“You come home and you don’t fit.”

Did you know that the only actively commissioned US naval vessel in captivity is docked in Pyongyang, North Korea? On January 23, 1968, the USS Pueblo, a former WW2 US Army cargo ship converted into a Navy intelligence-gathering vessel, was captured by the Korean People’s Army. Her crew of 82 men spent 11 months as prisoners during one of the most volatile periods of the Vietnam War and the Cold War. Don’t forget, the Korean War ended with an armistice and is technically still active to this day. 

For this special three part series, we took our recording equipment on the road to explore the story of the USS Pueblo through the eyes of Navy veteran and Pueblo crewman John Mitchell, who turned 21 years old while in captivity. Throughout the series, John reflects with us on what has become known as the “Pueblo Incident.” 

In this final episode in the Pueblo series, our story takes us back to the homefront, the United States. The Incident has ended and the crew is free. But what new trials await them upon their return? And what will it be like to reintegrate into civilian life after 11 months in captivity? We close our Pueblo series by following John from the moment he arrives back in the United States in December of 1968 to the present day. We discuss topics like reactions from the public, the January 1969 Pueblo Affair Naval Court of Inquiry, navigating the Veterans Affairs system, and how his emotions toward his captivity have changed over time. 

Today’s episode is guest narrated and edited by SNAFUBAR Writer/Researcher Roman Sotomayor. John Mitchell is a member of the Arcata Veterans Hall, American Legion Post 274. Also present during the interviews with John are SNAFUBAR co-host Sara Hart, Writer/Researcher Liam Salcuni, and Producer Abigail Smithson. 

SNAFUBAR is regularly hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, who is the Chair of the Applied Humanities Department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠who is an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor.

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Sources and Resources

Welna, Remembering North Korea’s Audacious Capture of the USS Pueblo

Lerner, The Pueblo Incident: A spy ship and the failure of American foreign policy, 2002

The American Legion, Arcata Post 274, Manual for Veterans Dependents

The American Legion, Main Page

Veterans of Foreign Wars, Main Page

Disabled American Veterans, Main Page

Amvets National Service Foundation, Main Page

Paralyzed Veterans of America, Main Page

Vietnam Veterans of America, Main Page

Mission POW-MIA, Main Page

K9s for Warriors, Main Page

VA Caregiver Support Program

VA Benefits for Family and Caregivers

It’s either pure hell, or pure boredom.

Did you know that the only actively commissioned US naval vessel in captivity is docked in Pyongyang, North Korea? On January 23, 1968, the USS Pueblo, a former WW2 US Army cargo ship converted into a Navy intelligence-gathering vessel, was captured by the Korean People’s Army. Her crew of 82 men spent 11 months as prisoners during one of the most volatile periods of the Vietnam War and the Cold War. Don’t forget, the Korean War ended with an armistice and is technically still active to this day.

For this special three part series, we took our recording equipment on the road to explore the story of the USS Pueblo through the eyes of Navy veteran and Pueblo crewman John Mitchell, who turned 21 years old while in captivity. Throughout the series, John reflects with us on what has become known as the “Pueblo Incident.”

We welcome you back to the series for Episode 2, “The Incident”. This episode follows the timeline of the USS Pueblo Incident through John’s eyes, beginning with the ship’s capture and ending with the crew’s release from North Korea after 11 months in captivity. Along the way, John shares what life was like as a prisoner of war, from the days spent in places known as “The Barn” and “The Country Club” to the routines, boredom, and hardships that defined those months. You'll hear what kept him going, the moments that tested him most, and the experiences that have stayed with him ever since. Stay tuned for our final episode in the series, “The Return,” as we follow the crew’s return to the United States.

Today’s episode is guest narrated and edited by SNAFUBAR Writer/Researcher Roman Sotomayor. John Mitchell is a member of the Arcata Veterans Hall, American Legion Post 274. Also present during the interviews with John are SNAFUBAR co-host Sara Hart, Writer/Researcher Liam Salcuni, and Producer Abigail Smithson.

SNAFUBAR is regularly hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, who is theChair of the Applied Humanities Department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠who is an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor.

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Sources & Resources

Boissoneault, Fifty Years Ago, North Korea Captured an American Ship and Nearly Started a Nuclear War

Bucher, Bucher: My Story 1970

Lerner, The Pueblo Incident: A spy ship and the failure of American foreign policy, 2002

Meyer, Column One: Pueblo’s Bittersweet Tribute

Office of the Historian, Action Memorandum From the Under Secretary of the State to President Johnson

Wilber, Hell Hath a Jury

Woo, Charles Law Jr., 60; Led Pueblo Crew in Captivity

The American Legion, Arcata Post 274, Manual for Veterans Dependents

Definition of a CIA Spook

The Navy’s most fouled-up Top Secret.

Did you know that the only actively commissioned US naval vessel in captivity is docked in Pyongyang, North Korea? On January 23, 1968, the USS Pueblo, a former WW2 US Army cargo ship converted into a Navy intelligence-gathering vessel, was captured by the Korean People’s Army. Her crew of 82 men spent 11 months as prisoners during one of the most volatile periods of the Vietnam War and the Cold War. Don’t forget, the Korean War ended with an armistice and is technically still active to this day. 

