Kyiv Asked for a New Kamikaze Drone to Fight Russia. The Air Force Delivered Phoenix Ghost.

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

_________________________________________________________________

Military news…

The Pentagon is on the hunt for new weapons it can quickly get into Ukrainian hands

Anti-tank weapons and air defense missiles top the list
.

_____________________

Russia releases Marine veteran Trevor Reed as part of prisoner exchange

Russia and the United States have carried out a dramatic prisoner exchange, trading a Marine veteran jailed by Moscow for a convicted Russian drug trafficker serving a long prison sentence in America, both countries announced Wednesday.

_____________________

More than half of the 90 US howitzers bound for Ukraine now delivered
Ukrainian troops now have more than half of the 90 howitzers that the U.S. pledged them to help beat back a Russian attack in the country’s eastern region, chief Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday.

_____________________

China protests another ‘routine’ US Navy transit through Taiwan Strait

The Navy sent another guided-missile destroyer through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday, the fourth U.S. warship to make the trip this year.

_____________________

Kyiv Asked for a New Kamikaze Drone to Fight Russia. The Air Force Delivered Phoenix Ghost.

The U.S. Air Force has provided Ukraine with at least 121 Phoenix Ghost drones, a new lethal unmanned aerial weapon that the Pentagon is reluctant to share much information on.

—————————-

The Belarusian Railway Workers Who Helped Thwart Russia’s Attack on Kyiv

A clandestine network of railway workers, hackers, and dissident security forces disabled and disrupted the railway in Belarus that the Russian military planned to use to supply its soldiers in Ukraine. 

_______________________________________________________________

i have been sharing some military interviews with you from my upcoming book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life. Here is another one.

Interview with SFC William Trent

I was honored to be able to interview SFC William Trent. He was an Afghanistan veteran.

You are from El Paso, Texas. It can get very cold there.

Yes, it can.

So, do you have family?

I am divorced, but I have three children.

When did you get into the service?

Right out of High school. I was seventeen.

What were your duties when you were in the service, especially in Afghanistan?

I was in Dessert Storm as well.

You mentioned you had a couple of buddies killed.

Actually, twelve of my buddies were killed.

How were you able to handle that?

You don’t allow yourself to think about it.

Were you very close to any of them?

I was close to all of them.

Why did you enlist in the first place?

It is a family tradition. My brothers and my grandfather enlisted. I was honored to serve my country.

(Interesting in that I also had a family tradition. My three uncles served in WWII. My brother and I served, and my son retired recently as a Colonel in the Army.)

Would you go back in again?

OH yah!!I wouldn’t change anything I served 22 years.

If there was one thing you could change, what would that be?

I would spend more time with my family. My job came first back then.

What would be your advice to soldiers who are struggling?

Don’t give up! If you are deployed, or getting ready to be deployed, do not think about it.

Do you have PTSD?

Yes, and because of this I recommend that it be mandatory to get counseling when you are getting discharged from the military.

What did you do while you were in the Army?

I was a sniper.

_______________________________________________________________

There is more to this interview. he goes one and talks about what it is like to be a sniper, in my further interview.

Keep coming back to see more interviews from my book. Better yet…go to the top of this page and click on Subscribe. When you do all future posts will come directly to your inbox.

_______________________________________________________________

Checking in on you. How are you doing? Is everything going OK, or are you struggling?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 14,540 veterans on this site who have your back.

Here is what I am asking you to do…please share this site with as many other veterans as you can. It has helped so many.

______________________________________________________________

If you are battling mentally, but you are losing, GET HELP!!

Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will not hang up until they know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255…texting 838255.

________________________________________________________________

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

________________________________________________________________

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

Drafted People in the Military Were Not Always Happy

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

___________________________________

No Military news today. Just me ranting and raving. 🙂

I am wondering what our government is thinking lately. President Biden, has said, “Cut the Military budget.” He wants the money for his infrastructure ideas.

Cutting the military budget for this will greatly hamper the military’s abilities to replace outdated equipment and give the soldiers the raise they need.

Doesn’t make much sense to me.

___________________________________

Kamala Harris finally went down south to what she calls the border. Where she went was to El Paso, Texas. That isn’t even close to a trouble spot. I have been to El Paso several times and never felt threatened by illegals.

She needs to go the hot spots and talk to the Border Patrol there to see what is really going on.

___________________________________

I am looking back a ways, but I was very disappointed when Biden called up thousands of the National Guard to “protect,” the Capital.

When they got there it was all over. No rioting, no thousands of protestors. Silence.

He kept them there for a couple of weeks or more. What a waste of your tax payers money.

