Mac Caltrider is a staff writer for Coffee or Die Magazine. He served in the US Marine Corps and is a former police officer. Caltrider earned his bachelor’s degree in history and now reads anything he can get his hands on. He is also the creator of Pipes & Pages, a site intended to increase readership among enlisted troops. Caltrider spends most of his time reading, writing, and waging a one-man war against premature hair loss.
Military veterans Patrick Moltrup and Jason Lilley consider coffee its own food group, so it should surprise no one that their company, Savage Actual, meshes seamlessly with Black Rifle Coffee Company. Founded in the summer of 2020, Savage Actual ...
The shell landed with a deafening explosion, slamming Wilfred Owen into an embankment, knocking him unconscious. He spent the next several days drifting in and out of consciousness. His only company in the muddy embankment was the remnants of his ...
Gunfights stand as some of the most exciting sequences in movies. It seems no genre (save maybe rom-coms) is without its fair share of quality shootout scenes. To narrow the pool, Westerns, war movies, and comedies have been saved for another day, ...
One More Wave, the nonprofit that provides wounded and disabled military veterans with customized surfing equipment and community, recently launched Salt Speak, a new space for creative writing. The first installment is an incredibly powerful and ...
John Walker, the new Captain America, lifted the shield above his head as onlookers gathered around, cell phones out and at the ready. They stared in disbelief as the iconic symbol of freedom and justice plummeted down into the victim’s face, killing ...
“No such thing as a war crime.” That's how Joe Drago summarized his feelings about fighting in World War II. Seventy years later, Drago was practically confined to an armchair, with visibly atrophied legs and a frail upper body. Yet as soon as he ...
When it comes to understanding war, there is no substitute for getting your boots muddy and your hands bloody, but that does not mean books should be disregarded as a vital piece of the puzzle. Often, even for those who have lived it, conveying those ...
The weekend may have left adults wishing they were still young enough to hunt for eggs filled with chocolate (or Peeps, if you’re a serial killer), but Marvel delivered more satisfying Easter eggs than the Easter Bunny ever could. At the halfway mark ...
In a recent press release, the State’s Attorney for Baltimore, Marilyn Mosby, announced the permanent adoption of a 2020 policy decriminalizing drugs, prostitution, and other minor crimes. The citizens of Baltimore are free to possess and distribute ...
The story of Telamon of Arcadia, a man-at-arms, might be set in the first century, but at its core, Steven Pressfield’s newest novel is really an American Western. Filled with vivid characters, brutal violence, and rich historical detail, A Man at ...
On July 29, 2009, Taliban fire ripped through the windshield of Maj. Mary Jennings Hegar's HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter. "I heard a crack like a baseball bat hitting a home run, and then the helo's windshield shattered right in front of my eyes,” ...
Adam Bercovici was on his way home from coaching his son's Pop Warner football practice on Nov. 15, 2003, when his phone rang. It was a Saturday, and Bercovici, a detective with the Los Angeles Police Department, was supposed to be enjoying his ...
The recent bill passed by the House of Representatives, known as the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021, is brimming with reforms and federal mandates for law enforcement. There is too much to unpack in a single article, but it is safe to ...
If the premiere was an introduction to a world post-Endgame, then last night's episode was a solid, entertaining first chapter. With Sam and Bucky finally back together, the plot moves deeper than punches, and the show finds a perfect balance of ...
Friday's premiere of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier barely left Marvel fans with a chance to catch our breath. Just weeks after the finale of WandaVision, the spinoff to Captain America promises another satisfying installment to Marvel's Phase ...
Since the American Revolution, the Irish have filled the ranks of the US military. From the father of the US Navy to modern-day operators, Irish-born immigrants have wielded an unbreakable beam of American military power. Of the 19 Americans who have ...
Former Army Ranger and Defense Intelligence Agency operative Matt Drake navigates his way through a gripping series of calamities in The Outside Man — the highly anticipated sequel to Without Sanction. Don Bentley's latest book is action packed ...
Eugene Goodman never expected to find himself fighting for his life again, but as he ascended the stairs inside the US Capitol building and shouted into his police radio, that’s exactly what he was doing. It was Jan. 6, and Goodman, a Capitol Police ...
In America’s longest war to date, few places have proved more volatile, costly, and confusing than the Pech. The Pech River Valley sits in the rocky northeastern corner of Afghanistan, in the provinces of Kunar and Nuristan. With notable branches ...
"They do not answer the call to arms lightly, but weigh it against the safety and comforts of life at home. Yet they do answer. They answer because when the call does come, and they then look into their hearts, they see the delicate flame of freedom ...
It's been 185 years since the fall of the Alamo. The heroic stand of some 200 Texans against a force of more than 1,800 Mexicans is a benchmark of American military history. Considered one of the greatest last stands, the doomed defense of the Alamo ...
“I tire so of hearing people say, / Let things take their course. / Tomorrow is another day. / I do not need my freedom when I’m dead. / I cannot live on tomorrow’s bread.” — Langston Hughes, “Democracy” Many Americans revisit the incredible story ...
The commencement of the 2021 spring semester marked a first in US Naval Academy history. Sydney Barber was elected to be the midshipmen's brigade commander, making her the first Black female in the academy's 175-year history to hold the position. ...
“History, like love, is so apt to surround her heroes with an atmosphere of imaginary brightness." — The Last of the Mohicans It's been 195 years since James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans was published in 1826. The novel, set in ...
During the nearly 19 years America was involved in Vietnam, uncertainty abounded. Communism was spreading rapidly around the globe, America fought to end institutionalized racism, and a minor military operation in Southeast Asia devolved into the ...
If you're on the hunt for a true adventure story, look no further. Welcome to Blackwater: Mercenaries, Money and Mayhem in Iraq by Morgan Lerette is a wild ride about contracting with the most notorious private security company to ever hit the ...
With 2020 finally in the rearview, we can take a moment to reflect on some of the notable public figures we lost. The year saw a lot of famous people pass away, some to COVID-19, some to natural causes, and others to tragedy. While their fame came ...
Matt Eversmann, the former Army Ranger of Black Hawk Down fame, has not stopped attacking since the notorious gunfight in Somalia 27 years ago. After serving a full 20 years in the Army, Eversmann took off his armor for the last time, but he ...
It’s that time of year when houses are decorated with lights, gifts are wrapped for friends and family, and, of course, movie fanatics binge the Christmas classics. Debates abound about which films truly count as “Christmas movies,” with arguments ...
In 1861, a citywide sound ordinance prevented steam rail lines from being constructed through downtown Baltimore. The PW&B Railroad, coming out of New York and Philadelphia, ended at Baltimore’s President Street Station. Several blocks away, the ...
