Commentary Search

  • Building Combat Power… Together

    Last Wednesday, Aug. 26, Barksdale Air Force Base accomplished something truly significant…a display of combat power against the backdrop of an imminent natural disaster.

  • Not afraid, thanks to you

    “Sir, I messed up” was something I said frequently in the early stages of my career. As a person with social anxiety who was petrified of authority, it took a lot of courage to admit to my leadership that I had messed up.

  • Why I am getting out of the Air Force and you shouldn't stop me

    When I first signed my name on the dotted line to serve my country, I had all these crazy, outlandish ideas of what I thought my Air Force experience was going to be. Well, spoiler alert, they didn't come to fruition, but what I got was a million times better than anything I could've ever imagined.

  • Giving

    “The heart that gives, gathers,” said Tao Te Ching.

  • Hope

    “Hope is a powerful weapon, and one that no power on earth can deprive you of.” – Nelson Mandela

  • Loneliness in the military

    September has come and gone, and the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur have passed. If I were at home with my family, we would have honored our faith together by sharing what has happened in our lives over the past year. However, I’m 2,000 miles away from my nearest relatives and I have

  • Feeling at home at my first base

    I found myself alone, in my dorm, crying about me being in the military. Not because I regretted my decision, but because I didn’t have anyone to hug or laugh with. I didn’t have someone there to celebrate my accomplishments with and it felt like I had no one.

  • COMMENTARY: Behind the scenes: at the gate

    Interaction with security forces gate guards is a common occurrence on base. People may think that guarding a gate is an easy aspect of the security forces career field, but my perspective is totally different after my behind-the-scenes experience augmenting at the gate.I stepped out of my warm car