Author Archives: psessum

AAR of the Seattle VA After a Five Day Stay

Posted on August 4, 2015 by psessum

By: Peter Sessum The Department of Veterans Affairs, as an organization, gets a bad rap. Every time someone in their leadership does something stupid the entire organization gets attacked. As veteran I know what it is like to be punished … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Kicking Some Knowledge | Tagged Experiences, Geneva Conventions, Seattle VAMC, VAMC, Veterans Affairs | Leave a comment

Random Memory: Sledding in Bosnia

Posted on July 16, 2015 by psessum

By: Peter Sessum I started the Dogtag Chronicles because of experiences I had on campus at the University of Washington. Too many people seemed to think people in the military are a bunch of clone troopers waiting to be sent … Continue reading →

Posted in Random Memories, So There I Was | Tagged 1-26 INF, Army, Big Red One, Blue Spaders, Bosnia, Camp Dobol, Deployment, dogtag chronicles, Enlisted, Experiences, FOB, Grunt, IFOR, Infantry, Life Skills, Military, Mortars, Mount Vis, My Deployment, NATO, Operation Joint Endeavor, POG, SFOR, So There I Was, University of Washington | Leave a comment

When Hearts and Minds Fail: The Infamous Matchbooks

Posted on July 14, 2015 by psessum

By: Peter Sessum The hunt for Osama bin Laden took far longer than it should have. For years everyone was wondering how the most famous man in the world stayed hidden in Afghanistan with the might and resources of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, So There I Was | Tagged Afghan, Afghanistan, AK-47, al-Qaeda, Army, Combat Zone, Cultural Awareness, dogtag chronicles, Experiences, Kandahar, Leadership, Life Skills, matchbooks, Military, Military leadership, Mission, My Deployment, Osama bin Laden, Pashtun, Psychological Operations, PSYOP, PSYOP product, So There I Was, Soldier, Taliban, Urdu, Village | Leave a comment

Random Memory: Shark Attack

Posted on July 10, 2015 by psessum

By: Peter Sessum This week is Shark Week on the Discovery Channel and what better way to celebrate than to talk about a real life shark attack. Unfortunately, I don’t have an underwater experience to share, but this should be … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Random Memories, So There I Was | Tagged 1/50, Army, Basic Training, Boot Camp, Cattle car, Charlie Company, dogtag chronicles, Experiences, Fort Benning, Grunt, Infantry, knife hand, Knifehand, Life Skills, Military, Pathfinders, privates, Shark Attack, So There I Was, Soldier, Training | 3 Comments

The Vet Fireworks Courtesy Compromise

Posted on July 3, 2015 by psessum

This comes up every year, but since 2015 seems to be the year of the butthurt it has blown way out of proportion. Some people are complaining that they are asked to not be American on the most American day … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Kicking Some Knowledge | Tagged Air Force, Army, Boom, current-events, Experiences, Fireworks, Fourth of July, July 4th, Life Skills, Marines, Military, Navy, Post Traumatic Stress, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, Veterans, Vets | Leave a comment

The flag is more than piece of cloth whether you like it or not

Posted on April 23, 2015 by psessum

By Peter Sessum The American flag has been in the news a lot lately. Last month, a photographer took a picture of a baby being cradled in an American flag being held by a person in a Navy uniform and … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Kicking Some Knowledge | Tagged Air Force, American Flag, Army, current-events, Enlisted, Flag Code, Military, Navy, politics, protest, Sailor, Soldier, UC Irvine, US Flag, Veterans, Vets | 2 Comments

Be Grateful for the Support or it Will Go Away

Posted on February 26, 2015 by psessum

By Peter Sessum In a recent New York Times (NYT) article veterans weighed in on how they felt about civilians thanking them for their service. I have talked to a number of vets about this and while we all agreed, … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged Afghanistan, Army, Blue Falcons, Civilians, Combat Zone, current-events, dogtag chronicles, Experiences, Marines, Military, politics, PSYOP, Service, Thank you, Veterans, Vets | 2 Comments

Profile in Service: Warren Eddy

Posted on January 5, 2015 by psessum

A Boy Lands on Normandy and Becomes a Man By: Fred M. Apgar Warren Eddy was the youngest of six children who were raised in a rural part of northern Minnesota. Shortly after he graduated from high school, his family … Continue reading →

Posted in Profiles of Service, Real Heroes | Tagged 29th Infantry Division, 40 MM Bofors, Army, Combat Zone, D Day, dogtag chronicles, Eddy, Fred Apgar, Fred M. Apgar Warren Eddy, Greatest Generation, Military, Mission, Normandy, Officers, Omaha Beach, Regiment, the dogtag chronicles, Veterans, Vets, Warren Eddy, WWII | Leave a comment

Profile in Service: Harry Miller

Posted on August 17, 2014 by psessum

By: Fred Apgar With a career that spanned two branches of service and three wars, Harry Miller exemplifies the value of service to our nation. Miller grew up in Columbus, Ohio, the youngest of six children. To help support his … Continue reading →

Posted in Profiles of Service | Tagged 82nd Airborne Division, Air Force, Army, Battle of the Bulge, Combat Zone, dogtag chronicles, Germany, Greatest Generation, Harry Miller, Infantry, Korea, Korean War, Military, Profile of Service, Profiles in Service, Profiles of Service, Strategic Air Command, Tank, Veterans, Vets, vietnam vet, Vietnam War, WWII | Leave a comment

Stop Contributing to Post Traumatic Stress: Vets are not all crazy

Posted on August 15, 2014 by psessum

By: Peter Sessum Every veteran has heard this in some way, shape or form. Usually by some uninformed individual that is in no way qualified to make that diagnosis. One reason why it is one of the more powerful ways … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Kicking Some Knowledge | Tagged Afghan, Afghanistan, Army, Bully, Combat Zone, crazy, current-events, dogtag chronicles, Harassment, Infantry, Life Skills, Military, politics, Post Traumatic Stress, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTS, PTSD, Shell Shock, stop contributing to post traumatic stress, Veterans, Vets | Leave a comment