in your case. So we default to being conservative. That means a Whipple surgery, even though there are no data showing it will improve your outcome.” The assessment surprised me, diverging from my expectation that doctors provide clear recommendations. Yet the surgeon's willingness to structure our conversation around the ambiguity of the case was immensely clarifying. With a few words he cut through the frustrations that had characterized previous discussions with other physicians. I grasped that with an uncommon cancer treated by a novel therapy with no directly relevant data, I faced a radical choice. My situation that afternoon was worlds away from where I was 5 months earlier, when I was diagnosed with presumed pancreatic cancer at the age of 35. An early scan was suspicious for peritoneal metastasis. The implications seemed obvious. I prepared myself for the inevitable, facing my fate stoically except in those moments when I lingered next to my young son and daughter as they drifted to sleep. Contemplating my death when they were still so vulnerable, I wept. Then the specter of death retreated. Further tests revealed no metastasis. New doctors believed the tumor was duodenal and not pancreatic. More importantly, the tumor tested as deficient mismatch repair (dMMR), predictable in a Lynch syndrome carrier like me. In the 7 years since I was treated for an earlier colon cancer, immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) immunotherapy had revolutionized treatment of dMMR and high microsatellite instability tumors. One oncologist walked me through a series of recent studies that showed extraordinary responses to ICI therapy in locally advanced colon and rectal tumors with these biomarkers.1-4 He expressed optimism that my cancer could have a similar response. I embarked on a 24-week course of nivolumab and ipilimumab. After 6 weeks of therapy, a computed tomography (CT) scan showed a significant reduction in tumor size. My health rebounded as the tumor receded. This miraculous escape, however, was bound by the specter of a Whipple surgery, vaguely promised 6 months into my treatment. At the internationally renowned center where I was diagnosed and began treatment with astonishing efficiency, neither oncologists nor surgeons entertained the possibility of a surgery-sparing approach. “In a young, healthy patient like you we would absolutely recommend a Whipple,” my first oncologist told me. A second oncologist repeated that assessment. When asked if immunotherapy could provide a definitive cure, he replied that “if the tumor disappeared we could have that conversation.” My charismatic surgeon exuded confidence that I would sail through the procedure: “You are in excellent health and fitness—it will be a delicious surgery for me.” Momentum carried me forward in the belief that surgery was out of my hands. Four months into treatment, I was jolted into the realization that a Whipple was a choice. I transferred my infusions to a cancer center nearer my home, where I saw a third oncologist, who was nearly my age. On a sunny afternoon, 2 months into our relationship, he suggested I think about a watch-and-wait approach that continued ICI therapy with the aim of avoiding surgery. “Is that an option?” I asked, taken aback. “This is a life-changing surgery,” he responded. “You should consider it.” He arranged a meeting for me with his colleague, the hepatobiliary surgeon who clarified that “there are no data showing that surgery will improve your outcome.” How should patients and physicians make decisions in the absence of data? My previous experience with cancer offered little help. When I was diagnosed with colon cancer at the age of 28, doctors made clear recommendations based on clear evidence. I marched through surgery and never second-guessed my choices. A watch-and-wait approach made sense to me based on theory and extrapolation. Could duodenal tumors treated by ICIs behave that differently from colorectal cancers, for which data existed to make a watch-and-wait approach appear reasonable? The hepatobiliary surgeon at the regional cancer center told me, “I could make a theoretical argument either way and leave you walking out of here convinced. But we simply don't know.” His comment reflects modern medicine's strict empiricism, but it foreclosed further discussion of the scientific questions involved and pushed the decision into the realm of personal values. Facing this dilemma, my family situation drove me toward surgery despite my intuition that immunotherapy could provide a definitive cure. The night before I scheduled my Whipple procedure, I wrote in my journal that “in the face of radical uncertainty one must resort to basic values—and my priority is to survive for my children. A maimed, weakened father is without doubt better than no father at all.” To be sure, these last lines were written with some bravado. Only after the surgery did I viscerally grasp that the Whipple was a permanent maiming of the GI system. My doubts lingered after I scheduled surgery, and I had a final conversation with the young oncologist at the cancer center near my home. We discussed a watch-and-wait approach. A small mass remained on CT scans, but that was common even when tumors achieved a pathological complete response.5 Another positron emission tomography scan could provide more information but could not rule out the persistence of lingering cancer cells. I expressed my low risk tolerance given my personal circumstances. We sat across from one another, two fathers with young children. My oncologist was expecting his second child in a week. He was silent for moments before responding “I would recommend surgery in your situation.” Perhaps I was projecting, but I felt the two of us were in the same situation: both wanting a watch-and-wait approach, both intuitively believing in it, but both held back by a sense of parental responsibility. My post-surgery pathology revealed a pathological complete response. CT scans and circulating tumor DNA tests in the past year have shown no evidence of disease. This is an exceptional outcome. Yet in the year since my Whipple, I have been sickened by my lack of gratitude for my good fortune, driven by a difficult recovery and a sense that my surgery had been superfluous. Following surgery, I faced complications of which I had been warned, such as a pancreatic fistula, delayed gastric emptying, and pancreatic enzyme insufficiency. There were still more problems that I did not anticipate, including, among others, stenoses of arteries and veins due to intraabdominal hematomas, persistent anemia, and the loss of 25% of my body weight. Collectively, they added up to an enduringly dysfunctional GI system and a lingering frailty. I was particularly embittered to have chosen surgery to mitigate the risk that my children would lose their father, only to find that surgery prevented me from being the robust father I once was. Of course, had I deferred surgery and seen the tumor grow inoperable or metastasize between scans, my remorse would have been incalculably deeper. But should medical decisions be based on contemplation of the most catastrophic consequences, whatever their likelihood? With hindsight, it became difficult not to re-examine the assumptions behind my decision. Too often, my dialogue with my doctors was impeded by the assumption that surgery was the obvious recommendation because I was young and healthy. The assumption that younger oncology patients necessarily warrant more radical treatment deserves reassessment. While younger patients have more years of life to lose from cancer, they also have more years to deal with the enduring medical, personal, and professional consequences of a life-changing surgery. It was not my youth that led me to choose surgery but my family situation: 10 years earlier, my youth likely would have led me to a watch-and-wait approach. The rising incidence of cancer among patients in their 20s and 30s highlights the need for a nuanced approach to this demographic.  Calculations on surgery versus a watch-and-wait approach in cases like mine, where there are no data showing that surgery improves outcomes, also require doctors and patients to account holistically for the severity of the surgery involved. Multiple surgeons discussed the immediate postsurgical risks and complications of a pancreaticoduodenectomy, but not the long-term challenges involved. When asked to compare the difficulty of my prior subtotal colectomy with that of a pancreatoduodenectomy, the surgeon who performed my procedure suggested they might be similar. The surgeon at the regional cancer center stated that the Whipple would be far more difficult. I mentally split the difference. The later assessment was right, and mine was not a particularly bad recovery compared with others I know. Having been through both procedures, I would repeat the subtotal colectomy for a theoretical oncologic benefit but would accept some calculated risk to avoid a Whipple. Most Whipple survivors do not have the privilege of asking whether their surgery was necessary. Many celebrate every anniversary of the procedure as one more year that they are alive against the odds. That I can question the need for my surgery speaks to the revolutionary transformation which immunotherapy has brought about for a small subset of patients with cancer. The long-term medical and personal consequences of surgery highlight the urgent stakes of fully understanding and harnessing the life-affirming potential of this technology. In the meantime, while the field accumulates more data, potentially thousands of patients and their physicians will face difficult decisions on surgery verses a watch and- wait approach in cases of GI tumors with particular biomarkers showing exceptional responses to ICI therapy.7,8 Under these circumstances, I hope that all patients can have effective and transparent conversations with their physicians that allow informed choices accounting for their risk tolerance, calculations of proportionality, and priorities.  Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Hello, and welcome to JCO's Cancer Stories: The Art of Oncology, which features essays and personal reflections from authors exploring their experience in the oncology field. I'm your host, Dr. Mikkael Sekeres. I'm Professor of Medicine and Chief of the Division of Hematology at the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at University of Miami. Today, we are so happy to be joined by Dr. Carl Forsberg, Assistant Professor of Strategy and History at the Air Force War College. In this episode, we will be discussing his Art of Oncology article, "A Whipple of Choice." At the time of this recording, our guest has no disclosures. Carl, it is such a thrill to welcome you to our podcast, and thank you for joining us. Dr. Carl Forsberg: Well, thank you, Mikkael, for having me. I'm looking forward to our conversation. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: So am I. I wanted to start, Carl, with just a little bit of background about you. It's not often we have a historian from the Air Force College who's on this podcast. Can you tell us about yourself, where you're from, and walk us through your career? Dr. Carl Forsberg: Sure. I was born and raised in Minnesota in a suburb of Minneapolis-St. Paul and then went to undergraduate on the East Coast. I actually started my career working on the contemporary war in Afghanistan, first as an analyst at a DC think tank and then spent a year in Kabul, Afghanistan, on the staff of the four-star NATO US headquarters, where I worked on the vexing problems of Afghanistan's dysfunctional government and corruption. Needless to say, we didn't solve that problem. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Wow. Dr. Carl Forsberg: I returned from Afghanistan somewhat disillusioned with working in policy, so I moved into academia, did a PhD in history at the University of Texas at Austin, followed by postdoctoral fellowships at Harvard and Yale, and then started my current position here at the Air Force War College. The War Colleges are, I think, somewhat unusual, unique institutions. Essentially, we offer a 1-year master's degree in strategic studies for lieutenant colonels and colonels in the various US military services. Which is to say my students are generally in their 40s. They've had about 20 years of military experience. They're moving from the operational managerial levels of command to positions where they'll be making strategic decisions or be strategic advisors. So we teach military history, strategy, international relations, national security policy to facilitate that transition to a different level of thinking. It really is a wonderful, interesting, stimulating environment to be in and to teach in. So I've enjoyed this position here at the War College quite a lot. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Well, I have to tell you, as someone who's been steeped in academic medicine, it sounds absolutely fascinating and something that I wouldn't even know where to start approaching. We have postdoctoral fellowships, of course, in science as well. What do you do during a postdoctoral fellowship in history and strategy? Dr. Carl Forsberg: It's often, especially as a historian, it's an opportunity to take your dissertation and expand it into a book manuscript. So you have a lot of flexibility, which is great. And, of course, a collegial environment with others working in similar fields. There are probably some similarities to a postdoc in medicine in terms of having working groups and conferences and discussing works in progress. So it was a great experience for me. My second postdoc occurred during the pandemic, so it turned out to be an online postdoc, a somewhat disappointing experience, but nevertheless I got a lot out of the connections and relationships I formed during those two different fellowships. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Well, there are some people who used the pandemic as an excuse to really just plow into their writing and get immersed in it. I certainly wrote one book during the pandemic because I thought, “Why not? I'm home. It's something where I can use my brain and expand my knowledge base.” So I imagine it must have been somewhat similar for you as you're thinking about expanding your thesis and going down different research avenues. Dr. Carl Forsberg: I think I was less productive than I might have hoped. Part of it was we had a 2-year-old child at home, so my wife and I trying to, you know, both work remotely with a child without having childcare really for much of that year given the childcare options fell through. And it was perhaps less productive than I would have aspired for it to be. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: It's terrifically challenging having young children at home during the pandemic and also trying to work remotely with them at home. I'm curious, you are a writer, it's part of your career, and I'm curious about your writing process. What triggers you to write a story like you did, and how does it differ from some of your academic writing? Dr. Carl Forsberg: Yeah. Well, as you say, there is a real difference between writing history as an academic and writing this particular piece. For me, for writing history, my day job, if you will, it's a somewhat slow, painstaking process. There's a considerable amount of reading and archival work that go into history. I'm certainly very tied to my sources and documents. So, you know, trying to get that precision, making sure you've captured a huge range of archival resources. The real narrative of events is a slow process. I also have a bad habit of writing twice as much as I have room for. So my process entailed a lot of extensive revisions and rewriting, both to kind of shorten, to make sure there is a compelling narrative, and get rid of the chaff. But also, I think that process of revision for me is where I often draw some of the bigger, more interesting conclusions in my work once I've kind of laid out that basis of the actual history. Certainly, writing this article, this medical humanities article, was a very different experience for me. I've never written something about myself for publication. And, of course, it was really driven by my own experiences of going through this cancer journey and recovering from Whipple surgery as well. The article was born during my recovery, about 4 months after my Whipple procedure. It was a difficult time. Obviously kind of in a bad place physically and, in my case, somewhat mentally, including the effects of bad anemia, which developed after the surgery. I found it wasn't really conducive to writing history, so I set that aside for a while. But I also found myself just fixating on this question of had I chosen a superfluous Whipple surgery. I think to some extent, humans can endure almost any suffering with a sense of purpose, but when there's a perceived pointlessness to the suffering, it makes it much harder. So for me, writing this article really was an exercise, almost a therapeutic one, in thinking through the decisions that led me to my surgery, addressing my own fixation on this question of had I made a mistake in choosing to have surgery and working through that process in a systematic way was very helpful for me. But it also, I think, gave me- I undertook this with some sense of perhaps my experience could be worthwhile and helpful for others who would find themselves in a situation like mine. So I did write it with an eye towards what would I like to have read? What would I like to have had as perspective from another patient as I grappled with the decision that I talk about in the article of getting a Whipple surgery. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: So I wonder if I could back up a little bit. You talk about the difficulty of undergoing a Whipple procedure and of recovery afterwards, a process that took months. And this may come across as a really naive question, but as, you know, as an oncologist, my specialty is leukemia, so I'm not referring people for major surgeries, but I am referring them for major chemotherapy and sometimes to undergo a bone marrow transplant. Can you educate us what makes it so hard? Why was it so hard getting a Whipple procedure, and what was hard about the recovery? Dr. Carl Forsberg: Yeah, it was a long process. Initially, it was a 14-day stay in the hospital. I had a leaking pancreas, which my understanding is more common actually with young, healthy patients just because the pancreas is softer and more tender. So just, you know, vast amount of pancreatic fluid collecting in the abdominal cavity, which is never a pleasant experience. I had a surgical drain for 50-something days, spent 2 weeks in the hospital. Simply eating is a huge challenge after Whipple surgery. I had delayed gastric emptying for a while afterwards. You can only eat very small meals. Even small meals would give me considerable stomach pain. I ended up losing 40 lb of weight in 6 weeks after my surgery. Interestingly enough, I think I went into the surgery in about the best shape I had been in in the last decade. My surgeon told me one of the best predictors for outcomes is actual muscle mass and told me to work out for 2 hours every day leading up to my surgery, which was great because I could tell my wife, "Sorry, I'm going to be late for dinner tonight. I might die on the operating table." You can't really argue with that justification. So I went in in spectacular shape and then in 6 weeks kind of lost all of that muscle mass and all of the the strength I had built up, which just something discouraging about that. But just simply getting back to eating was an extraordinarily difficult process, kind of the process of trial and error, what worked with my system, what I could eat without getting bad stomach pains afterwards. I had an incident of C. diff, a C. diff infection just 5 weeks after the surgery, which was obviously challenging. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Yeah. Was it more the pain from the procedure, the time spent in the hospital, or psychologically was it harder? Dr. Carl Forsberg: In the beginning, it was certainly the physical elements of it, the difficulty eating, the weakness that comes with losing that much weight so quickly. I ended up also developing anemia starting about two or 3 months in, which I think also kind of has certain mental effects. My hemoglobin got down to eight, and we caught it somewhat belatedly. But I think after about three or 4 months, some of the challenges became more psychological. So I started to physically recover, questions about going forward, how much am I going to actually recover normal metabolism, normal gastrointestinal processes, a question of, you know, what impact would this have long-term. And then, as I mentioned as well, some of the psychological questions of, especially once I discovered I had a complete pathological response to the immunotherapy, what was the point to having this surgery? Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: And the way you explore this and revisit it in the essay is absolutely fascinating. I wanted to start at the- towards the earlier part of your essay, you write, "The surgeon's willingness to structure our conversation around the ambiguity of the case was immensely clarifying." It's fascinating. The ambiguity was clarifying to you. And the fact that you appreciated the fact that the surgeon was open to talking about this ambiguity. When do you think it's the right thing to acknowledge ambiguity in medicine, and when should we be more definitive? When do you just want someone to tell you, “Do this or do that?” Dr. Carl Forsberg: That's a great question, which I've thought about some. I think some of it is, I really appreciated the one- a couple of the oncologists who brought up the ambiguity, did it not at the beginning of the process but a few months in. You know, the first few months, you're so as a patient kind of wrapped up in trying to figure out what's going on. You want answers. And my initial instinct was, you know, I wanted surgery as fast as possible because you want to get the tumor out, obviously. And so I think bringing up the ambiguity at a certain point in the process was really helpful. I imagine that some of this has to do with the patient. I'm sure for oncologists and physicians, it's got to be a real challenge assessing what your patient wants, how much they want a clear answer versus how much they want ambiguity. I've never obviously been in the position of being a physician. As a professor, you get the interesting- you start to realize some students want you to give them answers and some students really want to discuss the ambiguities and the challenges of a case. And so I'm, I imagine it might be similar as a physician, kind of trying to read the patient. I guess in my case, the fact was that it was an extraordinarily ambiguous decision in which there wasn't data. So I think there is an element, if the data gives no clear answers, that I suppose there's sort of an ethical necessity of bringing that up with the patient. Though I know that some patients will be more receptive than others to delving into that ambiguity. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Well, you know, it's an opportunity for us to think holistically about our patients, and you as a patient to think holistically about your health and your family and how you make decisions. I believe that when we're in a gray zone in medicine where the data really don't help guide one decision versus the next, you then lean back towards other values that you have to help make that decision. You write beautifully about this. You say, "In the face of radical uncertainty, one must resort to basic values, and my priority is to survive for my children. A maimed, weakened father is without doubt better than no father at all." That's an incredibly deep sentiment. So, how do you think these types of decisions about treatment for cancer change over the course of our lives? You talk a lot about how you were a young father in this essay, and it was clear that that was, at least at some point, driving your decision. Dr. Carl Forsberg: Yeah, I certainly have spent a lot of time thinking about how I would have made this decision differently 10 years earlier. As I mentioned the article, it was interesting because most of my physicians, honestly, when they were discussing why surgery made sense pointed to my age. I don't think it was really my age. Actually, when I was 23, I went off to Afghanistan, took enormous risks. And to some extent, I think as a young single person in your 20s, you actually have generally a much higher risk tolerance. And I think in that same spirit, at a different, earlier, younger stage in my life, I would have probably actually been much more willing to accept that risk, which is kind of a point I try to make, is not necessarily your age that is really the deciding factor. And I think once again, if I were 70 or 60 and my children, you know, were off living their own lives, I think that also would have allowed me to take, um, greater risk and probably led me to go for a watch-and-wait approach instead. So there was a sense at which not the age, but the particular responsibilities one has in life, for me at least, figured very heavily into my medical calculus. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: It's so interesting how you define a greater risk as watch and wait, whereas a surgeon or a medical oncologist who's making recommendations for you might have defined the greater risk to undergo major surgery. Dr. Carl Forsberg: And I thought about that some too, like why is it that I framed the watch and wait as a greater risk? Because there is a coherent case that actually the greater risk comes from surgery. I think when you're facing a life and death decision and the consequence, when you have cancer, of course, your mind goes immediately to the possibility of death, and that consequence seems so existential that I think it made watch and wait perhaps seem like the riskier course. But that might itself have been an assumption that needed more analysis. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Do you think that your doctor revealing that he also had young children at home helped you with this decision? Dr. Carl Forsberg: I think in some ways for a doctor it's important to kind of understand where your patient is in their own life. As a patient, it was interesting and always helpful for me to understand where my physicians were in their life, what was shaping their thinking about these questions. So I don't know if it in any way changed my decision-making, but it definitely was important for developing a relationship of trust as well with physicians that we could have that mutual exchange. I would consider one of my primary oncologists, almost something of a friend at this point. But I think it really was important to have that kind of two-way back and forth in understanding both where I was and where my physician was. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: I like how you frame that in the sense of trust and hearing somebody who could make similar considerations to you given where he was in his family. One final question I wanted to ask you. You really elegantly at the end of this essay talk about revisiting the decision. I wonder, is it fair to revisit these types of decisions with hindsight, or do we lose sight of what loomed as being most important to us when we were making the decisions in real time? Dr. Carl Forsberg: That's a great question, one that is also, I think, inherent to my teaching. I teach military history for lieutenant colonels and colonels who very well may be required, God willing not, but may be required to make these sort of difficult decisions in the case of war. And we study with hindsight. But one thing I try to do as a professor is put them in the position of generals, presidents, who did not have the benefit of hindsight, trying to see the limits of their knowledge, use primary source documents, the actual memos, the records of meetings that were made as they grappled with uncertainty and the inherent fog of war. Because it is, of course, easy to judge these things in hindsight. So definitely, I kept reminding myself of that, that it's easy to second guess with hindsight. And so I think for me, part of this article was trying to go through, seeing where I was at the time, understanding that the decision I made, it made sense and with what I knew, it was probably the right decision, even if we can also with hindsight say, "Well, we've learned more, we have more data." A lot of historical leaders, it's easy to criticize them for decisions, but when you go put yourself in their position, see what the alternatives were, you start to realize these were really hard decisions, and I would have probably made the same disastrous mistake as they would have, you know. Let's just say the Vietnam War, we have our students work through with the original documents decisions of the Joint Chiefs in 1965. They very frequently come to the exact same conclusions as American policymakers made in 1965. It is a real risk making judgments purely on the basis of hindsight, and I think it is important to go back and really try to be authentic to what you knew at the time you made a decision. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: What a great perspective on this from a historian. Carl Forsberg, I'd like to thank you, and all of us are grateful that you were willing to share your story with us in The Art of Oncology. Dr. Carl Forsberg: Well, thank you, and it's yeah, it's been a, it's a, I think in some ways a very interesting and fitting place to kind of end my cancer journey with the publication of this article, and it's definitely done a lot to help me work through this entire process of going through cancer. So, thank you. Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: Until next time, thank you for listening to JCO's Cancer Stories: The Art of Oncology. Don't forget to give us a rating or review, and be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. You can find all of ASCO's shows at asco.org/podcasts. Until next time, thank you so much. The purpose of this podcast is to educate and to inform. This is not a substitute for professional medical care and is not intended for use in the diagnosis or treatment of individual conditions. Guests on this podcast express their own opinions, experience, and conclusions. Guest statements on the podcast do not express the opinions of ASCO. The mention of any product, service, organization, activity, or therapy should not be construed as an ASCO endorsement.   Show notes:Like, share and subscribe so you never miss an episode and leave a rating or review.  Guest Bio: Dr. Carl Forsberg is a Assistant Professor of Strategy and History at the Air Force War College.

