Many of us grew up in a world where to join the military meant to serve our country. Baked into that ideological pie was a hierarchy where, the more special your operations, the more value you might have, at least on social media. Cameron Fath tells about how he joined the Ranger Regiment, what it was like to enter and then leave that arena, and where he has been since, whether it be helping homeless veterans or building a Netflix Documentary: Toughest Forces on Earth. In this conversation we talk about Ranger Training, the culture of special operations, and what we might change if we could go back to being a team leader. This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Why do men go off to war?Is it for Glory? Honor? The GI Bill? The war/violence/conflict in Ukraine illustrates how some men go to war, regardless of the big picture. While pundits and politicians opine about how America's influence, military support, and participation in Eastern Europe paints a picture of the next forever war, individuals travel to the front lines for something other than fame or money. Imagine sweating in Basic Training in 2008. Your family is in economic shambles. Half the time your mind focuses on passing the next phase. The other half, you worry about the family home being lost to the bank which was bailed out. No cell phone in sight, any opportunity to call home depends on the performance of people you have no control over. This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Even during the 2020 Black Lives Matter Summer of Love, news agencies hesitated to report on the destruction taking place in Minnesota. Few poeple outside of Minneapolis know that the rioting continued well into 2021, and few people who live there are willing to admit it. To this day, the city of Minneapolis suffers the consequences of what took place and what followed soon after. Despite the warning signs of civil unrest and rising crime, we've only observed worsening conditions. Elections have consequences, especially at the local level. Peter Johnson of Archway Defense Joins the show again to discuss the aftermath of 2 years of riots and what appears like a continual growth of violence in the streets. Follow Archway Defense on Instagram: @archwaydefense  Reach out to them for training at archwaydefense.comThis episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Might Makes Right. No Truth but Power.History is written by the Victor.These phrases often say one thing, but try to communicate another. When we casually say that might makes right, we aren't typically saying that morality comes from greater strength. When it comes to disputes, it often sounds like a shortcut to some form of solution, or a criticism of inaction. But what if we were to look at the statement as an argument itself. What if we were to zoom in to a dispute between two people or as far out as we can conceive in metaphysics? This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

When it comes to gear, play the long game. When it comes to training, get what you can, when you can get it. When it comes to practice, it's better to start with what you have, than wait for the perfect opportunity. Gear, Training, and Practice are three sore subjects when it comes to gun culture. How is this the case for a community that is centered on the use of firearms as a potential tool for self defense? All three quickly become a point of friction between differing opinions and the egos attached to them.But if we could put all that aside, and if we separate the WHY from the HOW when it comes to gear, training, and practice, how does our perspective change and how to we move forward to a better future, whether as individuals or as a community?This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

The difference between what can be called the Gun Culture, the Industry, and those in support of the Second Amendment isn't a single overlapping circle of a Venn Diagram. Instead, we have disparate groups of Gun Culture, a market space of the Firearm Industry, and the broadest term of 2nd Amendment Supporters. Peter Ildefonsa brings all of this to the table in a grand conversation on the differences and similarities and overlaps between the three.Follow Peter Ildefonsa on Instagram at @peterildeonsaOr on YouTube at @peterildefonsa His website and work can be found at www.peterildefonsa.comThis episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

In violence, as in war, two concept stand in tension with one another: proportionality and utility. McMahan identifies one understanding of proportionality as "a constraint on action that causes harm." (Killing in War Pg 19). Utility, on the other hand, often functions as the context for informing one part of strategy, tactics, and techniques. We prioritize actions of these sorts that produce the desired outcome.As such, the tension that exists between them is that they both must be accomplished or accommodated for the action to be considered moral, and further, both can be corrupted. Just as utility can lead to a might-makes-right worldview, and easily justify the absolute eradication of a warring people group, so the idea of proportionality is corrupted if we cease to believe some of those in conflict are less than human. One part of the solution, or the developed skill of managing this tension comes from training. As we have seen in Gun Culture, those who train are rarely, if ever, the ones who participate in senseless violence. It is the untrained, who are both quick to call for the death of their accused oppressors, and it is the untrained who respond to a smaller conflict with overwhelming force. This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Self Defense isn't what it used to be. Jiu jitsu has become mainstream. But what if you were to discover that no-gi training wasn't as realistic as you wished? Ruben Alverez traces a tale of growing up in the world of Jiu Jitsu, only to discover it wasn't all that he needed. ECQC or Extreme Close Quarters Concepts takes the idea of a violent encounter to a more personal level. It's no longer about how fast your concealed draw time is. Rather, Ruben illustrates how a lethal weapon changes the way people think and act when in a violent bind. Follow Ruben Alverez on Instagram at @paradox_trainingAnd get Caught up on the courses at paradox-training.comThis episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

