“Tyler Mack” spent 10 years in the US Army, five as a member of the elite Green Berets. As a member of the elite 3rd Special Forces Group he had two deployments to Iraq and one deployment to Afghanistan. Due to the nature of his service, he appears on American Warrior and Havok Journal under an assumed name.
He discusses the subject of the things he carried while an officer with the Green Berets and the things that carried him through his service; the pain of telling his parents he nearly failed out of WestPoint, the joy of leading men in combat and the sadness of carrying a dying man to a MEDEVAC helicopter.
Tyler also discusses the excitement of his first firefight and the Afghan policeman who saved his life and those of his comrades. Tyler hopes to “..someday meet him in Valhalla.” His Afghan interpreter Nasim was killed by a roadside bomb three weeks after Tyler’s detachment returned home. Many of these brave allies are still struggling to get through the VISA process to get themselves and their families safely to the US.
Now retired from the Green Berets, Tyler also discusses his concern that overuse of Special Forces in wars that remain formally undeclared may “blunt the tip of the spear”. Has using special forces became to routine and too convenient? He encourages Congress to formally recognize the fact that we ARE at war and go after the leadership and finances of current enemies.
We also learn two new phrases – “performance punishment” and “scut work”.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 40:58 — 7.0MB)