Send us a textIt is time to hit the trail in the final couple of weeks of the 1992 campaign. I figured we would take off with the three Vice Presidential candidates in this episode. They were Vice President Dan Quayle, Senator Al Gore, and Admiral James Stockdale. We will start out spending the the day with Dan Quayle. You will hear him interacting with the public, giving a campaign speech, and being interviewed by the press. This selection of events really does give you a feel for what it is like on the Presidential campaign trail for these candidates. It us up early in the morning and out late at night. This campaign really is a high spot for the Vice President Dan Quayle who I feel was often unfairly maligned. He was a much better campaigner than anyone has given him credit and I feel like he performed outstandingly through out the 1992 campaign. In fact, it was his Vice Presidential Debate performance that finally began to close the gap between the President and Governor Bill Clinton. This episode then turns to a campaign rally given for Senator Al Gore. You will hear him giving one of his stump speeches in the final weeks of the campaign. Al Gore is also a much better campaigner than you may think. I have always felt he was actually better in 1992 and 1996 than his performance at the top of the ticket in 2000. This speech is guaranteed to fire you up and it too will give you a feel of what it was like to be on the campaign trail in 1992. Finally, we will introduce you to the true American Hero that was on the ticket in 1992, Admiral James Stockdale. Stockdale was a far more formidable man than his performance in the Vice Presidential debates would lead you to believe. He had been the President of the War College and had led troops in Vietnam as a POW, creating a civilization and working to keep the troops spirits alive in captivity for nearly 8 years.  It seems a shame to me that he is only remembered today for his Vice Presidential debate performance. We hope to change that here by letting you hear his video biography from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society because among James Stockdale's many honors he was a member of this most exclusive clubs of men who have attained the highest honor available in the land, the Congressional Medal of Honor. We want to end this episode honoring this extraordinary achievement from this extraordinary man.  Boundless Insights - with Aviva KlompasIn depth analysis of what's happening in Israel—and why it matters everywhere.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyQuestions or comments at , Randalrgw1@aol.com , https://twitter.com/randal_wallace , and http://www.randalwallace.com/Please Leave us a review at wherever you get your podcastsThanks for listening!!

The 761st Tank Battalion, known as the Black Panthers, was a segregated unit created during World War 2. Regardless of the fact that African Americans had participated in every major conflict dating back to before the United States even existed, a report from the War College labeled African Americans as "not fit for service" in World War 2. The 761st was created and kept stateside until the need for more tanks was too great. The Black Panthers would accompany Gen. Patton's 3rd Army as they fought the retreating Germans. They helped during Bastogne, broke through the Seigfried Line, and even liberated a concentration camp. The hope of returning to a more accepting United States wouldn't match the reality as the 761st would return to no acclaim. Their fight for equal recognition is still going on to this day. Join us as we get Historically High on the 761st Tank Battalion. Support the show

