D-Minus Diaries Podcast

Greetings,

I didn’t write a Christmas story this year, so I’m offering music instead.

Over the years, I’ve recorded various Christmas songs in my home studio. This piece brings some of those together. I hope you enjoy it, and share it if you’d like.

Thank you for following me and for helping me as this new journey begins. My prayer is that you and your family have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

.

“Energy is contagious.” In this episode of The D Minus Diaries, Jim Jones walks through a lifetime of discovery—adoption, family secrets, war stories, violence, faith, and the power of a single question: “Tell me something good.”

In this story you’ll hear:

How a tangled family tree, quiet secrets, and a late revelation about his “real” parents shaped Jim’s early view of the world.

How Cain and Abel, a woman caught in adultery, and modern violence all point to the same danger: knowledge without mercy, discovery without discipline.

A shocking story of a young man whose throat was cut “from ear to ear,” and what it revealed about justice, fear, and how fragile life really is.

Why fear has become a currency in America—and how negative reactions spread like shrapnel through our families and communities.

How one small shift in greeting—“Tell me something good”—can interrupt the default to bad news and start changing the energy in your little corner of the world.

Epstein and You: The Wilderness of Mirrors

The D-Minus Diaries

This episode isn’t really about Jeffrey Epstein. It’s about you, me, us, and all Americans.

It’s about how quickly reputations are destroyed, how public judgment replaces due process, and what happens when justice becomes entertainment. It’s about the court of public opinion, emotional triggers, media obsession, and why this story unsettles people far beyond the crimes themselves.

In this episode, I explore:

What “innocent until proven guilty” is supposed to mean

How perp walks, mugshots, and headlines can become verdicts

Why this case spanned multiple presidential administrations

How emotional triggers and clickbait shape public reaction

The difference between accountability and a witch hunt

Why, if even part of this story reaches beyond crime, it raises national security concerns

And ultimately, why this story is really about all of us

This is not a defense of crime.It’s a reflection on justice, restraint, responsibility, and what we risk losing when we abandon due process.

🎧 Listen to the Podcast

You can listen to this episode for free on all major platforms:

- Substack

- Apple Podcasts

- Spotify

- YouTube

- Overcast

- Pocket Casts

Prefer to read instead? The full essay is available right here on Substack.

💬 Join the Conversation

Before you move on, think about this:

Have you or someone you love ever been falsely accused of something?A child. A parent. A friend. A coworker.

If you’re willing, share your experience in the comments. Your story might remind someone else to slow down before judging the next stranger.

DEC 02, 2025

🌌 A Childhood Under the Stars

The Secret to Life?

Note: This episode is a repost from The D-Minus Diaries, which aired on December 2, 2025. We’re sharing it again as we’ve expanded the show to all major podcast platforms.

In this episode, Jim takes you back to a quiet cow pasture and a childhood friendship with Dwayne Letterman, lying under the stars and wondering how big the universe really is. What started as a boyhood curiosity turns into a reflection on survival, wonder, and the razor-thin line that keeps us alive.

From desert skies to open oceans, Jim explores how fragile the human body really is and why life depends on maintaining a delicate balance. Along the way, he shares hard-earned lessons from the military, survival training, and real-world experience that remind us how quickly nature can decide our fate.

This episode asks a simple but profound question:Is the secret to life something grand… or something as small as 98.6 degrees?

🎧 Listen on Major Podcast Platforms

You can now listen to The D-Minus Diaries wherever you get your podcasts:

• Apple Podcasts

• Spotify

• YouTube

• Overcast

• Pocket Casts:

Courage and the Board, Switch, and Belt (Maxim Part I)

Note: This episode is a repost from a Substack post dated November 18, 2025. It’s being reshared now that The D-Minus Diaries podcast is available on all major podcast platforms.

In this episode, Jim Jones takes listeners back to the first hard lesson that shaped his life. Long before leadership courses, military training, or professional success, there was a classroom, a lie, and a wooden paddle with holes drilled through it.

What follows is a raw, honest story about discipline, fear, consequences, and the moment a childhood mistake turned into a lifelong rule. Jim reflects on how early correction, uncomfortable as it may be, helped forge character, courage, and clarity later in life. From old-school teachers and Appalachian parenting to biblical wisdom and modern cultural shifts, this episode explores where discipline ends, where abuse begins, and why the two are often confused today.

This episode includes an audio version with added sound effects, bringing the story to life and placing listeners back in the classroom, the hallway, and the living room, where the lessons landed hard and stayed forever.

If you grew up in an era where boundaries were firm and lessons were unforgettable, or if you wonder why kids are out of control and some adults end up in what Jim calls the house of bad decisions, this episode is for you. And if you didn’t grow up that way, it may make you think twice about what correction, courage, and love really look like.

🎧 Listen to the Podcast

You can listen to this episode for free on all major platforms:

- Substack

- Apple Podcasts

- Spotify

- YouTube

- Overcast

This episode is a repost from Substack, originally published on November 2, 2025. I am reposting it here as The D-Minus Diaries is now available across all major podcast outlets.

A look at how America ended up in another shutdown and what it reveals about leadership, pride, and the people caught in the middle. Inspired by two bull elk locking antlers, Jim Jones breaks down the crisis and offers practical Green Beret tips for getting through hard times.

🎧 Listen to the Podcast

You can listen to this episode for free on all major platforms:

- Substack

- Apple Podcasts

- Spotify

- YouTube

- Overcast

- Pocket Casts

Prefer to read instead? The full essay is available right here on Substack.

This episode is a repost of a written piece originally published on Substack on November 10, 2025, and is being shared again now that The D-Minus Diaries is available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.

November 10 marked the anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. In this episode, Jim Jones reflects on that tragedy through a personal story from U.S. Coast Guard basic training, where one untied shoe triggered a lesson that would last a lifetime.

From a chaotic morning inspection in Cape May to later experiences in Army Special Forces, this episode explores why small details matter, how discipline is built under pressure, and why survival, leadership, and even everyday life often hinge on the things we overlook.

This is not a history lesson. It’s a reminder.

A reminder that little things become big things.That attention is a form of respect.And that in the middle of the storm, there is no 911.

You are the 911.

🎧 Listen to the Podcast

You can listen to this episode for free on all major platforms:

- Substack

- Apple Podcasts

- Spotify

- YouTube

- Overcast

If you’ve ever hit a tough moment and thought, “What now?” this show is for you. The D Minus Diaries is about moving forward, one honest story at a time.

In this first episode, Jim Jones shares the heart behind the project. From growing up in East Tennessee to serving in the Coast Guard and Special Forces, to rebuilding more than once, his life proves that resilience is built, not gifted. These stories aren’t self-help formulas. They’re real experiences meant to help you when life hands you a fork in the road.

Listen while you drive, ride, roam, or drone. If something here helps you take the next step, that’s the whole point.

Read the D-Minus Diaries here

If it resonates, hit the heart, subscribe, and share it with a friend.