For this special three part series, we took our recording equipment on the road to explore the story of the USS Pueblo through the eyes of Navy veteran and Pueblo crewman John Mitchell, who turned 21 years old while in captivity. Throughout the series, John reflects with us on what has become known as the “Pueblo Incident.” 

Our first episode, “The Clunker”, introduces you to the USS Pueblo, whose mission was SNAFUBAR’d from the start. We detail the challenges faced by the ship’s commanding officer, Commander (then Lt. Commander) Lloyd Bucher, as he struggled to prepare the under-equipped vessel and crew for a high-risk assignment, and hear from John about his early days in the Navy and life on the seas aboard Pueblo. This installment ends with the USS Pueblo braving the journey across the Pacific. Stay tuned for our next episodes in the series, “The Incident” and “The Return,” as we follow the Pueblo from her capture by North Korea to the crew’s eventual return to the United States. 

Today’s episode is guest narrated and edited by SNAFUBAR Writer/Researcher Roman Sotomayor. John Mitchell is a member of the Arcata Veterans Hall, American Legion Post 274. Also present during the interviews with John are SNAFUBAR co-host Sara Hart, Writer/Researcher Liam Salcuni, and Producer Abigail Smithson. 

SNAFUBAR is regularly hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, who is the Chair of the Applied Humanities Department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠who is an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor.

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Sources & Resources

Bucher, Bucher: My Story 1970

Lerner, The Pueblo Incident: A spy ship and the failure of American foreign policy, 2002

The American Legion, Arcata Post 274, Manual for Veterans Dependents

Hi Folks! Welcome back to SNAFUBAR. We’re getting animated today! We are touching on a topic that’s close to home, or rather, close to the name of our podcast. Today, we are getting into the Private SNAFU series, a top secret animated series funded by the military during World War II. Your eyes are not deceiving you, this was a real, top secret project funded by the military. And the strange part is, many famous names in animation like Mel Blanc and Theodore Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, were a part of it. Join us as we explore the history behind the comical and strange Private SNAFU series. 

SNAFUBAR is hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Chair of the Department of Applied Humanities at Cal Poly Humboldt. We have a guest host today, Liam Salcuni, who teaches history classes at Cal Poly Humboldt.  SNAFUBAR is regularly co-hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠who is an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. 

Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor 

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. 

Works Cited:

Audrey Amidon, “The US Military Goes to Hollywood: Behind the Scenes with the First Motion Picture Unit,” 2013. 

CenSoc WWII Army Enlistment Dataset Codebook, 2023. 

Classified Cartoons: Private SNAFU

Christopher Klein, When Dr. Seuss Went to War,” 2016. 

David Vergun, “First Peacetime Draft Enacted Just Before World War II,” 2020.

Mark David Kaufman, “Ignorant Armies: Private SNAFU Goes to War,” 2015.   

Phillip Knell, “Suess on Film,” 2016. 

Peter Zablocki, “Private SNAFU,” 2025. 

The National WWII Museum: New Orleans, “Training the American GI.” 

US Army Heritage and Education Center, “World War II Core Area.” 

Paul Dickson, “OCTOBER 16, 1940—UNCLE SAM’S GOT YOUR NUMBER, GUYS,” 2020. 

Susan Thompson, “Communicating and training through film: an Army Signal Corps innovation,” 2022. 

Theodor Seuss Geisel & Edward Connery Lathem, The Beginnings of Dr. Seuss: An Informal Reminiscence, 2010.

National Parks Service, “The American Homefront and the Buildup to World War II: The Selective Service Act and the Arsenal of Democracy.”

Welcome to SNAFUBAR! A podcast on American military history and national myths. Today we’re exploring the ruinous Battle of the Monongahela, or “Braddock’s Defeat,” which took place in 1755 near modern day Pittsburgh. We know what you’re thinking, the United States wasn’t around in 1755, what does this have to do with American military history and national myths? A lot. Present at the Battle of the Monongahela was the young George Washington, who learned valuable lessons on leadership and tactics as a result of this crushing defeat. What’s more, the Battle of the Monongahela marks the beginning of the Washington mythos.  We hope you enjoy the show. 

SNAFUBAR is hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, chair of the Applied Humanities department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane , an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. 

⁠Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor. 

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Works Cited

Armstrong Starkey, European and Native American Warfare: 1675-1815, 1998. 

Battle of Fort Necessity and Braddock’s Defeat, Fort Edwards Online Archive

David Preston, Braddock’s Defeat: The Battle of the Monongahela and the Road to Revolution, 2015. 

Emanuel Leutze, Washington Crossing the Delaware, 1851. 

George Washington, Letter to John Augustine Washington, 1755. 

George Washington, Letter to Robert Orme, 1755.

George Washington, Letter to William Fairfax, 1754. 

Gordon S. Wood, The Radicalism of the American Revolution, 1991. 

Paul E. Kopperman, Braddock at the Monongahela, 1977.

