The Scuttlebutt: Understanding Military Culture

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Welcome to The Scuttlebutt, a weekly pre-recorded program presented by The Veterans Breakfast Club. “Scuttlebutt” is a military term (specifically Navy) for talk or gossip around the watercooler below decks. And this is what our program is all about: we have informed conversations about the military experience, past and present. We want to bridge the divide between those who serve and those who don’t. We look at headlines, we tackle important topics, and we ask questions. Join us on this journey of spreading the Scuttlebutt!

Episodes

Monday Aug 12, 2024

Veterans Open Conversation: How to define a Gold Star Family

Monday Aug 12, 2024

VBC Scuttlebutt Open Conversation is a friendly, interactive gathering of veterans, friends of veterans, and history nerds where we discuss whatever aspects of military service, past or present, or the veterans community that are on our minds.

Join us to swap stories, good and bad, at home and overseas, old and new.

Tonight we talk about Camp LeJeune water contamination and the deadline to file a claim. We cover the debate over who is a Gold Star Family, as examined by a recent Pentagon working group. And, along the way, we discuss the best and worst chow you had in the military and the passing of Lt. William Calley, infamously convicted in the My Lai Massacre of 1968.

These stories aren’t just for veterans; they’re for everyone who wants to understand the lives of those who served. Whether you’re a veteran seeking camaraderie, a civilian wanting to learn, or simply someone who appreciates the value of service, the VBC welcomes you with open arms. Join us online – become part of their mission to honor stories, build bridges, and ensure that every day is Veterans Day.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

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Monday Aug 05, 2024

Cold War of the 1980s with Author and Intelligence Veteran Brian Morra

Monday Aug 05, 2024

Brian Morra joins us again to talk about his followup to his successful thriller The Able Archers. Brian’s new book, The Righteous Arrows, takes the story to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, an event that previewed the wars following the attacks of September 11, 2001.

Brian is a highly decorated former American intelligence officer and a retired aerospace executive. He is the author of the award-winning Able Archers series of historical thrillers. Brian bases his book’s characters on himself and on people he encountered as an intelligence officer. He also brings into play countries and places that he knows firsthand in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. His books are based on real events but read like page-turning thrillers.

Brian has written numerous articles for national publications and is an on-air expert in the new Netflix series on the Cold War called Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War. He also contributed his extensive expertise to the newly released CNN/BBC documentary called Secrets and Spies: A Nuclear Game.

After collaborating to thwart nuclear war in The Able Archers, Kevin Cattani and his Soviet counterpart, Ivan Levchenko, developed a deep mutual respect—but in The Righteous Arrows they are working against each other. Cattani, despite serious misgivings, conducts a perilous covert mission inside a Soviet bunker and barely escapes with his life, putting himself on a collision course with Levchenko. Their ultimate confrontation comes on a battlefield during the brutal Soviet war in Afghanistan, where Levchenko issues the American an ominous warning that will echo for decades.

Foreshadowing the global war on terror, former Air Force Intelligence officer Brian Morra illuminates the stubbornly persistent rivalry between the US and Russia in this heart-stopping story of international espionage and war.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

Monday Jul 29, 2024

War and Transgenerational Trauma

Monday Jul 29, 2024

Combat veterans may not tell their children about their experiences, but they transmit them invisibly, almost imperceptibly, through deep channels of influence in the mind, body, and psyche. Author, artist, and son of Vietnam veteran Carl Sciacchitano joins us to talk about his family story as captured in his new graphic memoir, The Heart That Fed: A Father, A Son, and the Long Shadow of War.

Also joining the conversation is internationally recognized neuroscientist Dr. Nadia Rupniak, whose father served in the Polish Army in World War II and received his country’s highest military decoration for heroism.

The stories we hear from Carl and Nadia inform a broader discussion on transgenerational trauma—how the traumatic experience of war can echo across generations.

Violence, uncertainty, and tension can bring heightened caution and fear to children and family members, long after the real danger has passed.

This phenomenon, where trauma impacts individuals beyond those directly affected, can effect descendants who may not have had any direct exposure to the traumatic events themselves.

As Dr. Kimberly Copeland, Military Behavioral Health Psychologist at the Center for Deployment Psychology at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, outlines, transgenerational trauma can be understood through three main mechanisms: nature, nurture, and narrative.