Momma Carson.Based on a post by FinalStand, in 13 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels. Since a quick 'cool down' in the pool seemed like a Great idea at that instant, I sidled down the sofa and retrieved swimming trunks from my book bag. Though not Speedos, Brandy still approved. This also allowed me to 'clean up' with my underwear then stow it away in the plastic bag the trunks had come in.‘Okay,' she rang out once we were back in shirts and shorts. Mamma Carson came into view and all the blood which had been struggling back up to my brain raced to my enraged cock. Brandy's Mom was wearing a light grey sports bra, with nipples poking out invitingly, matching boy shorts, with clearly evident camel toe, and; ah; petite workout moccasins? That's what they looked like anyway. She completed the ensemble with a baby blue hair bow holding most of her hair back and a matching linen towel over her right shoulder.Undoubtedly; I was drooling.‘Mamma!' Brandy exclaimed in faux-surprise over 'Mamma's' attire.‘I just wanted to work out in the home gym and to know if you wanted to join me; like old times,' Mrs. Carson asked all innocent-like. What Brandy said was a bit less innocent and way more indicative of Brandy's trust in me (or so I thought).‘Mamma, dressed that way; I'm afraid Vlad might rape you. I'm pretty sure his brother Mikhail will; if he sees you walking around dressed like that,' Brandy chortled. Jodi May Memphis Carson wasn't a believer so I turned to the woman whose opinion truly mattered.‘Can I? Can I? Can I?' I pleaded as I fell to my knees before Brandy. ‘Please, please, please! Can I have her?'‘What!' squawked Brandy even as her eyes shone with feverish glee.‘What?' gawked Jodi May, not wanting to comprehend the scene before her; and her powerlessness in it.‘She's, my, Mother,' Brandy put both fists on her hips and began scolding me.‘Yeah, yeah, yeah,' I rapidly nodded like a maddened Fool.‘What she said,' Mamma Carson affirmed.‘Don't you care that she's my Mamma?' Brandy's tone became teasing.‘I think it is extra-special that she's your mother,' I kept up the head-bobbing.‘But I'm; ah; older enough to be her Mother,' the older Carson protested.‘Yes,' I turned to Jodi May, ‘you are what I have to look forward to if we get married, Jodi May.' Then I added a bit of my newfound cunning by saying, ‘You are almost as good as the real Brandy to my way of thinking.'I turned back to My Girl because I wasn't sure how good my Poker Face was, or how good Jodi May was at reading the hearts of young men. In reality, I didn't want a Brandy substitute and would wait for the real Brandy to become available as opposed to 'settling'.That wasn't what both women had heard though. For Brandy, it was a cruelly landed barb; on the Mother who had slept with her previous beau; as if Darius hadn't bothered to both tell Brandy and demand she never reveal she knew; because he was that kind of twisted piece of work, poisoning Daughter against her Mother.Out of sight of Mamma, I crossed the first and fore fingers of my hands to create the '#' sign followed by a '1' as I mouthed 'girl'. She winked with her hooded, left eye to show she'd caught on to my game.‘Prince, don't get pouty,' Brandy stroked my cheek. ‘It is just that Darius used to tucker her out and you are easily twice the lover he ever was to me. I don't want you screwing her unconscious like you did me our first time either,' she added on, ‘on her first day back.'‘Brandy; what?' Jodi May mentally backpedaled. ‘Who told you such stuff?'‘Darius told me, Mamma. He even showed me a video of you, him and Rashaan in a three-way,' she undercut any further attempts at denial. ‘It's okay. I believed Darius' lies too and made even worse mistakes; like believing he cared about me as opposed to his real purpose; which was to hurt Daddy.'‘Baby, you can't; I mean; it was one mistake,' she evaded.‘He showed me two tapes,' Brandy looked saddened to catch her maternal champion in a lie.‘Brandy; I; ‘‘Mamma, I'm free of him now,' Brandy let a single tear track her cheek. ‘Vlad saved me.'I took this as my clue to rise up, stop playing the Clown and return to being her masculine Guardian and Protector. I wrapped Brandy up in both arms as she wrapped my waist up in hers. Soft kisses landed on the top of her head.‘Hey, Princess?'‘Yes Prince?'‘How about you go upstairs and get dressed for a gym workout and I'll stay down here with your mother and; ‘ I led off.‘Yes; and; ,' Brandy wiggled while she looked straight up into my gaze.‘I'll spank her until you return. Seems totally fair and unbiased to me.'‘Spanking my ass is not enough for you?' she sniffle-giggled.‘Wait? What? I get to spank both your asses?!?!?'‘No,' she protested. ‘You get to spank Mamma, but only until I get back.'‘Brandy!' Mom exclaimed.‘Mamma, I'll change real fast, I promise,' Brandy shot me another wink then sprinted off before there could be any other verbal roadblocks.More, as in more of Jodi MayA few seconds later;‘Young man, I am not going to let you spank me,' Jodi May announced.‘If you don't, can you imagine how much more disappointed in you Brandy will be when she gets back? Sleeping with Darius was a stupid thing to do, but you both know how charismatic he could be. Lying to her about what you did was dumber and overly cruel to a young woman who deserves the truth desperately,' I glared her way.‘That doesn't equate to me degrading myself before you,' she frowned.‘Oh, come on,' I attempted to placate the mother. ‘Just lay across my lap. I'll give one good smack when I hear her coming down the stairs and she'll be mollified.'Maybe I had a good Poker Face after all, or perhaps mine was yet another lie Jodi May wanted/choose to believe.‘Well, don't get slap happy,' she wagged a finger at me as she came around the sofa. She certainly walked slowly enough to hard-sell her reluctance.I languidly sat down, then beckoned her forward with my forefinger. Her eyes rolled heavenward at my theater even as she complied; by crawling across my lap. I held off my 'gulp' until she wasn't looking at me.Step 1: I held my palms upraised and clasped together in supplication and prayer while whispering, ‘Таксиарх Архангел Михаил, за то, что я собираюсь получить, я смиренно благодарен.' ‘Taksiarkh Arkhangel Mikhail, za to, chto ya sobirayus' poluchit', ya smirenno blagodaren.'‘Are you saying Grace over my Behind?' she looked over her shoulder at me, somewhat caught between cross and bemused.‘Your whole body, Ma'am. Your whole body and it is only fitting and proper that I do so. Anything less would be sacrilegious in the extreme,' I smiled. Jodi May smirked. She shouldn't have been so confident.Step 2 saw me putting my left forearm casually over her shoulder blades. Now she was tensing up and becoming physically uneasy, but too late for that.Step 3 and I began massaging her buttocks.‘Hey! What are you doing?' she hissed. Her attempts to rise were countered by me applying pressure with my forearm. My right hand rose and came down with a resounding 'Smack!' ‘Ow! What the; ‘‘It should be obvious,' I humored her. ‘I lied. You've been bad. Worse, you've been bad to Brandy in my presence and I'm not going to tolerate that, not for one second. Clear enough?'‘Let go,' she struggled valiantly. ‘I said; Ow! Ugh,' she sniffled as a second blow was followed by a third in rapid succession.‘Next time it will be three and the number keeps going on up, got it?' I stated. She hesitated so my right hand rose.‘Yes,' she yielded cautiously.‘Okay. Here are the new Ground Rules. Brandy is the Lady of this House, not you. You ran off while she stayed. Play nice and my family will work overtime to not make things even worse between you and your husband when he returns. Cross any of us, or Brandy, and you have no clue how bad it will get,' I began.‘And if I say 'no' are you going to continue to beat me?' she challenged. Down came three hard blows on her luscious posterior which vibrated deliciously with each impact.‘Ow, ow, Ow!' she teared up. ‘Stop! Please stop!' It would have been more convincing if I hadn't spotted her hands sneaking back. I foresaw ten sets of claw marks in my near future if I wasn't careful.Down came four painful blows with the accompanying highly vocal protests.‘Hands over your head,' I demanded in a harsh, unforgiving tone. ‘Five, four, three; ‘I could see her contemplate trying to scarify me then think better of it. My pain tolerance was an unknowns while she was approaching hers. Up her hands went.‘Good girl,' I leaned forward and cooed into her hair from close above. ‘Cross your wrists and keep them that way.' Again, compliance with an undertone of a mare getting ready to bolt. ‘Raise your legs up on the sofa and cross your ankles. Keep them that way.' At this point she realized she was stuck. There was going to be no quick getaway for her.‘Who is the Lady of the House?' I inquired softly.‘Brandy.'‘Not very convincing, but that will have to do for the moment,' I first caused her to coil from the expected painful spanking, then relax when she realized she'd gained a respite. ‘I know you don't believe me for no reason which truly makes sense to me, but you don't. I'm okay with your current misconceptions about me.'I moved my hand under the elastic of her shorts.‘Hey,' she tried to raise her head up, stilling me with her gaze alone. My hand worked down to the crack of her ass then alternating along the sides instead of continuing 'deeper'. Once more, this was just a false hiatus as, with a few quick twists of my right wrist, I began working her shorts down until I had exposed her bare buttocks to me.Since the verbal and non-verbal roadblocks weren't working, she went for the straight physical denial by clamping her thighs shut. Thighs are stronger than arms, but you'd have had to have been a premier female bodybuilder to keep my questing fingers from between them and stop my progress at this late date; and Jodi May's figure was way too opulent for that's sport's discipline.‘While keeping your ankles crossed, move your knees apart,' I ordered. Finally she launched her all-out rebellion. I could have out-wrestled her three years ago and won without my current hellish advantages. I had Jodi May off the sofa and pinned, face-first, on the floor in ten seconds flat. Five blows to her scrumptious rear rained down. This time the resulting tears were very real.‘Okay; okay,' she sobbed.I made a production of getting off of her, resuming my seat then having her crawl back across my lap. This time she was utterly defeated and scared. Six blows were her 'reward'. The 'reward' was the playfulness of those feather-light touches of those faux-slaps to her abused flesh. ‘Ah, ah, ah; oh; ‘‘Raise up your tush.'Her ‘Why?' was quickly followed by my frown and then her instant compliance. Kisses replaced the palm of my hand as I blew gently and placed faint signs of affection on her posterior. My hand was busy going between her cheeks until my fingertips contacted moist labia-meat.‘Ah; should you? Brandy; back soon?' Jodi May whimpered.‘Who is the Lady of the House?'‘; Brandy?'‘Yes and it is up to Brandy to call me off. I know how long it takes for her to get dressed when she has sex on her mind, so I'm already aware she can intervene whenever she wishes to. This is Brandy's game, Jodi May, not yours, not mine.'I worked two fingers up to the first digit into her labia, feeling she was becoming quite wet. My thumb was tapping her sphincter as well. Jodi May was beginning to really get into it, adding a little push back to my play, when Brandy announced her presence.‘Hey guys. Whatchya doing?'I held Jodi May firm so all my mature victim could do was stay on all fours while I methodically finger fucked her from behind.‘Quick; let me up,' Jodi May urged me quietly, yet without much conviction.‘No.'‘Mamma; Vlad?' Brandy glided down the stairs and fully into view. I had been prepared for more of a fight from Mrs. Carson than she'd put up, which was for damn sure. Jodi May gracefully slid off the sofa, dragging a throw pillow with her and then buried her face in it, more a feeble effort at hiding than any real attempt to break our coupling.I couldn't have been more baffled though I felt compelled to follow to keep my position via-a-via her body.'She's been lonely,' Brandy mouthed to me followed by, ‘Vlad, that's my Mother!''Huh?' from me.'Don't stop', then ‘get off of her right now, Mister!' Fortunately, I figured out which sets of lips to obey; Brandy's silent ones and Jodi May's lower, gooey ones. Her upper ones were beginning to make subdued little moaning noises.‘Oh Mamma, is my Prince being mean to you?' my Lady knelt by her mother's head.‘He spanked me badly,' the older lady mumbled into the pillow.‘Vlad, make it up to her,' Brandy turned to me. Her insistent tone was undermined by her wink.‘I like where I am,' I defied her then mouthed, 'what do I do?'‘None of that backtalk, Mister,' she waggled a finger at me. ‘Get those magic lips to work this instant,' the finger pointed toward her mother's hindquarters.‘And if I don't?' I scoffed. Then, 'I love you.'‘Then that cock of yours is blocked from ALL the ladies this weekend; Oh Vlad who is living Vicariously,' she shot me a sly smile. 'I love you too.'‘Ouch!' I emoted as I recoiled. ‘Princess; that's harsh,' followed by a double eyebrow pump and 'anything for you.'‘Brandy; I (sniff) don't; want (sniffle); him to; oh; ah; oh, stop that Vlad,' Jodi May protested.While Mamma Carson had been voicing her dissent, I had been shuffling down the length of the sofa. Quickly enough I maneuvered myself into a position where I could begin planting kisses on her abused heinie, all the while keeping my fingers gracefully playing in her cunny and across her anal frontiers. I began adding little flicks of my tongue as I'd had something similar done to me once, during my first time with a professional. That one could arouse with just her lips, teeth and tongue in ways I'd never imagined.‘Oh; he shouldn't be doing that,' Jodi May murmured. ‘Make him stop.'During this appeal, I was petting her along her spine until she got the hint I wanted her to bow her back to give me better access to her girly bits.‘No, Mamma. Vlad has to learn his lesson. He can't take you, or any woman; but especially not us Carson women; for granted,' Brandy insisted.'You sure; about this?' I checked.'I want Mamma to stay home, Prince,' she smiled somewhat tearfully. I sensed she'd had words with Mikhail and Taliyah before returning. My youngest triplet must have been deadly insistent about the power of 'my love', which healed her heart, being able to rejuvenate her mother of whatever emotional maledictions had aided her departure from this household, things I was still largely unaware of.Twenty seconds of oral succulence later; 'I don't have a condom'.Brandy had coaxed her mother to turn her head sideways on the pillow, facing Brandy's lap though Jodi May's eyes were closed. Brandy, for her part, was in navy blue butt shorts and a blue sports bra (I figured from Brandy's desire to color coordinate) and a white, sleeve-less t-shirt with blue stripes down the sides.'She's on birth control.''This may get more than a bit weird. (Are you) sure about this?''Come back to me, Vlad.''Always, Princess.'A stellar smile followed my promise to her, then it was 'back to work' (though I hardly thought of my sexual activities in such a manner.)Honestly, Jodi May had a way more developed sense of what she liked and how to get me to go where she wanted to me to go than any other Arkansas woman I'd been with to date. She wasn't all that bashful, or clumsy about it, either. There was a magical grace to her responses which later left me amazed how she led me to her first orgasm without me realizing she was definitely leading our carnal cavorting.Hmm; my mind was recovering; in that I could create more wordy prose while simultaneously working my neck (I was on my stomach behind her by this time, propped up on my elbows), nose, mouth, fingers and tongue. I was still the composer, creating the movement for the orchestra to play, but she was the body of music, filling the auditorium of our love-making with a tantalizing harmonic melody. I couldn't tear myself away.For her part, Jodi May made sure to rub her vaginal fluids over my face from eyebrow ridge to the stubble beneath my chin (hey! I'd hurried to get over here). All I could taste and smell was her womanly aroma; a richer, raw maple syrupy smell combined with scallops; which I quickly came to adore.I got a mouth and two cheeks full when she orgasmed and she got to howl into her pillow while Brandy, now the maestro of this little performance, appeared surprised by her ever-growing, new-found power over the people who had such an emotional impact on her life. Brandy was In Charge!I was lapping away like some overly friendly Saint Bernard the juices which had escaped my gullet as Jodi May coasted down from her post-coitus euphoria. Then Mother began crying to daughter and daughter to Mother.‘I'm so sorry, Baby Boo,' Mamma addressed her offspring. ‘I tore everything apart.'‘You did, Mamma,' Brandy petted her hair, ‘but if you hadn't run off with Mr. Jenks, Senior Deputy Samsonov wouldn't have applied for his job, gotten it and the Samsonov's wouldn't have stayed. I would have been under Darius' thumb; as would have the whole school. You hurt me and Daddy plenty, yet; in the Greater Scheme of Things; it worked out better for me and Daddy with the new friends we've made.'‘That's a beautiful way of looking at my screw-up,' Jodi May's eyes opened in more ways than one way. Brandy was acting in a more self-possessed manner at this moment than she ever had before. Jodi had left a girl subjugated by a villain and come back to a women partnered with a man whom she loved and who loved her. Our strong bond powered everything else.‘You still hurt Daddy and for that you must atone, Mamma,' Brady frowned slightly.‘Atone; ah; like punish me?' Mamma didn't seem all that distressed.‘Yes. We can go back to your present room and cut up all your racy dresses, or you can promise to never leave the house without me, or Pa; or you could let Vlad be so terribly mean to you that you never forget who really cares for you,' Brandy laid out the choices. My girl had it going on!‘Terribly mean,' Jodi May flashed me a famished look, ‘like what he is doing to me right now?'‘Oh yes; just like this plus much, much worse,' Brandy feigned innocence.‘How much worse?' Mrs. Carson hid her smile well.‘Stay right there and find out,' I joined in. I finished rolling her from leaning to one side to over on her back with my kisses falling down on her still micro-trembling thighs.‘One thing though, Mamma,' Brandy grew steely.‘Yes.'‘Daddy doesn't want you around us no more.'‘Let me deal with; ‘‘No,' Brandy put her foot (knee) down. ‘You broke Daddy's heart for the last time with your cheating ways. Hell, I became a cheater too, and I think you are somewhat to blame for that as well; me going behind his back to keep dating Darius.'‘Honey Child, those are adult things,' Mamma tried to both mollify her baby while seduce me with a host of non-verbal clues.‘No, Mamma. Not anymore. I'm 18 now and I think I know what is going on. Daddy won't take you back and back into his bed, never. If you promise me and him you will behave; ‘‘I'm your Mother,' Jodi May grew frosty up top while keeping steamy and inviting below.‘And I am your Daughter and I'm telling you if you try to romance Dad, you can't win. You will cheat again and he'll detonate in a big way. Then he will take you to Divorce Court and destroy us as a family. I don't want that.'Brandy Crystal Carson.Jodi May wasn't overly groomed in the pelvic region, but it wasn't too much to deal with either. It was natural and womanly, very fitting for the untamed, sumptuous tableau of maverick charms she presented to me.‘I'll behave, Brandy Crystal Carson,' Mamma shifted around so could place one hand over her heart. ‘I swear. This time things will be different.'‘Yes. Yes, they will. Mamma, in this instant, you can stop having sex with Vlad and have sex with no other until Daddy decides to take you back to his bed, you can keep whoring around until Daddy gets so ashamed by it, he tosses you out for good, or; ‘‘Or; ?' Jodi May was somewhat less than the authoritative persona she wanted and needed to put forth to be the master/mistress the situation at this point.‘Or, we let you have sex with Vlad; and his two, identical brothers, Mikhail and Alexander, but only them.'I struggled mighty hard to not let the 'Hey now! Don't we (my Brothers and I) get a vote in this?' push the current wolfish cravings for more Jodi May off my face and to alter my demeanor from covetous carnivore to caring boyfriend. I already knew Mikhail's vote would be a 'Hell yeah!', but Alexander? Me? I found myself gradually going serpentine up my current partner's body.‘Vladimir; Vlad, you can't be okay with this?' Jodi May's eyes riveted me. Only the truth would do so I went for the most effective bit of truth.‘Brandy Crystal Carson is my Lady on my arm and my Whore in my bedroom, Jodi May. She has entered the tiny group of people whose opinions I give a damn about, and the only one of the four who isn't blood-related. That is how much I value your daughter's council, advice and personal direction when I need it.'‘So you are just going to let her tell you who you can and can't sleep with; for real; ‘‘Abso-fucking-lutely, Mrs. Carson. That is because it isn't about the fucking; it is about the happiness. I'm happiest when my world collapses down to just Brandy and me.'‘I'm happiest when she smiles at me when I've done a good thing. I'm happiest when she is so hoarse from screaming out her orgasms she can't enunciate clearly, or even move, after one of our ferocious rounds of love-making. In essence: Brandy = my happiness; so yes, I give everything she recommends to me great weight.'‘In this case,' I ran my tongue up between her gently sagging mounds of mountainous breast tissue, ‘she is telling me what will make her happy; having sex with a 'loyal' you; and; not having sex with a disloyal you; makes her happy.' I paused for several seconds to glomb onto her right nipple and playfully suckle upon it. Her legs, already open, allowed her heels to start working over the sides of my calves and the back of my knees.‘I could wake up in the morning and have sex with your daughter, Mrs. Carson. We could chase one another around, frolic and have sex all over whichever domicile we found ourselves in; and if I did it for a hundred years, I would never get bored with Brandy, or want to anything except make her joyous inside and out,' I finished up.Jodi May had three options to believe in:~ I could still be a standard milksop White Boy despite the preponderance of evidence to the contrary,~ The entire political-racial-sexual landscape had turned topsy-turvy in her short (6 month) absence,~ Or I was actually a Big Black Cock Monster in disguise (the third one was Mikhail's spin on things, I swear).I had another issue, rug burn and my desire to avoid it for both of us.‘A Prize like you shouldn't be nailed to Kingdom Come on the floor like some common floozy,' I declared. ‘Here,' I slipped on hand under Jodi May's tailbone, lifting her up and pressing her into me. ‘Wrap your arms around my neck,' I commanded 'my prize'.‘Umm,' she gasped as her body clove to mine. ‘You certainly are; ah; strong.'‘I 'pry free' ladies who Society mistakenly believes have become 'Black-owned' on a regular basis, I wrestle said 'Black' rascals down until they cry out 'I'm an Uncle Tom' and I show those women the powerful lineage of Valhalla hasn't gone from this world quite yet; though not necessarily in that order,' I bullshitted some stuff together.‘Vlad; that's gosh-darn racist; except the last part. That didn't make too much sense, but; I think I liked it,' Mamma Carson salivated over every turn of the phrase. Me being 'racist' definitely wasn't a deal-breaker for her and the Valhalla nonsense glossed over my ancestors confused relationship with those Scandinavians who came a vikinging to the East over a millennia ago.I hefted her up abruptly, spun on one knee and deposited her on her rump on the edge of the sofa cushions.‘Aie!' she squealed in surprise. Off-guard, she posed no resistance as I made my final approach. I aimed my cockhead at her glistening vulva with my left hand while pushing her left leg away while keeping the knee locked. ‘What?'‘How do you want it?' I growled. ‘Hard and brutal, or slow and gentle?'‘How about I show you how I like it?' she purred. It was hard to argue with her kind of counter-proposal. Her right-hand's fingernails trailed down my shoulders, upper arm and the over to my waist to guide me into her designated pace of her penetration.I'll give her this much, until the tenth cycle she held it together better than her daughter. Afterwards, the newness of her vaginal walls undulating around my veined shaft caused her breath to catch and her hands to grab my ass, drawing me in ever deeper.‘Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, Yip!' she went off after I accidently pushed passed her cervix.I was certain, just like Brandy with Darius, Mr. Jenks had most likely gone before where I was going now. The 'new' was her cervix massaging my glans and the area right behind the head like a mini-handjob (for me) /pleasurable vibrator-to-the-uterus' entrance (for her). I didn't look like the biggest, or thickest piece of Man-Meat she'd ever encountered so;‘IN-tense, isn't it, Mamma?' Brandy appeared on the sofa beside us. I was still kneeling on the floor, I had mother's legs spread in a wide 'V' and was beginning to pick up our tempo as the interrogation began.‘Hush, Baby (gasp), Mamma is; oh Lord,' she mumbled, ‘I'm; oh; my; Vlad; slow down.'Innocent trust required me to slow down. My nascent woman-sense told me to do the opposite. I slowly pulled back; then hungrily drove home deep. Jodi May grunted as her eyes, once shuttered, sprang wide open. I followed that up with small, rapid repetitions interspersed with gyrating the sensation inward, my pubic bone on her clitoral region. My partner's legs flexed even wider, her head flew back, bow keeping her hair from going wild and her eyes squeezed shut.To add to the stimulation, I latched on to her right breast, suckling the whole areola and nipple into my mouth. Brandy took the left nipple between two fingers and began pinching it and rolling it between them.‘Gurr; ‘ my first thought was 'when did the Carson's get a cat?'‘Gurr; ‘; 'Holy Shit! How did a puma get in here?'And the resulting caterwauling Yowl was the scariest, female Big Cat noise I'd ever heard; and that was Jodi May Memphis Carson having a no-holds-bared Orgasm as her body flushed ruddy, sweat perspired all over, her back painfully bowed and of course, she screamed out to High Heavens like no human I'd ever heard.I lost it. I was shooting off semen deep into her uterus as her cervix was once more grappling with my glans. I had no care in that instant where, or what I was doing. I was a spectator being taken along for the ride though I wasn't hemmed-in in any physical way.‘Holy Shit, Bro!' Mikhail laughed loudly. ‘Delivering from Downtown!' I think he was referencing a long 3-point shot in basketball, but I was too sonically concussed to be sure.‘Take notes,' Taliyah repeated her refrain.Those two had come downstairs after Brandy and, it appeared, had been quietly watching us as events unfolded.‘Brandy, is everything okay?' sounded off Noémie Lucie from the far side hallway, the one which led to the stairs down to the lower level which included the space the other cheerleaders had been sleeping. Oh boy. Explaining this was going to be a peach.Who is here to chaperone whom?(11:30 poolside at the Carson Home.)It made perfect sense Sheriff 'Big Bob' Carson wouldn't trust his home solely to his 'somewhat independent-minded' daughter when she was having thirteen friends over for a Saturday Night party. While Taliyah could show up whenever she wanted since she and Brandy were lifelong Besties, the whole crowd showing up on Friday night was completely unofficial; so he'd asked an adult, or two, to chaperone tonight.No, he hadn't handed that heavy responsibility over to us equally hormonal, 18 year old triplets; as we were considered one of the hazards which needed to be chaperoned against. Nope; if we'd been able to roll all our lives back one whole day and night, we would have seen the Sheriff having dinner with someone who fit the bill of 'perfect chaperone' (a single, adult female with a strong will, of pure moral fiber and a history of legalized violence; Big Bob was fully aware of our current extracurricular circumstances) with the sole exception she wasn't a friend, or even very much of an acquaintance; so he was asking a great deal of them.Thankfully, 'business' was keeping this person in our sleepy burgh of Kingston anyway and this would give her a perfect opportunity to interrogate some of the possible 'third parties' involved with the crime which had befallen poor Darius Pope and his busted-up buddies.Yep, Brandy's Papa had asked the AHP CID (Arkansas Highway Patrol Criminal Investigation Division) Sergeant Louisa Petrakis to 'babysit' his 18 year old daughter and her friends to make sure their partying remained PG-13. That, not some desire to twist up the criminal investigation into the Darius Pope matter, had been the reason he'd 'wined and dined' her Thursday night.She'd only agreed After she'd realized what a corrupt bunch of actors the Kingston PD was and gotten the implication the Sheriff couldn't even trust the majority of his own Deputies. To her this must have smelled like some political civil war a 'brewing; which was an unspoken menace her department was also supposed to combat.When political infighting oozed out into open law enforcement corruption cases, it hurt the State of Arkansas economically by making their home ground look less attractive to external investment and the ever-important tourist dollar. Part of a weekend with access to Big Bob's and the Mayor's daughters suddenly became very attractive to this half-Creole (US Coast Guard Officer on her mother's side) / half-Greek (her father was a Merchant Marine Captain); originally from Louisiana; law officer .She'd come to Arkansas for UA (University of Arkansas) Sociology and Criminal Justice program and stayed to pursue a career in state law enforcement plus a LLM (Master of Law) from her alma mater on the road to joining the Department of Homeland Security working cases involving international law. Yep; ambitious beyond the norm.She chose an electric blue one piece; which was nothing but string from behind; very cheeky and what she claimed was the only suit in her size available on such short notice. I thought my brothers and I should pay homage to the Swimsuit Goddesses, if that was the true, because Sgt. Louisa was truly luscious.Of course, 14 to 1 odds was asking a lot of anyone so Big Bob had wrangled (rather easily) a supporting chaperone, my Mother (‘ah shit' was Mikhail's heartfelt and instantaneous reaction upon seeing her). She wasn't the primary chaperone because, as Big Bob told Ms. Louisa; ‘she's 100% loyal, brave and true, but 100% bat-shit crazy too.' Perfectly succinct and it rhymed.Mom; ugh; wore a red and white skimpy one-piece with a 'required' blue-with-one-white-star-over-each-breast bikini top. Very; umm; patriotic? Mom had a tight, lean-muscled physique. I had no doubt she was the most deceptively lethal human being present; in both age groups; and that included the people who knew she was crazy.Because the AHP Sergeant wasn't part of the Kingston/Davis County shit-storm, Mom felt safe secretly inviting two other women to this shindig. The first came so they could be seen publically feuding (by the cheerleaders) while they actually spent time building up a rapport. Mom was being asked to put aside a truckload of hate she'd been clutching to her bosom for over twenty years toward Dominique Fox Malik's husband, father and brother.For Dominique, she'd been raised on hating the Fonteneau in general and Gayle for 'lying' about the rape Mom had gone through (at the hands of 7 Black young men when she was fifteen) and Theo, her twin, for putting her brother in a coma he was still in all these years later. They'd hated one another by association longer than I'd been alive and now were trying to put their bile 'high on the back shelf' for their children's sake.Sure, Mom was tossing money and political clout Dominique's way, but the offer would never had been made and absolutely never accepted if Taliyah and Mikhail hadn't been so deeply and truly

