Question. I will open up i will tie the back end of the story. 2009 i was in afghanistan and it was like the height of the whole war. My unit was task out 45 guys. To eliminate as many bad guys as we possibly could with the weight eight hour time. Every day we averaged about a hundred 20 operations and a 90 day time frame and thats where accumulated most of my kills. We averaged 2000 kills per 35 guys. Thats how the whole thing came together. Wanted to tell our story in a book format. Its just one of those things you used to to living a certain lifestyle for so long but at six deployments and everything comes to a halt. I got out and picked up a contracting. I worked with some really cool guys contracting. And i got shut off. I lost all my money at the end of the day i started writing a diary. Despite everything on pen and paper. After a failed Suicide Attempt. Twentytwo veterans kill themselves each day on average. I was about to become one of those statistics. I wrote this journal and it turned into a book. We called it the reaper. All of the cool things we did in the guys we lost. I have bracelets and tattoos all down my side for millie i lost. I wouldnt be here today if it was not for him. I will get into that story if you guys want to hear that. So 2009 i can just react it from my mind. We were doing the five day operation that we were going attract a high volume target. One of our skill sets is tracking people. I was okay at it. Four days into the operation we hadnt slept maybe we averaged 50 minutes of sleep per night. Total 45 minutes or throughout the entire duration or so. The fourth day we landed on a six man element. We found out where the guy was and in the process of doing that we met up with someone who is having a really hard time and we had set up the patrol base and they got attacked every morning by the taliban. All of those things. They called and did the rules of engagement a little bit different. We didnt have to get shot at all the time we would always shoot back. They utilized us. With the marine corps. We set out all night. Me and my spotter and two of the marine snipers nothing was happening. It was the most boring thing we will ever experience. Of sitting out in the middle of nowhere i can sum a sheep it was a really boring time. The sun started to rise and i could see movement out in the village and the marine corps they were coming to clear out the village. About 35 meters from the humvee that was coming through. I was half a mile away and dropped that guy. The firefight happened im sweating. The bottom of my bids start to melt. They found our position. I met up with my 75th Ranger Regiment guys. We planned this mission. We have to finish doing our thing. We went out and started off at 3 00 or 4 00 in the morning. We walked for a few hours the sand dunes and stuff like that thats exactly what it looked like. We got a hundred pounds of gear on walking for hours and hours. No water the sun started to rise my element. The six of us 35 guys in oregon ago catch the target we were tracking thats it i will say. And some other means. We found ourselves pin down in this 4foot hole. We have gotten word that there was an enemy sniper out there. He had 300 plus kills throughout his entire career. Really good a sniper. I remembered the bullets started to snap over our heads. I tell my guys to hide inside. This goes on for about three hours. We drop a few machinegun layers up in this. On the third hour. This is when the politics got involved. We were not allowed to cause any more than the zero. 1 collateral damage. I called in for a bomber. To eliminate the 600 plus guys that we have surrounded. They denied that and kept calling my comes are going down. They kept denying it so we finally made it to our decision to drop bombs on us. That way we can get out. This whole deal will be over with. They denied that. I dont know why. It boiled down to my later he have a grenade and he pulls out the grenade and we make the decision and were all but a hug each other and blow each other up. By this point i can hear this footsteps. Whatever they say. And right before i did that i look over my Left Shoulder and i see a good friend of mine. He comes running in. Hes been on the gunfire for thousand years or so. He slides and with the machinegun team. It allows you to go back to him. He really didnt work in our favor. I engaged a few more targets five minutes after that there is as little ravine off to her rear. The taliban had undergone entrenchment systems when they popped out of the ground 25 feet away from us. It was so sick and tired. We really can it see them. They have not over my shoulder. I hear the white really funny sound. Immediately following that i heard i hear my best friend screaming for his mom. I look over and see his arterial spray get hit about 30 feet or 20 feet in front of him. I go down as hes crying and stuff like that. My spotter goes over to him and try to put on the tank. I look over to my left side in my platoon leader is there. Im saying we need to get to the safe haven. Its about 300 yards away or so. We have a go to go through the chest high waters. Im screaming in his ear and i feel the warm water and he got shot right in his upper chest. He goes down and puts his finger inside the bullet hole to try to stop the bleeding. Those are some big heroic men. I freaked out at that moment. Everything is in super slow motion. He has to return fire. You have to get this guy. The sniper we had been facing had just been taken out im like everything i can do i will do im 23 years old at this point. It didnt work out. The guns dont shoot will after they bed underwater. As hes passing by his pale white at that point in time. We take him under and pulled him back up. They wake them up. We did that for 300 meters. Im smoked at this point. Im carrying his backpack. I picked up the rear. I want the whole thing to be over with. I dont want my mom to see that i just contemplated taking went to the head to enter the whole ordeal. I have to be tough with the situation. I really intensive training course. We only graduated seven after our selection. I think no one is born to head things like that happen around them and be normal afterwards. I stepped out of that. I pick up the rear and the only thing i kept telling myself was someones someone to come around this little ravine and take us all out. There were a few grenade firefights happening. In a different ravine. They get to throw them back. In a few cases with handtohand combat. That 800 plus guys surrounding that. We met up with them. Me and my spotter where the first wants to go over this little ravine and run about 100 yards im sorry 100 feet. I am soaked in blood and water everything is just weighing waiting me down at this point. I hear this machine gun going off. I go down in my spotter looks at me and says he comes over to grab me and pull me out. We are getting shot at. Those are our guys. I see the firing line just putting down the suppressive fire force. That is the thing to