AMERICAN STORIES
When it comes to trends, Hawaii has always trailed behind the rest of the country. Trends in the lower 48 don't reach the islands until months after they've departed the mainland's headlines. Honolulu police officer-turned-FBI agent Ed Ignacio identifies this phenomenon when it comes to negative attitudes towards cops. He's worked in law enforcement for the… Read More »This Hawaii Lawman Races Triathlons in Body Armor in Honor of Fallen Officers
Detective Matthew Adams keeps his grandfather's old shields and retirement revolver in a shadow box at his house. Back in the 60s, his grandfather was Chief of Detectives in Kansas City, and Matt keeps a KCPD call box key on his key ring. He followed in his grandfather's footsteps when he became a cop 24 years… Read More »This Crook-Hunting Colorado Detective Scores One Point at a Time
Rod Trunzo grew up in Minnesota, in the frigid northeast region known as the Iron Range. His father, an Italian-American iron-ore miner, was a strict man who believed suffering built character. On days spent indoors, he'd prohibit Rod and his brothers from using blankets, arguing that if they couldn't sit through a 30-minute television program inside… Read More »When You’re a Cop for 33 Years, Not Much Fazes You Anymore
Spending four years in sunny San Diego with SEAL Team 3 must've rubbed off on Missouri native Josh Bridges—He exuded a laid-back, California cool during a candid chat with GovX about life, fitness, and being bred for combat and chaos. Growing up, I played every sport I could get my hands on. Except for hockey, because… Read More »Navy SEAL Josh Bridges on Life, War, and Learning How to Win
Vic Mevo served six years with the USMC and tells us this story about participating in disaster relief efforts with Team Rubicon, the rapid deployment emergency response organization founded in 2010. I grew up on Long Island in a town where everyone knew everyone. And everyone knew that I was hell-bent on becoming an Air Force officer.… Read More »Getting S**t Done in Flood-Stricken Texas: A Marine Joins Team Rubicon
A QUICK BACK STORY I personally think it is super important to follow that typical saying, “If you enjoy what you do for work, you don’t work a day in your life.” I wanted to make sure I lived that way. After around four years of working for Apple, I decided it was time for… Read More »How to Land Your Dream Job as a Wildland Firefighter
Justin Herzog is a competitive Crossfitter and a San Diego firefighter. He did us a solid earlier with his epic review of the TRX Training Kit. Plus, he's got a hell of a handlebar mustache. Let's see where his motivation to be the best firefighter he can be comes from. I grew up playing all… Read More »This Handlebar-Mustachioed Firefighter Crushes the Crossfit Game
It’s the kind of book that every America-loving patriot should read, if only for the humbling effect it has on national pride.