Today, we're talking through recent strikes in Gaza, Lebanon, and Israel; a shakeup in College Football rankings; Elon Musk's offer to Pennsylvania voters; and other top news for Monday, October 21st. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over Today. Please support our TPO sponsors! Cru: give.cru.org/tpo Upside: https://links.thepourover.org/Upside The Bible Study: https://links.thepourover.org/TheBibleStudy Politics for People Who Hate Politics: https://links.thepourover.org/PoliticsForPeopleWhoHatePolitics Keola Fit: https://links.thepourover.org/KeolaFit_Pod Compelled Podcast: https://links.thepourover.org/Compelled Dwell Differently: https://links.thepourover.org/DwellDifferently Nothing Left Unsaid Podcast: https://linktr.ee/tgnlu CCCU: https://www.mycccu.com/tpobonus Courage for Life Study Bibles: links.thepourover.org/CFL_Podcast_0901 Grace Bible for Kids: https://links.thepourover.org/GraceBibleforKids The Daily Walk Bible: https://links.thepourover.org/DailyWalk

The father of Eckel joins The Grum to preview the CFB weekend

This week, we have one final episode in our "Back to School" series highlighting another special program at the U.S. Army War College. The Advanced Regional Studies (ARS) program offers opportunities for students to meet the senior decision- and policy-makers of our allied and partner nations on their own turf. Daniel Krebs, the director of ARS, is in the studio to explain how a select number of students will travel abroad for study. He joins podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss how students gain invaluable knowledge and understanding of the culture and mindset of these nations and their leaders by spending time in their countries and meeting with them face-to-face.

ORIGINAL AIR DATE: APRIL 2, 2016Since I reference this book a lot, I felt it was time to remaster and re-upload this show, with it's short Patreon segment as well. Eric Ouellet joins me for a fascinating discussion of his new book, Illuminations: The UFO Experience as a Parapsychological Event. He proposes that we should examine the UFO Phenomenon as we would a poltergeist case. It's a novel way of looking at it, and may ultimately play a part in solving this enigma. ERIC OUELLET is professor of Defence Studies at the Royal Military College of Canada, and at the Canadian Forces College (Canada's Joint Staff and War College). He has a Ph.D. in sociology from York University (Toronto, Canada), and he is the liaison officer for Canada with the Parapsychological Association. He has published parapsychological work in the Australian Journal of Psychology, EdgeScience, and the Bulletin Métapsychique. His other research works focus on military sociology and war studies.You can check out his blog at parasociology.blogspot.com

Some call it Romantasy, some call it Dragon Corn (except replace the C with a P). Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros is hotter than dragon's breath, and so of course we have to see if we can figure out why it's so popular. Sarah Skilton joins me to discuss “love triangles,” indescribable pain that we would actually like described, War College, and how…hot…Xaden…is. Also, is Fourth Wing enjoyable for people with romance or fantasy genre competence? Listen…or die.Discussed: Fourth Wing by Rebecca YarrosGuest: Sarah SkiltonWebsite: www.sarahskilton.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/skiltongram/Hollywood Ending by Tash Skilton: https://bookshop.org/p/books/hollywood-ending-tash-skilton/15806212?ean=9781496730671 Shelf Love:NEW! Substack for original writing and stuff | Website | Twitter | Instagram | YouTubeEmail: Andrea@shelflovepodcast.com

Originally aired on April 2, 2016Since I reference this book a lot, I felt it was time to remaster and re-upload this show, with it's short Patreon segment as well.Eric Ouellet joins me for a fascinating discussion of his new book, Illuminations: The UFO Experience as a Parapsychological Event. He proposes that we should examine the UFO Phenomenon as we would a poltergeist case. It's a novel way of looking at it, and may ultimately play a part in solving this enigma.ERIC OUELLET is professor of Defence Studies at the Royal Military College of Canada, and at the Canadian Forces College (Canada's Joint Staff and War College). He has a Ph.D. in sociology from York University (Toronto, Canada), and he is the liaison officer for Canada with the Parapsychological Association. He has published parapsychological work in the Australian Journal of Psychology, EdgeScience, and the Bulletin Métapsychique. His other research works focus on military sociology and war studies.You can check out his blog at parasociology.blogspot.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's time once again to feature some of the smart conversations that occur around the country through the Eisenhower Series College Program. For over 50 years, the Eisenhower Program has reached out to colleges and town halls across the nation to introduce War College students to audiences that are often unfamiliar with members of the U.S. military. This episode features Don Mozer and Luis Peral as they examine the current efforts of the U.S. military support to the ongoing drug interdiction mission of the nation. With the benefit of Don's recent tour in NORTHCOM and Luis's decades of law enforcement and prosecutorial experience between them, they share their perspectives with podcast host Ron Granieri. Their conversation aims to understand the nature of a very real threat to national security as well as consider possible strategies to combat that threat in the present and well into the future.

It's time once again to feature some of the smart conversations that occur around the country through the Eisenhower Series College Program. For over 50 years, the Eisenhower Program has reached out to colleges and town halls across the nation to introduce War College students to audiences that are often unfamiliar with members of the U.S. military. This episode features Ajai Dabas, Wade Smith and Matthew Taylor discussing great power competition. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss their professional experiences, primarily in the Indo-Pacific theater. Their insights highlight not only China's actions and motivations in the region but, more importantly, the crucial importance of alliances as well. All three guests share their thoughts on strong partnerships in INDOPACOM as the primary tool to defeat unchecked Chinese aggression and expansion. 

It's time once again to feature some of the smart conversations that occur around the country through the Eisenhower Series College Program. For over 50 years, the Eisenhower Program has reached out to colleges and town halls across the nation to introduce War College students to audiences that are often unfamiliar with members of the U.S. military. This episode features Qiana Harder, Seana Jardin, and Carina Kelley as they discuss their personal and professional experiences as women serving in the United States Army. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the challenges they've experienced during their time in the military, as well as to highlight the successes and opportunities they've encountered. With nearly seventy years of combined experience, these three soldiers point out that while there is still plenty of room for improvement, military service for women has come a long way. They believe there are plentiful opportunities open to the next generation of women for a successful, fulfilling career in the U.S. Army. And these three ladies prove that fighting like a girl is a good thing.

Send us a message!Excuse me????????? What about the wards?!?!?! Music is by Alexander Nakarada.Support the Show.

This week Whitney discusses chapters 58-63 of Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/deja-lu/support

Police arrest 93 people at USC amid Gaza war protests. Hamas and Iran throw support behind the college protests. A settlement that will rewrite the way many real estate agents are paid in the U.S. has received approval from a federal judge. Los Angeles makes progress but earns 25th straight F in air quality; nothing like the ‘smog sieges' from the 1950's to 1980's.

The conflict in Gaza has galvanized a new generation of young anti-war activists, in the same way that opposition to the Vietnam War and apartheid South Africa did in decades past. A backlash is now building in the United States, led by right-wing activist and pro-Israel groups aimed at eliminating any public dissent over U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East.As the death toll of Palestinians rises, a new authoritarian climate is sweeping across the U.S. — particularly on college campuses, which have transformed into laboratories for censorship and surveillance. Intercepted host Murtaza Hussain discusses this new political reality with Sahar Aziz, distinguished professor of law at Rutgers Law School and author of a new report on free speech and discrimination in the context of the Gaza conflict.Intercepted has been nominated for a Webby award under the category of Best News and Politics podcast. Help us win by casting your vote today. If you'd like to support our work, go to theintercept.com/join, where your donation, no matter what the amount, makes a real difference.And if you haven't already, please subscribe to the show so you can hear it every week. And please go and leave us a rating or a review — it helps people find the show. If you want to give us additional feedback, email us at Podcasts@theintercept.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREVIEW: #PLA-NAVY: #PRC: #INDIA: From a conversation with US Navy War College Professor James Holmes re questions of the ability of the PLA Navy to project into the Indian Ocean and even into the South Atlantic.  More of this tonight. https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/indias-navy-has-arrived-208922 1854 Bombay https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Frederick_FitzClarence

The boxes are unpacked, the books are on the shelves, both real and virtual, and the library is open for business in the new Root Hall at the U.S. Army War College. Greta Braungard and Heather Goyette are back in the studio with podcast host Ron Granieri to talk about everything they do to help students and faculty find the information they need. Whether it's the physical stacks or the digital ones, the new Knowledge Commons is the heart of academic research at the War College, and a great deal of thought has gone into making sure that searchability and accessibility are at the center of its functionality. Greta and Heather share the extensive efforts they and the entire team have taken to ensure that the library meets and exceeds the needs of its patrons, now and for years to come.

