Tactical Tangents

Topics discussed include carrying firearms to places where it is prohibited, evaluating risks and exposures, the benefits of pepper spray, and strategies for managing risk.

The podcast discusses problem-solving in a tactical team environment, balancing speed and strategy, building capacity for effective problem-solving, the importance of diverse problem solvers, applying operational risk management, problem-solving strategies for dealing with trespassing, and unexpected smells and reflections on law enforcement.

In any organization it’s almost a tradition to turn and look at the people coming up through the ranks behind you and bemoan how much better things were in the Good Old Days. Of course, things were better then because the people who had come up through the ranks before you helped mentor you into effective operators. In this episode, Jim and Mike talk about how you can pass that mentoring on.   It’s important to feel responsibility for, not just the organization, but also for the people who make it up. Those people include the newest noobs, and if you want to help the organization be effective, mentoring those recruits is essential. Mike and Jim are here to tell you that mentorship isn’t a thing that can be established in an org chart, but has to grow organically, and in this episode, they’ll tell you how you can foster mentoring in a place where it can’t be foisted.   Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe. Intro music credit Bensound.com

Mike reminds us that “Responsibility to the Community” is not just a slogan on a squad car door in this episode, where he and Jim talk about the necessity of keeping the public informed in a manner that is both helpful to the public and not harmful to ongoing investigations. ”Public Affairs” is more than just a job title, and requires keeping in mind the emotions that surround complex situations.   In a job where having to come to terms with the possibility of inflicting lawful violence, it can be easy to lose sight of the fact that most normal people haven’t had those conversations with themselves. Avoiding dehumanizing statements or flippant “FAFO” statements is crucial to effective community relations. In this episode, Jim and Mike discuss the balance between keeping the public informed and protecting information that actually needs protecting for civil or criminal reasons.   Links:  The Elements of Style By William Strunk Jr and E.B. White - https://amzn.to/3rnuWkg The Five Languages of Apology by Gary Chapman and Jennifer M Thomas - https://amzn.to/3NLqrY1   Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe. Intro music credit Bensound.com

In dangerous career fields like the military or law enforcement, there’s an unavoidable tension of priorities between the mission and the safety of the people on the team who need to accomplish it. It’s one thing to say you put your people first, but if it was a safe job, they wouldn’t issue body armor. In today’s episode, Mike and Jim demonstrate the ways this can be a false dichotomy and how to keep everyone on the team on the same page.  It’s important to take care of your people because you can’t do the mission without them, but if the mission doesn’t get done because of an excess of caution, there’s no point in any of y’all being there in the first place. A conundrum, truly! This episode looks at ways to manage the expectations of team members by bringing them up to speed as they come on board, and other considerations to take when (here’s that word again) managing highly motivated people.   Links: Scouting, For Boys by Rabert Baden Powell - https://amzn.to/43CsVPb Uncontrolled Spread: Why COVID-19 Crushed Us and How We Can Defeat the Next Pandemic by Scott Gottlieb - https://amzn.to/43yfkIS The Art of Clear Thinking: A Stealth Fighter Pilot's Timeless Rules for Making Tough Decisions by Hasard Lee - https://amzn.to/45Z2u7Q   Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe. Intro music credit Bensound.com

Bombs are scary. You can’t shoot back at an explosion or talk it into surrendering or leaving you alone. But you can learn ways to spot the bad guy’s device before it does its thing. In today’s episode, Jim and Mike delve into some basics of the hows, whys, and wheres of improvised explosive devices to help you develop a risk picture based on likelihood and severity. Just like there are certain weather conditions that are likely to breed hurricanes or other severe storms, we’re currently experiencing social weather, both globally and at home, that’s creating favorable conditions for bombers. There are enough angry people, with enough information, and ample opportunity to make things explode. Tune in for some info on what to look for. (Hint: It’s not a bundle of red sticks taped to an alarm clock with an “ACME” label.)   Links: The Bombs, Bombers, and Bombings of Los Angeles by Michael Digby - https://amzn.to/3J7ROKn Greenwhich Village Townhouse Explosion - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwich_Village_townhouse_explosion October 2018 United States mail bombing attempts - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_2018_United_States_mail_bombing_attempts Bath School disaster - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bath_School_disaster Harvey's Casino Bombing - https://www.fbi.gov/video-repository/newss-harveys-casino-bomb/view     Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe. Intro music credit Bensound.com

