The Weekly SITREP #8 16APR2024

This week we discuss the VP debate (sort of) while we also get into: 1) China sunk their nuclear submarine- what it means for US national security watchers. 2) Argentina's Javier Milei ends their nationwide rent control laws... and rent prices drop! 3) Kids in the northeast are increasingly going to the South for college- is it TikTok, football, weather, or politics?? 4) What was going on at the ports, and why are our ports so far behind the rest of the world? 5) The absolute WORST financial advice you've ever heard.

Do we hate lawyers? IDK, ask the litigator we have on today's pod! Andrew Wells joins us to chat about going from the military into big law in Manhattan. We cover his career as well as: 1. The James Bond style pager operation by Israel against Hezbollah 2. Federal judges appear skeptical of TikTok's challenge to their ban- will we be back to reels and shorts full time come the spring!? 3. Disney's effort to get a wrongful death case to arbitration because someone signed up for Disney+... what is arbitration and why is Disney maybe... right?

This week we welcome on Alan Van Saun of Airborne Systems and one of the men behind the Hulu documentary "3212 Unredacted. We discuss: 1- Niger: What happened in this African nation and how does it affect the USA? Alan talks about his experience in the country and how he made 3212 to share the truth about what happened to him and his team in 2017. 2- Airborne is irrelevant... or not? We discuss Alan's work at Airborne system designing and producing parachutes for military and humanitarian operations. 3- We dive into the roles of veterans in the private sector and the obligation every veteran has to be true to their own story.

This episode we dive into - Kamala Harris's tax plan and what it means for you! - Nuclear Power: why do we need it now and what is Michigan doing about it? - What is private equity doing around the NFL? - How do you send an OOO (out of office) email?

After the first weekend without historical political events, we dive into: 1) Hezbollah's attacks on Israel and what it may mean for context across the Middle East. 2) The Fed signals that rate cuts may be on the way... what does that mean and why didn't they do it earlier? 3) Tesla's profits are down 45% this quarter. So why is the market not tanking their stock? 4) We answer a follower's question about leaving your steady corporate job for a startup- how do you determine if this is a good idea?

We Dive in after an uneventful couple weeks to discuss: 1) The Crowdstrike disaster with friend of the page and cybersecurity guru Levi Horsley. 2) The budding tourism within Afghanistan, and why Kyle is anxious to go! 3) Iran's growing Naval power and the really terrifying reality of their growing power overall. 4) The VC reality for Deep tech founders

We jump on after our extended summer vacation to talk: 1) India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Vladimir Putin in Russia this week. Is this an alliance, or just a piece of Modi's "strategic ambiguity"? 2) 1/4 of Europe's economic growth recently has come from tourism in Southern Europe. Why is this a portend of bad things to come for a continent that seems to be turning into a "museum economy" 3) Housing prices have almost doubled in most of America in the past three years. Are we at "the top", or are high prices here to stay? 4) We look at Athletic Brewing, the hottest non-alcoholic beer company on the market and discuss whether their recent 2x valuation growth is justified. #veteranassistance #veterans #army #navy #airforce #armyvet #gibill #mba #vets #vetsofinstagram #modi #usmc #usmcvet

This week we chat about Kyle's landscaping escapades before diving into important things: 1) Iranian President Raisi is dead. He was responsible for the death of many American servicemembers- we do the opposite of mourn his death and Kyle talks about the anatomy of a helicopter crash. 2) Sweden is trying a radical new recruiting method to bring prestige to their armed forces... and it looks like it's working. 3) North Korean remote tech workers have been stealing American identities through an elaborate scheme. 4) Microsoft is putting Call of Duty onto their subscription service. We dive into why and what companies do to figure out these sorts of a la carte vs. subscription decisions.

We talk about our terrible golf handicaps before diving into: - Israel starts their entry to Rafah as Hamas's provides what Israel calls an unacceptable offer to end the war in exchange for only 33 bodies dead or alive. - China and the US are in a 21st century space race over the Moon's South Pole. The area provides water and could be a base for a Mars mission... who will get there first, and what will that first person do? - Uber's quarterly results came in below what analysts were expecting. What is the future for the ride sharing app with Tesla's Robotaxi on the horizon? - Kyle's favorite company, Disney, also reported less than expected results. What is Bob Iger doing with the company to bring it to a "streaming future"?

We have Onebrief Director Nate Webster on this week as a guest to talk about what they're doing to transform the military (let us know if you want to join their team!) and we all discuss: 1. Israel v Iran: What happened, and why was this such a paradigm shifting moment in the Middle East? 2. St. Louis's $3.5M Skyscraper: What is happening to commercial real estate and why does St Louis have a building going for the price of a starter home in the Bay Area? 3. Walmart Managers Making $250K: We talk talent management and highlight the jobs (without a grad degree!) making $250-$400K. 4. Entrepreneurship is... an old man's game?: We discuss entrepreneurship in the context of TSMC's founder Morris Chang, who started this company when he was 55! Our advice: get a real job and some industry exposure before pontificating about what you see from your foxhole.