Nature: Trauma impacts the whole person—mind, body, and psyche. Research in epigenetics, such as studies on cortisol levels, suggests that the physiological impacts of trauma can be passed down from parents to children. Variations in cortisol levels, influenced by trauma, can predispose individuals to PTSD and other stress-related disorders.

Nurture: Socio-psychological impacts of trauma, such as stress, low self-esteem, and impaired functioning, can be transmitted through learned behaviors and psychological symptoms. Studies highlight the transmission of these effects from combat veterans to their children, indicating a pattern of secondary trauma that could lead to intergenerational impacts.

Narrative: Even when trauma survivors do not explicitly share their experiences, their behaviors and the silence around these topics can influence future generations. Cultural and communal stories, as seen in Holocaust survivor families, can perpetuate a latent form of trauma, influencing descendants through the collective memory and narratives of the community.

The narrative stresses the importance of recognizing and understanding transgenerational trauma to facilitate healing. Healing should focus on identifying risk and resiliency factors, adopting holistic approaches, and utilizing culturally and spiritually congruent practices. The author reflects on the growth and bonding experienced with their sister, Trinh, suggesting that understanding and shared experiences can aid in healing from transgenerational trauma.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

Monday Jul 22, 2024

The Challenges Facing Military Wives with Simone Gorrindo

Monday Jul 22, 2024

When one half of a couple joins the military, the other does also, in a sense, by default. There can be a sense of abandonment, as well as a troubling intimation that the military will always come first.

Military spouse Simone Gorrindo joins us to talk about her experience as captured in The Wives: A Memoir. Her book is an intimate and evocative account of the challenges that come with her husband’s deployment.

Initially resistant to the idea of military life, Gorrindo stuck with her boyfriend, Andrew, when he decided to join the Army.

That meant leaving a vibrant life in Manhattan to a rented house near Fort Benning. In time, Andrew left with a special operations unit in Afghanistan.

Gorrindo, who holds a master’s degree in journalism and has a background in editing, felt the constraints of her new role. She found military culture to be one of dependency which, along with the oppressive heat of Georgia, the mundane routine of her days, and the abandonment of her professional life in New York City surrounded her in a curtain of isolation.

Her company consisted primarily of other military wives, each dealing with the challenges of their husbands’ deployments. These women, thrown together by circumstance, navigated a life filled with uncertainty, emotional strain, and the need for resilience.

The uncertainty, anxiety, dependency all recalled Simone’s childhood, one dominated by her mother’s alcoholism. The sense of longing and stability, the desire for connection, pervades her account. Her own background flooded the foreground as she progresses in her pregnancy.

Each deployment felt like a betrayal. The adrenaline and purpose that guided Andrew’s life were absent in hers. As an Army wife, Simone was expected to be compliant and accommodating. The gulf between her and Andrew widened.

Yet, Simone knew her job was to maintain the household and construct a sort of family stability, even as the Army spun plans of its own, of which she was left entirely unaware.

When Andrew returned from a deployment, he had changed. But, she had changed also.

In detailing her story with courageous candor, Simone Gorrindo gives us a opportunity to talk about the dilemmas and difficulties faced by military spouses. It sheds light on the emotional labor, the sense of isolation, and the resilience required to navigate life in the shadow of military deployment.

Through her personal narrative, Gorrindo gives voice to the collective experiences of military wives, arguing for the recognition of their strength and the importance of their own transformations.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

Monday Jul 15, 2024

Veterans Open Conversation on VBC Scuttlebutt

Monday Jul 15, 2024

VBC Scuttlebutt is a virtual watering hole where camaraderie and connection flow as freely as laughter and shared stories.

Join us to swap stories, good and bad, at home and overseas, old and new. At the VBC, veterans from every era and branch are drawn together by the warm glow of shared purpose.

Here are a few of the things we plan to discuss tonight: medical breakthroughs that came from the military: painkillers, antibiotics, blood-clotting, prosthetics, plasma, not to mention TBI and PTSD.

Combat veterans and fireworks. What do you do on July 4th?Says one, "It sounded just like the howitzers from Vietnam.”

We remember Nancy Smoyer's beloved brother, 2LT Billy Smoyer, KIA in Vietnam July 28, 1968.

We discuss the variety of head covers in Vietnam: boonie cap, baseball hat?

Norm Phillips from SCORE talks about mentoring Veteran Entrepreneurs and score.org

We follow up with a question posed last week: "were you more or less patriotic after returning from Vietnam?"

