Dusty-backed rattlesnakes, coldly oblivious to an artificial world, were displayed in an unlikely place: the storefront windows of the two-story 1907 Shirley Opera House, Atwood, KS. Rawlins County boys tasted fear and conquered it by rapping on the wavery panes of original glass, hoping to create a strike. This was an ageless form of entertainment, baiting danger at the expense of a perceived enemy. It was not, however, fit entertainment for the … [Read more...]
Jeff Morris On Why He Chose To Write LEGION RISING
To be completely honest, it still does not seem real to me to have written a book about my life and experiences. After all, it’s my life. It’s what I’ve lived and to me, it’s normal with nothing special about it. Why in the world would someone be interested in reading something about me? Yet here we are. The seed was first planted during my first deployment by a writer who was in Iraq for a project. It was early 2005 and I took him out on … [Read more...]
LEGION RISING: A Soldier’s Story
Not everyone has pulled shards of another man's skull from the palm of their hand. Not everyone has stood over the bodies of friends whose lives were lost in an instant. Not everyone has struggled to face their own reflection for years on end. But anyone who has experienced trauma or adversity will appreciate LEGION RISING, the unflinchingly honest account of an army officer's journey through combat in the Iraq War and rising beyond the scars … [Read more...]
Jack Van Der Slik Discusses Trump’s Korean Venture
Perhaps it appears preposterous, but there is a small, impoverished nation in south central Asia that poses an authentic threat to peace in the world. Moreover, that nation considers the United States its worst enemy. You may be surprised that it calls itself a democracy. We know it as North Korea, but the name it has given its self is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea – the DPRK Against long odds two Korean nations have lived and … [Read more...]
THE KOREAN CRISIS: One People, Two Nations, A World On The Brink
After a beaten Japan surrendered to the United States and its World War II allies in 1945, a little-known peninsula, home to 30 million Korean people, was dangling leaderless from the Asian continent into the Yellow Sea. Treated as an afterthought in negotiations between the Soviet Union and the United States, it was halved at the 38th parallel. That line still separates hostile armies on each side. Do Americans remember that nearly 75 years ago … [Read more...]
Jack Van Der Slik
Jack Van Der Slik's teaching career extends from 1958 to 2006 in classes from junior high to doctoral studies, for courses in social studies, education and political science. His degrees are from Calvin College, B.A.; Western Michigan University, M.A.; and Michigan State University, M.A. and Ph.D. His affiliations have been with Bellflower Christian School, Denver Christian School, the Michigan Legislative Intern Program, Southern Illinois … [Read more...]
TEMPEST-TOST: The Refugee Experience Through One Community’s Prism
"Dodge takes us behind the headlines and introduces real people and their very real struggles yearning to breathe free. Page-turning, proactive and highly recommended"--Craig McGuire, author of BROOKLYN'S MOST WANTED The United States has a long history of taking in foreigners fleeing persecution and seeking a better life. In recent times refugees have come to be perceived as a threat of terrorism by many, while others welcome them as a source … [Read more...]
Author Robert Dodge on His Writing Journey
Greetings, My name is Robert Dodge and I would like to describe the journey that brought me to writing my most recent book, Tempest-Tost. This will be my seventh book and it is a book about refugees, what they endured that caused them to flee their countries and how they have been received since arriving in America. I might seem like an unlikely author for a book on this controversial topic, having been born and raised in Fargo, North … [Read more...]
SAVING SANDOVAL Reveals the True Story of the U.S. Army Sniper Tried For Murder After A Shooting on the Battlefields of Iraq
Saving Sandoval is the true account of the defense of U.S. Army Specialist Jorge G. Sandoval, Jr. Sandoval, a 22-year old infantry paratrooper deployed to the forward operating base of Iskan during the enemy uprisings of 2007 in Iraq. Iskan was located in the “Triangle of Death,” which at the time was the most dangerous area in Iraq; arguably the world. Sandoval’s unit began to take heavy casualties during the increased violence in the region. As … [Read more...]
Author Craig W. Drummond on His Time As A JAG Attorney
The role of a Judge Advocate, or JAG, is varied depending on the specific assignment. The initial criteria to be a Judge Advocate is to have gone to law school, be licensed to practice law in at least one State, and complete the required military training to be a military officer and military attorney. There are Judge Advocates serving in the military in nearly every type of position. There are prosecutors, defense attorneys, administrative law … [Read more...]
