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In this episode, Rich Brown sits down with John Hearn of Two Pillars Training to break down what the data actually tells us about defensive gunfights—and how most training completely misses the mark.

John has built a reputation for digging into real-world incidents, analyzing patterns, and applying that information to how we should actually train. From distances and timing to decision-making under pressure, this conversation challenges assumptions and replaces them with reality.

They dive into what the numbers reveal about how fights really unfold, where traditional training falls short, and how armed citizens can better prepare for the moments that matter most.

If you're serious about training with purpose—not just going through the motions—this episode will change how you think about practice.

In 2021, John founded Two Pillars Training and began to offer unique curriculum focusing on decision making while shooting in addition to classic skills with pistol and carbine. Besides hands-on shooting classes, John has presentations focusing on the data side of the self-defense world. His interests include human performance under life and death stress, historic gunfights, crime data, and criminal typologies. John has a Master's degree in criminal justice with a concentration in Research Methods. He has instructor credentials from the FBI, FLETC, NRA-LEAD, Rangemaster, CSAT, Centrifuge Training, Tactical Anatomy Systems, Kentucky National Guard, and many others. Finally, John is a Life Member of the National Rifle Association and the Second Amendment Foundation. John Hearne's Webstie: https://twopillarstraining.com/

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In this episode, Rich Brown sits down with returning guest Simon Golob for a raw and timely discussion on recent events shaping the security landscape—centered on the terrorist attack at Old Dominion.

This isn't a distant, overseas incident. It's a reminder that violence can surface anywhere, at any time—and often where people feel safest.

Rich and Simon break down what happened, what we know so far, and—more importantly—what it means for the everyday armed citizen.

What you'll hear in this episode:

• A breakdown of the Old Dominion attack and key takeaways
• How modern threats are evolving—and why they're getting harder to predict
• The mindset gap: why most people are still unprepared for sudden violence
• Awareness failures and environmental blind spots in public spaces
• Where armed citizens fit—and where they don't—in events like this
• Practical considerations for movement, positioning, and decision-making under stress

This episode isn't about fear—it's about clarity.

Because the question isn't if violence exists. The question is whether you're prepared when it finds you.

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In this episode of the American Warrior Show, Rich Brown and Bill Rapier dive into hard-earned lessons drawn from the world of Naval Special Warfare Development Group - where performance is measured in life-and-death outcomes, and teamwork isn't optional.

This conversation isn't about hype or hero worship. It's about standards. It's about how elite units train, communicate, and execute and what armed citizens, competitors, and instructors can take from those principles.

Because here's the truth: individual skill matters… but team performance wins.

In this episode, they discuss:

• The difference between being a good shooter and being an asset to a team

• Why elite units obsess over repetition and measurable standards

• Communication under stress and how small breakdowns create big failures

• Accountability inside high-performance cultures

• How ego quietly destroys team effectiveness

• What civilian defenders misunderstand about "tactical" training

• Applying special operations training principles to your own range time

Rich and Bill break down how discipline, humility, and clear standards build competence - and how those same principles can transform the way you train, lead, and protect.

Whether you're an instructor, competitor, protector, or leader in your own home, this episode challenges you to raise your standards.

Train with purpose. Perform with discipline. Contribute to the team.

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In this episode of the American Warrior Show, Rich Brown is joined by cybersecurity expert Andrew Frisbie for a timely and eye-opening conversation on modern cyber threats, digital preparedness, and the role of artificial intelligence in today's threat landscape.

As recent cyber incidents continue to impact infrastructure, financial systems, personal data, and national security, Rich and Andrew break down what's actually happening—and what most people are completely unprepared for.

This episode covers:

• Real-world cyber threats affecting everyday Americans right now

• How cyber attacks target individuals, businesses, and critical systems

• Where AI is helping defenders—and where it's empowering attackers

• Why cybersecurity is no longer a "tech problem," but a personal security issue

• Practical steps armed citizens, families, and leaders can take to reduce risk

The battlefield has expanded. Threats no longer require physical proximity—and attackers don't need guns.

This conversation reframes cybersecurity as part of modern personal defense, challenging warriors and protectors to think beyond traditional threats and recognize that preparedness now includes digital awareness, resilience, and adaptability.

If you believe in protecting yourself, your family, and your community, this episode will change how you view security in an AI-driven world.

