An Afghanistan veteran weighs in on whether what we did mattered in the ‘Forever War’ — On December 10, 2003, Taliban and al-Qaida operatives launched a complex attack against the small forward operating base I’d been stationed at for eight months. In the barrage and carnage that followed, my friend Steve and I were wounded in action. I took shrapnel to my arms and lower back…

We love the Stranger Things resident metalhead, just not in real life — It wasn’t that it hurt getting shoved into lockers, but that it confirmed I was “the freak.” When checked into a metal grey locker while walking to class, some jock would sneer, “Watch where you’re going, freak!” Sometimes they’d call me “faggot” or “queer” depending on how malicious teens wanted…

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…

Insight into the man behind the writing and an introduction to new followers — The story goes that I was so shy, I refused to look anyone in the eyes. I’d stare at the ground when introduced to new people, and my mother would have none of that. “Head up. Look them in the eye. Smile. Introduce yourself!” But a shy, artistic kid who…

Predatory fear mongering only exacerbates poor mental health — One of the most harrowing scenes to come out of the movie Saving Private Ryan happens toward the end. Having located Private Ryan, the troops led by Captain Miller (Tom Hanks) find themselves under attack in a small village against a German occupying force. During the fighting, one of Miller’s…

A story from my upcoming war memoir, Where Cowards Go to Die — A strikingly beautiful woman with dark brown hair, an infectious smile, and Patagonia clothing stepped out of the crowd. I’d been walking past a helicopter landing zone, when I saw the woman gathered around a large crowd of soldiers. Men who haven’t seen a woman in months either act like…

In our enlightened world, we pretend not to condone violence. But the truth is a little more nuanced. — When I was a middle school student, I came to class sporting fresh stitches above my right eyebrow. A day earlier, I got sucker punched by a neighbor when I went over to his house to play basketball. He’d gotten involved in the wrong crowd and local gangs, and heard…

Get ready for a summer full of skyrocketing energy costs, chip shortages, and less than savory compromises — Read Part 1—Why Russia Invaded Ukraine—here English folklore has it that the abbey church of St. Peter sold off its assets to pay for repairs to St. Paul’s Cathedral, thus originating the phrase “robbing Peter to pay Paul.” As a colloquial expression, Americans often use the phrase to describe the…