High-stress jobs, such as those in the military or law enforcement fields, tend to attract mission-oriented people, dedicated to the team and the public, who thrive on stress. Well, plants thrive on water, too, but you can still wind up drowning them with too much of it. In today’s episode, Jim and Mike look at job-related burnout, its negative effects on the team, and how to mitigate or avoid it.   In any tight-knit organization, attitudes are contagious, and that goes double for lousy ones. It’s common for the word of hard-chargers attracted to “tactical” work to brag about the amount of time they put in, for example, the number of hours worked, and treat it as a benchmark. But the more the workload piles up, the more easily frustrated you get, and that can feed the bad attitude spiral. Listen in as we talk about ways to reduce work-related fatigue and maintain a healthy work/life balance…tactically.   Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com   Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe. 

Part of our mission here at Tactical Tangents is to overcome the “tactical fantasy”, and in this episode, Mike and Jim talk about avoiding one of the most pernicious ones. It’s easy in a world full of tacticool training classes to get focused on the sort of threats to ourselves and loved ones that jump out of the bushes and can be thwarted with kinetic skills when the truth is you probably already know the person you’re most likely to have to pepper spray. The statistical fact of the matter is that most victimization comes from people who look like us and are already in our social circles. That’s extra true about sex crimes, and super extra true about sex crimes against children. Tune in as we discuss teaching ourselves, loved ones, and especially our kids about understanding social norms, establishing boundaries, and the importance of informing someone in authority.   Links: The Gift of Fear by Gavin de Becker Protecting the Gift by Gavin de Becker Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN): Grooming: Know the Warning Signs McMartin Pre-School Trial They Must Be Monsters: A Modern-Day Witch Hunt     Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com   Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe.  Intro music credit Bensound.com

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan may be over (for now) but that doesn’t leave us in a world without conflict. While we were hip-deep in the Global War on Terror, major great power competitors have been nursing grievances and feeling rising ambitions and opportunities. In this episode, Jim takes a detailed look at the state of play with respect to Russia and China, and how that could affect the US as a nation, and us as individual citizens.   While neither of our great power opponents would benefit from a shooting war with the United States at this point in time, Jim points out that they are both conducting war by other means; the struggles are already underway. Whether by economic means, attempts to control raw material sources, or meddling with public opinion via social media channels, it’s important to be aware of these methods. Listen to this episode to have it all laid out.   Links: War Without Rules by Robert Spalding War with Russia by Sr Richard Shirreff US National Security Strategy   Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com   Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe.  Intro music credit Bensound.com

In both the military and law enforcement universes, there’s often an understandable amount of friction between the people out where the action is and those who help them get there and support them in their work. In this episode, Jim and Mike discuss ways to smooth cooperation between the people behind the scenes and the officer on the street or the pilot in the seat. When you really think about it, everybody’s supporting somebody and nobody’s completing the mission alone. Learning to distinguish between your “boss” and your “customer” can help you focus on operational success whether you’re the one calling in the air support, flying the plane, or keeping the plane flyable. As the saying goes, the chicken is involved in breakfast while the pig is committed…but breakfast ain’t happening without both doing their jobs. Links: Randy Pausch Achieving Childhood Dreams   Find us on social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/YouTube) @TacTangents You can join the conversation in our Facebook Discussion Group. Find all of our episodes, articles, some reading list ideas, and more on our website www.tacticaltangents.com   Like what we’re doing? Head over to Patreon and give us a buck for each new episode. You can also make a one-time contribution at GoFundMe.  Intro music credit Bensound.com