1 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:21,279 Speaker 1: If it doesn't work, you're just not using enough. You're 2 00:00:21,320 --> 00:00:26,880 Speaker 1: listening to Software Radio Special Operations, military news and straight 3 00:00:26,920 --> 00:00:33,600 Speaker 1: talk with the guys in the community. Welcome to Software Radio. 4 00:00:33,760 --> 00:00:36,240 Speaker 1: I'm your host today. Steve bow Straight joining me is 5 00:00:36,320 --> 00:00:40,200 Speaker 1: an old friend and a great guest, Stu Braydon. He's 6 00:00:40,240 --> 00:00:43,720 Speaker 1: the head of Global Soft Foundation. Stew and I got 7 00:00:43,720 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 1: to talk about a bunch of things that are affecting 8 00:00:46,479 --> 00:00:50,800 Speaker 1: the force and moving forward. But before we get going, 9 00:00:50,960 --> 00:00:54,120 Speaker 1: we're gonna welcome student the podcast too. Thanks for taking 10 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:57,280 Speaker 1: the time today. We really appreciate it. Thanks for having 11 00:00:57,280 --> 00:01:00,920 Speaker 1: me up. Yea, you know, before we get started, and 12 00:01:00,920 --> 00:01:03,920 Speaker 1: we'll talk a little bit about you know, I'm personal 13 00:01:04,319 --> 00:01:09,720 Speaker 1: phill ins our listeners about your you know, basic military career, 14 00:01:09,720 --> 00:01:12,120 Speaker 1: because I know you've got a pretty varied career and 15 00:01:12,200 --> 00:01:15,319 Speaker 1: you served in a lot of different places. Yeah. I 16 00:01:15,319 --> 00:01:19,200 Speaker 1: did everything they did not to do, Yea, So I'm 17 00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:21,800 Speaker 1: an army bratt. I was born in nineteen sixty one. 18 00:01:21,880 --> 00:01:24,800 Speaker 1: My father went to Korea for eighteen months five days 19 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:27,200 Speaker 1: after I was born, which is probably a good thing, 20 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:29,040 Speaker 1: you know, for all of us. But I grew up 21 00:01:29,120 --> 00:01:31,000 Speaker 1: my father was on active duty when I came on 22 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,240 Speaker 1: active duty. I kind of started my military career of 23 00:01:34,319 --> 00:01:36,480 Speaker 1: the cannet at the Citadel, and I was an enlisted 24 00:01:36,480 --> 00:01:39,160 Speaker 1: man in the South Carolina National Guard and I have 25 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:42,800 Speaker 1: an honorable discharge from the South Carolina National Guard. But 26 00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:45,720 Speaker 1: I was a nineteen Delta cab scout when I came 27 00:01:45,760 --> 00:01:49,080 Speaker 1: in four on active duty. I was originally gonna be 28 00:01:49,120 --> 00:01:52,880 Speaker 1: a lawyer, and about yeah, I know that, man. About 29 00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:58,040 Speaker 1: four months prior to graduation, I walked in and said, 30 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:00,360 Speaker 1: I can't do it, man. I mean, every buddy I 31 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:02,920 Speaker 1: was meeting was a lawyer, was a bum though the 32 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:05,920 Speaker 1: cool law was prosecuting criminals, and I just said, I 33 00:02:05,960 --> 00:02:07,560 Speaker 1: don't want to do that anymore. So came in the 34 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:09,600 Speaker 1: army's an armor officer. I wanted to go to the the 35 00:02:09,760 --> 00:02:13,640 Speaker 1: Levit Armor Cab Regiment went to bad Hersfeld, Germany. In 36 00:02:13,760 --> 00:02:15,880 Speaker 1: order to have a scalpeitoon there you had to go 37 00:02:15,919 --> 00:02:17,959 Speaker 1: to ranger school. So I did ranger school and jump 38 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:21,080 Speaker 1: school and all the good stuff. At the end month mark, 39 00:02:21,639 --> 00:02:24,440 Speaker 1: I applied to be an EXO on a Special Forces 40 00:02:24,480 --> 00:02:27,640 Speaker 1: O d A had gotten the approval and everything gotten. 41 00:02:27,840 --> 00:02:30,639 Speaker 1: Orders sent me to the Q course and as soon 42 00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:34,280 Speaker 1: as I got my orders in my hand. A moratorium 43 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:36,720 Speaker 1: or directive came down from d O D saying you 44 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:40,680 Speaker 1: couldn't move under your three year window. So basically those 45 00:02:40,800 --> 00:02:44,680 Speaker 1: orders to the Q course for revoked. Months later, I 46 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:48,400 Speaker 1: resubmitted all my stuff. Special Forces was standing up as 47 00:02:48,440 --> 00:02:50,240 Speaker 1: a branch at that time. I was in the first 48 00:02:50,240 --> 00:02:55,200 Speaker 1: recruited class as an officer in seven. Captain Mark Phelan 49 00:02:55,919 --> 00:02:59,840 Speaker 1: was my recruiting officer that got through the Q course. 50 00:03:00,160 --> 00:03:02,040 Speaker 1: I went to the Infantry Advanced Course, got through the 51 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:04,240 Speaker 1: Q course with the third of the seventh where you 52 00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:07,240 Speaker 1: and I served together. I was in three seven for 53 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:11,000 Speaker 1: what twenty six twenty seven months, went back to a 54 00:03:11,720 --> 00:03:14,560 Speaker 1: Fort Bragg. I was a foreign Area officer for Latin America. 55 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:17,160 Speaker 1: I went to graduate school out of San Diego language 56 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:21,160 Speaker 1: school for Portuguese. I served in Bolivia and the Embassy again. 57 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:24,639 Speaker 1: We served down there together in the Embassy. Good times 58 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:29,239 Speaker 1: working for my crazy boss, Chip Chlverton. Yeah, good times. 59 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:32,799 Speaker 1: And I left there and went to a special Michtian 60 00:03:32,880 --> 00:03:35,600 Speaker 1: unit in Virginia. I thought I was gonna be doing 61 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:38,880 Speaker 1: stuff in Latin America and when they got there, they said, hey, 62 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:43,040 Speaker 1: did would you mind going to the Pacific and I'm like, no, 63 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:47,120 Speaker 1: I goo, man, put me in coach. I've never been 64 00:03:47,120 --> 00:03:49,520 Speaker 1: to Hawaii, and they told me I would operate out 65 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:51,480 Speaker 1: of Hawaii and go to other places. And I just 66 00:03:51,480 --> 00:03:54,040 Speaker 1: couldn't say yes fast enough. I was like, right on, man, 67 00:03:54,320 --> 00:03:58,040 Speaker 1: I'm digging it. I left that unit because they had 68 00:03:58,080 --> 00:04:02,640 Speaker 1: over assessed officers, you know, And so they said, look, 69 00:04:02,880 --> 00:04:05,000 Speaker 1: everybody's not going to get a command, so you can't 70 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:08,400 Speaker 1: all stay here. Who wants to leave? And a s 71 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:10,360 Speaker 1: F brand says, We'll let you pick anywhere you want 72 00:04:10,360 --> 00:04:12,840 Speaker 1: to go, and so I picked the first Battalion TED 73 00:04:12,960 --> 00:04:17,040 Speaker 1: Special Forces Group. At that time, it was Bosby was 74 00:04:17,160 --> 00:04:18,920 Speaker 1: kicking off. It seemed like there was going to be 75 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:21,360 Speaker 1: a gunfight of some nature in that area. Everything else 76 00:04:21,480 --> 00:04:24,440 Speaker 1: was calm, so I figured, let's just go that direction 77 00:04:24,680 --> 00:04:27,640 Speaker 1: seemed like a great place. I spoke Spanish, Portuguese and 78 00:04:27,720 --> 00:04:30,880 Speaker 1: German last time I looked. Those languages all originated on 79 00:04:30,960 --> 00:04:34,200 Speaker 1: the front of Europe. So I felt overqualified and had 80 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:36,320 Speaker 1: a great time. I was the Battalion three and first 81 00:04:36,320 --> 00:04:40,120 Speaker 1: Battalion for twenty months. I commanded Charlie, one of ten 82 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:43,479 Speaker 1: for twelve thirteen months. I did everything in reverse. I 83 00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:45,600 Speaker 1: went to work at sok here for about eight months 84 00:04:45,640 --> 00:04:48,040 Speaker 1: because I was selected to go to School of America's 85 00:04:48,040 --> 00:04:51,240 Speaker 1: Staff College, the only school I asked not to go to, 86 00:04:51,400 --> 00:04:53,960 Speaker 1: and that's the one that said, I said, I got 87 00:04:54,000 --> 00:04:55,960 Speaker 1: anyone in the world, just don't send me to that one. 88 00:04:55,960 --> 00:04:58,520 Speaker 1: And that's where I landed. I came out of there 89 00:04:59,160 --> 00:05:01,479 Speaker 1: and wasn't in str After at Fort Leavenworth, at the 90 00:05:01,520 --> 00:05:04,159 Speaker 1: Staff College, I actually tried to get through. I did 91 00:05:04,200 --> 00:05:06,760 Speaker 1: that for three years and then while I was there, 92 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:08,960 Speaker 1: I got promoted to lieutenant colonel in the in the 93 00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:12,800 Speaker 1: tower spell and you're a lieutenant colonel. Um. I was 94 00:05:12,839 --> 00:05:15,159 Speaker 1: not only commanders. I kept coming up, you know, on 95 00:05:15,200 --> 00:05:18,160 Speaker 1: the alternate list. I was honorable mission, as I would say, 96 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:20,400 Speaker 1: and you know, you're trying to get a get into 97 00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:23,400 Speaker 1: the fight and you know, at any capacity. And so 98 00:05:23,920 --> 00:05:26,719 Speaker 1: I was selected is what they call a g watt 99 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:30,120 Speaker 1: auguman tee. Originally I was supposed to go to Pecan 100 00:05:30,680 --> 00:05:32,839 Speaker 1: and then at the last minute they changed my owners 101 00:05:32,920 --> 00:05:36,800 Speaker 1: to to a soccer so I went back there. That 102 00:05:36,920 --> 00:05:39,760 Speaker 1: was the deputy J three is soccer for three years. 103 00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:42,640 Speaker 1: You know, I work. I grind like a ranger captain. 104 00:05:42,720 --> 00:05:44,479 Speaker 1: So I eighteen hours a day is not a big 105 00:05:44,480 --> 00:05:47,560 Speaker 1: deal for me. I was at an advanced auto parts 106 00:05:47,640 --> 00:05:51,160 Speaker 1: store on Dale Maybury Vote Guard right down here in Tampa, Florida, 107 00:05:51,520 --> 00:05:54,600 Speaker 1: and I got a call from my boss, Mark rodand Guard, 108 00:05:54,880 --> 00:06:00,960 Speaker 1: another Bostonian, and he goes, hey, dude, your six list. 109 00:06:01,760 --> 00:06:05,159 Speaker 1: I'm going what he goes, you popped on the six list. 110 00:06:05,640 --> 00:06:08,320 Speaker 1: I'm like, there's no way, he goes, I'm telling you 111 00:06:08,320 --> 00:06:12,359 Speaker 1: you're on the list. So I was buying break hubs 112 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:14,880 Speaker 1: for an ncl A soccer, loaded them all up, flew 113 00:06:14,920 --> 00:06:16,680 Speaker 1: back that evening. The next day I got back in, 114 00:06:16,760 --> 00:06:19,359 Speaker 1: I went into the j Onees office and the dude 115 00:06:19,400 --> 00:06:21,599 Speaker 1: looked at me and I said, show me my sequence number. 116 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:24,440 Speaker 1: And that's when I realized, holy shit, I'm gonna be 117 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:27,080 Speaker 1: a colonel. It's ready to get out. Everything I've been 118 00:06:27,080 --> 00:06:29,320 Speaker 1: doing was preparing me to get out of the military, 119 00:06:29,400 --> 00:06:32,080 Speaker 1: you know. I was like, wow, okay, this changes things 120 00:06:32,080 --> 00:06:34,560 Speaker 1: a little bit. The retirement pay from a colonel the 121 00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:38,599 Speaker 1: lieutenant colonels pretty good. I was working in soccer and 122 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 1: they said, hey, these are three places you could go. 123 00:06:40,920 --> 00:06:44,720 Speaker 1: Pick one. General Jones the Marine at sack Your did 124 00:06:44,720 --> 00:06:46,600 Speaker 1: a by name request for me to come up there 125 00:06:46,600 --> 00:06:50,160 Speaker 1: and stand up the h the NATO soft headquarters that 126 00:06:50,480 --> 00:06:53,800 Speaker 1: you know, I thought you could negotiate with your personnel officers. 127 00:06:53,800 --> 00:06:56,640 Speaker 1: So I call up the dude and I was like, hey, man, 128 00:06:56,680 --> 00:06:58,560 Speaker 1: I'm you know, I like Belgium, but I wanted to 129 00:06:58,600 --> 00:07:01,599 Speaker 1: replace Rosengard. Is that three? Here? Can I move from deputy? 130 00:07:01,720 --> 00:07:03,919 Speaker 1: He goes, Now, man, listen, you gotta buy name request. 131 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:07,600 Speaker 1: General Jones has the highest date of rank of any 132 00:07:07,640 --> 00:07:10,080 Speaker 1: fourth star in the Army, in the military to include 133 00:07:10,080 --> 00:07:13,640 Speaker 1: the chairman. So unless the Secretary of Defense intervenes on 134 00:07:13,680 --> 00:07:15,840 Speaker 1: your behalf and he goes, and that's probably not gonna happen, 135 00:07:16,480 --> 00:07:18,560 Speaker 1: You're going to Belgium. I was like, all right, We're 136 00:07:18,560 --> 00:07:21,320 Speaker 1: going to Belgium, right, And so I served there. I 137 00:07:21,360 --> 00:07:24,440 Speaker 1: went through on a two year tour, came out five years, 138 00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:27,680 Speaker 1: five years standing up the NATO South takecars. I didn't 139 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:29,680 Speaker 1: even go to the same college for four years. It's 140 00:07:29,680 --> 00:07:32,520 Speaker 1: the longest I've ever lived anywhere in my life. We 141 00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:36,200 Speaker 1: left there, and I've been working with Bill mcgradwam Bill mccraden. 142 00:07:36,680 --> 00:07:39,360 Speaker 1: How a Navy seal and SF dude got partnered is 143 00:07:39,600 --> 00:07:42,120 Speaker 1: I can't explain it to you. We've had some very 144 00:07:42,160 --> 00:07:45,760 Speaker 1: interesting times. You know, we have, We've done things that 145 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:48,600 Speaker 1: you probably you know, you know I shouldn't share, but 146 00:07:48,760 --> 00:07:51,080 Speaker 1: you know it's good. I mean, he's a normal dude. 147 00:07:51,680 --> 00:07:53,320 Speaker 1: I mean he's a redneck. He'll get in a bar 148 00:07:53,400 --> 00:07:55,480 Speaker 1: fight in a heartbeat. I mean, with the drop of 149 00:07:55,480 --> 00:07:57,400 Speaker 1: a hat, he'll get into a fight. And so if 150 00:07:57,400 --> 00:07:59,600 Speaker 1: you let him. And so when I got ready to 151 00:07:59,680 --> 00:08:01,360 Speaker 1: leave belt and he says, hey, do you want to 152 00:08:01,360 --> 00:08:03,960 Speaker 1: come back to Tampa? And my tent was I would 153 00:08:03,960 --> 00:08:05,560 Speaker 1: tell everybody, I'm wanna get off the plane with in 154 00:08:05,680 --> 00:08:09,000 Speaker 1: processing paperwork in one hand and retirement paperwork and the other, 155 00:08:09,400 --> 00:08:11,560 Speaker 1: and don't ask me to do anything hard because I'll 156 00:08:11,560 --> 00:08:15,480 Speaker 1: probably drop it. But I agreed to work for him 157 00:08:15,520 --> 00:08:18,320 Speaker 1: for three years. It's so common, and I did, and 158 00:08:18,440 --> 00:08:21,680 Speaker 1: I retired out of so common with thirty two years. 159 00:08:22,080 --> 00:08:25,400 Speaker 1: And that's how you got into the Global Soft Because 160 00:08:25,520 --> 00:08:29,400 Speaker 1: wasn't it Adamiral mcgraven that kind of convinced you to 161 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:31,760 Speaker 1: go that road. Well, we had a thing called the 162 00:08:31,760 --> 00:08:35,760 Speaker 1: Global Soft Network we were building. The attempt was we 163 00:08:35,800 --> 00:08:39,120 Speaker 1: wanted to institutionalize everything. We were doing a SOCM right, 164 00:08:39,520 --> 00:08:42,200 Speaker 1: and there's a thing called dot MILPF right, So if 165 00:08:42,200 --> 00:08:43,840 Speaker 1: you want to and you have to go through the 166 00:08:43,960 --> 00:08:47,959 Speaker 1: Jason's process, and so you take your idea forward and 167 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:51,880 Speaker 1: all the services and everybody votes on it and they 168 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:55,880 Speaker 1: and once it's approved by the by the force, it's 169 00:08:55,920 --> 00:08:59,960 Speaker 1: implemented to everyone's doctor, joint doctor and Army, Navy, Marine, 170 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:04,479 Speaker 1: or it becomes part of the common lexicon of the military. 171 00:09:04,559 --> 00:09:07,600 Speaker 1: A lot of people are lazy and it's a hittie process. Man, 172 00:09:07,640 --> 00:09:09,280 Speaker 1: it's hard to do. It's not you know, it can 173 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:11,320 Speaker 1: be done. We did it in like nine months. We 174 00:09:11,360 --> 00:09:13,840 Speaker 1: actually had a great marine one star up at the 175 00:09:13,880 --> 00:09:16,640 Speaker 1: Pentagon who who walked this thing through because he was 176 00:09:16,679 --> 00:09:19,080 Speaker 1: a big believer in it. Uh and he had been 177 00:09:19,160 --> 00:09:21,480 Speaker 1: me at one point struggling to do something like this. 178 00:09:21,520 --> 00:09:25,280 Speaker 1: And so we got it through. And I had a 179 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:28,240 Speaker 1: team about ninety folks and we had different pieces in parts. 180 00:09:28,360 --> 00:09:31,040 Speaker 1: One of them handled the Addual's engagement piece, right, So 181 00:09:31,160 --> 00:09:32,600 Speaker 1: he would go up to d C and he would 182 00:09:32,600 --> 00:09:35,080 Speaker 1: engage with all the think tank folks and what we 183 00:09:35,160 --> 00:09:37,800 Speaker 1: do is we have a four hour close session in 184 00:09:37,880 --> 00:09:39,840 Speaker 1: a room where he would talk. I mean people drop 185 00:09:39,880 --> 00:09:42,839 Speaker 1: in the F bomb. It was full contact and people 186 00:09:42,880 --> 00:09:44,480 Speaker 1: that you see on all of a sudden, he talk show, 187 00:09:45,000 --> 00:09:48,599 Speaker 1: and the intendent was is for him to socialize his ideas, 188 00:09:48,679 --> 00:09:51,800 Speaker 1: and I mean truly kick him around. I mean people 189 00:09:51,800 --> 00:09:54,040 Speaker 1: did were you know not. He learned a lot, he 190 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:55,920 Speaker 1: changed a lot. You know what kind of helped us. 191 00:09:56,120 --> 00:09:58,040 Speaker 1: You know, we formulate some of the things we were 192 00:09:58,040 --> 00:10:01,680 Speaker 1: doing and also oldest when we were right and where 193 00:10:01,720 --> 00:10:03,480 Speaker 1: we should go forward. A lot of times we were 194 00:10:03,920 --> 00:10:06,400 Speaker 1: going as fast as people thought we should in certain areas, 195 00:10:06,440 --> 00:10:09,480 Speaker 1: which was interesting. And but this had about team, about 196 00:10:09,480 --> 00:10:11,480 Speaker 1: five or six people that managed that we do that 197 00:10:11,559 --> 00:10:14,720 Speaker 1: every quarter and that was It also allowed him to 198 00:10:14,760 --> 00:10:17,360 Speaker 1: build a network of human beings and dc that can 199 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:20,719 Speaker 1: help him spread his message. Right, if it's just one 200 00:10:20,720 --> 00:10:24,000 Speaker 1: guy behind a podium and he's just lecturing people, you 201 00:10:24,040 --> 00:10:27,080 Speaker 1: don't survive. So you know that's even Jesus had disciples, right, 202 00:10:27,120 --> 00:10:29,439 Speaker 1: and so you you you get people out, you build 203 00:10:29,440 --> 00:10:31,880 Speaker 1: a network, and you you get people to be your 204 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:34,360 Speaker 1: you know, your agents have change. And so that's what 205 00:10:34,400 --> 00:10:37,320 Speaker 1: we did. But one of the things the group does 206 00:10:37,400 --> 00:10:39,320 Speaker 1: is they do big events and they helped with the 207 00:10:39,400 --> 00:10:42,760 Speaker 1: International Soft Week that's a part of sophok. One year 208 00:10:42,760 --> 00:10:45,240 Speaker 1: he didn't have it and we had the GEO went 209 00:10:45,360 --> 00:10:47,360 Speaker 1: down here and Adam mc cravin told me to help 210 00:10:47,400 --> 00:10:49,640 Speaker 1: them form GEO at the guy by the name of 211 00:10:49,760 --> 00:10:52,520 Speaker 1: Keith Musbach was the president of the U. S G 212 00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:55,959 Speaker 1: Spatial Intelligence Foundation, looked at me one day of the 213 00:10:56,000 --> 00:10:59,120 Speaker 1: eyes says, how come soft doesn't have a professional association 214 00:10:59,800 --> 00:11:02,560 Speaker 1: and don't know metal were in fifteen days, six days 215 00:11:02,559 --> 00:11:04,600 Speaker 1: a week. I'm not looking for a hobby. Honestly, God, 216 00:11:04,640 --> 00:11:05,920 Speaker 1: I didn't even know what a five O, one C 217 00:11:06,120 --> 00:11:09,000 Speaker 1: three was. I mean, I've seen it before. I'm like, okay, great, whatever. 218 00:11:09,480 --> 00:11:11,400 Speaker 1: I didn't know what a nonprofit did. I mean, I 219 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:13,600 Speaker 1: thought you didn't get the money. I mean, I didn't know. 220 00:11:13,840 --> 00:11:16,360 Speaker 1: I didn't know anything. I know nothing about And he 221 00:11:16,480 --> 00:11:18,560 Speaker 1: kept telling me you should form one. So over eight 222 00:11:18,600 --> 00:11:21,760 Speaker 1: months we're working with them to institutionalize this big event 223 00:11:21,800 --> 00:11:24,079 Speaker 1: in Tampa and bring the soft community into it. And 224 00:11:25,280 --> 00:11:27,640 Speaker 1: because I hope you form one for the soft community, 225 00:11:27,679 --> 00:11:30,200 Speaker 1: because they need one desperately. And you know, when you 226 00:11:30,240 --> 00:11:32,960 Speaker 1: and I came in in the mid eighties, men, you know, 227 00:11:33,160 --> 00:11:38,720 Speaker 1: the whole community wasn't ten thousand people, seventy five thousand people. 228 00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:42,200 Speaker 1: And when you add in the contractors, which you know, 229 00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:46,160 Speaker 1: we probably it's another thirty thousand on top of that 230 00:11:46,200 --> 00:11:49,480 Speaker 1: middle at least thirty thousand, probably more. And then when 231 00:11:49,520 --> 00:11:53,160 Speaker 1: you added what I called all the direct supporter folks 232 00:11:53,200 --> 00:11:55,760 Speaker 1: you know from other agencies like in g A and 233 00:11:55,880 --> 00:11:58,280 Speaker 1: d I A and all these other places and stuff. 234 00:11:59,040 --> 00:12:02,480 Speaker 1: You're talking anywhere from a hundred a hundred, twenty thousand 235 00:12:02,559 --> 00:12:06,360 Speaker 1: people probably spread out across the entire enterprise. It's a 236 00:12:06,400 --> 00:12:10,000 Speaker 1: big it's a big enterprise, man, it's not small. And 237 00:12:10,240 --> 00:12:12,720 Speaker 1: they were everywhere. They're just literally all over the globe. 238 00:12:12,720 --> 00:12:15,200 Speaker 1: And so, you know, it made sense to do it. 239 00:12:15,280 --> 00:12:17,600 Speaker 1: I had no idea how to do it. I started 240 00:12:17,600 --> 00:12:21,640 Speaker 1: reading the by laws, you know, that's like you're governing documents. 241 00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:23,640 Speaker 1: And what I really liked about the U s G 242 00:12:23,840 --> 00:12:27,439 Speaker 1: Spatial Intelligence that was run by members and partners. That 243 00:12:27,520 --> 00:12:30,040 Speaker 1: didn't have like a bunch of retired generals and sergeant 244 00:12:30,040 --> 00:12:33,559 Speaker 1: majors sitting up there in a benevolent manner acting like 245 00:12:33,679 --> 00:12:36,120 Speaker 1: they were an active duty telling everybody what to do. 246 00:12:36,679 --> 00:12:40,000 Speaker 1: I mean, it was truly collaborative and collegial. And I said, 247 00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:42,160 Speaker 1: this is pretty cool, man, because the people that are 248 00:12:42,200 --> 00:12:44,480 Speaker 1: in it actually get to decide what it does and 249 00:12:44,559 --> 00:12:47,520 Speaker 1: doesn't do. So I was digging that, and so we 250 00:12:47,640 --> 00:12:51,080 Speaker 1: formed ours to be in the same manner. We started 251 00:12:51,120 --> 00:12:53,640 Speaker 1: two thousand and fourteen. Here we are. We started our 252 00:12:53,679 --> 00:12:57,839 Speaker 1: seventh year. This year. We've got undred plus people from 253 00:12:57,880 --> 00:13:01,880 Speaker 1: sixty two countries. About sixty percent of the people are 254 00:13:01,920 --> 00:13:04,640 Speaker 1: active duty. It's free for active duty. I'll come back 255 00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:07,240 Speaker 1: to that in a minute. And we've got corporate partners. 256 00:13:07,280 --> 00:13:09,280 Speaker 1: We have I think it's ninety two or ninety four 257 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:13,720 Speaker 1: corporate partners. They raided everything from massive companies to small 258 00:13:13,760 --> 00:13:17,400 Speaker 1: businesses that are you know, veterans, disabled, owned and stuff. 259 00:13:17,400 --> 00:13:20,400 Speaker 1: And so we do events all over the place. And 260 00:13:20,480 --> 00:13:22,199 Speaker 1: so you know, what we do is we kind know 261 00:13:22,280 --> 00:13:24,240 Speaker 1: and it's hard to catch up with you. I mean, 262 00:13:24,520 --> 00:13:28,800 Speaker 1: you're always travel in some place. Obviously right now, you know, 263 00:13:29,240 --> 00:13:33,360 Speaker 1: with the COVID and coronavirus that's going on, you haven't 264 00:13:33,400 --> 00:13:36,079 Speaker 1: been traveling on as much. But it's tough to keep 265 00:13:36,160 --> 00:13:38,920 Speaker 1: up which country you're in. I usually talk to your 266 00:13:38,920 --> 00:13:41,520 Speaker 1: wife more than I talked to you. Yeah, I would 267 00:13:41,559 --> 00:13:44,640 Speaker 1: pay you the first year. The first three years were 268 00:13:44,640 --> 00:13:46,439 Speaker 1: horrible because I would be in the Middle East, I 269 00:13:46,480 --> 00:13:49,400 Speaker 1: would fly back through Europe, then I would come to Tampa. 270 00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:51,319 Speaker 1: I would turn around and like two days later fly 271 00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:54,240 Speaker 1: back to Europe. And then I would get back from 272 00:13:54,280 --> 00:13:56,160 Speaker 1: Europe and I would fly to like Asia, you know, 273 00:13:56,240 --> 00:13:58,480 Speaker 1: back to Japan or Korea somewhere, and it would just 274 00:13:59,040 --> 00:14:02,040 Speaker 1: I mean, I'm fifty years old, and you feel that stuff, 275 00:14:02,120 --> 00:14:04,520 Speaker 1: you know, when you're thirty and thirty five? You got it? Man, 276 00:14:04,559 --> 00:14:07,880 Speaker 1: you have crap, you know. But let me tell you, man, 277 00:14:07,880 --> 00:14:10,120 Speaker 1: when you hit like fifty eight, man, I mean, the 278 00:14:10,160 --> 00:14:13,240 Speaker 1: recovery time ain't there. Man. You don't need someone to 279 00:14:13,240 --> 00:14:16,559 Speaker 1: tell you you're old. That's just you know, reinforcement, know 280 00:14:17,160 --> 00:14:20,560 Speaker 1: the whole thing. But it was tough. We were small, 281 00:14:20,720 --> 00:14:22,600 Speaker 1: you know, we stayed really small. We only have seven 282 00:14:22,600 --> 00:14:25,840 Speaker 1: full time employees counting myself. Our tech is never to 283 00:14:25,880 --> 00:14:28,920 Speaker 1: be big. We're a networked organization. We're a network of networks, 284 00:14:28,920 --> 00:14:31,080 Speaker 1: and so we leverage the people that are in the 285 00:14:31,160 --> 00:14:33,240 Speaker 1: network and we can just ask them for free, like hey, man, 286 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:36,160 Speaker 1: when you do the following yes or no, the answers no, 287 00:14:36,320 --> 00:14:39,080 Speaker 1: then we just move off, find somebody that says yes, 288 00:14:39,560 --> 00:14:42,960 Speaker 1: get to yes quickly and so or get to know quickly. 289 00:14:43,040 --> 00:14:45,840 Speaker 1: And so that's what we're trying to do. But you know, 290 00:14:45,920 --> 00:14:47,960 Speaker 1: it's like being a case officer, I manage a network 291 00:14:47,960 --> 00:14:51,600 Speaker 1: of networks. We support our industry partners. We're trying to 292 00:14:51,600 --> 00:14:54,640 Speaker 1: bring you know, capability to our international partners. We've had 293 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:58,320 Speaker 1: huge success. I helped write the legislation to stand up 294 00:14:58,360 --> 00:15:02,600 Speaker 1: the joint soft head orders in the Ukraine. I've advised 295 00:15:02,640 --> 00:15:05,720 Speaker 1: the Japanese government on doing it the Jordani. I mean, 296 00:15:05,720 --> 00:15:08,080 Speaker 1: we just we're all over the play. We we really 297 00:15:08,080 --> 00:15:11,200 Speaker 1: focus on the joint headquarters, so we have one single 298 00:15:11,240 --> 00:15:13,680 Speaker 1: point of entry for the country. But I spent a 299 00:15:13,720 --> 00:15:16,280 Speaker 1: lot of time talking to parliamentary ands and stuff. And 300 00:15:16,720 --> 00:15:19,600 Speaker 1: in the US it's on Congress. I think since COVID started, 301 00:15:19,640 --> 00:15:23,000 Speaker 1: I do four or five calls or VTCs a week 302 00:15:23,080 --> 00:15:28,760 Speaker 1: with some senator staffer, congressional staffer up there um supporting 303 00:15:29,320 --> 00:15:32,160 Speaker 1: you know, special apps issues, good stuff. I mean, don't 304 00:15:32,160 --> 00:15:34,400 Speaker 1: even do it. I'm punching way above my league. But 305 00:15:34,480 --> 00:15:36,560 Speaker 1: you know, when you manage the network, it's not me, right, 306 00:15:36,600 --> 00:15:38,800 Speaker 1: So I'll bring in fifteen or twenty other people that 307 00:15:38,840 --> 00:15:41,640 Speaker 1: are far smarter and better looking than I am. For 308 00:15:41,680 --> 00:15:44,560 Speaker 1: a guy who was an operator, this is a big 309 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:48,720 Speaker 1: change for you because I'm gonna share with our listeners 310 00:15:48,760 --> 00:15:52,480 Speaker 1: the first time we met, which I'll always remember because 311 00:15:52,520 --> 00:15:54,720 Speaker 1: I just got to three seven down in pantomer as 312 00:15:54,760 --> 00:15:57,760 Speaker 1: a warrant. I just graduated the warrant Coast is like 313 00:15:57,920 --> 00:16:01,080 Speaker 1: more than thirty years ago, like a late eighty nine. 314 00:16:01,240 --> 00:16:04,600 Speaker 1: And Louis Aias, who was the commo guy on our team. 315 00:16:05,240 --> 00:16:07,880 Speaker 1: I signed into the company. You were out in the 316 00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:11,800 Speaker 1: interior in Panama and they said you're going to Captain 317 00:16:11,840 --> 00:16:13,960 Speaker 1: Braden's team, and then all the guys in the company, 318 00:16:14,040 --> 00:16:17,400 Speaker 1: oh jesus, you know, oh wait till you meet him. 319 00:16:17,520 --> 00:16:21,080 Speaker 1: And then out there Louis was filling me in, and 320 00:16:21,160 --> 00:16:25,240 Speaker 1: Louise like, Captain Bee's all about being an action dude. 321 00:16:25,600 --> 00:16:29,200 Speaker 1: So if you want to make make your bones with him, 322 00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:31,600 Speaker 1: just say, hey, you know I want to be an 323 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:36,280 Speaker 1: action guy. So I said, okay, So Major Higgens, Kevin 324 00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:40,760 Speaker 1: Higgens a great officer. Kevin Higgins was our company commander, 325 00:16:40,760 --> 00:16:44,560 Speaker 1: and he drove me out there. Me, Kevin, Louis Aias. 326 00:16:45,200 --> 00:16:48,880 Speaker 1: We met you in a little Panamanian dunk restaurant. It 327 00:16:49,000 --> 00:16:52,800 Speaker 1: was like really tiny you come walking in, No no, sure. 328 00:16:52,920 --> 00:16:55,000 Speaker 1: All you had it was an Army T shirt. You 329 00:16:55,040 --> 00:16:58,360 Speaker 1: had the ray bands with the green string shoulder brag 330 00:16:59,120 --> 00:17:02,520 Speaker 1: and you're like, hey, we're gonna face shoot somebody or not. 331 00:17:02,720 --> 00:17:04,879 Speaker 1: And I was like, I looked over at Louis. Louis 332 00:17:04,920 --> 00:17:07,000 Speaker 1: had a big smile on his face, and I was like, 333 00:17:07,119 --> 00:17:10,760 Speaker 1: I think I always hearkened back to that moment, like 334 00:17:10,840 --> 00:17:15,600 Speaker 1: the country Bogart moment in Casablancan. I think this is 335 00:17:15,600 --> 00:17:20,320 Speaker 1: the beginning of a beautiful friendship. And that was like 336 00:17:20,359 --> 00:17:23,600 Speaker 1: thirty years ago. And here we are today, come out 337 00:17:23,600 --> 00:17:27,359 Speaker 1: of crew with another team right as just cause was 338 00:17:27,359 --> 00:17:29,720 Speaker 1: getting ready to go, and half my team was grew 339 00:17:30,240 --> 00:17:31,719 Speaker 1: and we were supposed to be on you know, like 340 00:17:31,840 --> 00:17:34,439 Speaker 1: block leave and couldn't leave country. But we were in 341 00:17:34,520 --> 00:17:36,960 Speaker 1: country and stuff, and you know, half of them were 342 00:17:36,960 --> 00:17:38,879 Speaker 1: liquored up at Blacks Beach and you know I had 343 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:42,200 Speaker 1: to go find them all they're spread out everywhere. You know. Yeah, 344 00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:44,199 Speaker 1: it was a it was a good different times. You know. 345 00:17:44,240 --> 00:17:47,320 Speaker 1: I don't think yeah, just great leadership. I mean great 346 00:17:47,320 --> 00:17:50,520 Speaker 1: Italian you know, I test the one of the greatest 347 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:54,280 Speaker 1: experiences of my life was beaten at Italian phenomenal senior 348 00:17:54,320 --> 00:17:56,399 Speaker 1: in CEOs and office who's came out of that, you 349 00:17:56,440 --> 00:17:59,560 Speaker 1: know three seven at that time. I mean you look back. 350 00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:05,320 Speaker 1: Charlie Cleveland was the three Hector Pagan was the adjectant. 351 00:18:05,520 --> 00:18:08,719 Speaker 1: I mean both both of those guys made general officer. 352 00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:11,159 Speaker 1: I mean there was a you know, it was a 353 00:18:11,200 --> 00:18:14,040 Speaker 1: really giving you know, seniors c os man. I mean, guys, 354 00:18:14,280 --> 00:18:16,560 Speaker 1: just I can't tell you how many startivators came out 355 00:18:16,560 --> 00:18:19,240 Speaker 1: of that, but dudes put down there, you know, because 356 00:18:19,240 --> 00:18:22,360 Speaker 1: that's where you know, if you want to go to war, 357 00:18:22,480 --> 00:18:25,080 Speaker 1: you went there. So it was it was good times. 358 00:18:25,440 --> 00:18:28,040 Speaker 1: So moving around the global stoft going back there, I 359 00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:30,960 Speaker 1: mean that, I mean, look, harkening back to those times, 360 00:18:31,040 --> 00:18:34,119 Speaker 1: I mean the time that we spent together that it 361 00:18:34,200 --> 00:18:36,280 Speaker 1: was about two years that you were on the team 362 00:18:36,280 --> 00:18:39,520 Speaker 1: while I was there, and those were the most fun 363 00:18:39,680 --> 00:18:43,159 Speaker 1: times I had in the military. I'll think back of that. 364 00:18:43,680 --> 00:18:47,320 Speaker 1: We had a great team. We had a really awesome 365 00:18:47,359 --> 00:18:49,640 Speaker 1: group of nzios. I used to look forward to going 366 00:18:49,640 --> 00:18:55,600 Speaker 1: to work every day. Yeah. Different world now, yeah. Yeah. 367 00:18:55,680 --> 00:18:58,080 Speaker 1: And I'm older than you, so I know what you're 368 00:18:58,119 --> 00:19:00,920 Speaker 1: talking about when you said you don't need somebody reminding 369 00:19:00,960 --> 00:19:04,720 Speaker 1: you when you feel old. Yes, So it's global soft. 370 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:07,200 Speaker 1: I know that there's a couple of things that you're 371 00:19:07,200 --> 00:19:10,399 Speaker 1: really fashionate about him. We talked offline about one of 372 00:19:10,400 --> 00:19:13,879 Speaker 1: them the other day. Filling our readers to listeners, I 373 00:19:13,880 --> 00:19:16,320 Speaker 1: should say not our readers, but a lot of our 374 00:19:16,320 --> 00:19:20,160 Speaker 1: readers are listeners as well. Fill them in on what 375 00:19:20,240 --> 00:19:23,680 Speaker 1: the force needs. And I know what number one need 376 00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:28,040 Speaker 1: is going forward and beyond. When you were talking about 377 00:19:28,240 --> 00:19:32,200 Speaker 1: the uh, I'm just secretary, let me back up a minute, right, 378 00:19:32,280 --> 00:19:34,919 Speaker 1: so if this is show you how stupid I am. Right, So, 379 00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:37,520 Speaker 1: I had never been to comman. You know, when I 380 00:19:37,560 --> 00:19:39,520 Speaker 1: was a colonel, they let me go to Congress, right, 381 00:19:39,520 --> 00:19:41,199 Speaker 1: which I didn't know that. You weren't supposed to do 382 00:19:41,240 --> 00:19:43,280 Speaker 1: that as a colonel. You were like supposed to have 383 00:19:43,400 --> 00:19:46,080 Speaker 1: handlers and you know, you can only move your mouth 384 00:19:46,119 --> 00:19:49,000 Speaker 1: a certain way. You had to like read a script card, 385 00:19:48,640 --> 00:19:52,320 Speaker 1: and I didn't. And so General Cratic and General Jones 386 00:19:52,359 --> 00:19:55,679 Speaker 1: just let me roll in there and be neat. And 387 00:19:55,760 --> 00:19:58,560 Speaker 1: that was not probably the smartest thing those Force cars 388 00:19:58,560 --> 00:20:01,840 Speaker 1: ever did, but the afforts appreciated, right. He just cut 389 00:20:01,880 --> 00:20:03,720 Speaker 1: to the bullshit. Tell me what I got. You know, 390 00:20:03,760 --> 00:20:05,240 Speaker 1: They're like, hey, dude, I got a lot of work 391 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:07,159 Speaker 1: to do, so just tell me what the answer to 392 00:20:07,200 --> 00:20:10,000 Speaker 1: the test is. That's all I want to know. And 393 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:12,720 Speaker 1: most people are afraid to tell them, hey, do just 394 00:20:12,960 --> 00:20:15,320 Speaker 1: do this right here and call it a day. So 395 00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:18,160 Speaker 1: I learned this and stuff. And so in ten we're 396 00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:21,080 Speaker 1: up on Capitol Hill with Adam Smith and mac Thornberry 397 00:20:21,160 --> 00:20:24,119 Speaker 1: and this in the House Services Committee, and one of 398 00:20:24,200 --> 00:20:27,520 Speaker 1: them says, hey, dude, would you do a platform document 399 00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:30,760 Speaker 1: for special ops needs for us R spobs? And my 400 00:20:30,880 --> 00:20:34,119 Speaker 1: response was, nobody reads that ship anyway, you know, And 401 00:20:34,200 --> 00:20:37,280 Speaker 1: he goes, oh, yeah, they do. He said, every Congressional 402 00:20:37,320 --> 00:20:40,880 Speaker 1: rep and every Senator has a military legislative military legislative 403 00:20:40,880 --> 00:20:44,400 Speaker 1: affairs person and they read the National Defense Opusation at 404 00:20:44,400 --> 00:20:47,560 Speaker 1: which is like two New York phone books. That same staffer, 405 00:20:47,640 --> 00:20:50,639 Speaker 1: who's twenty two to twenty six years old, also reads 406 00:20:50,680 --> 00:20:54,080 Speaker 1: the Military Intelligence Program, which is, you know, two more 407 00:20:54,520 --> 00:20:56,359 Speaker 1: phone books in the New York. So they're huge, and 408 00:20:56,359 --> 00:20:59,080 Speaker 1: they've got to know what every line means, what you know, 409 00:20:59,119 --> 00:21:02,000 Speaker 1: why it's important, and then how it fits certain things. 410 00:21:02,640 --> 00:21:06,480 Speaker 1: So by producing this platform doctum, and we really simplify 411 00:21:06,560 --> 00:21:09,160 Speaker 1: it down to no, ship, here's what the SPECIALIBS community 412 00:21:09,160 --> 00:21:13,160 Speaker 1: means for US. I can't just sit here and make 413 00:21:13,200 --> 00:21:15,359 Speaker 1: stuff up, you know, and say this is what students 414 00:21:15,480 --> 00:21:17,600 Speaker 1: and so what we did is we said, hey, look, 415 00:21:17,600 --> 00:21:19,960 Speaker 1: we have a network we have and we can't speak 416 00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,040 Speaker 1: on behalf of us income, but we sure as heck 417 00:21:22,080 --> 00:21:24,560 Speaker 1: can We can send out a survey to our partners 418 00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:26,879 Speaker 1: and our members and stuff, and we can say, hey, 419 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:29,320 Speaker 1: here's what we're hearing, here's what's out there. And then 420 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:31,480 Speaker 1: the last thing on the survey is anything else you 421 00:21:31,600 --> 00:21:33,920 Speaker 1: want us to go after, right, And and so we 422 00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:36,399 Speaker 1: send the survey out. We usually have good results from it, 423 00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:38,720 Speaker 1: you know, and since you know over half the people 424 00:21:38,800 --> 00:21:40,960 Speaker 1: are active duty, we get a lot of good stuff. 425 00:21:41,240 --> 00:21:43,560 Speaker 1: We get a lot of things that Congress can't legislate, 426 00:21:43,680 --> 00:21:46,200 Speaker 1: Like they can't fix your leadership. Congress can't give the 427 00:21:46,320 --> 00:21:48,920 Speaker 1: army good leadership. I can't. No law in the world 428 00:21:49,000 --> 00:21:51,040 Speaker 1: will make that happen. But there's a lot of things 429 00:21:51,080 --> 00:21:53,680 Speaker 1: that Congress can fix. And so we focus on them 430 00:21:54,359 --> 00:21:57,399 Speaker 1: and we refined it, and up to this point, you know, 431 00:21:57,480 --> 00:21:59,800 Speaker 1: we had this beautiful brochure. We would go to this 432 00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:03,480 Speaker 1: tribution time, and my personal network and the network of 433 00:22:03,560 --> 00:22:07,399 Speaker 1: the foundation pretty much ended there. We weren't lobbyists, we 434 00:22:07,480 --> 00:22:09,879 Speaker 1: didn't have a Capitol Hill background, we didn't do any 435 00:22:09,920 --> 00:22:14,640 Speaker 1: so we partnered with Phil Anderson and the Navigator's Global team. 436 00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:18,000 Speaker 1: They've gotten the general retired Tom Trash, the former Vice 437 00:22:18,040 --> 00:22:21,879 Speaker 1: Commander so Calmed, Lieutenant General retired John Mulholla. They've got 438 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:25,320 Speaker 1: Colonel retired Mark Mitchell, former Fifth Group Commander DSc Winner, 439 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:28,680 Speaker 1: former acting as the soul Lick, and they formed a 440 00:22:28,800 --> 00:22:31,040 Speaker 1: national security team. So I was like, Okay, these dudes 441 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:34,240 Speaker 1: know the community, they have their stuff together. You know, 442 00:22:34,400 --> 00:22:37,040 Speaker 1: they could help us. This this company and this partner 443 00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:40,040 Speaker 1: can help us. So this year we had we created 444 00:22:40,040 --> 00:22:43,000 Speaker 1: what we call the Soft Imperatives Document, right, and its 445 00:22:43,320 --> 00:22:46,320 Speaker 1: results are from the survey and it goes out to 446 00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:49,320 Speaker 1: Capitol Hill. This year are two big things are we 447 00:22:49,440 --> 00:22:52,960 Speaker 1: are trying to elevate the Assistant Secretary of Defense for 448 00:22:53,080 --> 00:22:57,639 Speaker 1: Special Operations and lower city conflict to an undersecretary. And 449 00:22:57,680 --> 00:23:01,040 Speaker 1: everybody goes, oh, that's it's a bunch of policy craft. Look, 450 00:23:01,520 --> 00:23:04,160 Speaker 1: special Ops can't do its job because it never gets 451 00:23:04,200 --> 00:23:08,000 Speaker 1: authority to do ship been that way forever. We swim 452 00:23:08,160 --> 00:23:11,280 Speaker 1: up stream like salmon and the Grizzlies are just mall 453 00:23:11,400 --> 00:23:13,560 Speaker 1: on the all the way up the stream. And the 454 00:23:13,680 --> 00:23:16,480 Speaker 1: only way that's ever gonna change is someone from the 455 00:23:16,520 --> 00:23:19,480 Speaker 1: special ops community. Is that a high enough position to 456 00:23:19,600 --> 00:23:22,080 Speaker 1: be in the room when the decisions are made. Now, 457 00:23:23,200 --> 00:23:25,440 Speaker 1: when the Cohen Men Amendment came out, they formed so 458 00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:28,879 Speaker 1: common and reformed, so there weren't that many assistant Secretaries 459 00:23:28,920 --> 00:23:30,879 Speaker 1: of Defense. So that guy was a powerful dude. They 460 00:23:30,920 --> 00:23:33,240 Speaker 1: had a lot of influence. But over time there's like 461 00:23:33,359 --> 00:23:35,680 Speaker 1: seventeen or nineteen days these now when you've got like 462 00:23:35,680 --> 00:23:37,760 Speaker 1: Apor Tuna and you can defend the Hill of Korea 463 00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:40,720 Speaker 1: against a Chinese assault with all of it, there's too many, 464 00:23:41,280 --> 00:23:43,680 Speaker 1: and so they're not invited into the room for the 465 00:23:44,240 --> 00:23:47,800 Speaker 1: for the senior decision. So what's happening is the soft 466 00:23:47,920 --> 00:23:52,000 Speaker 1: response or a soft course of action is never considered. 467 00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:54,720 Speaker 1: It's a missile strike, send to carry of task force, 468 00:23:54,800 --> 00:23:58,920 Speaker 1: or do nothing. And so in order to change the narrative, 469 00:23:59,200 --> 00:24:02,760 Speaker 1: we've got to put someone in the room that's at 470 00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:05,800 Speaker 1: a high enough level that they can ensure that we 471 00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:09,560 Speaker 1: get the authorities we need to do our jobs. That's 472 00:24:09,640 --> 00:24:13,040 Speaker 1: that's simple. Everybody goes, oh, that's all political bullshit, Yet 473 00:24:13,160 --> 00:24:16,359 Speaker 1: it sure is. Man, you want somebody who's it that 474 00:24:16,880 --> 00:24:19,560 Speaker 1: it's got enough juice to be in the room when 475 00:24:19,640 --> 00:24:22,280 Speaker 1: the president makes the decisions. They boss, that's the wrong 476 00:24:22,400 --> 00:24:25,240 Speaker 1: thing to do, and the under secretary is the right level. 477 00:24:25,800 --> 00:24:28,199 Speaker 1: I'm surprised they didn't do that. You know, SOCOM has 478 00:24:28,280 --> 00:24:31,639 Speaker 1: service light, you know SOLI as service like responsibility. So 479 00:24:31,720 --> 00:24:35,240 Speaker 1: at two thousand and seventeen in the National Defense Authorization, 480 00:24:35,320 --> 00:24:39,400 Speaker 1: that Congress changed everything and they subordinated us SO calm 481 00:24:39,520 --> 00:24:42,760 Speaker 1: to the Assistant Secretary Defense for special operations and Lotisity 482 00:24:42,800 --> 00:24:46,560 Speaker 1: Conference as d slick for all things non operational, So 483 00:24:46,720 --> 00:24:51,959 Speaker 1: for manpower, funding, procurement, all that stuff, they report two solo. 484 00:24:52,520 --> 00:24:54,400 Speaker 1: A lot of people don't like that. That's the law. 485 00:24:54,480 --> 00:24:58,359 Speaker 1: That's been the law since the Department of Defense didn't 486 00:24:58,359 --> 00:25:01,040 Speaker 1: do anything. They sat on, they didn't do anything. So 487 00:25:01,119 --> 00:25:05,880 Speaker 1: in Defense Authorization, that Congress set a thing today, get 488 00:25:05,920 --> 00:25:08,600 Speaker 1: off your butt, start moving. We want to report nothing. 489 00:25:09,960 --> 00:25:16,720 Speaker 1: Same thing, same thing. So we've sent three warnings already, 490 00:25:17,240 --> 00:25:22,120 Speaker 1: and so since we have been advocating that just elevate 491 00:25:22,200 --> 00:25:25,320 Speaker 1: the person to an under secretary position, take them out 492 00:25:25,400 --> 00:25:29,480 Speaker 1: from under USD policy, they did all this in so 493 00:25:29,720 --> 00:25:33,080 Speaker 1: it now that works directly for Assistant Secretary Defense. He 494 00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:36,760 Speaker 1: doesn't work for an under secretary, so he should therefore 495 00:25:36,880 --> 00:25:39,840 Speaker 1: be designated as an undersecretary anyway, for us in the 496 00:25:39,920 --> 00:25:42,080 Speaker 1: soft community, if you're a dude on a team, let 497 00:25:42,160 --> 00:25:44,280 Speaker 1: me tell you what this means to you. This means 498 00:25:45,119 --> 00:25:47,960 Speaker 1: that the special ops course of action that you sit 499 00:25:48,040 --> 00:25:51,000 Speaker 1: around going, I don't understand why these jackasses don't let 500 00:25:51,119 --> 00:25:55,760 Speaker 1: us do our jobs. That could change overnight. The other 501 00:25:55,840 --> 00:25:58,800 Speaker 1: thing is I engage a lot of people on Capitol Hill, 502 00:25:59,520 --> 00:26:02,600 Speaker 1: and you know, they all like to throw out the buzzwords, right, 503 00:26:02,680 --> 00:26:05,159 Speaker 1: they go, hey, you know, great power competition, and but 504 00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:07,520 Speaker 1: you know, and so the first question I asked is 505 00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:11,359 Speaker 1: that you guys are read Chinese and Russian? Doctor, it's 506 00:26:11,400 --> 00:26:14,640 Speaker 1: not very long as like that's it. Have you ever read? 507 00:26:15,040 --> 00:26:17,920 Speaker 1: And the answers noe. And I said, well, let me 508 00:26:18,000 --> 00:26:19,359 Speaker 1: help you out. I'm gonna I'm gonna give you the 509 00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:23,960 Speaker 1: reader's digest version. Both of those countries, and you would 510 00:26:23,960 --> 00:26:26,920 Speaker 1: say I ran as well have built their doctrine on 511 00:26:27,440 --> 00:26:31,320 Speaker 1: avoiding a conventional fight. They want to fight this in 512 00:26:31,440 --> 00:26:35,359 Speaker 1: the shadows. They want to use special opps, they use intelligence, 513 00:26:35,400 --> 00:26:38,399 Speaker 1: they want to use espionage, they want to use cyber 514 00:26:38,600 --> 00:26:42,000 Speaker 1: information opps. But they want to win the fight before 515 00:26:42,119 --> 00:26:46,600 Speaker 1: the conventional force can deploy and mask. So zoo maybe, 516 00:26:47,440 --> 00:26:50,080 Speaker 1: but this is what and they actually followed their doctrine, 517 00:26:50,160 --> 00:26:53,240 Speaker 1: unlike the United States. Yeah, we kind of like it's 518 00:26:53,240 --> 00:26:55,760 Speaker 1: out there, it's good paper, but we don't really do it. 519 00:26:56,160 --> 00:26:59,520 Speaker 1: And so that's what they're marching too. And we're continuing 520 00:26:59,560 --> 00:27:02,879 Speaker 1: to crank out aircraft carriers and joint strike fighters. This 521 00:27:03,080 --> 00:27:07,160 Speaker 1: is the first year, Steve, and over twenty four years 522 00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:10,080 Speaker 1: that I can go back that the soft budget is 523 00:27:10,119 --> 00:27:12,879 Speaker 1: being cut and you don't hear boom and this is 524 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:15,760 Speaker 1: pre Corona, right, This has got nothing to do with Corona. 525 00:27:16,359 --> 00:27:18,080 Speaker 1: So next year when they go to do the bitch 526 00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:21,240 Speaker 1: budget build and the bills for Corona start coming in, 527 00:27:21,760 --> 00:27:24,920 Speaker 1: you think the cuts this year hurt. It's gonna cut deep. 528 00:27:25,440 --> 00:27:28,600 Speaker 1: And there is nobody but the Global Soft Foundation up 529 00:27:28,640 --> 00:27:31,560 Speaker 1: there advocating. Our big deal is you have spent a 530 00:27:31,680 --> 00:27:35,200 Speaker 1: phenomenal amount of time, blood and energy to build a 531 00:27:35,280 --> 00:27:39,320 Speaker 1: capable force. Do not tear it down, do not let 532 00:27:39,400 --> 00:27:42,600 Speaker 1: it go backwards. If you truly believe China and Russia 533 00:27:43,080 --> 00:27:45,880 Speaker 1: are the threats in the Great power competition, and I ran, 534 00:27:46,560 --> 00:27:48,640 Speaker 1: then the one force that you're gonna need the most 535 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:51,680 Speaker 1: of the special ops sports, You're gonna need them more 536 00:27:51,760 --> 00:27:54,159 Speaker 1: than you ever had. Now here's a force that doesn't 537 00:27:54,200 --> 00:27:57,840 Speaker 1: even have a two to one Bob Dwell, it's over deployed. 538 00:27:58,200 --> 00:28:01,480 Speaker 1: It is coming apart at the scenes and the tool 539 00:28:01,600 --> 00:28:04,600 Speaker 1: they need is that tool. And you can't produce more 540 00:28:04,680 --> 00:28:06,960 Speaker 1: than could have happened. And this is why we focus 541 00:28:07,040 --> 00:28:09,639 Speaker 1: on our international part We have got to get them 542 00:28:09,760 --> 00:28:13,840 Speaker 1: up to speed quickly. We've got to make them near 543 00:28:13,960 --> 00:28:17,879 Speaker 1: peer or peers as quickly as we can because we 544 00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:20,760 Speaker 1: don't have the gene pool or the where we're all 545 00:28:20,840 --> 00:28:22,960 Speaker 1: to produce the people. We've got to get them in 546 00:28:23,040 --> 00:28:26,720 Speaker 1: the game. So well, under we want to Under Secretary 547 00:28:26,720 --> 00:28:31,440 Speaker 1: of Elevator. Yeah, and uh, speaking of our global partners, 548 00:28:31,920 --> 00:28:36,040 Speaker 1: how is that going with the global soft network in 549 00:28:36,280 --> 00:28:39,880 Speaker 1: terms of you know, how are our allies are the 550 00:28:39,960 --> 00:28:44,160 Speaker 1: people that we work with, how those countries progressing good? 551 00:28:44,320 --> 00:28:47,840 Speaker 1: So you know, I mean every country said I honestly 552 00:28:48,440 --> 00:28:52,000 Speaker 1: I thought would never have joke Soft special operations. Now 553 00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:55,560 Speaker 1: have them. There's been good studies and you know, work 554 00:28:55,800 --> 00:28:58,040 Speaker 1: and looking at them and stuff. And the key now 555 00:28:58,240 --> 00:29:00,560 Speaker 1: is the capability. Right, So I will tell you tactical 556 00:29:00,720 --> 00:29:03,880 Speaker 1: operator dude level, they're as good as we are. Almost 557 00:29:03,920 --> 00:29:06,560 Speaker 1: every single energy was bullshit. You know, there's just set 558 00:29:06,640 --> 00:29:09,680 Speaker 1: we do saying rocket science. Where they don't where they 559 00:29:09,720 --> 00:29:12,360 Speaker 1: can't keep up with us is they don't have the 560 00:29:12,440 --> 00:29:14,240 Speaker 1: cross training that we have. So we have a little 561 00:29:14,280 --> 00:29:17,800 Speaker 1: bit more depth and cross training that's coming. Uh. And 562 00:29:17,840 --> 00:29:21,200 Speaker 1: then the command and control and the i SR integration, 563 00:29:21,320 --> 00:29:23,960 Speaker 1: you know, the the intel integration piece. Like you know, 564 00:29:24,440 --> 00:29:26,719 Speaker 1: we have air most of these guys don't, so they 565 00:29:26,760 --> 00:29:29,080 Speaker 1: have to go and partner with the their air force 566 00:29:29,160 --> 00:29:32,320 Speaker 1: element or their army element who it's it's not a 567 00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:36,000 Speaker 1: habitual relationship with and so they struggle, you know what 568 00:29:36,040 --> 00:29:38,880 Speaker 1: I mean. And so the big push now I would 569 00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:41,080 Speaker 1: just say, especially in the native side of the house, 570 00:29:41,200 --> 00:29:44,640 Speaker 1: is to get soft aviation built up because they show 571 00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:46,400 Speaker 1: up at all these fights and they got no they 572 00:29:46,480 --> 00:29:48,800 Speaker 1: got no aircraft, so they want to mooch on ours. Well, 573 00:29:48,840 --> 00:29:50,760 Speaker 1: we don't have enough of our own people, and so 574 00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:52,880 Speaker 1: you know, we spend a lot of time bringing in 575 00:29:52,960 --> 00:29:56,120 Speaker 1: conventional air to fly you know, things they probably shouldn't 576 00:29:56,160 --> 00:29:59,000 Speaker 1: be flying, and it just increases the risk factor. But 577 00:29:59,040 --> 00:30:01,520 Speaker 1: it's going really really well. Some of them. The quadrupled 578 00:30:01,560 --> 00:30:05,520 Speaker 1: in size over ten years. Luthuania has got a separate service, 579 00:30:05,560 --> 00:30:08,880 Speaker 1: so they've got the air, the land, maritime, and special outs. 580 00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:12,320 Speaker 1: Those are the fourth services. They've all been elevated up, 581 00:30:12,320 --> 00:30:14,640 Speaker 1: their flattening their chains of command, you know, so they 582 00:30:14,720 --> 00:30:16,720 Speaker 1: work for the Chief of Defense and the Minister of 583 00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:19,560 Speaker 1: Defense just you know, in the same manner. So it 584 00:30:19,680 --> 00:30:22,479 Speaker 1: allows them to be more aggressive. Some of them are 585 00:30:22,560 --> 00:30:25,240 Speaker 1: you know, slower than others. It's all about money and 586 00:30:25,360 --> 00:30:28,120 Speaker 1: programmatics and timing of stuff, and you have to convince 587 00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:33,480 Speaker 1: politicians and parliamentarians that used to be socialist from communists 588 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:37,040 Speaker 1: that they've got to move away from that configuration. Most 589 00:30:37,080 --> 00:30:40,000 Speaker 1: of your former Soviet Block or Eastern European folks are 590 00:30:40,640 --> 00:30:44,720 Speaker 1: transitioning out of the Soviet capabilities. You know, we brought 591 00:30:44,760 --> 00:30:47,320 Speaker 1: them into NATO and they all had a K forty 592 00:30:47,440 --> 00:30:49,920 Speaker 1: seven's and you know, everything that was Soviet, Well none 593 00:30:49,960 --> 00:30:53,560 Speaker 1: of that matches the NATO standard, you know, and NATO 594 00:30:53,680 --> 00:30:55,280 Speaker 1: was gonna say, well, which is declared to be the 595 00:30:55,360 --> 00:30:58,040 Speaker 1: standard to we can't have fifty standards and call it 596 00:30:58,080 --> 00:31:01,520 Speaker 1: a standard. You know, was pick one. And so they're 597 00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:04,760 Speaker 1: divesting themselves of all that Russian stuff that you know 598 00:31:04,920 --> 00:31:06,720 Speaker 1: they had and stuff, and so they want to be 599 00:31:06,800 --> 00:31:09,080 Speaker 1: aligned with the West. You know, and so that's a 600 00:31:09,120 --> 00:31:11,440 Speaker 1: good thing. But it's money, you know. But they're doing it. 601 00:31:11,720 --> 00:31:13,320 Speaker 1: You know, they're all building it out. They go to 602 00:31:13,400 --> 00:31:15,640 Speaker 1: our schools. You know, you go down range and you 603 00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:17,800 Speaker 1: look at these dudes like I mean, I was watching 604 00:31:17,840 --> 00:31:20,680 Speaker 1: a bunch of Romanian special House dudes and they're listening 605 00:31:20,720 --> 00:31:24,360 Speaker 1: to rap music and the dudes say F this and 606 00:31:24,600 --> 00:31:27,400 Speaker 1: F that, and I'm thinking, oh, we have ruined these people. Men. 607 00:31:27,920 --> 00:31:31,040 Speaker 1: They're screwed up as we are now, you know, they 608 00:31:31,120 --> 00:31:33,959 Speaker 1: just you know, they look at night when you're on nods. 609 00:31:34,000 --> 00:31:36,560 Speaker 1: You can't tell those dudes from our viewes man, just 610 00:31:36,840 --> 00:31:39,200 Speaker 1: you know, just a whole mannerism and you know, the 611 00:31:39,360 --> 00:31:41,800 Speaker 1: a screw them and you're just like, oh Jesus, man, 612 00:31:41,880 --> 00:31:45,000 Speaker 1: we have completely ruined these people. So but it's good. 613 00:31:45,080 --> 00:31:48,000 Speaker 1: You know, they're learning, they're accepted, and you know what's 614 00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:50,320 Speaker 1: happening is because of the deployments a lot. I mean, 615 00:31:50,360 --> 00:31:52,600 Speaker 1: everybody knows everybody. I mean we've known each other for 616 00:31:52,680 --> 00:31:55,640 Speaker 1: twenty thirty years and so what I mean, and we 617 00:31:55,760 --> 00:31:59,160 Speaker 1: know everybody's strength and weaknesses. Sometimes they have authorities that 618 00:31:59,240 --> 00:32:01,720 Speaker 1: will never get and they can do stuff that we 619 00:32:01,800 --> 00:32:04,520 Speaker 1: would never be authorized to do. And that works. Well, 620 00:32:04,840 --> 00:32:08,680 Speaker 1: sometimes they aren't authorized to do it right, their government says, hey, 621 00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:11,600 Speaker 1: I can't legally do that, but there are times when 622 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:13,600 Speaker 1: it works in our favorite you know, the US has 623 00:32:13,600 --> 00:32:16,120 Speaker 1: a lot of restrictions as well, you know, and so 624 00:32:16,800 --> 00:32:18,760 Speaker 1: so you just have to, you know, work with what 625 00:32:18,880 --> 00:32:21,280 Speaker 1: you've got that's come along. They were the piece I 626 00:32:21,360 --> 00:32:23,520 Speaker 1: want to talk about is in our stuff. Imperatives were 627 00:32:23,560 --> 00:32:26,560 Speaker 1: pushing for armed over watch this year. So armed over 628 00:32:26,640 --> 00:32:29,120 Speaker 1: watches something that goes back to you and I joined. 629 00:32:29,520 --> 00:32:33,560 Speaker 1: They used to have the old twin engine jet dragonfly things, 630 00:32:33,640 --> 00:32:36,840 Speaker 1: you know, is the closer support. You know, it could 631 00:32:36,880 --> 00:32:38,680 Speaker 1: go to Austie places. When you were and I were 632 00:32:38,720 --> 00:32:41,400 Speaker 1: in Bolivia, we had the PC twelves, I think a 633 00:32:41,480 --> 00:32:45,080 Speaker 1: PC seven and those were the platts you know, signal 634 00:32:45,160 --> 00:32:47,800 Speaker 1: engine things which are and they were phenomenal and when 635 00:32:47,840 --> 00:32:51,120 Speaker 1: we crashed that one, do you remember when every on that? 636 00:32:51,320 --> 00:32:54,160 Speaker 1: But but they're phenomenal, you know. After you and I left, 637 00:32:54,200 --> 00:32:55,959 Speaker 1: they use them to shoot down drug planes with them 638 00:32:55,960 --> 00:32:58,040 Speaker 1: all the time. I mean they were doing like sixty 639 00:32:58,120 --> 00:33:00,920 Speaker 1: seventy a week and so is good, you know, and 640 00:33:01,000 --> 00:33:04,760 Speaker 1: so that's that's some serious shooting down a sock has 641 00:33:04,800 --> 00:33:07,560 Speaker 1: got a proposal, you know, that's that's going in right now. 642 00:33:07,600 --> 00:33:10,800 Speaker 1: It's the so calm number one proposal to do what 643 00:33:10,880 --> 00:33:13,680 Speaker 1: they call Armed Overwatch because they wanted to have sensors, 644 00:33:13,800 --> 00:33:16,320 Speaker 1: they wanted to do a lot for them. It's designed 645 00:33:16,400 --> 00:33:19,400 Speaker 1: to replace the forty eight that are currently in the system, 646 00:33:19,960 --> 00:33:22,160 Speaker 1: you know, you twenty eight and Unique Birds got nine 647 00:33:22,280 --> 00:33:25,200 Speaker 1: radios on it. It controls the stack for us, so 648 00:33:25,280 --> 00:33:27,400 Speaker 1: when you're up there, it's not we don't deal with 649 00:33:27,480 --> 00:33:30,360 Speaker 1: the a wax. The U twenty eight guys are having 650 00:33:30,480 --> 00:33:33,960 Speaker 1: the stack, you know. So it's really cool, specialized, just 651 00:33:34,040 --> 00:33:35,800 Speaker 1: what you want. You won't want of us to doing it. 652 00:33:36,480 --> 00:33:38,480 Speaker 1: They have ownership, They land and live with you on 653 00:33:38,600 --> 00:33:40,280 Speaker 1: the base, you know. So it's not like, you know, 654 00:33:40,400 --> 00:33:42,920 Speaker 1: there's some dude who lives in a distant you know land, 655 00:33:43,040 --> 00:33:45,800 Speaker 1: and I mean he sleeps at the same place you do. 656 00:33:46,080 --> 00:33:49,160 Speaker 1: You know what I'm saying. So they're gonna replace those 657 00:33:49,200 --> 00:33:52,400 Speaker 1: platforms because they're on the fourth life cycle to replace them. 658 00:33:52,440 --> 00:33:56,240 Speaker 1: So the hours on those planes are ridiculous. They eight, 659 00:33:56,720 --> 00:33:58,720 Speaker 1: but they're gonna add new capability to it. And what 660 00:33:58,840 --> 00:34:02,440 Speaker 1: are those dudes have? Sucks. Number one thing is focusing 661 00:34:02,680 --> 00:34:06,040 Speaker 1: on being able to operate in an austere environment. So 662 00:34:06,120 --> 00:34:09,160 Speaker 1: I believe to this day that we had these in 663 00:34:09,320 --> 00:34:11,719 Speaker 1: these years, those kids would still be alive. I'm a 664 00:34:11,800 --> 00:34:14,680 Speaker 1: hundred percent certain just the I S O R platforms 665 00:34:14,719 --> 00:34:18,520 Speaker 1: alone would a learned the team's way ahead of the ambluish. 666 00:34:18,640 --> 00:34:21,960 Speaker 1: You know, the bird could have could have connected on 667 00:34:22,120 --> 00:34:24,839 Speaker 1: fires as well, but just the early warning. I mean, 668 00:34:24,840 --> 00:34:26,400 Speaker 1: I think that team, if they had have known ahead 669 00:34:26,400 --> 00:34:27,920 Speaker 1: of time, they could have put the boot to him, 670 00:34:28,080 --> 00:34:30,080 Speaker 1: and would they would have been different? Much different. I'm 671 00:34:30,120 --> 00:34:32,399 Speaker 1: not saying everybody would have survived, but I just don't 672 00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:34,280 Speaker 1: think that the loss of life would have been anywhere 673 00:34:34,360 --> 00:34:36,920 Speaker 1: close to what it was and the injuries and stuff. 674 00:34:36,960 --> 00:34:40,239 Speaker 1: And so it's gonna give the Special Obbs community a 675 00:34:40,360 --> 00:34:44,279 Speaker 1: capability to have a very small footprint where you have 676 00:34:44,480 --> 00:34:47,680 Speaker 1: manned I s R and a kinetic strike capability in 677 00:34:47,760 --> 00:34:50,880 Speaker 1: a very small package folds up fits in the back 678 00:34:50,960 --> 00:34:53,560 Speaker 1: of sea. One third. Yeah, it's funny you mentioned that 679 00:34:53,680 --> 00:34:57,000 Speaker 1: because when you're talking to H s R capability, I know, 680 00:34:57,640 --> 00:35:00,360 Speaker 1: and especially with our partner forces, that's one of the 681 00:35:00,800 --> 00:35:03,879 Speaker 1: problems the French you're having, and it's help They're they're 682 00:35:03,960 --> 00:35:07,239 Speaker 1: asking for our help because I guess a lot of 683 00:35:07,360 --> 00:35:10,279 Speaker 1: the I s R comes from our birds. They don't 684 00:35:10,320 --> 00:35:13,160 Speaker 1: have enough of it. Is there gonna be enough for 685 00:35:13,400 --> 00:35:17,319 Speaker 1: us to share? What's our partners? Great question? So when 686 00:35:17,320 --> 00:35:20,759 Speaker 1: I was in Afghanistan, the French special forces had Rover five. 687 00:35:20,920 --> 00:35:23,279 Speaker 1: You know, they buy L three, same thing our operators had, 688 00:35:23,840 --> 00:35:27,920 Speaker 1: but they're they're birds their platforms there. They could not 689 00:35:28,880 --> 00:35:31,759 Speaker 1: send a Rover five, so they had to use our 690 00:35:31,800 --> 00:35:34,200 Speaker 1: birds to get received Any feeds from their I s 691 00:35:34,400 --> 00:35:37,160 Speaker 1: R be personally the right right now, the Fridge have 692 00:35:37,320 --> 00:35:39,680 Speaker 1: a task force of Special Forces task force in there. 693 00:35:41,640 --> 00:35:45,280 Speaker 1: Next month of July, they're gonna put another man task 694 00:35:45,320 --> 00:35:47,880 Speaker 1: force in there that's gonna focus mainly on mentoring. What 695 00:35:48,120 --> 00:35:50,920 Speaker 1: is kennetic Like you saw they killed the head a 696 00:35:51,120 --> 00:35:55,840 Speaker 1: Q guy. Yeah, now they're gonna focus just on training 697 00:35:55,880 --> 00:35:59,600 Speaker 1: and mentrooing. Um, but we've lost Africa like the keen 698 00:35:59,680 --> 00:36:03,240 Speaker 1: to five, so it's almost completely overruned. The government refused 699 00:36:03,239 --> 00:36:05,680 Speaker 1: to allow anybody to help them. They finally opened their 700 00:36:05,719 --> 00:36:08,960 Speaker 1: doors to support three weeks ago. I mean, you know, 701 00:36:09,000 --> 00:36:12,080 Speaker 1: when you've lost seventy five percent of your terrain, that's 702 00:36:12,120 --> 00:36:14,800 Speaker 1: not easy to go and get back. And so this 703 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:17,440 Speaker 1: is not you know, all these tankers and it's a 704 00:36:17,480 --> 00:36:20,759 Speaker 1: special ops environment. It's what that's who's gonna go. And 705 00:36:20,800 --> 00:36:23,640 Speaker 1: it's pretty damn usteer out there. But we're struggling down 706 00:36:23,960 --> 00:36:27,799 Speaker 1: and we're seeing Isis and and al Kada moved down 707 00:36:27,920 --> 00:36:31,320 Speaker 1: through Central Africa and heading into the Southern Africa, and 708 00:36:31,400 --> 00:36:33,520 Speaker 1: so it's creating a deliver. Then you mix in that 709 00:36:33,600 --> 00:36:37,080 Speaker 1: the Russian mercenaries and the Wagner Group are there, and 710 00:36:37,160 --> 00:36:40,960 Speaker 1: the Chinese are doing the support to the African Union forces. 711 00:36:41,040 --> 00:36:43,680 Speaker 1: I mean, it's like Kelly's Heroes. You know, you've got 712 00:36:43,760 --> 00:36:47,200 Speaker 1: to go smoking tankers, the a wall infantry dudes, You've 713 00:36:47,200 --> 00:36:51,080 Speaker 1: got banned graves registration dudes. It's not a control. You 714 00:36:51,200 --> 00:36:53,840 Speaker 1: got just crazy mix of and it's just and and 715 00:36:53,920 --> 00:36:56,200 Speaker 1: there's and there's all. There's a UN mission, there's an 716 00:36:56,200 --> 00:37:01,600 Speaker 1: African Union mission, there's there's national missions, there's a NATO mission. 717 00:37:01,760 --> 00:37:05,360 Speaker 1: It's just and then five son mission yep, and and 718 00:37:05,480 --> 00:37:08,160 Speaker 1: everybody's running around going what the hell is going on? 719 00:37:09,040 --> 00:37:11,120 Speaker 1: So it's just it's just a it's a real mess. 720 00:37:11,640 --> 00:37:14,680 Speaker 1: And frankly, nobody has stepped up and said, look, we're 721 00:37:14,719 --> 00:37:18,160 Speaker 1: gonna sort this. I think from a US perspective, we 722 00:37:18,239 --> 00:37:21,160 Speaker 1: ought to be in the support role and if given 723 00:37:21,160 --> 00:37:23,480 Speaker 1: them I s R is all we can do, we 724 00:37:23,520 --> 00:37:26,200 Speaker 1: should do it. We have the basis in Agadez, and 725 00:37:26,920 --> 00:37:29,600 Speaker 1: you know we might as well. They're not going anywhere 726 00:37:29,640 --> 00:37:31,000 Speaker 1: and we might as well fly it. You know, if 727 00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:32,920 Speaker 1: the French want to kill them as beautiful, go do that. 728 00:37:33,040 --> 00:37:37,239 Speaker 1: You know, yeah, absolutely, by time, tell us in on 729 00:37:37,400 --> 00:37:41,279 Speaker 1: some of the other imperatives that you brought up this year, 730 00:37:42,000 --> 00:37:44,160 Speaker 1: you know the other there's a bunch of them on there. 731 00:37:44,239 --> 00:37:46,200 Speaker 1: Those are the you know, the armed over watching the 732 00:37:46,280 --> 00:37:49,560 Speaker 1: other secretary too big. We're working with seventh Special Forces 733 00:37:49,600 --> 00:37:52,399 Speaker 1: Group to get a child development center put on, put 734 00:37:52,480 --> 00:37:54,719 Speaker 1: on a base down there. You know, Seventh Group was 735 00:37:54,800 --> 00:37:57,800 Speaker 1: bracked out of Fort Bragg, right, you know, the d 736 00:37:57,920 --> 00:38:01,160 Speaker 1: o D moves them down there, beautiful facilities everything. They 737 00:38:01,280 --> 00:38:04,040 Speaker 1: decided to put the child development center on the middle 738 00:38:04,040 --> 00:38:06,600 Speaker 1: of Egland. So for anybody it's never been to Egland. 739 00:38:06,640 --> 00:38:09,800 Speaker 1: It's still one of the largest military installations in the US. 740 00:38:09,960 --> 00:38:13,040 Speaker 1: It's Bassador instead of the group is up north and 741 00:38:13,640 --> 00:38:17,320 Speaker 1: up your I ten and Cresty. To get down to 742 00:38:17,400 --> 00:38:21,319 Speaker 1: big Eggland proper main can be an over an hour 743 00:38:21,440 --> 00:38:24,040 Speaker 1: drive on two lane roads. So if you're a spouse 744 00:38:24,640 --> 00:38:26,480 Speaker 1: and you're trying to work and you've got to drive 745 00:38:26,520 --> 00:38:30,880 Speaker 1: an hour one way our plus sometimes one way to 746 00:38:31,040 --> 00:38:33,640 Speaker 1: drop your kids off, so then to go to work 747 00:38:34,120 --> 00:38:36,880 Speaker 1: and then pick them up. It's I mean, it's the 748 00:38:36,960 --> 00:38:40,600 Speaker 1: amount of drama and stress it's putting on the wives 749 00:38:41,040 --> 00:38:44,360 Speaker 1: and the spouses is ridiculous. We all know what happens 750 00:38:44,680 --> 00:38:47,960 Speaker 1: when they're understress, right, I mean I was told they 751 00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:51,640 Speaker 1: are people getting divorces because the family doesn't have enough 752 00:38:51,680 --> 00:38:54,680 Speaker 1: money to survive. They're all junior enlisted, right, and so no, 753 00:38:54,920 --> 00:38:57,080 Speaker 1: no disrespect to the Air Force, but you know they're 754 00:38:57,080 --> 00:38:58,880 Speaker 1: they're pilots man, and so they all get flight pay. 755 00:38:58,920 --> 00:39:00,719 Speaker 1: They get over eight hundred dollar flight page. So they're 756 00:39:00,719 --> 00:39:03,240 Speaker 1: all living out on the beach right, closer to Eggland, 757 00:39:03,280 --> 00:39:05,360 Speaker 1: closer to the amenities and everything. All the junior and 758 00:39:05,400 --> 00:39:07,640 Speaker 1: listed are living up north right because he can't afford 759 00:39:07,680 --> 00:39:09,640 Speaker 1: to living freak. And so the people that are the 760 00:39:09,719 --> 00:39:11,879 Speaker 1: people that need childcare is not some guy whose first 761 00:39:11,960 --> 00:39:14,640 Speaker 1: name is major or lieutenant colonel. It's some guy who's 762 00:39:14,640 --> 00:39:17,040 Speaker 1: a sergeant, right, he needs the childcare so his wife 763 00:39:17,080 --> 00:39:19,520 Speaker 1: can work, so they can freaking pay their bills and 764 00:39:19,640 --> 00:39:22,759 Speaker 1: so we're busted. Asked they get fifteen million dollars for 765 00:39:22,840 --> 00:39:24,680 Speaker 1: this thing. It's and of course you've got an army 766 00:39:24,800 --> 00:39:28,200 Speaker 1: unit on an Air Force installation. So it's just, you know, 767 00:39:29,040 --> 00:39:31,000 Speaker 1: it's a complete ship show of trying to get this done. 768 00:39:31,280 --> 00:39:33,400 Speaker 1: I don't know how successful will be this year, but 769 00:39:33,480 --> 00:39:36,200 Speaker 1: we've got the it's moving forward to corp of Engineers 770 00:39:36,280 --> 00:39:38,719 Speaker 1: is funding the thing. You know, we don't get it 771 00:39:38,800 --> 00:39:40,680 Speaker 1: this year. I feel pretty durn good we're gonna get 772 00:39:40,680 --> 00:39:42,480 Speaker 1: it next year. They've got to do what's called a 773 00:39:42,560 --> 00:39:44,800 Speaker 1: cherette and do the design and scope it out, and 774 00:39:45,200 --> 00:39:47,400 Speaker 1: you know they'll they'll they'll do all the surveys of 775 00:39:47,440 --> 00:39:49,680 Speaker 1: the land and then it's just really about funding it 776 00:39:49,760 --> 00:39:52,000 Speaker 1: and then you know they'll contract that, the contractors will 777 00:39:52,080 --> 00:39:54,120 Speaker 1: hit the ground and it's you know, however long it 778 00:39:54,200 --> 00:39:56,240 Speaker 1: takes him to slap one of those bad boys together. 779 00:39:56,880 --> 00:39:58,920 Speaker 1: You know. But there's a hundred and sixty eight families 780 00:39:58,960 --> 00:40:01,440 Speaker 1: on a waiting list down it's full hundred and fully 781 00:40:01,560 --> 00:40:04,319 Speaker 1: some kids. I mean, everybody's learning in COVID. Man, if 782 00:40:04,320 --> 00:40:05,800 Speaker 1: you can't get your kids out of your house and 783 00:40:05,840 --> 00:40:08,640 Speaker 1: get them, it's not good man, somebody's just start killing kids, man, 784 00:40:09,000 --> 00:40:11,279 Speaker 1: because that's just too much children too often. You know, 785 00:40:11,360 --> 00:40:13,320 Speaker 1: you can't be with your kids that much. You know. 786 00:40:13,400 --> 00:40:15,279 Speaker 1: That's why we have teachers and stuff. You know, they're 787 00:40:15,719 --> 00:40:18,440 Speaker 1: they know how to handle this, get educate them, you know. 788 00:40:18,520 --> 00:40:20,160 Speaker 1: But if you're even with the parents are that long, 789 00:40:20,200 --> 00:40:22,640 Speaker 1: it's not good, man. I mean, it's just they can't 790 00:40:22,719 --> 00:40:24,239 Speaker 1: entertain them and work, you know. I mean, it's just 791 00:40:24,320 --> 00:40:26,279 Speaker 1: not it's not fair to ask them to do that. 792 00:40:26,560 --> 00:40:29,080 Speaker 1: So we're focusing on a bunch of those things. The 793 00:40:29,120 --> 00:40:31,319 Speaker 1: big thing is right now is that there there's these 794 00:40:31,400 --> 00:40:34,000 Speaker 1: deterrence issues, you know, Like so in Yukon they have 795 00:40:34,600 --> 00:40:38,360 Speaker 1: everybody remembers Obama's speech, you know about the five billion 796 00:40:38,440 --> 00:40:41,759 Speaker 1: dollars for you calm, and everybody loved the idea. They 797 00:40:41,800 --> 00:40:43,680 Speaker 1: were piste at Obama because you just frew it out 798 00:40:43,719 --> 00:40:46,040 Speaker 1: on the table, very trump like, just chucking on the wire. 799 00:40:46,200 --> 00:40:48,839 Speaker 1: So there you go, boys and girls. Everybody freaked out 800 00:40:49,080 --> 00:40:50,920 Speaker 1: he didn't consult with him. At the end of the day. 801 00:40:51,200 --> 00:40:54,440 Speaker 1: Now it's five point nine nine billion dollars and stuff, 802 00:40:54,480 --> 00:40:56,560 Speaker 1: and and so what we're doing is we're running around 803 00:40:56,600 --> 00:41:00,719 Speaker 1: and we're asking hard questions like Soccer gets eighty five 804 00:41:00,800 --> 00:41:03,640 Speaker 1: million out of that this year. That's one point four 805 00:41:03,719 --> 00:41:07,640 Speaker 1: or four percent of the five point nine nine billion dollars. Really, 806 00:41:08,239 --> 00:41:12,880 Speaker 1: that's it for irregular warfare. That's beautiful. One point four 807 00:41:12,960 --> 00:41:15,879 Speaker 1: or four percent. That's that's their contribution. Other it's really 808 00:41:15,920 --> 00:41:18,399 Speaker 1: going to all the big army, big navy, big Air Force, 809 00:41:18,840 --> 00:41:21,080 Speaker 1: you know stuff. They're just you know, using that to 810 00:41:21,200 --> 00:41:23,200 Speaker 1: train and do stuff with. And so we're trying to 811 00:41:23,239 --> 00:41:26,480 Speaker 1: ask hard questions like, you know, why is irregular warfare 812 00:41:26,520 --> 00:41:29,759 Speaker 1: and special operations not you know, getting more resources to 813 00:41:29,840 --> 00:41:32,040 Speaker 1: do the things they need to do. They're doing the 814 00:41:32,120 --> 00:41:35,359 Speaker 1: same thing. There's a forty three billion dollar bill going 815 00:41:35,440 --> 00:41:38,600 Speaker 1: out from Paycom. Everybody sees Tom Cotton's the guy. There's 816 00:41:38,640 --> 00:41:41,800 Speaker 1: Democrats are Republican's bipartisan, you know, and they want to 817 00:41:41,920 --> 00:41:45,520 Speaker 1: they want to change some of the logistics footprint and Paycom. 818 00:41:45,600 --> 00:41:46,840 Speaker 1: But you know what are the big you know, the 819 00:41:46,920 --> 00:41:48,759 Speaker 1: biggest thing we're getting our ass beat with on the 820 00:41:48,880 --> 00:41:52,719 Speaker 1: Chinese is the information operations. And there's nothing in this 821 00:41:52,920 --> 00:41:55,400 Speaker 1: that fixes any of it. And so we're gonna spend 822 00:41:55,440 --> 00:41:57,719 Speaker 1: a whole ton of money built boat dox camera on 823 00:41:57,880 --> 00:42:01,200 Speaker 1: Bay you know, for ship, say you're gonna sit well 824 00:42:01,320 --> 00:42:04,080 Speaker 1: before they ever get to you know, a coastal region, 825 00:42:04,719 --> 00:42:07,400 Speaker 1: and we're we're going into Congress and we're educating on 826 00:42:07,920 --> 00:42:11,719 Speaker 1: you know, allocating money to special operations so we can 827 00:42:11,800 --> 00:42:14,279 Speaker 1: fund some of these missions, so we can get our 828 00:42:14,360 --> 00:42:16,320 Speaker 1: teams and our folks out there, you know, doing the 829 00:42:16,400 --> 00:42:19,239 Speaker 1: things they're supposed to be doing. Marco Rubio is doing 830 00:42:19,280 --> 00:42:22,800 Speaker 1: one for five million for Latin America. It's good stuff. 831 00:42:22,840 --> 00:42:25,879 Speaker 1: It allows the units to deploy on something other than 832 00:42:26,160 --> 00:42:30,719 Speaker 1: traditional exercise related funding. You know, the authorities with exercises 833 00:42:30,760 --> 00:42:34,120 Speaker 1: are horrible. You can basically show up and train, which 834 00:42:34,200 --> 00:42:37,719 Speaker 1: is not totally worthless, but it's it's very limiting if 835 00:42:37,719 --> 00:42:40,480 Speaker 1: you're trying to deal with an adversary, right, if you're 836 00:42:40,560 --> 00:42:43,640 Speaker 1: using that to confront an adversary, it's just weak weakness. 837 00:42:44,080 --> 00:42:45,520 Speaker 1: Those are some of the big ones I can think 838 00:42:45,560 --> 00:42:47,520 Speaker 1: of off the time. Spend most of my time focusing 839 00:42:47,560 --> 00:42:48,960 Speaker 1: on the big stuff. I think if you get the 840 00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:52,000 Speaker 1: big stuff right, you know, the policy stuff right, everything 841 00:42:52,040 --> 00:42:55,080 Speaker 1: else sorts itself out. And so that's we pushed that. 842 00:42:55,800 --> 00:42:57,399 Speaker 1: You're the big thing I spend a lot of time 843 00:42:57,440 --> 00:42:59,400 Speaker 1: on is transitioning. You know, I don't know if we 844 00:42:59,520 --> 00:43:02,799 Speaker 1: run up what's called the Software Life Program. Well, before 845 00:43:02,840 --> 00:43:05,279 Speaker 1: I go on, I'll just tell you this. We are 846 00:43:05,400 --> 00:43:08,239 Speaker 1: looking for people to join as individual members. Right. It's 847 00:43:08,280 --> 00:43:11,480 Speaker 1: twenty five bucks a year, fifty dollars for three years. 848 00:43:11,520 --> 00:43:13,800 Speaker 1: You could be a lifetime member, and it's free for 849 00:43:13,920 --> 00:43:17,719 Speaker 1: active duty. Now, when I was on in the army, 850 00:43:18,239 --> 00:43:20,359 Speaker 1: you know, they always had the first start, would come 851 00:43:20,360 --> 00:43:22,600 Speaker 1: out there with the you know, they beat up the 852 00:43:22,719 --> 00:43:24,880 Speaker 1: n C O S about n C O A. And 853 00:43:25,200 --> 00:43:26,719 Speaker 1: I mean I used to in A U S A. 854 00:43:26,920 --> 00:43:28,840 Speaker 1: I got an O E R with help when I 855 00:43:28,960 --> 00:43:32,759 Speaker 1: was in the calf because I didn't renew my A 856 00:43:33,000 --> 00:43:35,279 Speaker 1: U N S A thing. Why did it on the 857 00:43:35,400 --> 00:43:38,200 Speaker 1: border for like a hundred twenty days? You know, not 858 00:43:38,280 --> 00:43:40,320 Speaker 1: a lot of post offices up there, you know what 859 00:43:40,360 --> 00:43:44,320 Speaker 1: I'm saying. So the guy was actually holding back my 860 00:43:44,480 --> 00:43:46,040 Speaker 1: O E R, which would have hurt me. You know, 861 00:43:46,080 --> 00:43:48,640 Speaker 1: I might not have gotten promoted, right, And I'm like, dude, 862 00:43:48,640 --> 00:43:51,719 Speaker 1: are you kidding me? So I vowed never. I didn't 863 00:43:51,760 --> 00:43:53,920 Speaker 1: want I didn't want the Global Soft Foundation to be 864 00:43:54,040 --> 00:43:57,080 Speaker 1: that kind of professional association. And so I said, hey man, 865 00:43:57,920 --> 00:44:01,600 Speaker 1: active duty free man, you know, don't pay anything why, 866 00:44:01,880 --> 00:44:04,320 Speaker 1: you know, if we don't make money off it. I 867 00:44:04,400 --> 00:44:07,120 Speaker 1: have this very expensive system that you know, any of 868 00:44:07,160 --> 00:44:09,919 Speaker 1: the money goes into that to run. But it's built 869 00:44:09,960 --> 00:44:13,960 Speaker 1: for our professional associations. Unlike any other association. You get 870 00:44:14,040 --> 00:44:16,160 Speaker 1: a password, you go in, you can set up your profile. 871 00:44:16,239 --> 00:44:18,440 Speaker 1: We got a thing called Breezio coming out here about 872 00:44:18,440 --> 00:44:20,440 Speaker 1: three or four months, so once you log in, it 873 00:44:20,480 --> 00:44:23,000 Speaker 1: will be like its own internal linked in. You can 874 00:44:23,040 --> 00:44:26,040 Speaker 1: set up communities of interest. You guys can everybody can communicate. 875 00:44:26,520 --> 00:44:28,120 Speaker 1: You can type in a country and it will show 876 00:44:28,160 --> 00:44:30,560 Speaker 1: you who's in the country you desert how much of 877 00:44:30,640 --> 00:44:34,880 Speaker 1: your information you dispose? Right, it's all password protected. People 878 00:44:34,880 --> 00:44:36,239 Speaker 1: ask me all the time. Is it safe. It's as 879 00:44:36,280 --> 00:44:41,239 Speaker 1: safe as your bank account uses the same encryption protocols 880 00:44:41,280 --> 00:44:43,640 Speaker 1: is your bank account. So if you're comfortable with your money, 881 00:44:44,080 --> 00:44:46,480 Speaker 1: you should be comfortable with this. But but it's really 882 00:44:46,520 --> 00:44:49,080 Speaker 1: important to get individual members to join, right, and then 883 00:44:49,160 --> 00:44:51,200 Speaker 1: the main thing is when we sit out to surveys 884 00:44:51,200 --> 00:44:52,799 Speaker 1: and then getting their input. You know, if you don't 885 00:44:52,880 --> 00:44:55,040 Speaker 1: say ship, I tell people if you do nothing, nothing 886 00:44:55,120 --> 00:44:57,440 Speaker 1: will happen, you know, And so if you if you 887 00:44:57,520 --> 00:44:59,680 Speaker 1: take two surveys, you tell us what's going on. Do 888 00:44:59,840 --> 00:45:02,279 Speaker 1: every anything we can to help and fix it, and 889 00:45:02,360 --> 00:45:04,960 Speaker 1: so and again. And when I say we we use 890 00:45:05,040 --> 00:45:07,480 Speaker 1: the collective network. But the other thing we do is 891 00:45:07,520 --> 00:45:10,239 Speaker 1: we run what's called the Software Life Program. And the 892 00:45:10,360 --> 00:45:14,400 Speaker 1: Software Life Program is three nonprofits. It's the Global Soft Foundation, 893 00:45:14,520 --> 00:45:18,520 Speaker 1: the Honor Foundation, and ATHMA. We managed the program. We 894 00:45:18,600 --> 00:45:22,520 Speaker 1: managed the databases of resumes. We push out resumes. The 895 00:45:22,600 --> 00:45:27,440 Speaker 1: Honor Foundation runs a world class transition course that's like 896 00:45:27,520 --> 00:45:32,480 Speaker 1: a hundred and twenty hours campus in San Diego, Little 897 00:45:32,560 --> 00:45:35,719 Speaker 1: Creek and down at Stone Bay to the bar Sock. 898 00:45:36,239 --> 00:45:38,239 Speaker 1: We have a virtual one as well. We're working hard 899 00:45:38,320 --> 00:45:41,080 Speaker 1: to build one at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and all 900 00:45:41,160 --> 00:45:43,920 Speaker 1: the other major commanders there are expective as hell to do. 901 00:45:44,239 --> 00:45:46,719 Speaker 1: You know, I would say between six hundred thousand and 902 00:45:46,800 --> 00:45:48,960 Speaker 1: two million dollars to put a campus out there. They're 903 00:45:48,960 --> 00:45:50,839 Speaker 1: not cheap. Believe me. When you don't know all these 904 00:45:50,920 --> 00:45:52,600 Speaker 1: numbers and you see them when you start doing it, 905 00:45:52,640 --> 00:45:55,400 Speaker 1: you're just like, holy crap, this is not cheak. It 906 00:45:55,480 --> 00:45:58,279 Speaker 1: cost about ten tho dollars a student to go through 907 00:45:58,320 --> 00:46:00,239 Speaker 1: the course is what it runs. So we know there's 908 00:46:00,239 --> 00:46:02,040 Speaker 1: a lot of fundraising that goes on to do it, 909 00:46:02,560 --> 00:46:05,720 Speaker 1: but it sets them up for success getting up. ATHMA 910 00:46:05,920 --> 00:46:08,600 Speaker 1: is the oldest nonprofit in the country and actually was 911 00:46:08,719 --> 00:46:11,719 Speaker 1: formed during the Civil War because there was no there 912 00:46:11,760 --> 00:46:14,680 Speaker 1: was no benevolent organization. There was no you know, if 913 00:46:14,680 --> 00:46:17,560 Speaker 1: you got killed, they buried you where he fell. You know, 914 00:46:17,640 --> 00:46:19,960 Speaker 1: your wife and family ain't get nothing then. And it 915 00:46:20,040 --> 00:46:23,040 Speaker 1: really came to pass a little big horn when the 916 00:46:23,120 --> 00:46:26,919 Speaker 1: Seventh Calf lost two entire squadrons just wiped off the map. 917 00:46:27,440 --> 00:46:29,880 Speaker 1: You had all these families sitting on these forts spread 918 00:46:29,920 --> 00:46:32,560 Speaker 1: out all over the Midwest that they had to be 919 00:46:32,680 --> 00:46:35,360 Speaker 1: like recovered, you know, and what are they gonna do? 920 00:46:35,960 --> 00:46:39,880 Speaker 1: And so the Army formed the Army Mutual ad Association 921 00:46:39,960 --> 00:46:41,960 Speaker 1: that it became the Army Air Force and it became 922 00:46:42,000 --> 00:46:45,040 Speaker 1: the Now it's the Armed Forces Mutual Aid Associate. Their 923 00:46:45,040 --> 00:46:47,520 Speaker 1: headquarters on Fort Myers and they do a lot of 924 00:46:47,600 --> 00:46:50,279 Speaker 1: financial advising. You know, they tell people, hey, this is 925 00:46:50,320 --> 00:46:52,480 Speaker 1: what you gotta do. This what you can't do. These 926 00:46:52,480 --> 00:46:54,680 Speaker 1: are your benefits, like you know, if you get injured 927 00:46:54,800 --> 00:46:57,920 Speaker 1: or or hurt at any time, you know, they tell 928 00:46:58,080 --> 00:47:00,120 Speaker 1: I mean, they're very smart and making sure that you 929 00:47:00,280 --> 00:47:02,960 Speaker 1: get the benefits that that that the nation owes you. 930 00:47:03,280 --> 00:47:06,040 Speaker 1: They're really really good at that. So and they answer 931 00:47:06,200 --> 00:47:09,279 Speaker 1: questions that you know, they don't sell anything. They'll tell 932 00:47:09,320 --> 00:47:11,440 Speaker 1: you these lo ones we recommend pick, you know, pick 933 00:47:11,480 --> 00:47:13,560 Speaker 1: from the menu. We don't care. So we form that 934 00:47:13,719 --> 00:47:16,520 Speaker 1: and and it's really focused because there's a lot of 935 00:47:16,600 --> 00:47:19,440 Speaker 1: soft charities out there. There's hundreds of them with it 936 00:47:19,560 --> 00:47:22,480 Speaker 1: asked multiple A lot of them do great stuff, a 937 00:47:22,520 --> 00:47:25,399 Speaker 1: lot of our teeny tiny and but there's really there's 938 00:47:25,440 --> 00:47:28,120 Speaker 1: not many out there that focus on transition. So if 939 00:47:28,120 --> 00:47:32,279 Speaker 1: you're not dead or seriously injured, a lot of people 940 00:47:32,280 --> 00:47:35,520 Speaker 1: don't apply to cent of the people that just serve 941 00:47:36,200 --> 00:47:38,080 Speaker 1: you know, they're busted up, banged up, and they just 942 00:47:38,200 --> 00:47:40,400 Speaker 1: get out. You know, people like us, right, And what 943 00:47:40,520 --> 00:47:42,400 Speaker 1: most people in our community want to do is I 944 00:47:42,440 --> 00:47:44,160 Speaker 1: mean they just want a job. They want to do, 945 00:47:44,480 --> 00:47:46,600 Speaker 1: you know, go do something interesting, and they want a 946 00:47:46,640 --> 00:47:49,160 Speaker 1: new mission in their life. They want to move on, 947 00:47:49,360 --> 00:47:51,440 Speaker 1: and so they want to take care of their families. Man, 948 00:47:51,520 --> 00:47:54,239 Speaker 1: you know, they don't they're not looking for handouts or 949 00:47:54,320 --> 00:47:57,080 Speaker 1: you know, they don't anybody feel sorry for him these do. 950 00:47:57,200 --> 00:47:58,680 Speaker 1: You just want to get on after it, right and 951 00:47:58,719 --> 00:48:00,960 Speaker 1: do something different. And so you design what we call 952 00:48:01,080 --> 00:48:04,719 Speaker 1: software life. We think this program helps, you know, our 953 00:48:04,760 --> 00:48:06,719 Speaker 1: people do. And I say so, it's not just the 954 00:48:06,800 --> 00:48:08,880 Speaker 1: operat I tell people all the time, if you're in 955 00:48:09,000 --> 00:48:11,440 Speaker 1: the community, don't care your truck driver or bottle washing. 956 00:48:11,480 --> 00:48:13,760 Speaker 1: I mean, you know, the one you get SIDENTI fire 957 00:48:14,120 --> 00:48:15,759 Speaker 1: and you've been in the community, your room, You're never 958 00:48:15,800 --> 00:48:18,840 Speaker 1: gonna go back to the conventional force. You get fired, 959 00:48:18,920 --> 00:48:21,480 Speaker 1: you get thrown out. And so we take care of 960 00:48:21,560 --> 00:48:24,359 Speaker 1: all the folks in our formations and stuff, and it's 961 00:48:24,680 --> 00:48:27,319 Speaker 1: pretty huge. I'm a big proponent of it. We run 962 00:48:27,440 --> 00:48:30,160 Speaker 1: these one day seminars, We've done certain things to educate 963 00:48:30,280 --> 00:48:32,880 Speaker 1: the force on it. They're doing really good at the 964 00:48:32,920 --> 00:48:35,480 Speaker 1: average salaries almost a hundred forty thousand a year, and 965 00:48:35,520 --> 00:48:38,160 Speaker 1: that's officer n c O. But they spent a lot 966 00:48:38,200 --> 00:48:41,479 Speaker 1: of time up front in the course focused on the why, 967 00:48:41,840 --> 00:48:43,440 Speaker 1: and they try to get people to figure out what 968 00:48:43,560 --> 00:48:44,880 Speaker 1: the heck it is they want to do with their 969 00:48:44,960 --> 00:48:48,080 Speaker 1: lives once they get out. You know a lot of 970 00:48:48,120 --> 00:48:50,960 Speaker 1: people focus on money and resumes. That's on bullshit, man. 971 00:48:51,239 --> 00:48:53,320 Speaker 1: Once you know what it is, you're passionate about what 972 00:48:53,440 --> 00:48:55,880 Speaker 1: you're good at, what you really want to do. Then 973 00:48:56,200 --> 00:49:00,080 Speaker 1: a tailor everything to getting you in that area. Know, 974 00:49:00,200 --> 00:49:03,360 Speaker 1: those sorts of write and resume for some corporate headquarters 975 00:49:03,440 --> 00:49:06,280 Speaker 1: that you have no desire to be because you won't 976 00:49:06,360 --> 00:49:08,239 Speaker 1: last and stuff. So we spent a lot of our 977 00:49:08,440 --> 00:49:12,960 Speaker 1: energy and efforts trying to to help people transition out, 978 00:49:13,000 --> 00:49:15,200 Speaker 1: because whether you do forty years or four years, man, 979 00:49:15,239 --> 00:49:19,680 Speaker 1: at some point time, everybody transition. That's it. I wish 980 00:49:19,719 --> 00:49:22,400 Speaker 1: that was around when I got out. I'll tell you, 981 00:49:22,920 --> 00:49:25,200 Speaker 1: I've been out to San Diego several times. I went 982 00:49:25,200 --> 00:49:26,920 Speaker 1: out to Green I went to grad school out there, 983 00:49:26,920 --> 00:49:29,359 Speaker 1: and it was I've been to Stone Bay and I've 984 00:49:29,400 --> 00:49:32,240 Speaker 1: been to Virginia Beach, and I'm really excited about getting 985 00:49:32,320 --> 00:49:35,680 Speaker 1: one at for Bragg. And the reason is because it's 986 00:49:35,760 --> 00:49:40,480 Speaker 1: like five times the population of those other three campuses combined. 987 00:49:41,320 --> 00:49:44,000 Speaker 1: You know, they think over four hundred and fifty specialized 988 00:49:44,080 --> 00:49:48,560 Speaker 1: people transition out of Fort Bragg every year. That's an 989 00:49:48,600 --> 00:49:52,880 Speaker 1: infantry battag every year. Yeah, and you know a lot 990 00:49:52,960 --> 00:49:54,759 Speaker 1: of them wander out, and you know some of them 991 00:49:54,760 --> 00:49:57,600 Speaker 1: are great self starters and stuff. You know, when I first, 992 00:49:57,640 --> 00:49:59,480 Speaker 1: we do a survey and we get a software lest survey. 993 00:49:59,560 --> 00:50:01,160 Speaker 1: So when I has got out, I've been out you know, 994 00:50:01,920 --> 00:50:04,400 Speaker 1: almost seven years now, and you know, everybody say, sir, 995 00:50:04,400 --> 00:50:07,200 Speaker 1: everyone talking about transition and getting out and everything. You know, 996 00:50:07,560 --> 00:50:10,360 Speaker 1: every I love our people. Man, they're all selfishured khaki, 997 00:50:10,480 --> 00:50:12,680 Speaker 1: you know. I mean, this is what we select and success. 998 00:50:12,760 --> 00:50:14,520 Speaker 1: You know, we want this right, We want that person 999 00:50:14,600 --> 00:50:17,080 Speaker 1: that goes until the last drop of blood pumps through 1000 00:50:17,120 --> 00:50:19,320 Speaker 1: their heart. And they all got a planned. You know, 1001 00:50:19,360 --> 00:50:21,080 Speaker 1: I got this plan. I'm gonna do it. And I 1002 00:50:21,200 --> 00:50:24,239 Speaker 1: listened to him. And when I first started doing it, 1003 00:50:25,040 --> 00:50:26,480 Speaker 1: I listened to him and I was like, that's bullshit. 1004 00:50:26,520 --> 00:50:27,839 Speaker 1: I just cut him off. I was like, hey, dude, 1005 00:50:27,880 --> 00:50:30,520 Speaker 1: that's not how it works. And my wife kind of 1006 00:50:30,600 --> 00:50:32,319 Speaker 1: tightened me up on that. She says, hey, look man, 1007 00:50:32,360 --> 00:50:34,279 Speaker 1: you don't don't cut him off, you know, because you 1008 00:50:34,360 --> 00:50:36,200 Speaker 1: just like it's a crush them. You know, I could 1009 00:50:36,239 --> 00:50:38,080 Speaker 1: see their face when you just cut him off and 1010 00:50:38,120 --> 00:50:41,600 Speaker 1: say that's bullshit. So I learned now, I'm this is 1011 00:50:41,680 --> 00:50:44,279 Speaker 1: the new refined scoop right. And I let him pick 1012 00:50:44,320 --> 00:50:49,319 Speaker 1: out and I asked the first question to him, how 1013 00:50:49,400 --> 00:50:53,880 Speaker 1: long can you go unemployed? And usually dude can't answer you. 1014 00:50:54,400 --> 00:50:57,759 Speaker 1: He's got the stunning mullet look. His wife next to him, 1015 00:50:57,760 --> 00:51:00,279 Speaker 1: who is the CEO of the operation. They is all 1016 00:51:00,320 --> 00:51:04,080 Speaker 1: the bills, knows where everything is, all the stuff. She 1017 00:51:04,280 --> 00:51:07,480 Speaker 1: has shock and horror in her face because the tone 1018 00:51:07,680 --> 00:51:10,560 Speaker 1: and the way I asked the question, and she'll usually 1019 00:51:10,640 --> 00:51:13,680 Speaker 1: respond with we probably have three to six months we 1020 00:51:13,719 --> 00:51:16,560 Speaker 1: could go and and put My second question is is 1021 00:51:16,640 --> 00:51:19,080 Speaker 1: that savings and college fund or is that just a 1022 00:51:19,200 --> 00:51:25,200 Speaker 1: discretionary money you've got set aside for unemployment. No, that's everything. Yeah, 1023 00:51:25,560 --> 00:51:29,040 Speaker 1: so our survey found that most people are unemployed or 1024 00:51:29,160 --> 00:51:34,080 Speaker 1: unemployed nine to fifteen months. That ain't good, man. We're 1025 00:51:34,120 --> 00:51:37,839 Speaker 1: gonna bring that down. We're gonna bring that way down. 1026 00:51:38,239 --> 00:51:41,400 Speaker 1: Our goal is to attack that and crush that. And 1027 00:51:41,440 --> 00:51:43,200 Speaker 1: the only way you do it. I mean, I tell 1028 00:51:43,239 --> 00:51:45,359 Speaker 1: the n c os this is on you. I tell him, 1029 00:51:45,360 --> 00:51:47,000 Speaker 1: as I was an n c O, I was an officer. 1030 00:51:47,600 --> 00:51:49,680 Speaker 1: I tell him. Both times I came in the army, 1031 00:51:50,000 --> 00:51:53,799 Speaker 1: I was greeted by the same person. First name was sergeant. Now, 1032 00:51:53,920 --> 00:51:57,040 Speaker 1: when you're a private, right, you know, they're not as 1033 00:51:57,360 --> 00:51:59,839 Speaker 1: nice to you as you but as a lieutenant, they're 1034 00:51:59,840 --> 00:52:03,120 Speaker 1: only marginally nicer. They'll throw it up. They'll do the 1035 00:52:03,200 --> 00:52:06,000 Speaker 1: ricky Bobby thing with all due respect, you know, but 1036 00:52:06,320 --> 00:52:08,600 Speaker 1: they still treat you like ship. Right. But when you 1037 00:52:08,680 --> 00:52:10,920 Speaker 1: come in you have sergeants. Man, they there, they get 1038 00:52:10,960 --> 00:52:12,839 Speaker 1: you in the force, they get you trained, they get 1039 00:52:12,880 --> 00:52:14,600 Speaker 1: your equipment, they get you in the fighting force. That's 1040 00:52:14,640 --> 00:52:17,600 Speaker 1: their job, unmatched to doing it. When you go to 1041 00:52:17,640 --> 00:52:21,160 Speaker 1: get out, sergeant ain't there. They give you a checklist 1042 00:52:21,640 --> 00:52:23,480 Speaker 1: and you thought you're just like you were leaving posts. 1043 00:52:23,520 --> 00:52:25,800 Speaker 1: But like your PCs and you go down the checklist, 1044 00:52:25,880 --> 00:52:27,680 Speaker 1: you go to your tab, you go see this dude, 1045 00:52:27,719 --> 00:52:30,359 Speaker 1: you go see that dude. But there's no sergeant that's 1046 00:52:30,400 --> 00:52:33,000 Speaker 1: assigned the mission to make sure that you are prepared 1047 00:52:33,040 --> 00:52:37,040 Speaker 1: to exit the force. None. And that's not the government's responsibility. 1048 00:52:37,560 --> 00:52:40,080 Speaker 1: The people that are incentivised to help you do that. 1049 00:52:40,640 --> 00:52:43,239 Speaker 1: It is the private sector because your money to them, 1050 00:52:43,719 --> 00:52:46,120 Speaker 1: you're You're what they're looking for. I mean, every day 1051 00:52:46,200 --> 00:52:49,520 Speaker 1: they wake up, they're looking for talent. Man, there's nobody 1052 00:52:49,640 --> 00:52:52,920 Speaker 1: in the world that's a CEO that doesn't focus seasy 1053 00:52:52,960 --> 00:52:56,320 Speaker 1: percent of his time on talent and chemistry. You know, 1054 00:52:56,440 --> 00:52:59,040 Speaker 1: it's just the way it is. You will not survive 1055 00:52:59,239 --> 00:53:01,440 Speaker 1: if you don't have talent. You've got the greatest idee 1056 00:53:01,440 --> 00:53:03,239 Speaker 1: in the world. But if you've got a shitty team, 1057 00:53:03,320 --> 00:53:06,239 Speaker 1: guess what you lose. And so people are really really 1058 00:53:06,360 --> 00:53:09,239 Speaker 1: cognizant of talent and stuff. And so what we have 1059 00:53:09,400 --> 00:53:13,280 Speaker 1: done is we're spending a lot of energy on helping 1060 00:53:13,440 --> 00:53:17,520 Speaker 1: our community be able to get out there and find good, 1061 00:53:17,640 --> 00:53:20,920 Speaker 1: meaningful work stuff that they want to do. And and 1062 00:53:21,000 --> 00:53:23,400 Speaker 1: that's it's a bigg thing, you know, But it's up 1063 00:53:23,440 --> 00:53:25,200 Speaker 1: to the n c O. I tell the n c 1064 00:53:25,320 --> 00:53:27,400 Speaker 1: L and I brief the Senior Enlisted Academy over here, 1065 00:53:27,520 --> 00:53:30,160 Speaker 1: you know, big deal all the time. This is gonna live. 1066 00:53:30,280 --> 00:53:33,080 Speaker 1: There are eighty five of the force. When they start saying, hey, 1067 00:53:33,120 --> 00:53:34,799 Speaker 1: gooes and girls there by paying attention, here's what we're 1068 00:53:34,840 --> 00:53:38,400 Speaker 1: gonna do, it's done. It's over. I keep telling all 1069 00:53:38,440 --> 00:53:40,840 Speaker 1: the officers are gonna say ship. They don't. They'll just 1070 00:53:40,840 --> 00:53:42,200 Speaker 1: say you have a good old your top, you know, 1071 00:53:42,320 --> 00:53:44,759 Speaker 1: pick a But it's up to them. And you know, 1072 00:53:45,160 --> 00:53:46,960 Speaker 1: there's just a lot of things that we've got to 1073 00:53:47,040 --> 00:53:50,080 Speaker 1: do up front to help these people. You know, when 1074 00:53:50,120 --> 00:53:53,239 Speaker 1: you start talking to soldiers about financial preparators, you can't 1075 00:53:53,320 --> 00:53:58,600 Speaker 1: do that when they're eight and to late to late stuff. Man. Yeah, 1076 00:53:58,680 --> 00:54:00,600 Speaker 1: we're just trying to help. I mean, you know, we're 1077 00:54:00,680 --> 00:54:02,920 Speaker 1: kind of getting into our stride. So this is the 1078 00:54:03,400 --> 00:54:06,080 Speaker 1: you know, it's taken longer. We were born in sequestration, 1079 00:54:06,480 --> 00:54:07,799 Speaker 1: so this is a lot to tell people. We came 1080 00:54:07,840 --> 00:54:10,920 Speaker 1: out of the egg swinging. People were getting cut. There 1081 00:54:11,000 --> 00:54:13,239 Speaker 1: was a horrible year for the Defense Department, and we 1082 00:54:13,400 --> 00:54:17,840 Speaker 1: grew tremendously. But we've got you know, phenomenal corporate partners. 1083 00:54:17,920 --> 00:54:19,920 Speaker 1: I mean, these are companies that want to be in 1084 00:54:20,000 --> 00:54:23,600 Speaker 1: the community. Most of them are former specialized people and 1085 00:54:23,680 --> 00:54:25,200 Speaker 1: they want to be in the community. They want to 1086 00:54:25,280 --> 00:54:27,359 Speaker 1: hire our people, they want they want to be a part. 1087 00:54:27,440 --> 00:54:30,680 Speaker 1: They have the same culture, ethics, and ethos as the 1088 00:54:30,760 --> 00:54:33,920 Speaker 1: soft community, and so they you know, they are us. 1089 00:54:34,719 --> 00:54:37,400 Speaker 1: They deployed with us. About thirty of everybody outs on 1090 00:54:37,520 --> 00:54:41,240 Speaker 1: the battlefield some sort of contract or support entity somehow, 1091 00:54:41,320 --> 00:54:44,279 Speaker 1: so one third of the forces them and they like 1092 00:54:44,480 --> 00:54:47,400 Speaker 1: higher enough. And they also provide great opportunities to our 1093 00:54:47,480 --> 00:54:51,160 Speaker 1: people outside of just some military contracting. We have a 1094 00:54:51,280 --> 00:54:54,400 Speaker 1: lot of our people by Navy c O. Darren Evenson 1095 00:54:54,640 --> 00:54:56,920 Speaker 1: from soccer here is the number three guy at Airbnb. 1096 00:54:57,440 --> 00:54:59,560 Speaker 1: He's worked a lot of money, but he's he's an 1097 00:54:59,600 --> 00:55:03,200 Speaker 1: Airbn be man. He's out there reading departments, whatever Airbnb does, 1098 00:55:03,640 --> 00:55:06,440 Speaker 1: how they're making a lot of money, I'll tell you 1099 00:55:06,560 --> 00:55:08,600 Speaker 1: that you're doing great. Man. I mean, but you know, 1100 00:55:08,680 --> 00:55:11,399 Speaker 1: he works his butt off and he's a one brilliant guy. 1101 00:55:11,400 --> 00:55:14,200 Speaker 1: It's too smart to be in the military, especially a seal, 1102 00:55:14,280 --> 00:55:18,000 Speaker 1: but he's a mean, he's still kidding and I'm sure 1103 00:55:18,080 --> 00:55:19,840 Speaker 1: he's just killing it, you know, I know he is. 1104 00:55:20,640 --> 00:55:22,640 Speaker 1: And we have a lot of really smart, gifted people. 1105 00:55:22,760 --> 00:55:24,560 Speaker 1: Once we find what they're good at and what they 1106 00:55:24,640 --> 00:55:29,680 Speaker 1: really want to do, they do exceptionally well. Well, all right, 1107 00:55:30,120 --> 00:55:33,439 Speaker 1: I want to thank you for all your time once again, 1108 00:55:33,520 --> 00:55:36,480 Speaker 1: thank you for your service, and thank you for your friendship. 1109 00:55:37,480 --> 00:55:40,440 Speaker 1: Than you've appreciate it. Yeah, it's been it's been a 1110 00:55:40,560 --> 00:55:44,719 Speaker 1: blast catching up and now that we're almost neighbors, were 1111 00:55:44,760 --> 00:55:47,400 Speaker 1: gonna have to do this in person. There you go. 1112 00:55:48,520 --> 00:55:53,040 Speaker 1: Thank you, all right, So for myself, Steve Valastoria here 1113 00:55:53,040 --> 00:55:57,560 Speaker 1: at soft At Radio, Stu Braydon, Global Soft Foundation. We 1114 00:55:57,680 --> 00:56:00,239 Speaker 1: want to thank you everyone for listening and we'll be 1115 00:56:00,320 --> 00:56:04,840 Speaker 1: back soon with another podcast. You've been listening to Self 1116 00:56:04,960 --> 00:56:10,080 Speaker 1: Rep Radio. New episodes up every Wednesday and Friday. Follow 1117 00:56:10,160 --> 00:56:13,640 Speaker 1: the show on Instagram and Twitter at self Rep Radio.