We also ask about those who served in Bosnia and/or Kosovo in 1994-1999 and beyond.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

Monday Jul 01, 2024

Found: A Veteran Story by Best-Selling Author Jack McLean

Monday Jul 01, 2024

Jack McLean joins us again to talk about his new book, Found: A Veteran Story which tells how he healed from Vietnam.

Last year, Jack recounted the history behind his best-selling memoir of 2009, Loon: A Marine Story. Jack served in Vietnam in 1967-68 tour with Charlie Company of the 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division. He survived a lot of combat, including a harrowing three-day fight at LZ Loon near the Laotian border in I Corps.

Jack’s homecoming was both unique and typical of the Vietnam generation of veterans. On the one hand, he went straight to Harvard University, the first Vietnam veteran to attend.

On the other hand, he found it difficult to connect with fellow veterans or with anyone who was interested in his service. In 1968, he walked into a VFW hall and received only the chilliest of cold shoulders from the older veterans there. “Nobody offered me a beer,” he writes. “Nobody invited me to join the card game. Nobody waved me over to the pool table. Nobody welcomed me home.”

Coupled with survivor guilt and un-processed trauma of combat, such neglect and isolation only fed his sense that something was wrong.

Jack found healing as he tracks down fellow Marines and the Gold Star family members who never made it home.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

Monday Jun 24, 2024

My Father, Marine

Monday Jun 24, 2024

Brian Ahearn is the son of a Vietnam Marine veteran and author of a memoir, His Story, My Story, Our Story, a heartrending tale that illuminates the stark realities of war, from the battlegrounds of Vietnam to the emotional frontlines at home.

Following a Marine veteran, the narrative intricately unravels his grapple with PTSD and the profound ripple effect it has on his family, particularly his son. Crafted from the personal wartime accounts of Brian Ahearn Sr. and juxtaposed with his son’s, Brian Ahearn Jr., candid reflections on growing up under the shadow of trauma, this story bridges two generations marked by war’s enduring scars.

The dual lens through which His Story, My Story, Our Story is told provides a first-hand account of war and its aftershock within a family setting. Through raw storytelling, it seeks to guide Marines in evading service-related pitfalls, fortify understanding between Marine families, and mend the delicate fabric of father-son relationships.

Addressing the often unspoken emotional challenges faced by military families, this profound and insightful work serves as a healing blueprint for those navigating the intricate dance of love, duty, trauma and legacy, standing as a beacon of hope and resilience.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

Tuesday Jun 18, 2024

Army Helicopter Pilots Randy & Jackie Kluj

Tuesday Jun 18, 2024

We welcome husband and wife duo, Randy and Jackie Kluj, who share their extraordinary journeys from Army helicopter cockpits to their work with Creek and Timber Legacy nonprofit. The Klujs bring a unique perspective on service, resilience, and the healing power of nature.

Randy Kluj, a native of northern Maine, grew up with a profound love for the outdoors, spending his childhood hunting, fishing, and exploring the wilderness. His passion for aviation led him to Norwich University, and upon graduation, he joined the U.S. Army to pursue flight school. Randy’s military career saw him piloting the AH-64D Apache Longbow. Over a decade of service, Randy distinguished himself as an instructor pilot and completed multiple deployments in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Today, Randy continues to fly as a civilian medevac pilot in Western Pennsylvania, where he lives with Jackie.

Jackie Bechdel Kluj’s roots are firmly planted in western Pennsylvania. She enlisted in the Army Reserves through ROTC in 2001. By 2003, she had earned her commission as a 2LT and was on her way to flight school at Fort Rucker, Alabama. Graduating with honors in 2005, Jackie specialized in flying the UH-60 Black Hawk. Her career highlights include serving as a platoon leader and battle captain during her deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, KFOR8 in Kosovo. Jackie’s leadership and innovative training exercises were recognized in the Army Times, showcasing her dedication and skill. She was honorably discharged in 2011, but her commitment to service never wavered.

