by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 27, 2017 | Current Events, Post Traumatic Growth, Post Traumatic Stress
Mac, sons & nephews
Patrick, Tyler, Mac, Torii, John
In September of 1996 two of my nephews, the only sons of my older sister Peggy (Torii and Tyler), were murdered when their father shot and killed them both after learning my sister was leaving him, the husband then killed himself.
Of all the things that I have seen in my three combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, the murder of Torii and Tyler is by far the worst. Nobody I know, who deals with post-traumatic stress, deals with the horror that my sister has dealt with for twenty-one years.
All these years later, I still speak about domestic violence whenever I’m asked because I feel the need to honor the memory of Torii and Tyler and the courage of my sister. The message: don’t be afraid to ask someone if they need help, don’t be afraid to broach the subject, don’t shy away from it; as easily as you’d pick up someone’s car keys from a bar, talk to them about domestic violence and getting help.
We’ll talk about it.
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by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 26, 2017 | Current Events, Leadership, PBS -- The Vietnam War, Vietnam
Capt Tom Draude, USMC
Republic of Vietnam, 1970
Advisor to Vietnamese Marines
With 1stLt Tri (who had graduated from the The Basic School, Quantico VA)
Tom Draude, BGen USMC (ret) has watched each episode of the Ken Burns series “The Vietnam War” that is airing on PBS he joined us to share his thoughts on the series. Like many, he has watched with interest the interviews with North Vietnamese Army soldiers and Viet Cong fighters; he’s also been keenly interested in how the experience of those who lost family members has been conveyed to the audience.
Draude also talks candidly about post-Vietnam Marine Corps life and how many officers put the experience away and didn’t speak of it, even with subordinates, which in retrospect was a mistakes.
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by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 22, 2017 | Current Events, Vietnam
Kim Holmes
ALL MARINE RADIO
OFFICIAL CHEF
Kim Holmes is the ALL MARINE RADIO Head Chef and is also the son of a C-47 pilot who flew in the Normandy Operation on June 6, 1944. We discuss his thoughts about his responsibility to fight in Vietnam, to registering for the draft and what life was like for a son of a World War II veteran during Vietnam.
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by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 22, 2017 | Current Events, Gender Bias, Leadership
Will Costantini
Col USMC (ret)
As I was waxing eloquent about how humbling it was to watch what Marines did at Con Thien in the PBS series entitled “The Vietnam War” a friend of mine, a smart one at that, called the program to talk about how we define “combat” and whether our “modern definition” contradicts 400 years of combat history but allows our civilian leaders to gender integrate military occupational specialties that involve “intense combat” and should NOT be integrated.
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by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 21, 2017 | Current Events, Vietnam
Robert S. McNamara
Secretary of Defense
1961-1968
I received an email from Ohio that asked if Robert McNamara being treated with kid gloves by Ken Burns? He was the arrogant architect of the Vietnam War — is he being given a pass.
We’ll talk about it.
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