___________________________________

I am going to share an excerpt from my book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

___________________________________

Drafted Soldiers are Totally Different From the Enlisted Men

One of the interesting things while I was in the military were the drafted soldiers. They were selected in the lottery, or by age. If you were over a certain age you were safe. If you were in College they seemed to leave you alone, but if you were not you were prime bait.

There were a lot of bitterness coming from these soldiers. They didn’t want to be there and they let you know about it. Those of us that were enlisted got very tired of their whining, and had several “blanket parties,” because of it.

A blanket party is when a group of soldiers cover up another soldier with a blanket and roughed him up a little. A blanket party could also be when a soldier hasn’t showered for a long time even after all the rigorous training we had.

The draftees only had to serve two years. By the time you were through basic training and your MOS (your job) training you only has about one year left. You could almost do that standing on your head.

I felt like I was doing something good for my country, and for me as well. The military changed my life completely. I needed the structure. I needed the discipline. I needed the special training. I needed to get away from my safe haven at home, and learn more about the world. I got all of that in the three years I served. I felt the draftees should have thought about this themselves.

___________________________________

I will share some excerpts in the future. So be sure to come back often to see the progress of the book. Better yet...go to the top of this page and click on “subscribe.” When you do all future posts will come directly to your inbox.

__________________________________

Checking in on you. How are you doing? Has it felt like a magnate was pulling you down in this world?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 12,420 fellow veterans here who have your back.

Please if it is just to much for you, GET HELP!

Here is a toll free number to call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you. They will not hang up until they know you are OK.

Never face the storms of life alone.

1-800-273-8255 Option # 1 For texting 838255

______________________________________

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

________________________________

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

What is Life Like as a Sniper?

On Tuesday I wrote about one of my adventures while in the military. I will do that from time to time, but this site is for you. Today I will speak directly to you.

I assume many of you were deployed during your time in the military I was sent to South Korea. I had many adventures there which I will be sharing from time to time.

I came back a different person, like many of you, I am sure did too. I lost a buddy, and saw some things that will be hard to share. However, I will wait until later on.

Some of you may be battling PTSD, TMI, Depression, or war wounds. I feel your pain.

I would love it if you would share your story in the comment section. You do not need to share your name. Tell us your story so we can understand you more.

I have done many interviews of veterans for my book. I will share one of them with you knowing that there are many others that will be in the book.

A Sniper

I interview a veteran from Texas. I got to know him through RallyPoint. This is a social network for only veterans. I highly recommend it. You will find many fellow veterans who are the same boat with you.

The veteran from Texas was a sniper in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Here is the exchange:

I was honored to be able interview a veteran who was an Afghanistan/Iraq veteran.

Here is the rough draft for the book:

SOH

What did you do while you were in the Army?

William I was a sniper.

SOH

You are in El Paso. It can be very cold there.

William

Yes it can.

SOH

So, do you have family?

William

I am divorced, but I have three children.

SOH

When did you go into the service?

William

Right out of High school. I was seventeen.

SOH

You mentioned that you had a couple of buddies that were killed?

William

Actually, twelve of my buddies were killed.

SOH

How were you able to handle that?

William

You don’t allow yourself to think about it

SOH

Were you very close to any of them?

William

I was close to all of them.

SOH

I had close friends in Korea as well.

SOH

Why did you enlist in the first place?

William

It is a family tradition. My Brothers and my grandfather enlisted. I was honored to serve my country.

SOH

Interesting, I also had a family tradition. My three uncles served in WWII. My brother and I Served, and my son just retired as a Colonel from the Army.

SOH

If you could would you go back in again?

William

Oh ya!! I wouldn’t change anything. 22 years

SOH

If there was one thing you could change about the Army, what would that be?

William

I would spend more time with family. My job came first back then.

SOH

What would be your advice to soldiers who are struggling?

William

Don’t give up. If you are deployed, or getting ready to be deployed you don’t think about it. 

SOH

Do you have PTSD?

William

Yes, and because of this I recommend that it be mandatory to get counseling when you are discharged from the military.

___________________________________________________________________

This is an on going interview. I want to get back to him and ask more specifc questions about being a sniper.

What does it feel like to kill someone?

What did you think of when you have an enemy in the cross hairs?

Did you ever regret shooting someone?

There will be many other questions. Stay tuned as I get more information.

_______________________________________________

If you are struggling get help. It is not something to be ashamed of if you need help. Got to get the tough military guy/girl out of your head and find help.

*If you like what you are reading just go to the top of this page and click on subscribe. Wen you do you will get each future post directly to your inbox. Please let other veterans know about this site. It may help them as well.

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And…never, ever, give up!