Chasing Ghosts: An Irregular Warfare Podcast

by Bill Buppert

An unauthorized podcast series peeking behind the curtain at the vast machinery and briar patch politics of fighting terrorism and insurgency and everything in between. I'm a "COINtra" and not a "COINdinista", the latter are the vast army of apparatchiks and apologists who fire the engines of Irregular Warfare (IW) planet-wide. We're the skeptics and doubters of all things IW and special operations. And we are a tiny sliver  ... 

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Podcast episodes

  • Season 1

  • Ep 040 "The Middle East: Shuffling to the Apocalypse (Part Two)""

    Ep 040 "The Middle East: Shuffling to the Apocalypse (Part Two)""

    S01 E40
    55:22

    This episode will be an addendum to my initial coverage in October 2023 of the Gaza-Israel conflict in Episode 027 and riffing off the domestic implications in Episode 037 of a similar attack on CONUS. If you wish to listen to those before you do this one, you may but I have crafted this so that isn’t necessary. The clock is closer to midnight than it was in October 2023. My Substack Email me at cgpodcast@pm.me.

  • Ep 039 "CG Excursion: Stoicism: Who Dares Leads"

    Ep 039 "CG Excursion: Stoicism: Who Dares Leads"

    S01 E39
    31:03

    I am reusing a previous episode I used in the now moribund Stoicism podcast I started, The Dash, which I ran out of steam on. Applying Stoic values and discipline to the vocation and avocations we practice in life may be the hardest part outside of making a Stoic life a lived lifestyle. I find the management industry is a giant cargo cult that publishes books whose pages number in the hundreds but could simply be a page or two. References: Marcus Aurelius Meditations Whitney J. Oakes (editor) The Stoic and Epicurean Philosophers: The Complete Extant Writings of Epicurus, Epictetus, Lucretius and Marcus Aurelius My Substack Email me at cgpodcast@pm.me.

  • Ep 038 "Moral Injury: The Invisible Warrior Marks"

    Ep 038 "Moral Injury: The Invisible Warrior Marks"

    S01 E38
    26:39

    The concept of moral injuries for soldiers and non-soldiers alike, the gift of fear and being a dead man walking and how to handle regret and shame. My Substack Email at cgpodcast@pm.me.

  • Ep 037 "Storming America: Another War Will Come Home"

    Ep 037 "Storming America: Another War Will Come Home"

    S01 E37
    01:13:36

    The hybrid and gray zone fight will come to America in the next war. Once the declining American colossus shuffles into the next near-peer and peer conflict, the 21st century will see the continental US come under a unified attack by external forces for the first time since the War of 1812 and the Mexican border issues in 1916. How the 9/11/2001 events have not been replicated is a cipher to me. We need to war-game all the possibilities once a war is initiated with a near-peer or peer adversary. The kinetic forces on the ground will be sleepers, NOCs or recently arrived illegals in addition to cadres recruited over time and left in place. I talk about William Forstchen's "Day of Wrath" and Kurt Schlichter's "The Attack". My Substack Email at cgpodcast@pm.me.

  • Ep 036 "Drunk on Direct Action: The Destruction of Army Special Forces in the GWOT"

    Ep 036 "Drunk on Direct Action: The Destruction of Army Special Forces in the GWOT"

    S01 E36
    44:51

    The direct action concentration of US Army Special Forces (SF) in the conduct of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan at the expense of the specialized and storied legend of what SF could do in non-permissive environments raising partisan forces behind enemy lines. The Army SF concentrated on perfecting a craft that numerous other combat organizations like the USMC 0311, .Army 11Bs and the exquisitely talented Ranger Regiment could do handily not to mention the legendary prowess of the Tier One units. SF could capitalize on the rich heritage of a regional expertise harnessed to a deep cultural IQ and understanding of allied and coalition fighting organizations. In concert with the deep intelligence and actionable intelligence infrastructure in a naturally expeditionary mindset practice strategic compression: the employment of tactical means to achieve and satisfy strategic end-states. SF needs to carve out their talent-stacks and showcase what makes them unique. My Substack: https://t.co/7a8jn2Mmnx Email at cgpodcast@pm.me.