SNAFUBAR

Hello everyone, and welcome to SNAFUBAR, a show about American war and American myth. Today’s episode explores the history of “Vietnam Syndrome,” a phrase you probably have heard of. Several generations of American citizens were, and still are, deeply affected by the Vietnam War (1964-1973), in which “Vietnam Syndrome” comes from. For some, “Vietnam Syndrome” harks back to the 1980s, to the era of...

When you hear the name Smeldley Darlington Butler, your mind instantly goes in one of two directions. 1) That might be the coolest name I’ve ever heard. Or 2) Ole Gimlet Eye! The legendary general of the Marine Corps! If you know, you know…  Smedley Darlington Butler (1881-1940) spent his 33 year long career fighting on three different continents: North America, Asia, and Europe. Butler is one of...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR, a podcast on American militarism and national myths. What do veterans, psychiatrists, and ancient Greek authors have in common? They help us understand and define the complexities of moral injury and post traumatic stress. The United States is a martial nation, the military and its pageantry is everywhere. But is that same energy found in the Veterans Affairs Offices? As...

“You come home and you don’t fit.” Did you know that the only actively commissioned US naval vessel in captivity is docked in Pyongyang, North Korea? On January 23, 1968, the USS Pueblo, a former WW2 US Army cargo ship converted into a Navy intelligence-gathering vessel, was captured by the Korean People’s Army. Her crew of 82 men spent 11 months as prisoners during one of the most volatile period...

It’s either pure hell, or pure boredom. Did you know that the only actively commissioned US naval vessel in captivity is docked in Pyongyang, North Korea? On January 23, 1968, the USS Pueblo, a former WW2 US Army cargo ship converted into a Navy intelligence-gathering vessel, was captured by the Korean People’s Army. Her crew of 82 men spent 11 months as prisoners during one of the most volatile p...

The Navy’s most fouled-up Top Secret. Did you know that the only actively commissioned US naval vessel in captivity is docked in Pyongyang, North Korea? On January 23, 1968, the USS Pueblo, a former WW2 US Army cargo ship converted into a Navy intelligence-gathering vessel, was captured by the Korean People’s Army. Her crew of 82 men spent 11 months as prisoners during one of the most volatile per...

Hi Folks! Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. We’re getting animated today! We are touching on a topic that’s close to home, or rather, close to the name of our podcast. Today, we are getting into the Private SNAFU series, a top secret animated series funded by the military during World War II. Your eyes are not deceiving you, this was a real, top secret project funded by the military. And the strange part...

Welcome to SNAFUBAR! A podcast on American military history and national myths. Today we’re exploring the ruinous Battle of the Monongahela, or “Braddock’s Defeat,” which took place in 1755 near modern day Pittsburgh. We know what you’re thinking, the United States wasn’t around in 1755, what does this have to do with American military history and national myths? A lot. Present at the Battle of th...

Today's episode is hosted by Jeff Crane . ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ , Chair of the Applied Humanities Department at Cal Poly Humboldt, usual co-host of the show, is in the hot seat! She discusses her personal relationship to war and her personal work which is informed by it. This episode is great context for the reason why SNAFUBAR came to be!  Works Cited: Paul Fussell The Good Sol...

Once more unto the breach, dear listeners of SNAFUBAR, once more. This week on SNAFUBAR, we are going way back in time to the Battle of Agincourt. We know what you’re thinking, “What the heck does the Battle of Agincourt have to do with US military history?” Well Agincourt serves as a cautionary tale, a story of what happens when a military fails to adapt to innovative technologies and strategies...

Chat, are we cooked? Not quite, we just have a couple of guest hosts today! Welcome to SNAFUBAR, a podcast on American militarism and national myths. Today’s episode explores the action packed history of video games, specifically military themed video games. We’ll chart the history of early war games, from the classic boardgame Kriegspiel, used in Prussian military officers training, to major bloc...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR, the show about American military history and our country's national myths. Today’s episode is from our “Canary in the Coalmine series,” only today we won’t be talking about birds, but about the Atomic Era in the United States. We’ll be focusing on the Nevada Test Site and the servicemen that worked at this facility. World War II was over, but the Cold War was just get...

