Red Scarf By Bill Doughty July 9, 1979 I get the idea just as we are about to go into the ghost tunnel: Scare the shit out of the kids sitting in the back seat.  They’re strapped into new seatbelts, like us. Mika made me put them in this junker used Datsun. Also new brakes, tires, wipers. The kids are arguing about some toy. As usual. I try to push away a half smile as I picture exactly how I’ll prank them in the ghost tunnel. That’s what we call it. One of a half dozen tunnels near Yokosuka. Carved out of prehistoric rock through hills and mountains. We through them on your way hom ..read more

Review by Bill Doughty–– A Marine with a warrior heart must also have a trained mind, according to General James Mattis –– one of the key U.S. military leaders of this century. Among his many assignments, Mattis commanded the U.S. Joint Forces Command and U.S. Central Command. He led Marines in combat in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom in the Middle East. And he served as the first Secretary of Defense in the Trump administration. In his combat operations, Mattis faced jihadist enemies who ignored the rules and laws of war and put innocent civilians at risk, hiding behind wome ..read more

Review by Bill Doughty–– It wasn’t until Imperial Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and Germany declared war on the United States in December 1945, that the burning embers of fascism dimmed and hot coals of active antisemitism, Christian nationalism, and Nazi support –– even in the U.S. Congress –– lost their glow. But the fire never completely went cold. Prior to World War II and even after, brave Americans sought to root out the supporters of fascism who went so far as to try to recruit members of the military as well as military veterans to their cause. One fighter of domestic fascism was a W ..read more

Review by Bill Doughty–– It’s almost frightening how good and relevant this book is. “Surf When You Can: Lessons in Life, Loyalty, and Leadership from a Maverick Navy Captain” by Captain Brett Crozier with Michael Vlessides (Atria Books, Simon & Schuster, 2023). This book about lessons of leadership would make a great gift for anyone who loves the Navy and the sea. Here’s an excerpt to show why. “If my wife, Mary, is my one true love, then the ocean is my mistress. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been fascinated with its power, its beauty, and its possibilities. As a Navy captain, I had th ..read more

By Bill Doughty–– Religious war in the Middle East seems never-ending, with non-democratic Islamist extremists targeting Jews and other non-Muslims as infidels deserving of death. Hamas terrorists from Gaza inflicted a brutal attack on innocent Israelis and other civilians on October 7. Israel is retaliating and pledges to destroy Hamas. As a result of Hamas’s attack, innocent people living in Gaza, who terrorists use as human shields, are being killed in the crossfire. Meanwhile, Iran fuels the flames of terrorism and destruction –– supporting not only Russia in its war in Ukraine but also ..read more

Review by Bill Doughty–– Welch with portrait of Birch Robert W. Welch Jr. attended both the U.S. Naval Academy and Harvard Law School, but finished neither. He abandoned careers in the Navy and in law and became a wealthy candy manufacturer. He also started one of the most divisive groups in American history, the John Birch Society. Welch named JBS for Christian missionary and U.S. Army Air Forces Capt. John Birch, who was killed by Chinese communists in 1945 –– what the society considered the start of a “Holy War.” Emerging from the ashes of a long history of racist, nationalist, and ..read more

Review by Bill Doughty–– Seventy-three years ago, September 15, 1950, Gen. Douglas MacArthur landed at Inchon, Korea. In the following weeks, U.S. forces began to rout the communist North Korean army and push them almost to the Yalu River near China. Then, in November the Americans encountered well-armed Chinese interventionists supporting the North Koreans. “Hill 205 seemed an unlikely place for an Army legend to be born,” writes Admiral William H. McRaven (U.S. Navy, Ret.) at the beginning of chapter 7 of “The Wisdom of the Bullfrog: Leadership Made Simple (But Not Easy). McRaven recounts ..read more

By Bill Doughty–– Former United States Marine Harrison Floyd is still in jail after being charged last week in the Fulton County case with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. He is charged with influencing a witness and conspiracy to commit solicitation of false statements, specifically against Fulton County election worker Ruby Freeman. Floyd is the only one of 19 defendants who was not granted bail; a judge ruled he was a potential flight risk. Former Commander in Chief Donald J. Trump allegedly led efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential elec ..read more

Review by Bill Doughty–– Did the pilot encounter a UFO before losing contact with air traffic control? What do people, including his fiancé, believe happened to Frederick Valentich on Saturday, October 21, 1978, over Bass Strait, Australia? And what did Valentich report he saw and experienced just before his transmission cut off, the pilot never to be heard from alive again? It’s one of the true stories explored by master writer Sarah Krasnostein in “The Believer: Encounters with the Beginning, the End, and Our Place in the Middle” (Tin House, 2022). In “The Believer” we meet UFOlogists, an ..read more

By Bill Doughty– In June we said the top summer read is not a book. It is the short, free, and compelling indictment of the former president and his valet, former Navy CSCS Waltine Nauta for taking, concealing, and lying about classified documents, including military and intelligence secrets. It an uncomfortable but necessary read for anyone interested in national security, protecting the rule of law, and accountability for those who violate the Constitution. The original indictment was updated with a superseding indictment last week that included more details and another defendant, valet Car ..read more