Author: rublevictor@gmail.com

Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. Today we welcome SgtMaj Lynn Kimble, USMC (Ret) to the show to talk about USAA’s Face the Fight Campaign. Mental health and suicide are issues that our country faces everyday and the impact is felt by veterans well above that of the rest of the American public. Face the Fight is a coalition of philanthropic foundations, veteran-oriented nonprofit organizations and corporations that are pooling resources ($41 million to start) and sharing a nationwide concerted effort, with the goal of cutting the veteran suicide rate in half by 2030. As the Military Affairs Relationship Director at USAA, SgtMaj Kimble shares with us his insight into the Face the Fight Campaign, as well as his experiences as a Marine rising through the ranks to become the Marine Corps Embassy Security Guard Sergeant Major and eventually the Command Sergeant Major of Marine Corps Reserve Forces and Marine Corps Forces North. If you would like more information on the USAA Face the Fight Campaign or would like to support it, please check them out at:

https://wefacethefight.org/

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Quick note: This recording occurred the week after our 100th episode aired but to better synch the release of this episode with World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10th, we pushed it out to today. That’s why Vic refers to this episode as “101”. Apologies for any confusion.

Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. This week we’re giving movie reviews a try and we begin with the documentary, The United States Marine Corps: 1775 – 1916: A History of Heroes. As fun as this was, there is more to this project than just having an excuse to watch movies while on the clock. The Marine Corps Association website offers battle study packages that provide a litany of resources to aid in our Marines’ professional military education. Among these resources are curated YouTube videos. But how should one use these videos in their studies? On this episode, William and Vic perform an analysis of a documentary film to demonstrate how YouTube videos can be used as a teaching tool. Using The United States Marine Corps: 1775 – 1916: A History of Heroes as an example, William and Vic discuss their reviews of the film, its pros and cons, the potential bias of the director, and how it was made to influence its intended audience.  The film can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYFhmtdg-cg&t=2623s

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Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. On this episode of MCA Scuttlebutt, we continue our World of Wargaming series with Jeremy Sepinsky, the lead wargame designer for the Center for Naval Analyses.

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Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. After interviewing dozens of people the past two years, we turn the mic toward our very own Vic Ruble for our 100^th episode of MCA Scuttlebutt. For this episode, guest interviewer Kyle Watts chats with Vic over his career in the Marine Corps and how he became the illustrious host of this podcast. We would like to thank each of our listeners for embarking on this journey with us and we are excited for what the future has in store.

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Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. If you want to write about veterans you need to earn their trust, listen to their experiences, and get it right. On this episode, William and Nancy have a conversation with award-winning writer, Leatherneck’s own Kyle Watts. Kyle is the recipient of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation’s 2019 Colonel Robert Debs Heinl, Jr. Award for the best article pertinent to Marine Corps history. He is a Marine communications officer turned freelance writer and is currently working as a Virginia firefighter. His side hustle is writing for Leatherneck and for him it’s not about the tactics and the analysis of the battles but it’s all about telling the stories of Marines who were there. I have a feeling you will be hearing more from him now that we know where he works.

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Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. On this episode of Scuttlebutt, World of Wargaming returns as William interviews Mr. Joseph Miranda, a former Army officer and prolific board wargame designer, and Dr. Christopher Cummins, the publisher of Strategy & Tactics Press and CEO of Decision Games. Check out their series of Strategy and Tactics articles available in the Marine Corps Gazette as well as their games available at:

https://decisiongames.com/wpsite

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Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. This week we welcome veteran Marine machine gunner, Marine Corps Heritage award winner, recent law school graduate, and current Bar exam hostage Kacy Tellessen back to the show. This week starts a little different than our previous episodes because the pre-show recording with Kacy was so fun we decided we needed to keep it. So we’ve cut an actual intro – which we recorded later – onto the beginning since the interview kind of picks up in medias res. Kacy takes us on an exploration of some of his experiences at law school, being selected to give the commencement speech, and how oftentimes, mental health begins with accepting that it is going to take work. Like Kacy says in the interview, “the word for life is perseverance.” For as much fun as we had and for as hilarious Kacy is, his perspectives on stress, achievement, and mental health are so profound. We hope you get as much out of our time with him as we did.

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To check out Kacy’s Gonzaga Law School Commencement Speech, click this link (Kacy’s speech starts at the 51:55 mark).

Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. “Science is expanding” and thank goodness we have a friend of the show like Dr. Adam Hunzeker to help us understand it better. This week we welcome Adam back to talk more about the science behind trauma and what it means that our bodies are a system of systems. Many of us remember the days when PTSD was called shell shock and going to a therapist was a potential career killer. Adam works tirelessly to remove the oversimplified labels, stigmas of mental health, and the common misconceptions of what happens to us when we experience trauma. For us to really come to a point where we are treating mental health in earnest, we need to acknowledge the complexities and nuances of trauma, and stop acting like the proverbial blind men with the elephant. Therapy is more than just getting more in touch with your feelings and we need to appreciate the complexities of the relationship between the mind and body so that we can get left of bang in this critical fight.

For more information, or to share information, please reach out to Adam at:

adamhunzeker@gmail.com

Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. Balloons, office hours with Kevin McCarthy, and the problem with simple solutions to complex problems. We seem to run the gamut with Dr. Michael Hunzeker in this latest installment of Strait Talk, but we got Mike in studio this time (William disguised himself as his Uber driver) so we had to take advantage. Mike helps us step into the gray zone and make sense of upcoming elections, sabre-rattling as a Sino-American jam sesh, and the potential for Taiwan to naturally progress toward a peaceful reunification and that particular scenario not being on leadership’s modelling for 2030. Love these talks and it was great to finally be able to do this face-to-face.

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Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. This week we are recording from the floor of Modern Day Marine so that we can bring you the events and personnel of this outstanding convention as it’s going on. We’re wrapping things up on Day 3, but no good operation goes without a hot wash, so we got the boss on the microphone to give us his thoughts and impressions of Modern Day Marine 2023. As always, LtGen Chiarotti does not disappoint. He talks about the evolution of MDM—not only the format but of the mindset and vision behind it. He also talks about getting away from the idea of this being an expo and being more of an experience. And, he discusses how MDM has taken a holistic look at today’s Marine Corps while also being a center for true synergy of the Marine Corps’ vision for future conflicts and industry’s ability to facilitate it. This is a great conversation. If you ever wonder how the boss feels about MDM, wonder no longer friends.

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Hey, Scuttlebutt listeners. This week we are recording from the floor of Modern Day Marine so that we can bring you the events and personnel of this outstanding convention as it’s going on. Vic and William had the chance to chat with leadership from the newly formed, Marine Innovation Unit, or MIU. In the world of DOD alphabet soup, the letters “M”, “I”, and “U” may not lead you to think of a unit that is as designed to tackle such a diverse set of problems. We thought this was either a new intel or information operation unit. But the innovation behind the formation, construct, and employment of the MIU is genuinely innovative (see what I did there?). It was great talking to LtCol J.B. Persons and Capt R.J. Jackson to help break down the ins, outs, command, structure, and concept of employment. This was an extremely informative discussion and it is fitting that MDM is where we would find these unique Marines.

Enjoy!

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