The following shows aired in May 2012. Click on the show date in the left column to listen to that show. Files are in MP3 format.
| 5/5/12 | The Snake Eaters—An Unlikely Band of Brothers and the Battle for the Soul of Iraq. “In this riveting narrative, U.S. Marine Major and acclaimed novelist Owen West puts readers into the boots of an isolated band of American advisors and Iraqis fighting together in tumultuous Anbar Province, where the people they are trying to protect and the insurgents who are trying to kill them are indistinguishable.” “A momentous page-turner about an unlikely group of Army reservists, Iraqi soldiers, and Marines who faced down a reign of terror in an Iraqi city. It will make you swell with pride at plain old American ingenuity and courage. Read it! You will never again hear the words ‘handing it over to the Iraqis’ in the same way.” —Karl Marlantes, bestselling author of Matterhorn and Veterans Radio guest (22 October 2011) “When a dozen unprepared American Army reservists are dropped off on an isolated Iraqi outpost with orders to be the military advisors, they have no idea that what they will really be doing is fighting. With no training to fall back on, this group —including a guitarist, a DEA agent, a plumber, and a postal worker — must somehow mentor the “Snake Eaters,” an Iraqi Battalion locked in a deadly struggle over an insurgent-infested town along the Euphrates River. The battle becomes so personal that the combatants know each others’ names…” Author Owen West attended Harvard University on an ROTC scholarship. He served for six years in the Marine Corps and led an infantry platoon, an infantry company, and a reconnaissance platoon before departing as a captain to attend Stanford Business School. Upon graduation, he joined Goldman, Sachs as an energy trader, and is presently a Managing Director and co-head of the firm’s veterans’ network. In 2003, he took a leave of absence and joined 1st Force Reconnaissance Company as fires officer for Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2004, he embedded with Marines outside Fallujah as a reporter. In 2006-2007, he led a small U.S. advisor team to an Iraqi infantry company on an outpost in Anbar Province. |
| 5/12/12 | Happy Mother’s Day. Veterans Radio wants to wish a Happy Mother’s Day to all the Moms in the military. Please send us the name of a Mom you’d like us to honor on Saturday’s program. Send her name, rank and unit to bob@veteransradio.net. And… This is an Encore Presentation of Veterans Radio from 9 May 2009. Joining Bob and Dale in the studio was Veterans Radio contributor Col. Christine Cook talking about her deployment and how it affected her children. And… Flying for her country. |
| 5/19/12 | AT EASE. Host Dwight Jon Zimmerman welcomes authors Philip Keith and Robert F. Dorr who will discuss their gripping accounts of courage in combat during the Vietnam War and World War II. Philip Keith’s Blackhorse Riders is the incredible true story of a brave military unit in Vietnam that risked everything to rescue an outnumbered troop under heavy fire—and the thirty-nine-year odyssey to recognize their bravery. Many brave deeds were done that day and Captain John Poindexter, Alpha Troop’s commander, tried to make sure his men were recognized for their actions. Thirty years later Poindexter was made aware that his award recommendations and even the records of the battle had somehow gone missing. Thus began the second phase of this remarkable story: a “battle” to ensure that his brave men’s accomplishments would never be forgotten again. Robert Dorr’s Mission to Berlin takes the reader on a World War II strategic bombing mission from an airfield in East Anglia, England, to Berlin and back. Told largely in the veterans’ own words, Mission to Berlin covers all aspects of a long-range bombing mission including pilots and other aircrew, groundcrew, and escort fighters that accompanied the heavy bombers on their perilous mission. “Dorr’s fascinating tale will be read at different levels, depending upon the knowledge of the reader. For some one just beginning to have an interest in World War II bombing operations, the author’s overall picture of the powerful event will lure the reader into reading more, and the author provides an excellent bibliography for that purpose. The knowledgeable reader will savor Mission to Berlin for its intimate detail and the rarely seen level of information about aerial warfare in both large and small scale. And for the expert, the person every author dreads, sitting there reading, waiting to pounce on each and every error, Dorr will offer a genuine challenge – he makes no mistakes.” |
| 5/26/12 | Special Memorial Day Encore Presentation. Each year more than 4,000,000 people come to visit. More than 300,000 reside here. Over 500 more are added each week. Near-mythological stories of valor, commitment, sacrifice and patriotism surround you as you walk the grounds. It is the location of the Tombs of the Unknown Soldiers. The official name is Arlington National Cemetery, but known simply as Arlington. Join host Gary Lillie and guest Michael Patterson, Webmaster and founder of the website dedicated to the Arlington National Cemetery www.arlingtoncemetery.net, as we honor those who have died for our country and for freedom. Together we will learn more about them and the special place reserved for some of America’s finest. |
