by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 28, 2017 | China, Current Events, Korea, North Korea
Kim Jong Un
Xi Jinping
President, PRC
Grand Newsham, our resident Pacific Rim specialist, joined us to talk about whether we should take China’s “new sanctions” seriously or whether it is the age old trick of the Chinese — big announcement and then nothing delivered?
We’ll also discuss the likelihood that Japan and/or South Korea will acquire a “first strike” capability as well as “mutually assured destruction” capabilities in order to balance the regional scale.
You can find Grant Newshams columns here, in Asia Times Online.
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by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 28, 2017 | Current Events
For me, one of the most distressing things about watching the 10 part PBS series is that the nation repeated the mistakes of Vietnam in Iraq and later (although not initially) in Afghanistan.
We’ll also discuss a 2016 Rand Corporation study on Transgender Military service.
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by Michael F. McNamara | Sep 27, 2017 | Current Events, Gender Bias
John Ubaldi
MGySgt USMC (ret)
Founder, The Ubaldi Reports
John Ubaldi of The Ubaldi Reports, joined us to for (1) an update on how post-hurricane south Florida is doing, (2) his thoughts on how the NFL gets out of the national anthem pickle they find themselves in, (3) does the first female USMC Infantry Officer validate the approach and the standards of the leadership of the Marine Corps relative to the issue of women in the infantry and (4) the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told the Senate Armed Service Committee that he believes that transgender individuals that pass the physical & mental requirements ought to be able to serve, we’ll talk about it.
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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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