What if the true LARP is the assumption that we can be credited as being part of the community without participation? When the term LARP (Live Action Role Playing) is used as an epitaph, it accuses the target of living in a fantasy. With analysis, we look at what it is that is considered dishonorable about so-called LARP-ing. What we find out is that many of us may be LARPing even if we're not running around in the woods in full kit with the boys. And it begs out another question: what would we do, or who would we be, if we had all the resources and gear to train at the highest level we can imagine. If we had the money and time to train to the level of CAG or SEAL Team 6, without being there, how would. we look at that?This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Rudyard Kipling's poem "If" often finds home on the wall and in the minds of great men. It leads the reader through a series of character traits that make a man, opening with the line "If you can keep your head when all about you       Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,   If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,    But make allowance for their doubting too; "Throughout history, mankind has asked what it is that makes a man truly a man. Sometimes this question boils down to metaphysics, asking what it is about a being that makes them a man. In recent times even biology has been called into question, albeit comically. Yet the most personal context of this question often eats at the hearts of men as they live their lives in search of and fulfillment of the answer. The concept of composure has found itself baked into mens fashion, and different eras of masculinity. We find something truly great about a man who can keep a cool head under pressure, and have even seen the rise of attacking that point of vulnerability to set a trap. This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

There's more to being a warfighter than shooting. On the US Army webpage it is stated that the Ranger Battalions encompass the "Big 5 Philosophy" of Marksmanship, Physical Training, Medical Training, Small-Unit Tactics, and Mobility. Breaking down each of these, we look at what they might entail. In order to put to rest the cultural conversation in modern gun culture which pits one discipline of shooting against a profession, in this episode we walk through what the big 5 entails, and what might come beyond that for the individual citizen. This episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

The George Floyd Riots were a strange time. On the ground, the narrative level politics fell to the wayside. Information Warfare was not about which political party was effectively harnessing the energy of the street, but about if their house was going to be looted or burned down in the next few hours. We live in the post information age, were it's no longer about access to information that is bottlenecked by the limitations of the printing press, publishing houses, and newspapers, but our ability to evaluate information. Intel, in its most basic definition, is information relevant to your goals. Information that leads to the accomplishment of what you seek. Instead of a limited stream of small pits of information, we are met with a flood. Collection of informationEvaluation of informationDissemination of informationThis episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Which is better? To Bug Out or to Harden Your Position?Which is better? Train in Recce or CQB?Which is better? A DMR or a MK18?Which is better? 9mm or 45acp?These questions represent different decision that go awry when we attempt to answer them at the wrong level of analysis. There is a strange hope that, if it were to come to brass tacks, the good men would do what is right. Yet conversations like those presented above are seemingly less concerned good men doing what is right, but instead, mere survival.Enjoy.This Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllcSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Sure, we all hate name dropping and clout chasing, especially in Gun Culture, but why? what is it about this kind of activity that we find so distasteful, and should we?It's not good enough to complain about the subject, and although it takes a little time to get into it, in this episode we compare it to writing an academic paper. It's not good enough to simply cite well respected authors, just as it's not good enough to know well respected people within the community. It is another thing entirely to be respected by them, and further, to contribute to the body of knowledge in a meaningful way.So, buckle down and let's complain less about ambiguous people, and spend more time improving our position in this tumultuous world. This Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Decentralization might sound good on paper, but how does it work in the real world? When we look around, from media to the news to politics to culture in general, it looks like things are falling apart. And the just might be. But what happens when you shift your mindset away from the doom and gloom of how corrupt our politicians really are, and start building your own robust community that will survive the consequences of other's actions.Jake Knight brings an argument to the table: The dissatisfaction in the West far outweighs the level of disfunction in our system.  In other words, people are more unhappy, than they are incapable of doing anything about it.We trace this idea through multiple concepts, from culture, to tech, and eventually, worldview.Follow Gridbase on Instagram at @gridbasedotnetAnd check out the work at www.gridbase.netThis Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllcSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