3rd generation warrior, RC-135 pilot, and thought leader, Major Nathan Dial '10, describes his connection to USAFA, his bond with the cadets and how the leadership lessons he learned fuel his drive to serve and support the Long Blue Line. ----more---- SUMMARY Major Dial shares his journey from growing up in a military family to attending the Air Force Academy and becoming a leader in the Air Force. He emphasizes the importance of relationships, approachability, and accountability in leadership. He's kept his connection to the Academy through mentoring cadets and serving on the Association of Graduates board. He is continuously learning and contributing to the discourse through research and writing. Major Dial also discusses the challenges and responsibilities of leadership, including the need to practice what you preach and prioritize personal development, controlling the controllables and dealing with adversity. Finally, the conversation concludes with a discussion on whether leaders are born or made.   OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "Relationships really matter. I think some of my successes would not be available without classmates or upperclassmen who poured into me or offered opportunities or offered help along the way." "Control the controllables. And by that, I mean you control your energy, you control your attitude, you control your effort. And most importantly, you control how you respond to adversity." "Don't be afraid to be vulnerable. Now, you can't be oversharing. But, you're going to know those spots where you can be vulnerable." "I'm a big believer in that you need reps. I think to really hone your skills, your potential, I think you have to have some type of environment that nurtures that out of you." "I think all the best leaders I saw, whether it was cadets or staff or faculty or AOCs, were all approachable and accountable."  - Major Nathan Dial '10   NATE ON OPRAH, AGE 11, APRIL 15, 1999   SHARE THIS EPISODE  FACEBOOK  |  LINKEDIN  |  TWITTER  |  EMAIL   CHAPTERS 00:00:  Introduction and Background 01:32:  Early Life and Influences 03:06:  Choosing the Air Force Academy 05:04:  Journey at the Academy 09:08:  Leadership Development at the Academy 12:50:  Staying Connected to the Academy 18:05:  Leadership Principles 20:20:  Giving Back to the Academy 24:06:  Navigating Highs and Lows 27:40:  Influence of Background on Leadership 29:37:  Making Time for Others 34:06:  Contributing to the Discourse 36:35:  Challenges and Responsibility of Leadership 38:52:  Practicing What You Preach 39:24:  Personal Development and Growth 40:24:  Balancing Personal Interests 41:00:  Controlling the Controllables 42:18:  Dealing with Adversity 43:20:  The Talk: Passing Down Wisdom   OUR FAVORITE TAKEAWAYS - Building strong relationships and treating people with respect are essential in leadership. - Leaders should be approachable and accountable to foster trust and accomplish goals. - Continuous learning and contributing to the discourse are important for personal and professional growth. - Leaders have a responsibility to navigate challenges, practice what they preach, and prioritize their own development. - Balance personal interests to maintain a well-rounded life. - Control the controllables, including energy, attitude, effort, and response to adversity. - Adversity can be a catalyst for growth and empathy. - Passing down wisdom through 'The Talk' is an important tradition that evolves with time. - Leaders are made through nurturing and developing their skills and experiences.     NATE'S BIO 14-year Active-Duty Air Force Officer, Combat Pilot, PhD with a concentration on NATO in the 21st Century. Well-versed in qualitative and quantitative research of public policy and sports analytics. Interested in opportunities advising/helping think-tanks, startups, boards, and private companies analyze, break down, and solve complex problems.  US Air Force Academy 2010  Harvard Kennedy School MPP 2012  ENJJPT 2013  Northwestern Political Science, Ph.D. 2021 ASG Rising Leader 2022 EC-130 Pilot  RC-135 Pilot Facebook:  Nathan Dial  |  Twitter:  therealnatedial  |  Instagram:  dial_like_thesoap  |  Linkedin:  Nathan Dial - Bio copy and image credit:  www.drnathandial.com  CONNECT WITH NATE  |  LEARN MORE  | AN IMPRESSIVE BODY OF WORK   ABOUT LONG BLUE LEADERSHIP Long Blue Leadership drops every two weeks on Tuesdays and is available on Apple Podcasts, TuneIn + Alexa, Spotify and all your favorite podcast platforms. Search @AirForceGrads on your favorite social channels for Long Blue Leadership news and updates!   FULL TRANSCRIPT SPEAKERS Our host is Dr. Doug Lindsay '92  |  Our guest is Major Nathan Dial '10   Maj. Nate Dial  00:00 I think we all have strengths, weaknesses. And so, being authentic to yourself of how are you building a team that highlights your strengths and weaknesses and being self-reflecting self-critical and doing what those are. So, I think that's probably the first thing I think for any leader. I think all the best ones I've been around have all been very, very self-aware. And so, I think that will be the challenge. I think for everybody, how are you self-aware around strengths or weaknesses. Don't be afraid to be vulnerable. I think, you know, you're gonna kind of pick and choose those moments. You'll know those moments. And so, I would try to tell people as they try to think about that.   Doug Lindsay  01:13 My guest today is major Nate Dial, a 2010 graduate of the Air Force Academy, with a bachelor's degree in economics. As a cadet, he was the fall 2009 Cadet Wing Commander, who was also the summer 2009 Basic Cadet Training Director of Operations, soaring instructor, Naval Academy exchange cadet, and he even spent a summer in Peru in an immersion program. He's a 13-year active-duty Air Force officer currently flying RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft out of Omaha, Nebraska. Major Dial's desire to feed his mind and grow as a leader is pretty insatiable. He earned a Master's in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School in 2012. He completed the Euro NATO joint jet pilot training program in 2013. And he even received a doctorate in political science in 2021, with his concentration being on NATO in the 21st century. He is a 2021 Air Force Academy Young Alumni Excellence Award winner, and in 2022, completed the Aspen Strategy Group Rising Leaders program. He is a student and analyst of public policy, and commits time to solving the complex problems that think tank startups' boards and private companies sometimes face. He is also a member of the United States Air Force Academy Association of Graduates' board of directors. Major Dial, thank you for being with us today on the Long Blue Leadership podcast.   Maj. Nate Dial  02:32 Happy to be here. Looking forward to the conversation.   Doug Lindsay  02:35 Do you mind telling us a little bit about where you grew up, you know, kind of where you started and what that was like, and what kind of influences had an impact on you when you started?   Maj. Nate Dial  02:43 For sure. So, my dad was in the Army 30 years. And my mom is a professor who traveled the world with my dad getting a job at the local college, wherever that was. So obviously military was huge for me growing up with around a bunch of the kid. And then education was huge, too with my mom. So naturally with those two items, discipline, reading a lot. And I was a pretty decent little athlete growing up — I played basketball, golf and soccer growing up as a kid. So, you put all that together and naturally kind of led me towards a life of service and a life of service through the military with hopefully one of the academies.   Doug Lindsay  03:18 You moved around a lot during that 30 years. I'm assuming were there any places that really left an impact on your memory for you.   Maj. Nate Dial  03:25 For sure. So, just to give you a quick rundown: So, born in Buffalo, New York, spent time in Seoul, Korea; Richmond, Virginia; Columbia, South Carolina; Carlisle, Pennsylvania; and my dad ultimately retired in '03 in Richmond — that's pretty much home now. They've been there ever since [in?] the same house. The places that stick out, everybody has a kind of an indelible mark on my life. But Richmond, Virginia, really is home. I mean, I was there kindergarten through third grade, and then I returned 10th through 12th grade. So, it's pretty much my central upbringing at this point. So that's, that's probably the place I would call closest.   Doug Lindsay  04:00 And was that idea of, kind of with your dad serving? And if I remember right, your grandfather served as well. A path for you. Is that why the Academy kind of resonate or you decided to go there? What was that thought process?   Maj. Nate Dial  04:12 That was huge for me. And so, you're trying to figure out a place to serve that you feel comfortable. As a kid, when my dad was at the Army War College from 1999 to 2003. You get to see a lot of different Academy people come through Naval Air Force army, my dad's ROTC guy from Northern Illinois. So, a lot of those people, when they would see me — especially as a kid — I played a lot of golf. So, my dad ironically didn't play a lot of golf or wasn't very good. And so, as you know, as an officer, especially, oh 506 is at the War College golf huge. And so, he would actually have to go fill in for him a lot of times because I was a pretty decent player. And so, I would be 12, 11 years old playing with these Academy guys like, “Hey, Nate, like if you keep progressing you'd be a great Academy kid.” So that was pretty much embedded in me from age of about 9 to 13. And it kind of never really shook away from me growing up, so it was always kind of in the background in the foreground for me my whole life. Like all kids around my generation, I was 6 years old, I saw “Top Gun.” So, I wanted to be the black Maverick. I wanted to go mach 2 with my hair on fire. But a couple family, friends and uncles have boats and I got seasick every time. So that eliminated the Navy. And I don't swim the greatest. Definitely eliminated the Naval Academy. I didn't like camping as a kid either. And so, my dad, being an Army guy, was like, “You're just not built for it. You're not built to be an Army. So, you should do that we do the Air Force Academy thing.” It's kind of matched up to the dad's wishes, and also my desire to fly. The Air Force Academy was the only Academy I applied to; I only did that in Air Force ROTC coming out of high school. So, I was pretty determined that that was my direction.   Doug Lindsay  05:42 When did this idea of leadership really kind of start to come on if you could spend a little bit of time talking about that?   Maj. Nate Dial  05:48 Yeah, I'll kind of back up in time on that one in terms of service and leadership. It really started when I was 12 years old. So, in fifth grade, again, moved around a lot. So, I went from a really affluent area in Chesterfield County in the suburb of Richmond, Virginia, to Carlisle, and went from a brand-new school with one of the best libraries you could ever imagine to a not-as-great school and not a great a very old library. And so, as a huge reader as a kid, I was pretty determined to try to help and try to figure out a way to improve that library at the school I was at and Carlisle. And so, I was inspired by Oprah Winfrey; she had this campaign going at the time where she put these large water jugs in the 50 largest malls in America and said, “Hey, people, just throw your loose change in these jugs and our goal is to try to send 50 kids to college.” And they ended up raising a ton of money — enough to send 56 Honestly, kids to college. And that really resonated with me as a kid, I was like, I want to do something like this on a smaller scale for my elementary school to raise money for books. So, I had this idea. I pitched it to people at my dad and mom's work, and they agreed to match whatever money we raised at my local school to buy books for kids. And so, I made this presentation to the school principal and he said we had other funds coming in — “We're not really interested in your program that you want to try to pitch us on.” I continue to read and kind of do it on a local level in my own house; I ended up having over the course of the year about 120 150 bucks that I made, got the matching from my mom and dad's work, and then bought books for every kid in my elementary school class. And so, I wrote Oprah about it and about she inspired me everything else. And then she had me on the show and then donated $5,000, worth of books in my name. And so, at that point, it really kind of made a mark on me of, you know, you can make an impact on this world if you're passionate inspired about a problem or a challenge that you want to go solve. And so, I think that as a 12-year-old kind of got that going in me. And so, it was kind of always looking around places. And so, given the dad service, and then all the absolutely amazing opportunity at the Air Force Academy that kind of led me towards that of like this place will help me go to my highest of heights, whatever is possible for me for sure.   Doug Lindsay  08:08 That idea of wanting to make a difference, right? Why did you feel that calling to want to do that?   Maj. Nate Dial  08:14 I'm not sure if it's really like, “Why me?” I think it's more like, “Why not?” It's kind of how I would answer that. And my parents were always really good about anything that I was passionate about, if nurturing, and if it's educational. If it was about impact, my parents really nurtured it. And they were like, OK, like, let's continue to explore, like, let's ask questions, like, help you. And so, I think having a foundation of a family like that, that didn't put any limits on me and said, “We want to nurture that desire to help.” I think that's probably the why — was that I had this idea. My parents didn't shut it down or poopoo it; they were actually like, yeah, they put gasoline on the fire — let me go burn a little bit more. So that was probably how I would say that's the why. What drew me to the academy over other schools was, I wasn't going to be judged just on my academic performance. It was the academics, it was the military, it was the athletics, it was the leadership. There was so much going on there that I was very much a busybody as a kid. And going there was going to be able to feed that busy bardenas Because there's so much going on, there's 36 hours' worth of things to do what a 24 hour day. So, you were never going to be bored at that institution. So, that really spoke to me. And what's also nice about that, too, is when you have a bad performance, let's say in a Physics 215 class, you can take your frustration down on the intramural field, or help instruct somebody as a soaring IP. So, I think that ability to try to nurture every piece of my brain, any kind of desire I had, was awesome there. So, I think it was just super enriching because again, I would talk about the Academy is it's a, it's a will issue, not a skill issue — that if you have a willpower, there's people at that place that want to help you get there and want to help you succeed. Whether that's your classmates, your upperclassmen are the instructors, people really invested in people becoming their best selves. So, I think that's how I would probably encapsulate my journey there.   Doug Lindsay  10:08 And so there was obviously the individual drive from yourself. But did your faculty staff play a role in that? I mean, how did that shape how you showed up as a cadet?   Maj. Nate Dial  10:17 Yeah, huge. So, I was a track, I think my first two years at the Academy, and my career got ended because of two knee surgeries. So that happened. But what spoke to me around the track team was the late Ralph Lindeman, who was the coach there for many, many years. When you're in your offseason there, he gave you every Wednesday off to go to EI. And so, I always helped me as a freshman understand that athletics isn't my job, my job is school and being the best kid that I can be. And so, I think that's me with a really big foundation around like how to balance and compartmentalize the many parts of your life. So, that was a great foundation as a freshman have, I have this athletic performance I have to do. But at the same time, at the end of the day, like, I'm still a student, I needed to get the best grades I can get, I need to try to make sure I can perform as much as I can. So, I think having that was really huge for me initially. So, that was a great foundation, and an amazing AOC. My freshman year was all about performance. And so, he was a pilot beat to pilot and he was about the numbers. And so, I was a pretty good performer in terms of, like, the knowledge test and my academics and athletics. And so, he was much like, “Hey, man, based on your numbers, like, you can go as far as you want at this place.” And I never really thought about that until we really sat me down and [he?] told me that after my first semester, so that again, like, continue to fuel the fire of, like, just keep pushing the envelope and do as best as you can here. And then the same like my sophomore in junior year at an amazing AOC F 16 pilot type, who continued to nurture me. And then my senior year, my IOC was a maintainer who, again, like, just gave me a lot of that, like broader leadership around how to inspire others. So, I thought all that leadership from the AOCs was great. And then my instructors were amazing. I still talked to my adviser, and my thesis adviser to the Academy. Now, I probably sent him an update email every six months. So, those people who invest in me, I'm always very thankful. And I know I wouldn't be here without a lot of their help and, just, nurturing for sure.   Doug Lindsay  12:15 Was Cadet Wing Commander ever kind of something you've thought about? Or is it just something that kind of just happened as a byproduct  of your ability to kind of lean in and take advantage of those opportunities?   Maj. Nate Dial  12:24 Also a crazy story. So, I actually was pretty determined to leave the academy after my sophomore year. So, I just, I think everybody that sophomore year is just like the doldrums where everybody kind of just does not like that place. And I was definitely one of those people. And, you know, who's grinding, nobody cares, right? You're a 3 degree, you're not the cool freshman everybody picks on. And you've got so many more days left junior senior year that you're like, “I'm just out on this place.” So, I applied to a couple of universities to transfer and there was two other friends of mine who were doing the same thing and we were helping each other out. The other two people ended up leaving — one went to [the University of Pennsylvania]. And one went to UCLA. But I ended up staying. And so, I just kind of prayed about it and said, “Hey, you know, should I leave? Or should I stay.” And I made a pact with God that if I got into a couple of different programs, I would stay because it meant that I was doing really well. So, I was soaring IP, a Navy exchange, and then it was the summer immersion to Peru. If I got all three of those. I was like, “I have to stay, like, I'm just doing so well here. And it's such an amazing opportunity. You got to kind of have to stay.” And so, I stayed. I went to the Naval Academy. And while I always wanted to go there. And back on the East Coast, I'm seeing a ton of my friends on the weekend who I grew up with, being a Virginia kid, I was absolutely miserable at the Naval Academy. I don't want to get too much into I but it was bad. It was bad in terms of the kids I had a room with weren't the greatest. There's tons of rules. They're how they trained freshmen is so different than how we do. The culture is very different. And so, it actually made me appreciate the Academy that much more. And I got back to the Academy my second semester, junior year after the exchange, and I was like, “We got to make this place fun. Like you guys. We don't know how great we have it here compared to the other academies.” And so I was on this campaign of like, we got to make being a cadet fun again, like that's what we got to do. And maybe people appreciate this place. And so, I remember talking to my IOC at the time, and having this kind of epiphany that no, this place is awesome. I'm so happy to be here. This is great. So, it's so much awesome opportunity here. You know, “What job should I apply for as a senior?” and he was like, “Nate, like, you should apply for wing commander. That's like “Nah, I'm not that guy. I'm not that person.” And then he kind of broke down whatever the cadet equivalent to a surf was. And then just that kind of inspiration that I had the time to try to help him make it a better place for cadets and he was like to take that energy and try to pour into the cadet wing I think it'd be great for him and so his again his fuel to the fire for be maybe think about it and then we're pretty determined person so once I kind of get myself locked onto a vector then I give it my best effort.   Doug Lindsay  15:01 Did it end up working out? You kind of had that epiphany — that kind of figuring it out of I own this, right, this is me and what I can do, and I'm gonna make the most out of it, You came to the Academy, did you know that flying was the way to go? Maj. Nate Dial  15:12 One-hundred percent. I mean, I set up for the Academy to fly, pretty standard person. And that way, I got to appreciate it more though, because I had this really interesting peanut allergy. And there was a time where I didn't think I was able to fly because of this peanut allergy. And so, I didn't go through all these DOM or physicals which I'll describe what it was, I had to eat peanut butter over the course of eight hours, and every 20 minutes, they doubled the dose started with an eighth of a teaspoon all the way up to a half a cup. And they had all the like the gonads on me that monitor everything. And so, that was like the ultimate last test — I had to do the past to make sure I'd you know, wouldn't die if I ate peanut butter, I guess in the plane or have like some type of shock or incapacitation. So, I passed that. But that, like, 3-month process of all the physical tests I had to do around this peanut allergy had me really thinking about what else what I would do. And I just felt really fortunate to be able to get through that and so be able to live my dream. And so, I really do empathize with people who have some type of medical issue who got to the Academy, thought they were gonna be able to fly, then found out later that they couldn't, and then, you know, what do they do next? And so having had that journey, I can definitely empathize with cadets who have that I've talked to decent people who've had that.   Doug Lindsay  16:30 With the success that you had at the Academy, what were some of the, maybe the leadership principles that you pulled out of your time at the Academy.   Maj. Nate Dial  16:38 The first thing I would say is, relationships really matter. I think some of my successes would not be available without classmates or upperclassmen who poured into me or offered opportunities or offered help along the way. I think we all can talk about as grads, people who are still in our lives, right, they're the best men in our wedding, the groomsmen in our wedding or bridesmaids in our weddings, right? That's kind of how it works out. So that kind of family atmosphere there, it's very important, and the relationships matter too because you're going to fast forward from graduation, you know, eight, nine, 10 years, you're going to weapon school with these people, you're in combat with those people, you're in on the radio. So, having that relationship builds trust and builds Trumps means accomplishing whatever the goal is, or the mission, especially in hard times. So, I would say relationships matter. Therefore, how you treat people is very important. When in doubt, take the high road. When in doubt, err on the side of grace. Those are the kind of messages that would tell somebody. So, that's a very interpersonal skill I would talk about for the leadership part of it. And then the second thing I would talk about is being approachable and accountable. I think all the best leaders I saw, whether it was cadets, or staff, or faculty, or AOCs, were all approachable and accountable. So, I thought those were the two things I would hang my hat on going forward. And they just understand that you'll get better with reps. So, putting yourself out there, trying new things out, not being afraid to fail. When in doubt, ask questions to people who've already been there before. I think those are probably the biggest things I've definitely learned as a cadet.   Doug Lindsay  18:11 You graduated in 2010. You kind of went off doing the flying thing. Very intentionally you have stayed connected to the Academy.   Maj. Nate Dial  18:20 It's hard to give you a “why” but I can kind of give you a feeling I think of the why. So, the feeling I can talk about in this is around kind of like your first relationship with a significant other, where you have all the highs or the lows, you care about that person a lot. Even if you go your separate ways to something else, you always kind of keep tabs and you want to make sure that person is in a better place than when you whenever you kind of broke up or did something different. It's kind of the same way I feel about USAFA. It's the first decision that I made on my own was choosing to go to that school, obviously, I talked about choosing to stay to and stay committed to it and that process. And I knew I wouldn't be here without those four years. And so, I think that kind of feeling of connection and that relationship being such an integral part of my life — I could never really just separate away from it completely. And so, I think that's part of the reason why of always staying connected and then always figuring out ways of how can I support in a way that is meaningful?   Doug Lindsay  19:27 Can you talk a little bit about some of those ways that you support in terms of what you do to kind of help give back with your time and what you do?   Maj. Nate Dial  19:34 I think like many graduates find cadets or cadets find you. So, I think it's a very basic one that I've done from Day One is given the profile. A lot of people hear about my story are interested in some of the similar things I already did. So, cadets will reach out and I could probably talk you through a litany of cadets since I've graduated who I help out with that and stay connected with this. The second thing too is obviously now with the endowment that we started. So, put money in at a small amount was $20.10, a little bit of class pride there a month into a fund that went with the EO G. And then, over time, our goal was to come back to the 10-year reunion, and then figure out what we want to do with the sum of money. So, through that program, we were able to raise $330,000, of which we put to her and 10,000 of those dollars into an endowment, that at the time 2021, you all remember COVID. Seeing some of the stories online around the cadet experience was really heartbreaking. And so, we wanted as a class to try to help with their morale. And so, we have this endowment that gives $5,000 to the No. 1 cadet squadron for their morale fun. So, it's as no strings attached you can kind of get given DoD and government. But it's if they want to redo their SAR they can do if they want to go to Chipotle and have a big Chipotle dinner, they want to go to Top Golf or rent it out with like whatever they want to do to increase their morale as a squadron. We fund that with $5,000 every semester. And so that's a way of giving back if you're trying to find we have these funds, we have a need of the cadets. And so that's how our class decided to do that. And I just know, I'm a connector, I'm a conduit for that. So, I'm able to help with that. And then obviously, recently, this past May, when some people on the board call it so it wouldn't be an appointment or on the cog board jumped at the opportunity to try to lend my services and ideas for sure.   Doug Lindsay  21:31 There were highs and there were lows. To have those highs and really have those successes, we've got to understand those kind of low points too, and who we are. And it sounds like the highs may not have been possible if you didn't kind of sort through those lows as well, right?   