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In this episode of the American Warrior Show, Rich Brown sits down with TC Fuller for a deep, uncomfortable, and necessary conversation about obedience, authority, and moral responsibility.

Using Stanley Milgram's famous obedience experiments and Christopher Browning's book Ordinary Men, Rich and TC break down how average, everyday people—not monsters—can be led to commit acts they never believed themselves capable of.

This episode explores:

• Why people obey authority even when it violates their moral compass

• How peer pressure and normalization override conscience

• The concept of the "agentic state" and why responsibility gets outsourced

• Why "just following orders" is one of the most dangerous phrases in history

• What warriors, leaders, instructors, and armed citizens must do to resist blind compliance

This isn't a history lesson—it's a warning.

For warriors, protectors, and leaders, the takeaway is clear: Character, moral courage, and independent thinking must be trained—deliberately—or they will fail under pressure.

If you carry responsibility—for a weapon, a badge, a team, or a family—this episode will challenge how you think about obedience, leadership, and your own decision-making under authority.

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In this episode, Rich Brown sits down with Walt Settlemyre, host of The Distinguished Savage Podcast, for a wide-ranging conversation on readiness, capability, and what it actually means to live prepared in the modern world.

They discuss:

• Why competence is disappearing as comfort increases

• The difference between talking about violence and preparing for it responsibly

• How physical fitness, mindset, and skill intersect in real-world self-defense

• The danger of outsourcing personal responsibility to systems, gear, or credentials

• Why training must be continuous, uncomfortable, and intentional

• What "civilized savage" really means - and why it matters now more than ever

• The role of community, discipline, and standards in developing capable humans

This is not a tactics episode. It's a truth-based conversation about readiness, accountability, and becoming harder to break - physically, mentally, and morally.

If you care about:

• Self-defense

• Leadership

• Personal responsibility

• And building real-world capability

This episode will resonate.

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On this episode of the American Warrior Show, Rich Brown sits down with retired Navy SEAL Bill Rapier, founder of AMTAC Shooting, for a no-nonsense discussion on real-world self-defense. He is the lead instructor of over 200 Amtac Shooting courses and has trained over 2500 students since 2020. Bill is retired after twenty years in the Navy, where his duty assignments included several years at SEAL Team 3 and over 14 years at Naval Special Warfare Development Group. Positions held include assaulter, breacher, sniper, team leader, troop chief, and military working dog department senior enlisted adviser. He has always been an avid shooter and is heavily involved in combatives.

• Bill brings decades of experience from Naval Special Warfare, including time at SEAL Team 3 and DEVGRU, where performance under pressure wasn't optional—it was survival.
• Why most self-defense conversations focus too heavily on the gun—and what happens when the fight starts inside arm's reach.
• The importance of a layered defensive approach: awareness, decision-making, combatives, and firearms—used in the correct order.
• How to train shooting skills that actually transfer to real life, not just the square range.
• Integrating fighting and shooting so skills don't collapse when stress, chaos, and violence show up fast.
• Common training blind spots among armed citizens—and how to fix them with smarter practice and higher standards.
• Why efficiency, simplicity, and pressure-tested fundamentals matter more than flashy techniques.
• Practical takeaways for warriors who want skills that work when it counts, not just look good on Instagram.

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Episode #422: Gavin Glasenapp: From Special Operations Aviation to Defender Development

On today's American Warrior Show, we will be joined by former 160th Pilot and the current Training Operations Manager at Delta Defense, Gavin Glasenapp. Gavin Glasenapp is the Training Operations Manager at Delta Defense, supporting the U.S. Concealed Carry Association's nationwide instructor network. He brings a deep operational background built over two decades in the U.S. Army, where he retired as a Chief Warrant Officer Four. Gavin spent the first half of his career in the AH-64A and AH-64D Apache community, serving as both an Instructor Pilot and Standardization Instructor Pilot. He later assessed into the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), flying the MH-47G on heavy-assault missions in direct support of special mission units. Across twelve combat deployments flying both the Apache and Chinook, he gained extensive experience in complex, high-risk environments. After the Army, Gavin served as a police officer in Southeastern Wisconsin, completing advanced LE training, including ALERRT and SWAT school. He now leverages his combined military, law-enforcement, and instructional expertise to strengthen USCCA training programs and enhance the readiness and capability of responsibly armed Americans. Gavin enjoys multiple hobbies and spending time, especially traveling, with his soon to be wife, Jessica.