In 2019, Randy and Jackie channeled their shared love for the outdoors and their dedication to helping others into founding Creek and Timber Legacy. This nonprofit organization aims to enrich the lives of veterans, first responders, and children with serious illnesses through immersive outdoor experiences. By partnering with various organizations and individuals, Creek and Timber Legacy provides hunting, firearm therapy, and outdoor learning opportunities, promoting emotional well-being and a renewed sense of energy.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

#headlines #news #oralhistory #militaryhistory #roundtable #navy #army #airforce #marinecorps #marines #military #coastguard #veteran #veterans #veteransbreakfastclub #vbc #nonprofit #501c3 #veterans #veteran #vet #militaryhistory #usarmy #army #vietnam #usnavy #navy #pilot #airforce #veteranowned #coastguard #aviators #militaryveterans #Iraq #vietnamveterans #veteransstories #veteranshistory #veteranshistoryproject #veteranstravel #veteranstrips #veteranshistoricaltours #veteransoralhistory #militaryretirees #armyretirees #navyretirees #warstories #airforce #vietnamwar #veteraninterview

Monday Jun 10, 2024

Veterans Open Conversation

Monday Jun 10, 2024

VBC Scuttlebutt is a virtual watering hole where camaraderie and connection flow as freely as laughter and shared stories.

Join us to swap stories, good and bad, at home and overseas, old and new. At the VBC, veterans from every era and branch are drawn together by the warm glow of shared purpose.

The stories bridge the gap and the years with veterans from World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, late Cold War, Iraq and Afghanistan, and other eras and deployments. Non-veterans also join the circle, eager to understand, to listen, to learn.

They ask questions with genuine respect and a desire to honor the sacrifices made. This intergenerational dialogue, forged in the crucible of shared experience, builds bridges of empathy and understanding.

Special Guests: Jon Molik from the Headlines and History Podcast and Clint Jordan from Mil-Estate Planning.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

Monday Jun 03, 2024

Recovering WWII Normandy MIA Nathan Baskind and Memorial Day Conversation

Monday Jun 03, 2024

We mark Memorial Day with the PFC Lawrence Gordon Foundation's Jed Henry (https://www.pfclawrencegordonfoundati...) who, along with Operation Benjamin (https://www.operationbenjamin.org/nat..., recently recovered the remains of 1st Lt. Nathan Baskind, who was killed in Normandy near Utah Beach in 1944.

In June 1944, Baskind was assigned to Company C, 899th Tank Destroyer Battalion, as a platoon commander of four M-10 tank destroyers. According to historical war records, 1st Lt. Baskind and another man from his company were scouting ahead of their tank destroyers when enemy forces descended upon them in an ambush. The other soldier, heavily wounded, escaped the firefight and made his way back to the main U.S. force, believing Baskind was killed in the attack. Several attempts were made to retrieve Baskind’s body from the ambush point, but they could not locate his remains.

Following the end of the war, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) was tasked with investigating and recovering missing American personnel in Europe. Investigators discovered a death and burial report for 1st Lt. Baskind among the foreign records recovered from the Germans, evidently filed after the war on May 29, 1945, in Meiningen, Germany. The record revealed 1st Lt. Baskind was captured and later died at a hospital for German air force personnel near Cherbourg on June 23, 1944. German forces then buried him in the military cemetery in the city. In early 1948, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) sent the U.S. Army one of 1st Lt. Baskind’s identification tags. It is believed the German government likely submitted the tag to the ICRC, along with a death and burial report, following the war.

In November 1957, the Volksbund, the German War Grave Commission, contacted the U.S. Army regarding 1st Lt. Baskind. While disinterring a mass grave of what were believed to be 24 Germans buried in the Cherbourg cemetery, a Volksbund team discovered one of 1st Lt. Baskind’s identification tags and remnants of an American-type shirt with a first lieutenant rank and tank destroyer insignia. The remains in the mass grave were commingled, and the German team was unable to separate them into individual sets. The German investigators therefore placed the remains in seven burial pouches and then re-interred them in the Marigny German War Cemetery, 40 miles south of Cherbourg. Subsequent attempts to identify the remains of 1st Lt. Baskind by U.S. and German investigators were not successful.

In 2023, the Volksbund and other interested private research organizations exhumed the commingled remains from Marigny War Cemetery for analysis. By February 2024, these researchers contacted DPAA to inform the agency that 1st Lt. Baskind’s remains had been analyzed by a private U.S. laboratory and sought DPAA’s concurrence. To verify Baskind’s remains, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System reviewed the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR), and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis previously performed.

1st Lt. Baskind’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Normandy American Cemetery, an American Battle Monuments Commission site in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, along with the others still missing from World War II. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

We also talk with veterans about whom they remember on Memorial Day.

We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!

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