{"id":7492,"date":"2013-12-01T16:58:49","date_gmt":"2013-12-01T20:58:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/?p=7492"},"modified":"2013-12-02T21:16:36","modified_gmt":"2013-12-03T01:16:36","slug":"podcast-war-is-a-self-licking-ice-cream-cone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/podcast-war-is-a-self-licking-ice-cream-cone","title":{"rendered":"Podcast: War is a Self-Licking Ice Cream Cone"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Major<\/a><\/p>\n

Virtual Memories \u2013 season 3 episode 29 –
\nWar is a Self-Licking Ice Cream Cone<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

http:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/virtualmemories\/Season_3_Episode_29_-_War_is_a_Self-Licking_Ice_Cream_Cone.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div>

Podcast: Play in new window<\/a> | Download<\/a><\/p>

Subscribe: Spotify<\/a> | TuneIn<\/a> | RSS<\/a> | More<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a great tradition of very brilliant, outside-the-box, non-traditional, dynamic thinkers in the Marine Corps. . . . At the same time, our totem animal is the bulldog, not an animal known for its finesse.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Zach Martin<\/a> recently retired from the U.S. Marine Corps after 16 years in the service. But 25 years ago, he and your host were hyperliterate misfit high-school pals, trading Thomas Pynchon, Thomas Disch and Robert Anton Wilson novels. So how did he end up commanding Marine Recon forces in Iraq and Afghanistan as Maj. Zachary D. Martin?<\/p>\n

“We greatly misunderstand the young men who go overseas and fight for us. We make them idols. They\u2019re heroes, but we misunderstand what that means.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

We have a wide-ranging conversation about Zach’s career,\u00a0the military\u2019s risk-averse culture, the rise (and fall) of counterinsurgency strategy, what it\u2019s like to\u00a0give a kill order, how it felt to lose troops under his command, what it\u2019s like to clear, hold and build a city in Afghanistan (and how it felt to see it all fall apart),\u00a0how he fought\u00a0all his best battles in Afghanistan wearing shorts and t-shirt, and more!<\/p>\n

\u201cThe police we were training [in Afghanistan] were effective. I mean, they were gangsters, but provided you were willing to overlook their criminal activities, they were certainly maintaining order.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

We also discuss Virginia Postrel\u2019s The Power of Glamour<\/a>\"\" and how it reflects the nation\u2019s perception of the military, how he was inspired by Bill Clinton (but didn\u2019t reckon with survivor bias),\u00a0why he\u2019d like to write a novel about his experiences at war, what books meant the most to him during his years in the service, the difference between motivation and volition, and why war is like a self-licking ice cream cone.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/virtualmemories\/Season_3_Episode_29_-_War_is_a_Self-Licking_Ice_Cream_Cone.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div>

Podcast: Play in new window<\/a> | Download<\/a><\/p>

Subscribe: Spotify<\/a> | TuneIn<\/a> | RSS<\/a> | More<\/a><\/p>\n

Enjoy the conversation!<\/a>\u00a0Then check out\u00a0the archives<\/a>\u00a0for more great episodes! Related conversations:<\/p>\n