In 1953 the CIA conducted a covert operation to overthrow Muhammad Mossadegh, the democratically elected leader of Iran. This was the CIA’s very first mission dedicated to regime change and done in collaboration with British intelligence in order to install a government that was sympathetic to western business interests.   The consequences of this action were severe and lasting, casting a long sha...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. In this week's episode, we’re going to focus our attention on President Harry Truman: we’re going to look a little bit at his pre-presidential life of military service, and then we’re going to turn to his presidency, highlighting the moral urgency that he brought to questions of global responsibility and interventionism. We’ll introduce the Truman Doctrine and then we...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. This week, we’re exploring the concept of American civil religion. This episode, like our Military Lingo episode, offers some insight into the deeper frameworks we’re using to shape our podcast. overall and, this episode will offer a deeper insight into a concept that, as we argue, really shapes the way the United States engages in warfare. Not sure what we mean by Americ...

Welcome to SNAFUBAR! Here in the SNAFUBAR, we explore American military history and America’s national myths, or stories or traditional narratives. We’ll talk about some mishaps, about errors, both strategic and moral. And we’ll focus, a lot of the time, on tension points, on those places where our beliefs and our behaviors don’t quite match up. We’ll look at the ways that our national culture rom...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. For today's episode, we will finish our three part series on Afghanistan and its relationship to the United States. Specifically from the post Cold War era to today, including the terror and deep loss of 9/11, the subsequent War on Terror, the continuing dynamic between the two countries, no matter the president and the withdrawal of troops in 2021.  This series is al...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. This week's episode marks the second of three episodes focusing on Afghanistan from a historical and cultural perspective, both as a region and later, as a country. In today's episode, we'll look at Afghanistan from the Soviet invasion in 1979 and the later American invasion in 2001. This series is also the first of our "Close Look" groupings where w...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. This week's episode marks the start of a three part series focusing on Afghanistan from a historical and cultural perspective, both as a region and later, as a country. And of course, as is the theme of our podcast, we will be discussing in detail the history of war and the role of outside players, namely Britain, Russia and the United States. This series is also the...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. This week's episode focuses on a current SNAFU that is ever unfolding, known as "Signal Gate", involving United Secretary of Defense Hegseth, former National Security Advisor Mike Walz and the Editor in Chief of The Atlantic Jeffrey Goldberg. If some questions are starting to form in your head based on that last sentence, this is the show for you. Not only w...

On today’s episode of SNAFUBAR we dive into the first episode of the ongoing theme of “Stalled Supply Lines” where we will be investigating instances how U.S. military institutions either failed, or were prevented, from properly supplying troops in the field with necessary equipment.  Now, this theme isn’t meant to be a flat out condemnation of the institution. There are times where predictions fa...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR! Over the course of each episode, SNAFUBAR will look at stories from military history and particular moments of U.S. military blunders with added context that can be used by and is accessible to a wide range of audiences. The histories we will look at will make clear the degree to which the U.S. is a warful nation, contrary to the myth of a peaceful nation forced into comb...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR! Over the course of each episode, SNAFUBAR will look at stories from military history and particular moments of U.S. military blunders with added context that can be used by and is accessible to a wide range of audiences. The histories we will look at will make clear the degree to which the U.S. is a warful nation, contrary to the myth of a peaceful nation forced into comb...

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR! Over the course of each episode, SNAFUBAR will look at stories from military history and particular moments of U.S. military blunders with added context that can be used by and is accessible to a wide range of audiences. The histories we will look at will make clear the degree to which the U.S. is a warful nation, contrary to the myth of a peaceful nation forced into comb...

Welcome to the first episode of SNAFUBAR! Over the course of each episode, SNAFUBAR will look at stories from military history and particular moments of U.S. military blunders with added context that can be used by and is accessible to a wide range of audiences. The histories we will look at will make clear the degree to which the U.S. is a warful nation, contrary to the myth of a peaceful nation...