• This episode gives listeners a rare look at the training, standards, and mission profiles of the legendary 160th SOAR.

• Gavin Glasenapp explains what sets these pilots apart and how their approach to risk, planning, and contingencies offers powerful lessons for everyday carry practitioners.

• Rich and Gavin connect SOF aviation principles to personal defense, instructor development, and decision-making under pressure.

• A fascinating mix of story and strategy.

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Episode 421: Justin Carroll & Rich Brown — Competent and Dangerous

In this powerful conversation, Rich Brown sits down with author, Marine veteran, former intel professional, and long-time friend of AWS Justin Carroll to dive deep into his new book, Competent and Dangerous. This episode breaks down what it truly means to be a capable, prepared, and resilient protector in a world that is shifting faster than most realize.

In this episode you'll hear:

• Why Justin wrote Competent and Dangerous and who the book is designed to serve.

• The gap between "owning a gun" and "being dangerous enough to win."

• Justin's model for developing well-rounded capability across shooting, fitness, medical, communication, and decision-making.

• The realities of modern threat environments and why most citizens dramatically underestimate them.

• Why competence must precede confidence — and how to build both through structured training.

• The role of mindset, deliberate practice, and environment design in building daily habits that stick.

• Justin's take on preparedness culture — what we're doing right, and where most people are failing.

• Rich and Justin's shared experiences training, carrying, and working with real-world protectors.

• How to turn information into action and begin closing capability gaps immediately.

Who is Justin Carroll?

• U.S. Marine Corps veteran

• Former intelligence professional

• Security, preparedness, and communications expert

• Author of multiple well-regarded works on readiness

• Instructor and long-time AWS contributor

• Host of the "Across the Peak" podcast

• One of the clearest voices in the modern preparedness and training community

Why this episode matters:

Because being armed is not the same as being dangerous. Justin's book and this conversation outline the roadmap for the modern citizen-protector: capable, adaptable, trained, and mentally resilient.

Get the Book here!

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On today's episode of the American Warrior Show, Rich Brown is joined by Michael "Mac" McNamara, founder of Post-Traumatic Winning and ALL MARINE RADIO. Mac's story spans finance, combat, leadership, and a lifelong mission to help others thrive after trauma.

About Michael McNamara:

• Began his career at Merrill Lynch in Los Angeles, first as a bookkeeper and later as an account executive.

• Enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, later commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in December 1983.

• Served in multiple assignments, including:

  • 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment

  • 1st Light Armored Infantry Battalion

  • Marine Detachment, USS Ranger CV-61

  • The Basic School

  • 3rd Light Armored Infantry Battalion

• Left active duty in 1994 after more than a decade of service.

Post-Service Career & Return to Duty:

• Became Director of Sports for Special Olympics North Dakota in 1998.

• Launched his broadcasting career in 2000 as host of MacTalk, earning the National Association of Broadcasters Marconi Award (2007) for Small Market Personality of the Year.

• Returned to active duty in 2004, promoted to Major, and deployed to Ramadi, Iraq, with the 1st Marine Division.

• Mobilized again in 2006 for duty in Fallujah, Iraq, with the 5th Marine Regiment, while simultaneously serving on the Grand Forks City Council.

• Deployed once more in 2010 with the 1st Marine Regiment to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, serving until his retirement in 2015.

Post-Traumatic Winning & Advocacy:

• Founded The Post-Traumatic Winning Company, LLC and launched ALL MARINE RADIO, an online platform promoting mental fitness and reducing veteran suicide.

• Began presenting Post-Traumatic Winning in 2019, first at Camp Lejeune, NC.

• The presentation has since reached audiences across the U.S., Japan, Hawaii, Alaska, and Europe, impacting organizations of over 10,000 members with measurable results in combating destructive behaviors and suicide.

• Launched the Post-Traumatic Winning Weekly Seminar series in January 2021, expanding the program's reach and dialogue.

• Published his first book in March 2025, From Trauma to Joy: Life-Changing Lessons That Fellow U.S. Marines Taught Me After Traumatic Events Occurred in My Life — designed to share these universal lessons with a wider audience.

In This Episode:

• How trauma can become a source of growth, not defeat.

• The creation and impact of Post-Traumatic Winning.

• Lessons learned from leading Marines and civilians through crisis.

• Building mental fitness and resilience in the face of adversity.