Maj. Nate Dial  21:45 For sure. I think it's Conor McGregor's Trainer that has a book that either we're winning or we're learning, we're accomplishing the goals, and you're gonna get some things out of it. I think all of my greatest growth moments come through some type of failure or hardship. And so, I think I'll give an example as a cadet right is, I had never done poorly, right, academically, but I remember failing a GR in a super high level Spanish class as a freshman that I, like, I validated into. And so, it was the first time where I had to humble myself and ask for help. I was the only non-native Spanish speaker in this class. And so, asking people for help of like, “Hey, I don't get this,” or, “Hey, I need to study with somebody or something else.” I was a first time I had to humble myself in academic setting to do that. And so that was an opportunity to learn of that you can't just blast off on your own. If you want to get to this place, which was get an A in this course, you're going to need to lean on some classmates and ask for help. And it'd be like, “Hey, I don't get this.” And that is a strength. And I think a lot of us, when we get to the Academy, we're also Type A personalities who are highly successful, who have a lot of positive affirmation coming into that place, it's the first time you get smacked in the face with any kind of not high performance, slash average performance, slash below average performance. And so, I think how do you recover from that is huge in the growth. And so there's tons of opportunities, like, that I can talk through at the Academy where, at the time, it was a low, but it really was something to kind of harden me for the next situation, whether that was to give empathy for another person, or it's prepared me and harden me for the next challenge that's coming second, when it comes again, then I'm successful, and he would overcome this situation.   Doug Lindsay  23:25 It sounds like, you know, from early on, you know, again, your example, your grandfather example, your father, your mother and all that, that idea of service. And that really idea of kind of giving it your all — how does that influence your leadership today?   Maj. Nate Dial  23:38 So, the first thing I tried to do is just offer two things that one, I'm available. So, this isn't a onetime relationship is what I always tried to lead with is that if I'm taking time out of my day to talk with you, whether that's in an official capacity because you're in my chain of command, or an unofficial capacity, that this isn't a onetime conversation, that I understand that not everybody is prepared or has questions or answers or challenges right now, that might come in the future. So, hey, I'm available when future things happen, if I'm the person that you want to come to with these things you think I can help. So, that's the first thing of establishing that is, this is a lifetime relationship. If as long as you want to tap back in, you got me that I'm here. So, I think having that kind of long-distance trust is really huge to establish to you're saying it's a journey that people are going to it's cyclical that we're going to have certain periods or seasons in life. And then the second one is: I normally try to lead with how can I help you? Because I think a lot of times we want to give people advice and not try to answer people's questions. And so, I tried to lead with answering your questions of, “Hey, like, how can I help?” and sometimes it'll lead you to a lot of places, but I want to just be impactful. I want to leave everybody when I meet them better than when they before they met me. And same with every organization will leave every organization better than when I entered it. That's kind of the goal is every time.   Doug Lindsay  24:59 How do you find time to do that? Or how do you make time to make sure that you're setting the time to be available to folks when they need it?   Maj. Nate Dial  25:07 It's gotten crazier over the years. And my wife is really good about this in terms of helping me schedule my own time. But I have a literally a standing 6-hour window every Sunday from after church to like 11 o'clock to 1700 to 5:00 p.m. every Sunday, that I just block out for people to be available. So, people hit me up and say, “Hey, Nate, I was like, well, x, y, or z.” And I just send them, “Hey, this is the time blocks, the next couple Sundays. Let me know when you want to fill in.” And so, I kind of compartmentalize that, because another part I think of leadership is being fully present. So, we're all super busy as you're talking about. But for that six hours, I am yours, for whatever block of time, 30 minutes, hour or 45 minutes, I am yours. And I'm fully committed. And if you ever read ahead for me, I've prepped for that for 1015 minutes really quickly to get myself smart on it. And then I'm here and I'm available. So, I think having a dedicated predictable time for people is heavy. And then I always tell people to, like — if you email me, give me, like, 72 hours, but I never know what's going on in the world. But pretty much now we're always connected to the internet. So, it sent me two hours, I'll see it now even I'm busy. I'll tell you, “Hey, I'm super busy. I'll get back to you in (insert timetable).” But I try to make it predictable, and then hold myself very accountable to those times.   Doug Lindsay  26:20 So, you put that block of time there, right, where you're really being fully present and investing. What is it that you've taken away from that intentionality on time to be with other people?   Maj. Nate Dial  26:29 Ninety-five percent of the time it's enriching. Because I am a classic extrovert, people energize me. So that's all start with that. And most times, people are really inspiring, whether it's some of these new cool things that they're doing, or they're trying to pursue that it's like, "Oh, man, that's awesome. I hope that person gets there.” Or I'm inspired by their tenacity to try to overcome something or get there. Or I'm just inspired by them to keep my game up. Because when you have a mentee who's climbing these ladders and doing it, it's not like we're always keeping score, but where we got to get better. It's like, "Hey, like, I need to keep pushing the envelope,” to like, ”What am I doing right now?” If these people are calling me and asking, I can't stagnate, I gotta keep pushing too. So, it's kind of a pseudo-inspiration to kind of keep my game up, too. So, I think all the above is always really helpful. More recently, in my 30s, I have noticed and tried to make myself more available for the tougher conversations, especially with friends, as people have recently had one of my best friend's son died, who's under 2 years old. So, making time for people like that to sometimes the inspiration is just being there as a friend to be that they're willing to share their vulnerabilities with you because, right, like, it's really easy to celebrate things with others; it's kind of tough to talk about when you're not in the best places. But I think as a friend, when people can find you in those areas, that's really powerful. The older I get that people were comfortable being vulnerable with you, and trust you enough to be vulnerable with you. And so, I think those times, while they're tough emotionally, make me feel good about myself that people feel that they can come to me with those items as well. And so, we're talking about a lot about my successes, which obviously, I'm very humbled by and pray to God that they continue to go, but some of it is about how do you help people get through those turbulent times? I think those are some of the things that I think through myself that are some of the most rewarding items, when people are kind of going through those doldrums, or going through those dark places, or those valleys, of helping them get on the other end of it to be a part of that process. That's really, really, really, really powerful for me.   Doug Lindsay  28:41 You'd also mentioned that it kind of challenges you to be better. So, I've noticed what you've chosen to do both educationally you get a master's, Ph.D. Not everybody does that. So, you were kind of doing that to kind of challenge yourself mentally and intellectually, but also your writing, and you're putting out pieces — thought pieces— and research as well. What's been the impetus for that? Is it just to contribute or to continue to push yourself?   Maj. Nate Dial  29:04 My dad used to always talk to me about as a kid, don't just bring me problems bring me a problem and a solution or a potential solution. And so, when I identify items that I think are suboptimal, I think I have a duty to whatever I'm criticizing, to add to the body of work to try to get to a solution. So, talk about some of the research right on the NBA. I'm a huge basketball nerd. And so, the research I did around the impact of college basketball and McDonald's All-Americans it was because I was truly curious about is the one and done rule that great or was two years of college be optimal? Or how about more? Right? So that's a question I had. And so, I was like, “Well, I have this skill set around quant research. I'm passionate about it. So, let's push it there.” Or more recently of the debate around the best 75 players in the NBA or 70 in the 75-year history of the NBA. That paper that I put out there was OK, like how could you evaluate that more quantitatively and objectively than writers talking about how they feel about people? So those kinds of items, there are obviously the piece that did back in 2020 around race in the military. Like those are kind of identify a problem or identify a situation and just try to help move the conversation forward through my either skill sets, or works or experience.   Doug Lindsay  30:21 Nate, one of the things that you had written before was a conversation that you shared a little bit about between your grandfather and your father to you about the talk. Do you mind talking a little bit about that and sharing a little bit about what that meant to you?   Maj. Nate Dial  30:34 Sure. So, The Talk, it's a tradition where minorities explain to their adolescent child really males who are coming of age, some of the stereotypes that they gotta overcome, and try to give us some techniques of how to overcome them that they've developed over their time as an adult, or in their same situation. Talking a lot of friends, obviously, since my article published, you got a lot of highlights back in 2020, around the George Floyd summer. It's a tradition of a lot of different minorities. So, you kind of takes different shapes, but it's very similar overall concept. And so, with the talk, there's a couple of things that are pretty important is that it's dependent on time, and it changes and evolves. So, I'll use my own family as the examples that kind of talked about in the article, which is, so my grandfather was in the conscription World War II segregated enlisted military. And so, he served there, finished his tour of duty, moved to Chicago, had a GI Bill tried to use the GI Bill to buy a house and a VA loan, but couldn't because right, redlining was very apparent in Chicago. And so, you can only buy a house in certain parts of Chicago, where you get a loan. And so, you know, what he learned in his time was that what's on the piece of paper, in terms of what happens may or may not apply to you as a Black person in America in his time. So, that's what he kind of taught my dad. So, my dad has had situation he goes on to college ROTC Commission's he's out in Germany on his first assignment, and my grandfather goes and visits and so he has my dad go through the gate multiple times, and my dad at the end of it. So, the second or third time through the gate is kind of like, "Hey, Pops, what's up?” and essentially, my grandfather, so my dad is like, “I never thought I would see a day where a white enlisted member would have to salute my son,” you know? Right, showing like, OK, like this, this progress is happening. And America and so he's seeing that in real time, too. And so that kind of similar moment, I think, happened with my father and I, where my dad's probably cried in front of me, like three times his entire life. And I can definitely remember the first time which was the parade for Parents Weekend, the fall, when I was cut Wing Commander, where you come down the parade field, you're the No. 1 person coming out, you lead everybody, the 4,500 cadets, and the wing. And so after the parade happens, you talk to your family, and everybody's around. And my dad was like, visibly emotional. Because I think for him, he never thought in his wildest dreams, his son would ever have that kind of an opportunity or potential, like he thought I could get to the academy, and graduate and probably get a pilot slot and do my thing, but I don't think he ever thought I could be the cadet Wing Commander. And so I think he was just really overtaken about again, like the progress that has been made, and in our country and whatnot. So that's kind of the talk. And so I'm quite looking forward to what that looks like with my kid, right? Like, I don't have kids yet. But hopefully, God blesses me with a split some kids. And so, they'll be able to share that kind of similar moment with them. I'm really looking forward to in terms of what I've learned, but then what they're going to teach me too, about how America is progressing.   Doug Lindsay  33:46 I think a lot of times when we look at leaders, and especially successful leaders, we just assume it's all good and it's there's all this good stuff, but we don't always understand that kind of behind the scenes that sometimes you have to do is downshifts, right? It's not all up. Sometimes we have those ups and downs we've got to deal with right?   Maj. Nate Dial  34:00 One-hundred percent. And sometimes yourself taking a knee, right? Like, I'm not all here either. And being again, approachable and accountable of saying, “I'm not all here, so I need to work on me.” And in practice what you preach. I always think it's quite funny when I see squadron commanders talk about family time and balance, and then I see them in their squadron at 7:30 p.m. at night, right? If you're doing that, everybody then feels obligated to a TOS if you want balance right it's how are you practicing what you're preaching there, right? Are you leaving at 5 even though we know we have a lot of work to do, but we'll get to it tomorrow? Or hey, um, when I was a flight commander, I used to always show up at 8:15, so, like, 45 minutes afterwards, because I always worked out in the mornings based on like, I prioritize my fitness. I know the duty days or 7:30 but I'm gonna show up at 8:15 because I prioritize my health and like working out. I hope you do too. And that I would always on Fridays if I could, I'd let everybody go around like to And then just stay for the rest of the day. The treadle people have balanced around, like, hey, like, everybody else can leave, I'll handle myself on a Friday and start your weekend off now. So, try to, like — that's part of the accountability, responsibility. I think that we all, as leaders, or people, and the hardest part is practicing what you preach, especially when things get hard, is how do you sustain the idea or the principle, when sometimes the short-term benefit will feel good in the moment, but overall, for the principle or the objective, you might not be achieving that?   Doug Lindsay  35:36 What do you do for your own development, to kind of keep you sharp, you keep showing up ready for the next rep?   Maj. Nate Dial  35:42 I have a lot of mentors and friends outside of the military. And so sometimes I normally try to reach out to them of challenges that they're facing and dealing with, and asking questions around that, to try to get a feel for how different industries are dealing with certain items or friends of mine. So, that's an enriching part of it. And then I could also offer, like, some of my military experiences to those same people. So, that's kind of a nice back-and-forth of kind of intellectual jabbing, and support for one another.  A big thing for me is I start pretty much every day off 30 minutes every day with a devotional, some, again, religious so I started with the Bible, then, like, kind of meditation. So, that kind of keeps me centered, balanced every day, kind of a consistent foundation every day if I'm going to start my day. And then for the enriching part of I'm a huge biography person. So, I read biography, I think real life is always better than fiction. So, I try to read up on that, and then I'm a big self-health person, I'll go that's podcast. So, those are that but then again, to the balance part of it. I'm a huge sports guy. So, your Rich Eisens, Dan Patricks. Bomani Jones's, Stephen A Smith, like I listen to those people to try to let myself come down and be a normal person and be relatable to others who are who I lead. So, I try to nurture both sides of it, like my personal like, let's just be entertained and decompress. But also, hey, I see what else is out there.   Doug Lindsay  37:09 Sounds like there's a lot of different ways that you invest into there to make sure that you show up and be present the way you want to right? Maj. Nate Dial 100% 100%. N   Doug Lindsay  37:09 Nate, one of the things that sometimes people will have debates on is that leaders are born versus leaders are made or somewhere in between. Do you mind sharing your thoughts about kind of how you think about that based on your the work that you've done and your own practical experience or leaders born and they made? Or what does that? What does that look like?   Maj. Nate Dial  37:34 I definitely have a nurture-over-nature person. I just think too much of life has shown me that, especially around high-leverage moments, right? So there, my dad taught me something very similar. But the quotes, in easier way to articulate the idea that people don't rise to the occasion they revert to their training, so in necessitates the obvious question is, “How good is your training?” And so I think, while people could have some, like natural skill sets around leadership, I think, to hit your full potential, you've got to be nurturing that over time. And you only really get that through reps; you only get that through leadership challenge. That's why the Academy is so awesome with the leadership laboratory that we have there. And why in a lot of ways, I prefer the Air Force Academy model over West Point where West Point, a lot of their top cadets stay the same over the whole year, versus our Academy changes essentially three times the summer, the fall and the spring, because it gives more people more opportunities to have some of those leadership challenges to try to grow and develop. So, I'm a big believer in that — that you need reps to be able to get there. Could you get lucky once or twice, but I think to really hone your skills, your potential, I think you have to have some type of environment that nurtures that out of you.   Doug Lindsay  38:51 Exactly right. You know, we may all have different starting points on how we show up. But how we engage in what we do and how we do those reps and how often we do those reps are fully up to us and how we're going to how we're going to manage that right? I can't necessarily control where I start, but I can control how I finish and how I engage with the process. Right? Different for sure. A-firm. 100% agree with that. You we're successful at the Academy, you're successful in the Air Force, you're a little over midway through your career, what advice do you have for young leaders?   Maj. Nate Dial  39:20 The biggest thing is control the controllables. And so, by that, I mean you control your energy, you control your attitude, you control your effort. And most importantly, you control how you respond to adversity. People are always taking notice of that. So, if you control the controllables and you worry about you show up every day with high energy or positive energy, you give everything great effort, people are going to want to help you. People are going to see that and follow you with that. And then you control your attitude. So how do you treat people? How do you approach people? How do you operate in your day-to-day life? People respond to that. And so, I think always having that in mind of control the controllables, especially around those four items, I bet people would tell people to focus on that. And through those reps, as you get older, you'll get more tools in the toolkit. But I would start with that.   Doug Lindsay  40:12 Do you mind maybe sharing one of those adversities you faced and how you kind of move through that in terms of maybe a challenge that you faced, and you had to sit there and go, “How am I going to respond to this?” and maybe how that shaped you, or maybe a pivotal one that you wouldn't mind sharing?   Maj. Nate Dial  40:27 I'll go with, yeah, I'll start with pilot training, I think. So even though we talked about a little bit at some of these like valleys before, I never had really been in a dark place before. But pilot training was pretty dark for me, because it was the first time where I was, you know, an average or below average performer. This thing I always wanted my whole life, as we've talked about already, of being a pilot in the Air Force, I've done all the right things, and hit all the highs. You can hit educational at the Academy that to get so close to your dream and not be a great performer was rough. And so, I think part of that was a great journey of just how do you deal with that kind of adversity and not performing as you thought you would, or how you could? I was, you know, went to an 89 ride and T-6s. So, for people who aren't familiar with a pilot training that's like your, if you fail this, right, like you're out of the program, pretty much. And so, it takes some hooks to get there. And so, I was flying and got through that. So, that was kind of, you know, seeing the precipice of the cliff, and then getting yourself off of it. But what was nice about that was like the light bulb went off later, and T-38. And I had the tie for the top check ride for the initial check ride to gates at Shepherd. So, the light bulb eventually went off. And so, some of that with me, too, was being at Shepherd, it's designed to be a single seat fighter pilot place. And so, you know, just trying to deal with that whole situation there at inject was very interesting for me. Obviously, I wrote about in one of my pieces. But what that experience taught me about seeing the precipice and then coming back being somebody was trying so hard but not performing. What it helped me do? Honestly, it's empathize with people who are struggling. So, I know a lot of people who are at the Academy talk about, like, you know, “Chemistry was my crucible,” or “Water survival was my crucible,” and like, I gotta always go at it. And while I had not great performances, everything was really high, right? So, you don't get to become the cadet wing commander and not perform at a pretty high rate in the fall. So, while I had challenges, it was nothing that I didn't overcome or weren't essentially speed bumps, that was the first like, no kidding, like, I might not make it through this program moment. And so, with that, that just gave me a lot of empathy for people and allowed me to ask better questions, when especially people who are high performers who are in this weird doldrum, I can ask a lot more questions. And I kind of get some of those feelings that I felt back then. So, that's one of those challenges that I think that I would talk through around just making me a better leader were in the in when I was living in it, it felt horrible and terrible. But being on the other end of it, 2, 3, 4 years from then, and I'll give you an example. So, I had an airman who worked for me, you can fast forward see, it's probably 2016-ish, who was top linguist coming out, was a distinguished graduate of his cryptological program came to me and he was going through doing some crazy stuff, right? How to get like an article 15 from the commander or whatnot. And so, when that was happening, I just sat him down and we have a really good conversation around like, “Hey, man, like, this is weird, like, whatever this is, right now, it's not it.” And so, I got to share a little bit about my story about pilot training or whatnot. And so, we got to talk and I said, “Hey, man, so I'm gonna do usually take a week leave, go home, get away from this place, like, reset, come back and then let's, let's talk again.” So, he was able to do that. And then we put them right into the ALS program. So, that's like the airman leadership school. So, when they go from being an airman to sergeant's and our Air Force, everybody it's a it's a big kind of bridge moment for them to have educational development for their personal military education. And I challenged him. I said, “Hey, man, let's get back on this DG train. Let's, let's have this be a top performer. Again, this is your opportunity to recover, right? We, we hit this high, we got this whole group of teens, and now we're coming back. And so let's, let's make it happen.” And he finished No. 1 this class, and he was back on the train. So, I could use that example of where, you know, my personal crucible was able to hopefully help me as a leader relate to somebody and then hopefully, now granted, the kid did all the work. He's amazing; he's doing great things now. But to have a little bit of an impact on that, I think, was only because I went through my own hardship. So that's kind of that empathy that I talked about as a leader of having this moment knowing that it's going to prepare me to lead somebody in the future.   Doug Lindsay  44:44 It wasn't just that you had gone through a hardship but then you were open, honest, transparent about that as well that you were able, willing to share that aspect with him so that you can go through that process, right? So, it's just to be human about it. Anything else that you'd like to leave our listeners with respect to, you know, leadership or any other topics that we talked about today?   Maj. Nate Dial  45:08 I think the biggest thing is, just be authentic. I think we all have strengths, weaknesses. And so, being authentic to yourself of how are you building a team that highlights your strengths that covers your weaknesses, and being self-reflecting self-critical and knowing what those are? So, I think that's probably the first thing I think for any leader, I think all the best ones I've been around have all been very, very self-aware. And so, I think that will be the challenge, I think, for everybody try to how are you self-aware around strengths and weaknesses? And then, the second one is, you know, don't be afraid to be vulnerable. Now, you can't be oversharing. But you're gonna kind of know those spots where you can be vulnerable. And don't be afraid of that. Some of the — I can think about a wing commander who talked about his divorce in a public forum, and how he had to take a knee and go to mental health and everything else. I was like, that's really inspiring for where the wing commander didn't talk about that openly at an all call, I was like, “Man, that's powerful to me.” And so, I think, you know, you're gonna kind of pick and choose those moments. And I was gonna be a wing commander, but you'll know those moments. And so, I would try to tell people as I try to think about that.   Doug Lindsay  46:21 Thank you for your transparency. Thank you for your journey, and the example that you're setting for all the grads out there and everything that you do. And thank you for your time today and being on the Long Blue Leadership podcast. Nate, in case some of our listeners want to reach out to you and connect with you, do you have some social media handles or some ways that they can get a hold of you?   Maj. Nate Dial  46:38 Yeah, sure. If the first one so all the publications and whatnot are on my personal website. So that's www.drnathandial.com. So, drnathandial.com, is my personal website. You can see all the publications, my Twitter handle, where I publish a lot of things there is therealnatedial  is the handle. LinkedIn, Nathan Dial, you can find me sure if you're part of the long blue line probably have a common connection or two. So, feel free to add me there. And that's my socials and look forward to connecting with you all.   Doug Lindsay  47:12 Sounds great. Thank you so much.   Maj. Nate Dial  47:15 Thank you so much for having me and look forward to talking to you sometime in the future.   KEYWORDS people, cadet, talk, Academy, leadership, place, years, dad, Air Force Academy, put, nurture, kid, leaders, pretty, person, reps, wing commander, challenge, huge, thought   The Long Blue Line Podcast Network is presented by the U.S. Air Force Academy Association and Foundation   

