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One of the hardest leadership tests isn’t combat, it’s standing up to your own institution when the truth becomes inconvenient. We sit down with retired Navy SEAL Captain Bradley Geary, a former commander in Naval Special Warfare, to talk about what it feels like to go from trusted leader to suspected scapegoat almost overnight.

Brad walks us through the BUD/S tragedy that ignited years of investigations, media pressure, and internal maneuvering. We unpack the uncomfortable details: black market performance enhancing drugs, how official findings can be re-scoped from the top, and why an autopsy decision not to test for certain substances can change everything. Along the way, we talk about ethics, accountability, and how “procedural compliance” can be weaponized when leaders are told to reach a predetermined conclusion.

The most powerful thread is moral courage. Brad explains the isolation that comes when teammates quietly step back, the family conversations that define what you’re willing to lose, and the strategic choice to go public and take the fight to Congress. We also dig into the military administrative system, due process gaps, and why “non-punitive” actions can still destroy careers. Brad closes with what comes next: leadership consulting, life after retirement, and his upcoming book, Hard Mind, Soft Heart: A Warfighter’s Battle for Truth, Brotherhood, and the Character of the SEAL Teams.

If you care about Navy SEAL leadership, military ethics, whistleblowing, and what integrity really costs, subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review. What part of Brad’s story challenged you most?

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Watching someone turn the uniform into a prop for clicks hits different when you’ve worn it, deployed in it, and watched friends stake their lives on what it represents. That’s why we sit down with Dr. Chase Spears, former Army public affairs officer and combat veteran, for a blunt conversation about the erosion of military standards and what happens when influencer culture collides with good order and discipline.

We dig into the real mechanics of accountability: why leaders often won’t enforce existing military social media rules, how IG complaints and administrative pressure can become “the process is the punishment,” and why policy changes at the top don’t automatically become culture change at the unit level. We also connect the standards debate to bigger policy battles, including DEI, transgender service, and the constant tension between politics and readiness. Whether you agree with every conclusion or not, the central question stays the same: does this make the force more lethal, more cohesive, and more prepared to fight?

We also talk about side hustles and where the line should be drawn. Owning property, working extra jobs, and building a business can be fine, but commercial endorsements and provocative content paired with the uniform damage public trust and the profession of arms. From Mill Twitter to politicized media narratives about sailors and deployments, we unpack how the information environment shapes what the public thinks the military is becoming.

If you care about military professionalism, leadership, readiness, and veteran advocacy, listen, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more people join the conversation. Where do you think the line should be on uniform use online?

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Visit my website: https://thehello.llc/THERESACARPENTER
Read my writings on my blog: https://www.theresatapestries.com/
Listen to other episodes on my podcast: https://storiesofservice.buzzsprout.com
Watch episodes of my podcast:
https://www.youtube.com/c/TheresaCarpenter76

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Thirteen service members died at Abbey Gate, and the country barely blinked before the headlines changed. That silence is what Navy veteran, entrepreneur, and wooden flag craftsman Joe Burdick could not accept, so he turned remembrance into something tangible, public, and permanent.

We talk about the Abbey Gate bombing during the Kabul evacuation and why it still hits so hard for Global War on Terror veterans who understand the true cost of service. Joe walks me through his own Navy aviation story, the disorienting shift from military purpose to civilian uncertainty, and how building handmade wooden American flags became a bridge back to service. What began as craftsmanship and community support grew into something much bigger once he met Gold Star families, including the family of Max Soviak, the only one of the 13 from Ohio.

From there, the conversation becomes a blueprint for civic action and veteran advocacy. Joe explains how he organized a local Abbey Gate Remembrance Day in Seven Hills, partnered with state lawmakers, testified, and helped pass Ohio Senate Bill 244 to honor all 13 fallen by name. We also dig into what this kind of remembrance can look like in schools and communities, why the national effort still matters, and the simple steps listeners can take to push similar legislation in their own states.

If you believe “never forget” has to mean more than a post, listen, share this with someone who cares about military service and Gold Star families, and subscribe and leave a review so more people find these stories.

Support the show

Visit my website: https://thehello.llc/THERESACARPENTER
Read my writings on my blog: https://www.theresatapestries.com/
Listen to other episodes on my podcast: https://storiesofservice.buzzsprout.com
Watch episodes of my podcast:
https://www.youtube.com/c/TheresaCarpenter76