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Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians

Commentaries

  • Opportunity during the holidays

    The holiday season is a perfect time to talk about opportunity. There have been countless quotes that deal with taking advantage of opportunities. On Black Friday, thousands of opportunistic shoppers waited for hours to purchase items, either for themselves or as gifts for family members and

  • Holidays and the blues: Overcoming past and present holiday stresses

    "It's the most wonderful time of the year" isn't just a familiar line of a classic Christmas song. Instead, the phrase resonates with our culture because November and December offer times of splendor and recollection unlike any other time. Things like trips to grandmother's house for Thanksgiving,

  • Overcoming a PT test failure

    Throughout my 15 years in the military, I have always struggled with passing my physical fitness test. I'm not a huge person, and I am very active in sports. I run three to five times a week and coach youth sports as well. But no matter what I did, I always came very close to failing my PT test,

  • It's about being involved ... not being intrusive

    Today more than ever, we hear about the increasing suicide rate in the military. Our senior leaders are trying to figure out how to address this epidemic across the Air Force. We've had more than a couple wingman days to discuss how to address this epidemic in our own units. I say, at the most basic

  • How I learned there's no business like snow business

    I was so not ready for this.I suppose the wakeup call should have been when we first moved here in April and it was still snowing into May. But this is our family's first winter in Washington state and we were totally taken by surprise.Sure, when we lived back in Virginia we'd get the occasional

  • No shame in being enlisted

    While standing in line at an off-base post office recently, mailing Christmas presents to my family, I overheard a woman talking to a man about her son. Apparently her son had recently enlisted in the Air Force against her better judgment. She told the man, who agreed with her, that commissioning as

  • Being prepared to lead

    Have you ever wondered why one leader is more successful than another? Even when ability, training, and experience are similar, one leader will out shine the other, but why? I believe the difference is simple; it's their preparation. Well-prepared leaders know where they are going before they start,

  • Trust: The leadership difference

    "Trust is the essence of leadership," retired Army Gen. Colin Powell once said.When listing the characteristics of a leader, "vulnerable" is an unlikely term to arise, but anyone who places his or her trust in others is inherently "vulnerable." How a leader approaches vulnerability falls on a

  • Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day: Honoring history through today's service

    "A date which will live in infamy." President Roosevelt broadcast those words in his opening speech to Congress and the world the day following the attack on Pearl Harbor Naval Base 69 years ago. These powerful words inspired Congress to declare war within an hour against Japan and its allies. I

  • I will never leave an Airman behind

    One of the things I love most about the Air Force, and the military for that matter, is that we have a sense of community that is unmatched in any other profession. We view our profession as a way of life, and our sense of community extends far beyond our working relationships and into our personal