WE ARE THE MIGHTY

Ninety percent of soldier deaths in combat occur before the victims ever make it to a field hospital; it’s a medic’s job to bring that number down.

Historians do not talk much about naval action during the Civil War, certainly not as much as they talk about ground combat. If it’s not about a riverboat, the Monitor, the Merrimack, or damning torpedoes, it just doesn’t get the same attention. The CSS Shenandoah did a lot of things worth talking about. Her flag […]

After the United States invaded Iraq in 2003 looking for weapons of mass destruction, American troops found a lot of bizarre things: toilets and guns made of gold, a Koran written in blood, and Saddam’s romance novel. Although they didn’t find any weapons of mass destruction, they did manage to find some weapons. Specifically, they […]

These days, having the guts to do something just means someone is brave enough to take on what seems to be an overwhelming undertaking. Any herculean task could require guts: quitting a job, suing city hall, or voting third party could all require a gut check by today’s standards. In days past, however, a gut […]

Guinness World Records stopped tracking the world’s most decorated soldiers because the importance and distinction of certain medals outweigh the number of medals a service member can be awarded — a point veterans certainly understand. What brought this issue to Guinness’s attention was the medal count between Audie Murphy — long regarded as the most […]

There was only one foreign customer for the advanced F-14 Tomcat fighter during its heyday: Iran. The Shah chose to buy 80 Tomcats instead of the F-15 Eagle — and they proved a good investment. Even after Imperial Iran gave way to the Islamic Republic of Iran after the 1979 revolution, the Iranian Air Force […]

One might assume that an international intelligence apparatus like Britain’s MI6 would wreak havoc when hacking into a terrorist-affiliated website. The truth is they did little more than likely annoy al-Qaeda after hacking a recruiting website. The result wasn’t exactly devastating unless you’re someone who hates cupcakes. It’s hard to imagine even the most hardcore […]

The officers of the USS Liberty were sunbathing on the decks of their ship on June 8, 1967, just outside of Egypt’s territorial waters. Not too far away, Egypt was in the middle of the Six-Day War with Israel, who would occupy the Sinai Peninsula by the war’s end. The peaceful day aboard the intelligence-gathering […]

When looking at Iran’s 65th Airborne Special Force Brigade, you might notice a few striking features similar to U.S SOF units. For example, the Iranians’ yellow enlisted chevrons seem a lot like the yellow chevrons on the old Army greens. Additionally, before the Iranian Revolution, their unit insignia looked a lot like the De Oppresso […]

Joe Angelo was a World War I veteran who served in the Army during the Meuse-Argonne offensive. This is where he would unknowingly make a significant contribution to World War II. That’s not a typo. Angelo was an orderly to the 304th Tank Brigade commander, Capt. George S. Patton. As Patton maneuvered on the battlefield, […]

For most people, surviving the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Europe would be the defining moment of their lives. Men like Major General Sidney Shachnow aren’t most people. The Lithuanian-born Shachnow survived a forced labor camp and went on to join the U.S. Army, serve in Vietnam, and lead the Army Special Forces’ ultra-secret World War III […]

The first time Changiz Lahidji joined a Special Forces unit, his loyalty was to Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran. But he found himself guarding lavish parties in the middle of the desert, protecting the opulent ruler of Imperial Iran and his guests. It wasn’t exactly the life of adventure that John Wayne movies led […]