An exorbitant privilege. That is what French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing called the U.S. dollar's role as the global international reserve currency. That role brings many advantages but is it sustainable and worth any costs? What would it take for an alternative to emerge? The raising of the debt ceiling, the rise of China as a financial power and recent troubled economic times in the United States have many questioning the future of the U.S. dollar. A BETTER PEACE welcomes Rob Farley and Mark Duckenfield to discuss the realities of the power and place of the U.S. economy in the international market. They join podcast host Ron Granieri for a conversation about world finance. Their goal is to explain why debt is actually necessary, why the Chinese renminbi won't likely become the new reserve currency and how much gold could fit in Bliss Hall here at the War College.

This week Whitney and McKinsey discuss chapters of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. IG/Threads/TikTok/: @dejalupodcast   Email: dejalupodcast@gmail.com  Music: https://www.purple-planet.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/deja-lu/support

Episode 9:  We speak with six students at the Army's War College. A handful of colonels, lieutenant colonels, and one civilian. We talk about the future of warfare, what war will look like in 2040, and how the United States Army is preparing for that future. We get a chance to hear from a group of War College students while they're in the midst of finishing their year-end research project and thinking about how they will return to their commands and put to use some of the thought and research they've conducted over their time at the War College.UnderSimplified Home: https://www.undersimplified.org/UnderSimplified Music by:  Arethusa StringsExclusive Sponsor 2430 Group:  2430Group.orgUnderSimplified Home: https://www.undersimplified.org/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/Twitter: @undersimplified****Ways to support this podcast****Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/undersimplifiedVenmo: @UnderSimplifiedPayPal: paypal.me/UnderSimplifiedGoFundMe: https://gofund.me/3d1b01b4

Introduction Chief Jack Jones has served for over 35 years in several emergency service roles.   The chief's positions include:   - Fire Chief, Bedford County Fire and Rescue Department (20 plus years)  -Emergency Management Director, (Bedford County, VA) - Flight Paramedic - Paramedic Instructor - Fire Investigator   -Jack has completed the FEMA Emergency Management Institute Advanced Professional Series (APS) and is a graduate of the U.S. Fire Administration/National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program (EFO) and the War College of the American Fire Service   -Jack is a credentialed Chief Medical Officer (CMO) designee, he holds a Master's Degree in Public Health and International Relations   -Jack is currently an Occupational Health & Safety Specialist with the Virginia Department of Health.   Contact Information https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-w-jones-jr-efo-bs-ma-a442b6292/

After an earlier article by Zachary Yost on a call by military “experts” to reinstate the military draft, the authors of the original paper are trying to back off on their original recommendation. But there is no doubt as to what they want the government to do. Original Article: Coauthor of War College Journal Article Tries to Backtrack on Call for "Partial Conscription"

After an earlier article by Zachary Yost on a call by military “experts” to reinstate the military draft, the authors of the original paper are trying to back off on their original recommendation. But there is no doubt as to what they want the government to do. Original Article: Coauthor of War College Journal Article Tries to Backtrack on Call for "Partial Conscription"

After an earlier article by Zachary Yost on a call by military “experts” to reinstate the military draft, the authors of the original paper are trying to back off on their original recommendation. But there is no doubt as to what they want the government to do. Original Article: Coauthor of War College Journal Article Tries to Backtrack on Call for "Partial Conscription"

After an earlier article by Zachary Yost on a call by military “experts” to reinstate the military draft, the authors of the original paper are trying to back off on their original recommendation. But there is no doubt as to what they want the government to do. Narrated by Millian Quinteros.

