Faces of Veterans - Episode 5: Dave Santy (USMC)

In this episode, our host Steve Willet interviews Dave Santy, an infantry veteran from the United States Marine Corps! They discuss his rigorous FAST training, what he believes makes for a real patriot, a dangerous encounter with a garbage bomb, and more in this stellar episode!

A GLENS FALLS TODAY PRODUCTION

NOTE: The opinions reflected in this podcast are not indicative of the views of Saratoga Business Report, SaratogaBride.com LLC, Saratoga TODAY, Glens Falls TODAY, or Spa City Digital.

00:06 - Introduction
01:31 - How to Join a FAST Company
03:18 - Joining the Marines: To Deploy, Not Hang Around as Glorified Security!
06:19 - The Draft Goes Against the Military’s Goal: A Person Needs to WANT to Be There!
07:41 - Maturing Too Young: There’s Some Things Fresh Recruits Just Aren’t Ready For!
09:28 - Speaking Against Superiors: Big Trouble! Is it Worth it?
13:13 - FAST Company and Three-Ring Standby: Not For the Faint of Heart!
15:28 - The Rival: Santy VS Smelly Cat!
17:02 - Operations Work… Like Torture to an Infantry Guy! But the Schedule Was to Die For!
17:55 - Reenlisting: Had to Be Done to Get Deployed!
20:07 - Leading a Team: Trust MUST Be Built!
21:46 - Deploying to Iraq… The Triangle of Death!
23:02 - What’s That Noise?.. ENEMY FIRE!
25:08 - Garbage Bombs
26:53 - Kicking a Bomb off the Road: Too Busy to Wait for EOD!
29:42 - Complacency… Sometimes Saves Time, Sometimes Costs Lives!
32:02 - Taking Advantage of Military Regulation: A Crafty Enemy!
33:53 - Regulation Should Be Based on Real Field Experience, Not Theoretical Tactics!
34:38 - Recycling Vietnam Tactics? What Were They Thinking?
37:38 - Camaraderie in the Military… There’s Nothing Quite Like It…
39:10 - …Friends Outside the Military Aren’t Even Close!
40:15 - Military Recruitment Less than 2% - But That’s For the Best!
42:15 - Chinese Forces Aren’t Crossing the Ocean Any Time Soon!
43:49 - “Patriot” Has Become a Dirty Word
46:04 - Dave’s Advice to New Recruits: Join For the Right Reasons…
48:05 - … And Don’t Join Infantry, Unless You Want to Stay For Twenty Years!
49:40 - Shoutouts and Closing Remarks