What makes someone a pseudo-intellectual? If we treat philosophy like a trade, what does it look like when done poorly? In this episode, we review two arguments by public intellectuals who present two different arguments regarding God. Žižek compares God to a video game developer, and Neil deGrasse Tyson brings up the Problem of Evil. Some arguments are useful for identifying pseudo-intellectuals.  The problem of evil is one of these arguments that, besides the argument itself, is useful for determining the intellectual integrity and capability of the interlocutor.This Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

While it can be fun to try to analyze Gun Culture at the 20,000 league above view, Kaleb Irving brings the conversation down to earth. We look at what Gun Culture looks like on the ground level, and then rise higher into moral frameworks, and discuss what it might mean for the Church to repent. Gun Culture isn't so much politically aligned to moral philosophy, but dependent on it. Kaleb draws on what it was like to get into gun culture among close family who related military experience and observed the transition from the focus on SOF to the expanse into community. Kaleb is the man behind Prevail Armament, which focuses on the important things beyond the firearm. From theology, to history, to self-sufficiency, to community building.That being said, you might need to put on the Theologian's hat at one point, for the edification of the community.Follow Kaleb Irving on Instagram: @kalebprevailarmament Prevail Armament: @prevailarmamentHomesteading, Preparedness, and Gun Culture: prevailarmament.comThis Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Don't like a guy? Say he can't shoot. Although this will not put the argument to death, it will bring context to move past the ego game and into a professional approach. Shooting is a skill, and fighting requires a collection of skills. One of the most uncomfortable scenes in A24's Civil War is the firefight between men in Hawaiian shirts and uniformed soldiers. The dysfunctional fighting shows a lagging stalemate, where the men in Hawaiian shirts are struggling to help one of their own. It's painful to watch as they fumble through setting a smokescreen, instead getting bogged down in a single position. This Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

Gypsy Walters rejoins the show to talk about the movie "Civil War" by A24 Studios. The spoiler-free beginning covers tone and politics of the movie. After that, we dig into key scenes and take them apart both tactically and culturally. A surprisingly apolitical movie, with references to multiple sub-cultures present in America. Follow Ethan "Gypsy" Walters on Instagram at: @gypsywaltersFind his artwork and more at https://houseofwolvesslc.com/This Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsLocal Elevator by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Support the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc

With Suppressor Form 4 wait times measuring in mere days, we are witnessing the further normalization of owning a silencer. Huxwrx brought a fresh take by presenting suppressors as safety equipment. Beyond sound and flash reduction, flow through cans help reduce the amount of gasses in the shooter's face.Brett Kleypas joins the show to talk about both the science and presentation of suppressors as safety equipment with the end user in mind. Follow Huxwrx on Instagram at @huxwrxCheck out their suppressors at www.huxwrx.comThis Episode has been sponsored by Obsidian Arms, a manufacturer of tools, parts and firearms, as well as operating as an OEM shop for those looking to bring excellence to the market. Their Minnesota-based shop builds and cuts parts out of U.S.-sourced materials. Their gunsmith tools, custom firearms, and capabilities can be found at www.obsidianarms.comFollow Obsidian Arms on Instagram at @obsidianarmsSupport the REDACTED Culture Cast at redactedculture.locals.comSSP and boutique products at redactedllc.comFollow us on Instagram at @redactedllc