After an earlier article by Zachary Yost on a call by military “experts” to reinstate the military draft, the authors of the original paper are trying to back off on their original recommendation. But there is no doubt as to what they want the government to do. Original Article: Coauthor of War College Journal Article Tries to Backtrack on Call for "Partial Conscription"

It's time once again to feature some of the smart conversations that occur around the country through the Eisenhower Series College Program. For over 50 years, the Eisenhower Program has reached out to colleges and town halls across the nation to introduce War College students to audiences that are often unfamiliar with members of the U.S. military. This episode features Nate Minott and Chris Powers as they discuss some of the newest threats to homeland security. Nate considers the modern consumer-grade drone and the problem of securing airspace over sporting events, concerts or any large gathering. It's a timely concern as the world watches what drones can do on the battlefield. Chris discusses the potential threat of foreign buyers acquiring land in the United States as well as the militarization of civilian law enforcement.

In the movies, the bad guys willingly target women and children. The good guys fight with honor, even when faced with chaotic situations, and show great remorse whenever there is collateral damage on their operation. This is only the pop culture way of distinguishing between limited and unlimited warfare. However history is a much deeper, darker tale.The idea of limited war as we know it originated in the 18th Century according to Grenier, in The First Way of War. But we do not need to dig only into this book to understand that. The Global War on Terror illustrated the challenges of waging a limited war against an opponent willing to engage outside of their rules of engagement. As we advocate for further decentralization, and as we believe in both the rights and agency of man, we recognize that we can no longer export our responsibility to even consider what are the moral constraints on the use of force to nameless, faceless bureaucrats.Support the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

I first met George Friedman in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in 1986. George was then a Professor at the War College. A few years later he established Stratfor.com and then in 2015, GeopoliticalFutures.com. He has authored a number of books and is now writing on the future of war in space. In this podcast, we delve into a plethora of geopolitical issues and crises, including Russia, China, the U.S. and Ukraine. We look at what might be gained or lost through this country's declining armed services. And we ask whether defence should be an election issue? We reference the wisdom of George Orwell today's woke environment and we visit The Mailroom with Mrs Producer. File your comments and complaints at Leighton@newstalkzb.co.nz Haven't listened to a podcast before? Check out our simple how-to guide. Listen here on iHeartRadio Leighton Smith's podcast also available on iTunes:To subscribe via iTunes click here See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's time once again to feature some of the smart conversations that occur around the country through the Eisenhower Series College Program. For over 50 years, the Eisenhower Program has reached out to colleges and town halls across the nation to introduce War College students to audiences that are often unfamiliar with members of the U.S. military. This time we have two officers of NATO's northern front in the studio, Norwegian Steinar Dahl and Canadian Eric Landry. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to present their thoughts on the NATO alliance and their country's contributions to the organization. The conversation focuses on interoperability, what the war in Ukraine has revealed about NATO and what the organization's world role might be after that war has ended. We've titled this "Revisited" because regular listeners might remember that in 2020 A BETTER PEACE sat down with Major General Torgeir Gråtrud, commander of the Norwegian Special Operations Command, to discuss his perspectives on strategic leadership and Norway's role in NATO.

It's time once again to feature some of the smart conversations that occur around the country through the Eisenhower Series College Program. For over 50 years, the Eisenhower Program has reached out to colleges and town halls across the nation to introduce War College students to audiences that are often unfamiliar with members of the U.S. military. In this episode, two senior Army officers share their personal and professional experiences with the diversity, equity and inclusion policies of the U.S. Army. Kirk Daniels and Dena Goble are in the virtual studio with podcast host Ron Granieri. Their conversation ranges in topic from "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"—its inception and its end—to frank and honest conversations with leaders and supervisors and the many positive aspects of a diverse force that represents the nation it defends.

What if I told you that civilians can attend the US Army War College? Not US Government employees, but civilians from all walks of life and professions? Two times each year, the Army War College offers that opportunity through its National Security Seminar and Commandant's National Security Program. In this podcast, I describe that program and interview faculty and guests during  Battlefield Staff Ride.   Disclaimer: The information in this podcast is purely my own and does not represent the official position of the US Army War College or the Department of Defense. In keeping with the non-attribution policy of the War College (Chatham House Rules) the names of persons interviewed are withheld. For official information about these programs, visit: https://ssl.armywarcollege.edu/dde/cnsp/index.cfm https://usawc.org/commandants-national-security-program-cnsp/ https://www.csl.army.mil/nss/ https://usawc.org/national-security-seminar-nss/   Music: Copland, A. & United States Marine Band. (2000) Fanfare for the Common Man. unpublished, Washington, DC. [Audio] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, (Fair use for educational purposes.) Sousa, J.P., & The US Amy Ceremonial Band. National Emblem (Public Domain)  

In May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium presented senior leaders with original research and recommendations for the application of landpower to achieve national objectives. Included within the symposium were the findings of the Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project, an effort of eleven members of the Class of 2023 in support of Army senior leader priorities. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the Strategic Landpower Symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this fourth and final episode are Mike Barnett, Mark Mullinax, Ryan Noble, and Jon Holm. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the daunting task of mobilization for large-scale operations. Their conversation examines such topics as maximizing the effective use of reserve component mobilization authorities, leveraging alternate mobilization sites, expanding civilian hires and contracting and increasing continuity and reallocation of deployable readiness assets. The third annual Strategic Landpower Symposium is already scheduled for 7-9 May 2024. On-line registration will open 1 August, 2023 on the Army War College website.

In May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium presented senior leaders with original research and recommendations for the application of landpower to achieve national objectives. Included within the symposium were the findings of the Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project, an effort of eleven members of the Class of 2023 in support of Army senior leader priorities. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the Strategic Landpower Symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this fourth and final episode are Mike Barnett, Mark Mullinax, Ryan Noble, and Jon Holm. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the daunting task of mobilization for large-scale operations. Their conversation examines such topics as maximizing the effective use of reserve component mobilization authorities, leveraging alternate mobilization sites, expanding civilian hires and contracting and increasing continuity and reallocation of deployable readiness assets. The third annual Strategic Landpower Symposium is already scheduled for 7-9 May 2024. On-line registration will open 1 August, 2023 on the Army War College website.

In May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium presented senior leaders with original research and recommendations for the application of landpower to achieve national objectives. Included within the symposium were the findings of the Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project, an effort of eleven members of the Class of 2023 in support of Army senior leader priorities. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the Strategic Landpower Symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this third episode are Jennifer Hunt, Matthew Inglis, and Lillian Woodington. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the complicated task of protection writ large. Their conversation covers the concepts of the role the National Guard might play in addressing vulnerabilities in the cyber domain, air and missile defense across the competition continuum, and the role of protection in deterrence. The third annual Strategic Landpower Symposium is already scheduled for 7-9 May 2024. On-line registration will open 1 August, 2023 on the Army War College website.

In May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium presented senior leaders with original research and recommendations for the application of landpower to achieve national objectives. Included within the symposium were the findings of the Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project, an effort of eleven members of the Class of 2023 in support of Army senior leader priorities. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the Strategic Landpower Symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this third episode are Jennifer Hunt, Matthew Inglis, and Lillian Woodington. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the complicated task of protection writ large. Their conversation covers the concepts of the role the National Guard might play in addressing vulnerabilities in the cyber domain, air and missile defense across the competition continuum, and the role of protection in deterrence. The third annual Strategic Landpower Symposium is already scheduled for 7-9 May 2024. On-line registration will open 1 August, 2023 on the Army War College website.

In May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium presented senior leaders with original research and recommendations for the application of landpower to achieve national objectives. Included within the symposium were the findings of the Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project, an effort of eleven members of the Class of 2023 in support of Army senior leader priorities. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the Strategic Landpower Symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this second episode are Jessicah Garrett-Somssich and Andrew Sinden. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the ever-growing realms of artificial intelligence (AI) and additive manufacturing (AM). Their conversation covers the concepts of building trust in technology, differences in generational acceptance and where to accept risk in the name of innovation to maximize the value of AI and AM in the Army. The third annual Strategic Landpower Symposium is already scheduled for 7-9 May 2024. On-line registration will open 1 August, 2023 on the Army War College website.

In May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium presented senior leaders with original research and recommendations for the application of landpower to achieve national objectives. Included within the symposium were the findings of the Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project, an effort of eleven members of the Class of 2023 in support of Army senior leader priorities. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the Strategic Landpower Symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this second episode are Jessicah Garrett-Somssich and Andrew Sinden. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the ever-growing realms of artificial intelligence (AI) and additive manufacturing (AM). Their conversation covers the concepts of building trust in technology, differences in generational acceptance and where to accept risk in the name of innovation to maximize the value of AI and AM in the Army.

The big one! The week we've had in our sights and whoohoo did it deliver. Kitty would have understood... Immortal's bomb drops and exploration were HUGE! The Orchis Boys building even more in the background of X-Men and Iron Man. War College ends and we all feel weird about it. X-Men Green keeps going and we feel upset about it... 2:20 News 20:09 X-Men Unlimited 23:17 Invincible Iron Man 32:44 Bishop War College 53:47 X-Men Mutant First Strike 1:19:59 X-Men 1:44:30 Immortal X-Men Thanks for listening to our sixty sixth episode of Season 4! We're building to the Fall and some might say we're already on the tipping point. The mutants better get ready for war! Like, subscribe, follow, email, and @ us all over the internet at thexwifepodcast. If you enjoyed the episode, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and tell your friends!

In May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium presented senior leaders with original research and recommendations for the application of landpower to achieve national objectives. Included within the symposium were the findings of the Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project, an effort of eleven members of the Class of 2023 in support of Army senior leader priorities. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the Strategic Landpower Symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this first episode are Paul Lashley and Andrew Hercik. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the role of long-range fires, the implications of strategic weapons in the theater army, and how they can be better integrated. The third annual Strategic Landpower Symposium is already scheduled for 7-9 May 2024. On-line registration will open 1 August, 2023 on the Army War College website.

From 9-11 May 2023, the War College hosted the second annual Strategic Landpower Symposium. Bringing together students, scholars and practitioners, the symposium displayed original research and presented solutions to senior leaders about how landpower can help achieve national objectives in the future. As part of the symposium, Army leadership asked the United States Army War College Strategic Landpower Integrated Research Project faculty to address the future role of strategic landpower. Taking up that challenge, eleven members of the USAWC class of 2023 participated in the integrated research project as part of their Masters in Strategic Studies degree research requirement and presented their results at the symposium to amplify their work. A BETTER PEACE has organized four podcast episodes with those students to discuss their projects, their relationship to the strategic landpower symposium and possible implications for the future of U.S. security policy. In the virtual studio for this first episode are Paul Lashley and Andrew Hercik. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the role of long range fires, the implications of strategic weapons in the theater army and how they can be better integrated. The third annual Strategic Landpower Symposium is set for 7-9 May 2024. Registration will open 1 August, 2023 and can be accomplished online.

[Weird Dose of X] The X-Men Podcast Ep 49: Bishop: War College #4 / Weird Science Marvel ComicsKeywords: Marvel Comics, marvel, Comic Books, Comics, Marvel Comic Books, X-men, Star Wars, Spider-Man, Avengers, fantastic four, pop culture, television, movies ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ Help Support All of Our Shows by sending us a tip Here: https://ko-fi.com/weirdsciencecomicsThe Weird Science Comics YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@WeirdScienceComicsClick Here for Weird Science Links: https://campsite.bio/weirdsciencecomics Keywords: Marvel Comics, marvel, Comic Books, Comics, Marvel Comic Books, X-men, Star Wars, Spider-Man, Avengers, fantastic four, pop culture, television, movies

We're piecing the stories together with the info we have, finding books and making it through the timelines. Lethal Legion seems to have the upper hand until our mutants get the band together! Poor Escapade is on the outs with her friends though. War College adds a little more on each of our stories, but still keeps them separate to frustrating detail. Storm rocks the punk look in the first issue of a classic series that also seems to be seeding some resentment between Ororo and Charles. Plus Comic Extracts gives us what we missed in The X-Cellent! AND Nature Girl gets a stern talking to from the real X-Men. We talk New Mutants Lethal Legion #3, Bishop War College #4, Storm #1 and Infinity Comics 1:15 News 16:05 X-Men Unlimited 20:54 The X-Cellent 25:59 Storm 44:13 Bishop: War College 56:21 New Mutants Lethal Legion Thanks for listening to our sixty fourth episode of Season 4! We're building to the Fall and some might say we're already on the tipping point. The mutants better get ready for war! Like, subscribe, follow, email, and @ us all over the internet at thexwifepodcast. If you enjoyed the episode, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and tell your friends!

[Weird Dose of X] The X-Men Podcast Ep 44: Bishop War College, X-Force & Nightcrawlers / Weird Science Marvel ComicsKeywords: Marvel Comics, marvel, Comic Books, Comics, Marvel Comic Books, X-men, Star Wars, Spider-Man, Avengers, fantastic four, pop culture, television, movies ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★ Help Support All of Our Shows by sending us a tip Here: https://ko-fi.com/weirdsciencecomicsTime Stamps:01:42 - Bishop: War College #312:26 - X-Force #3927:25 - Nightcrawlers #3The Weird Science Comics YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@WeirdScienceComicsClick Here for Weird Science Links: https://campsite.bio/weirdsciencecomics Keywords: Marvel Comics, marvel, Comic Books, Comics, Marvel Comic Books, X-men, Star Wars, Spider-Man, Avengers, fantastic four, pop culture, television, movies

RAGE!! So many feelings from these books this week y'all. Confusion, twists, and above all rage at the Council - at least from Alicia. We close out year 1000 of Sins of Sinister, usher in a new era of X-Force, explore our two separate narratives in War College and have good old fashioned New Mutants fun. We talk Nightcrawlers #3, X-Force #39, Bishop War College #3, New Mutants Lethal Legion #3, X-Treme X-Men #5, The X-Cellent #2 and Infinity Comics 1:28 News 12:13 Marvel Voices 14:18 Love Unlimited 16:33 X-Men Unlimited 20:04 The X-Cellent 25:40 X-Treme X-Men 32:46 New Mutants 47:05 Bishop War College 1:05:39 X-Force 1:39:23 Nightcrawlers Thanks for listening to our fifty-ninth episode of Season 4! The Sins of Sinister are upon us! Like, subscribe, follow, email, and @ us all over the internet at thexwifepodcast. If you enjoyed the episode, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and tell your friends!

We review the latest Wolverine , War College, Immoral X-Men and Captain Marvel

We're running our Thanksgiving break episode a week early. We'll be back next week to talk with Mark Galeotti about Russia, Kherson, and the missiles that just hit Poland.This week, we're going far back into our past. It's a Timothy Snyder double feature. Both of these episodes are from our “War College” days and feature the famous historian at two different points in his journey to the cable news pundit we feel (well, I feel) weirdly ambivalent towards today.The first is from 2015, and is a disucssion about his book Black Earth. The second is from 2018 and is about his book Road to Unfreedom.Angry Planet has a substack! Join the Information War to get weekly insights into our angry planet and hear more conversations about a world in conflict.https://angryplanet.substack.com/subscribeYou can listen to Angry Planet on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. Our website is angryplanetpod.com. You can reach us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/angryplanetpodcast/; and on Twitter: @angryplanetpod.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.