see. It was one of the scariest things ive ever heard. When inside the safe haven and i look at my spotter and i said dude, i dont care how much you have but every guy is gonna die. Thats exactly what we did. I went in on that mission with 210 rounds and after the hope whole ordeal we called for the medevac and another sniper who was attacked he got shot in his foot and then we have him who was also in. No one wanted to come extract us. The marina said it we cant even go into that area with less than a brigade. We need some help. The most assistance that they could offer at that point in time you guys had to run about a mile through open terrain so they cant can get any worse than this but it does. Thats just murphys law i guess. We finished taking up our position and defending off as much as we could. Everyone is pretty much low on ammo. We decided to pick up and move out. What is can run to the convoy thats awaiting us. I take the lead. If it can happen today i think its the fastest ive ever ran in my life. I mustve done the mile in about a minute. Thats what it felt like. Another guy would pop up here. Finally get to this convoy and im looking around and i said theres not even enough trucks out here. They only fit like eight so we have guys that have captured the target. Layover the lap and i have a machine gun who had to be about deposit felt like. I look at the drive in you i said yes to have a cigarette. This is where the day got really bad. Saw smoke and i go to do that everyone is like freaking out. We have no water thats when the day got really bad. We made it back to that compound initially we were taking combat on heavy fire and it was like the day never even happened. Were going back home we havent taken a shot in five days. It was the weirdest smile ive ever smelled. It was like the day never happened. I went to close my eyes it was a current coolest thing ever thought. Six guys at the side. Who are these guys. That was pretty cool. I heard this loud snap again. A bullet passed. I jumped up and waked up. I was just so used to getting shot at them. It lasted 12 plus hours. Those dreams stuck with me all the way to this day. What if i wouldve done this if i wouldve pushed this its a reoccurring thing that happens. That was a big lifechanging experience for me. I think everybody was there we all got out after that. There was not a guy who was on is on that mission. We all keep in contact he died seven days after that. That is just the mentality we have. It was was a hard transition getting out. That is a story. Feel free to ask me any questions. Do you have a question . After 2007 we were ambushed in vehicles my team mean leader at that time what were the square little you can do your thumb like this. Like an ipod mini. We started getting hit with the ak47 fire i guess legacy freaked out. They started playing michael jackson. You wish you have the soundtrack. But having them play in the background. Im getting into it. I grew up listening to michael jackson. I grew up listening to him. I used to dance like michael jackson. Someone passed me a cigarette. Then i have a cigarette hanging out of my mouth. And then john wayne was really big. I have 1 foot up on the strike. When i became not. It was like dirty diana. If you listen to the song the lyrics that i thought about. Is there anything else . How do you do that. And we already talked about that. How do you not like that. Afterwards you have to get home. Been in special operations its one of those things they dont look down upon. They dont encourage you to seek mental help. We dont have heres our situation. One day he might be overseas fighting in 24 hours after that hes at a bar downtown. No one knows when he comes back. Theres no big parade or anything like that. Spend all the deployment money saved up. You will be there. Just getting help. You have to let them know that. But definitely can help it. I think alcoholism is a big contributor i would wake up at 6 00 in the morning and rigging all the weight of four clock in the morning. He died. We have this party and he pulls me to the site and he said dude you have a problem. He said no im good. It didnt hit me till he died he came back in my dreams after this Suicide Attempt and he said you need to stop thats when i didnt quit but i really cant down drastically. Different thoughts and emotions. Alcohol is a big thing. Using an access and getting help. Definitely do that. I was the one. I forget his name. Hes like a walking refrigerator. Let me pull it up really quick. Thats a good guy and a good school. I did at precision high. Urban after i got out i went to israeli cyber school. We had one of our guys he got out months ago. He went there right before the last performance. 2012. He said she said. Aaron pierce. They are still teaching there. He is definitely there. Im from texas. He kind of talks like this all the time. I think thats like everybody in the audience. That describes everyone in the audience. Every time we get to there i would light up the cigarette. I thought you said something else. Is there anything else. Lets get started. No one else. Are there any readers here. The big army is not taking anymore or to go to battalion. When they changed over from everyone going to selection now we have an excess that had zero skills so we cant keep filling them up. I will plan on it. Go for it. I got bad memory loss. I will never forget a face. That is the name that we just talked about. We can get it started. [indiscernible] are looking look now at some authors recently featured on book tv. Afterwards are interview. Syndicated radio host dana last contended that the United States is the dividing itself into two countries coastal america and fly over america. In wall street journal comments argued that theyre using scare tactics to silence conservative speech. The law professor will look at the role of the u. S. Military around the world. They will recall the time to read and as one counsel in the brush administration. Mark thompson will describe the way that they have changed over time. And this weekend they make their case for supporting donald trump for president. The things i trust him on our his basic philosophy of putting America First on trade, on immigration on moores he has made so many mistakes and he backtracks but when the entire media tries to crush them after the mexican rapist speech. I think it took me longer than that. Every once in a while you might want to recognize it. How many points we had one of them was always dont let him back on immigration. I think is not backing down. They can do all previous methods. You can watch it on book tv. Org. Kareem abduljabbar in your most recent book tree until you write its as if we have invented at the most precise and beautiful watch every created and instructed to the tail of a wild jackal. Talk about the fact that most americans dont appreciate the fact that their vote means a lot. In their opinion means a lot. So they have the ability to have their voices heard and acted upon