There are bigger reasons at play than an insane madman flexing power — In August 2008, the geopolitical intelligence company I worked for went on red alert. Red alerts were an internal code for “All hands on deck. Something in the world just exploded.” That day, I got to work creating maps of Russian and Georgian troop movements in Abkhazia and South Ossetia…

Prince Harry’s bold confession unveils war’s complexities, but fails to grasp the devastating impact of trauma on veterans — The first question asked upon returning home from Afghanistan was, “Did you kill anyone?” The question caught me so off guard that I stuttered for a few moments before replying, “Excuse me?” They changed the subject, and I went about greeting my family. I’d been home a grand total of…

How I’ve found joy despite dad’s cancer, emergency surgery, and a whole slew of other misfortunes — “I begin to suspect that the world is divided not only into the happy and the unhappy, but into those who like happiness and those who, odd as it seems, really don’t.” — C.S. Lewis The leaves had turned a golden hue the day my dad told me had cancer…

Twittergate, hate speech, censorship, and truth in a post-modern era — I was 23 years old when the Westboro Baptist Church picketed my friend Toby’s funeral. Toby had been killed in Afghanistan when an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded next to his humvee. He was only 30 years old at the time and left behind a wife and young son. …

Welcome to the industry of massive disappointment — Sean Kernan recently went on record communicating his experience about how he tried to land a book deal with a major publisher. I occasionally read Sean’s work and find him an affable and likable writer. However, reading his article I realized there was a bit he missed or didn’t know…

Everyone is toxic. You’re dead to me. You don’t owe anyone an apology. How we’re marketing forgiveness as weakness. — In 1947, Holocaust survivor Corrie ten Boom arrived in Germany to speak on forgiveness. Nazis had arrested ten Boom and her family during WWII and sent them to Ravensbrück concentration camp. They’d been part of the resistance hiding Jews in their home. During the imprisonment, Corrie’s sister, Betsie, died at…

Information overload has driven us insane to the point we act like devils of hell to each other. Especially the faithful. — “Imagination does not breed insanity. Exactly what does breed insanity is reason.” — G. K. Chesterton It’s reported Spartan boys joined the agōgē as young as seven years old. I’ve often dwelt on the concept of the agōgē, a training environment in which young children were educated, taught physical and…

We’ve ignored our embrace of violence as fun and how mass shootings became commonplace — I returned home from Iraq before Christmas 2007. The PlayStation 3 had dropped during my time in combat, but became a hard commodity to come by, so I assumed I’d grab one for Christmas. As with any product around the holidays, it became impossible to find, but a few friends…

Reflections for Memorial Day Weekend — I am tired and sick of war. Its glory is all moonshine. It is only those who have neither fired a shot nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for blood, for vengeance, for desolation. War is hell. — William Tecumseh Sherman On February 19…