The Fire Pit

The Marine next to me started screaming, which I could clearly hear over the engine and wind noise  by Al Hagan As a Marine Corps lance corporal, I was going through helicopter training at Camp Lejeune. Our bird lands, we jump on, and I find that my seatbelt is adjusted …

by Jim Lechner Army Ranger (Ret) Jim Lechner wrote the following hymn to comradeship and patriotism – an essay that reverberates among those who long for the lost clarity of war. A veteran of multiple Special Operations missions, Lechner was wounded in the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu in Somalia. He …

By Heath Hansen We entered the base between the HESCO barriers covered in concertina razor-wire, unprepared for a betrayal from one of our supposed allies. On November 9, 2005, as the convoy snaked its way into the safety of the base walls, I could see Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers …

by Greg Chabot Editor’s note: This story contains some very raw, violent material that could bring readers back to their own stark experiences at war. ~SKK It had been quiet in Baqubah with some IEDs going off and some occasional small arms fire in the city. This was about to …

by Mitchell “Taco” Bell Back in 2005, I spent a tour living in an old Iraq bathroom in the control tower on Al Taqqadum airbase.  Great place, you get a bit smell tone deaf to the room, but it was better than tent living. We received a ton of care …

by Greg Chabot Throughout history there have been phenomena and sightings of things that can’t be explained. Cryptids are among these, with Bigfoot being the most famous. Many sightings were reported during GWOT in Afghanistan. Were the stories true, or were they just chow hall bullshit? You be the judge. …

by Tim Patterson, The War HorseIn the moments immediately after the collision—after an alarm had sounded at 2 a.m.; after the boat had rocked violently to starboard, rolling 45 degrees and back again; after many of USS Philadelphia’s sailors were thrown from their beds; after a DVD player had flown …

by Ed Meagher, The War Horse I’d been communicating with B-52 pilots on the verge of nuclear war, and I hadn’t even known it. January 23, 1968, was an exciting day for me. I had no idea just how exciting it would turn out to be. I’d recently returned from …

by Heath Hansen I take my seat on the train. I’m in the Southwestern part of Drenthe, on the way to Amsterdam, so I’ll be on this ride for a while. As the train departs, I pull out my headphones, and a familiar tune fills the speakers. Rooster, by Alice …

by Al Hagan The night started off fairly typically, just four Marines in a car, going out on the town to slam down beers. And it was innocent for most of the night, drinking and shooting pool.  I’ll call my companions Mike, John, and Steve, to pick some random names …