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.
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 ...
The fog hangs low, a cool blanket pulled tight over the cornfields. Peaking through the haze, a tall, dark silhouette of a man holding binoculars becomes exposed with the sunrise. The bronze figure is Gen. John Buford, the famed cavalryman who ...
Stewart Lee Allen’s travel book, The Devil’s Cup: A History of the World According to Coffee, is much more than a story about a drink. This book is a must-read for coffee fanatics as well as history buffs. By following the discovery of the coffee ...
There is a bottomless pit of self-help books claiming that by flipping through their pages one will miraculously transform into a “warrior.” They are books about sharpening your warrior mindset, unleashing your inner Viking, and morphing into a ...
Clad in dress blues, the six Marines sidestepped in perfect unison, working together to support the weight of the flag-draped casket held between them. The brass of their buttons gleamed in the early morning light of Nov. 20, 2019. Rows of white ...
Beginning a military career can be one of the most exciting steps in one's life. At the same time, this milestone can also be pretty daunting. The responsibilities that accompany a military career are magnified when one chooses the officer path. For ...
Spike Lee’s 2020 film, Da 5 Bloods, now streaming on Netflix, is hard to pin down to one genre. Part war movie, part comedy, and part treasure hunt, Da 5 Bloods, above all else, is a social commentary that forces us to examine our country’s ...
