It’s New Year’s Eve, and you know what that means: Time for the 2017 News Roundup Year in Review! I covered a lot of the bigger stories on the podcast year in review, so check that out here if you haven’t already. Here are some of the stories we hit in 2017. Basically, each paragraph represents a sampling of  stories from that week’s roundup. Thank you everyone for reading and all of your support; I appreciate each and every one of you! Here’s to 2017; onward an upward to another great year! – @BKactual

JANUARY: 

The first three enlisted female Marines reported to a ground combat unit, and I wrote a long piece with extensive detail saying why it was a bad idea. The Army released new grooming regs that authorized religious beards and dreadlocks for female soldiers. A U.S. Army Honor Guard member passed out cold listening to Obama drone on about something boring. Jerkstore inventory item Ray Mabus stepped down as Secretary of the Navy. New Zealand allowed the first guy with a face tattoo into the military. And then there was the typo of the year by Yahoo Finance: 

Moving on, we saw thousands of American troops deploy to Poland amidst rising tensions with LITERALLY HITLER (Russia). I wrote a long piece about how I found it remarkable that the same people who have caused untold misery with their urging of never-ending wars in the Middle East were now telling us how dangerous Trump was to global stability. The VA agreed to pay out billions to Marines exposed to toxic water at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. The women who were mad about losing an election made stupid pink hats and marched. James Mattis, who I accurately predicted would be a big ‘ol wussy when it came to transgenders in the military, was confirmed by Congress. A bunch of Airmen and Seamen got military awards upgraded. And then there was this guy:

https://twitter.com/abbyhamblin/status/820366337696378880

My old PJ instructor and war hero Chief Master Sergeant Davide Keaton retired. I blasted Trump for going off script in front of the CIA memorial wall. A Marine was shot and killed in Baltimore. A U.S. Army recruiter was arrested for child porn, and a guy died when he hanged himself in the nude wearing a gas mask and handcuffs.

Then we had the MUSLIM BAN!!!! (Which was not a Muslim ban… unlike other hysterical “journalists,” I actually went through it in detail.) And I enjoyed this: