Havok Journal owner Charles Faint joins us for another update from my favorite website for all things military and first responders.  Charles served 27 years in the Army, including seven combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan attached to various special operations units.

We being with the article “Give Your Flowers to the Living”. The crux of the article discusses the importance of honoring people and sharing how much you care while they are still living rather than just at their funeral.  “It is said that time is the coin of the realm, you can’t earn any more of it, and you never know just how much of it you have left, so spend the coin wisely, with love and joy. Spend it not on flowers for the dead, but rather spend it on the ones you love, that are living.”

Next we move on to an article by Scott Faith titled “Hamas, the Invisible Gorilla and What the Media-Political Complex is Doing to America.”  The “Invisible Gorilla” is a metaphor for what the media-political complex’s sleight of hand to keep people from focusing on what is really important.  We discuss how quickly misinformation spreads and the negative ramifications of this hyper-environment.

Charles makes an annual trip to Israel as part of the Peace and Dialogue Leadership Initiative, so this situation is deeply personal for him. They had just visited some of the areas that were attacked last May.

“Know Your Role, Seven Rules for Supporting Special Operations” by Michael Kane has a lot of lessons that also apply to our civilians lives. Charles shares his personal experiences with support personnel who wanted to be operators rather than fulfilling their support roles. He emphasizes the importance of mentoring EVERYONE on your team and allowing subordinates to fail.

We wrap up with an article by Ayman Kafel named “The Life of Duality”. Ayman writes about the challenges faced by first responders balancing their “wolf” side and human side. Ayman has also published an excellent book named “The Resolute Path” through the Second Mission Foundation.

I highly recommend regularly visiting The Havok Journal whether you are a Veteran, First Responder or civilian.