[October 11, 2025] In my first book, “Our Longest Year in Iraq,” I made an effort to show how I developed to a point where I would achieve something important in my life. The discovery was my connection to combat Veterans and how they played an outsized role in my upbringing. ‘The Beginning’ is trying to lay this… Read More »
[May 26, 2025] Thank you General Satterfield for once again allowing me to write about the importance of Memorial Day. General, let me start off by saying without Memorial day we have no country. Our great pastures of God, we call Veterans cemeteries are full of heroes that died in war or coming home from war from mental… Read More »
[January 8, 2025] I couldn’t let this slur upon our U.S. Veterans and military slide by without comment. President-elect Trump made recent comments about the terror threat at the southern border. In response, MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell claimed that US military Veterans pose a greater threat than illegal immigrants. His point is that America should focus on U.S.… Read More »
[May 27, 2024] Hello General. After being home from Vietnam 55 years ago and coming upon my 56th Memorial Day coming up next week, it got me wondering where all this time went. To be honest, I don’t recall much about my first 35 Memorial Days, but a lot has happened over the last 20. What is Memorial… Read More »
[November 11, 2023] I grew up in the city of Philadelphia. We lived on a long narrow street lined with small row homes attached by a party wall. There were 23 homes on each side of the street. We knew everyone on our block and all the surrounding homes on the streets that made up our neighborhood. Our… Read More »
[November 4, 2023] Why is Veterans Day so unsatisfying? I have often thought about this question since I retired from the Army. No, I will not dismiss Veterans Day as a self-congratulatory holiday. However, to answer that question is not for the faint of heart because the answer forces us to expose the underbelly of American traditions, the… Read More »
[May 16, 2022] We rarely have the honor today of speaking with WWII veterans. Nearly all have passed away, with only 240,000 still alive of the 16 million who served. The War was the deadliest of all wars, lasting about six years and causing 70-85 million deaths worldwide. It was the greatest generation who served, but we are… Read More »
[January 10, 2022] It’s a fact; I was a wimp before joining the U.S. Army. My upbringing was not at fault. I grew up around combat veterans, had a good formal and religious education, and had plenty of freedom to fish, hunt, and camp. I had plenty of opportunities but not enough challenges. Sure, I had dirty jobs… Read More »
[January 5, 2022] A couple of nights ago, I had the opportunity to be on the Veterans Breakfast Club radio show.1 Hosted by Todd DePastino, the show2 features veterans and highlights those who have witnessed war and its aftermath. Todd and his crew are giving us stories that are rapidly lost in our hectic, social media world. His… Read More »
[January 3, 2022] You probably never heard of Bob Reilly1, but you sure missed something in life by not knowing him. During a cold weather snap, Bob rescued a homeless veteran sleeping next to a Wawa convenience store a few days ago. With his own money and time, he gave a helping hand to someone in need. His… Read More »