Ron Chernow, Washington, A Life, 2010.

Today's episode is hosted by Jeff Crane. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Chair of the Applied Humanities Department at Cal Poly Humboldt, usual co-host of the show, is in the hot seat! She discusses her personal relationship to war and her personal work which is informed by it. This episode is great context for the reason why SNAFUBAR came to be! 

Works Cited:

Paul Fussell

The Good Soldiers by David Finkel

Achilles in Vietnam by Jonathan Shay

What It’s Like to Go to War by Karl Marlantes

Redeployment by Phil Klay

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

Operation Never Mind: James Mcmurtry

War Games episode

Admiral Zumwalt

Once more unto the breach, dear listeners of SNAFUBAR, once more. This week on SNAFUBAR, we are going way back in time to the Battle of Agincourt. We know what you’re thinking, “What the heck does the Battle of Agincourt have to do with US military history?” Well Agincourt serves as a cautionary tale, a story of what happens when a military fails to adapt to innovative technologies and strategies on the battlefield. Are the billion dollar battleships setting the United States up like the French at Agincourt, who failed to adapt to more cost effective and efficient weaponry? Find out on this week's episode. We hope you enjoy the show! 

Today's episode is hosted by  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Chair of the Applied Humanities Department at Cal Poly Humboldt. We’re joined by our guest host Liam Salcuni, lecturer with the History Department at Cal Poly Humboldt and usually our writer and researcher for the show.

Works Cited:

Brose, Christian, “The New Revolution in Military Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 2019. 

Cancian, Mark F., “The Golden Fleet’s Battleship Will Never Sail,” Center For Strategic and International Studies, 2025. 

Curry, Anne, Agincourt: A New History, 2006. 

Curry, Anne, Agincourt : Great Battles Series, 2015. 

Keegan, John, The Face of Battle: A Study of Agincourt, Waterloo and the Somme,

1976. 

Shakespeare, William, Henry V, 1623. 

Stephens, Bret, “The US Military Like the French at Agincourt,” New York Times, 2019. 

Warner, Michael P.,The Agincourt Campaign of 1415: The Retinues of the Dukes of Clarence and Gloucester, 2023. 

Williams, Holly et al., Ukraine Uses Drone Innovation to Help Level Battlefield in War with Russia,” CBS, 2026. 

SNAFUBAR is regularly hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor. 

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Chat, are we cooked? Not quite, we just have a couple of guest hosts today! Welcome to SNAFUBAR, a podcast on American militarism and national myths. Today’s episode explores the action packed history of video games, specifically military themed video games. We’ll chart the history of early war games, from the classic boardgame Kriegspiel, used in Prussian military officers training, to major blockbuster video games like Battlefield I. Military themed war games brings up an important question: If we spend our free time immersed in online war games, does that shape our perceptions of or responses to news of international conflict? Do war games diminish the degree to which we’re able to approach war as trauma? Or are we overthinking here and it really is “just a game”? We’ll discuss on this episode of SNAFUBAR

Today's episode is hosted by Liam Salcuni, lecturer with the History Department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and our writer/researcher Roman Sotomayor, an alum of Cal Poly Humboldt who has worked on different research projects and on engaging with the local veterans community here in Humboldt County. 

SNAFUBAR is regularly hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, who Chair of the Applied Humanities Department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠who is an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor (who also hosted today's episode)

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. 

Works Cited:

• Activision, Call of Duty Endowment

• AMRDEC Public Affairs, “America’s Army: Proving Grounds launches on Steam”

• Bajza, Wargame Spotlight: Kriegspiel

• Cox, “Army Using Xbox, PS4 Technology to Build New Virtual Trainers”

• Dunnigan, The Complete Wargames Handbook

• Entertainment Software Association, “US Veterans Say Video Games Support Their Mental Health and Well-Being”

• Espinosa, “From Military Tools to Toys: A History of Video Games”

• Good, “America’s Army going dark after 20 years”

• Goodpastor, “How the Military Uses Call of Duty As A Recruitment Tool”

• Gottfriend and Sidoti, “Teens and Video Games Today”

• Greenwalt, “George Washington’s Integrated Army”

• Keller, “The US military will fight the next big war with Xbox-style video game controllers”

• Kennedy, “Uncle Sam Wants You (To Play This Game)”

• Maas, “How ‘Call of Duty’ Says It Is Getting More Veterans Jobs Than the US Government”

• Mezoff, “Army Game’s Medic Training Helps Save Two Lives”

• National Museum of Play, “Spacewar!”

• O’Dell, “Where in the world are US military deplyed?”

• Schaeffer, “The changing face of America’s veteran population”

• Sinclair, “America’s Army bill: $32.8 million”

• Stack Up

• USAFacts, “Is military enlistment down?”

• YouTube, “America’s Army 3 - Training Medic 1/3"

Welcome back to SNAFUBAR, the show about American military history and our country's national myths. Today’s episode is from our “Canary in the Coalmine series,” only today we won’t be talking about birds, but about the Atomic Era in the United States. We’ll be focusing on the Nevada Test Site and the servicemen that worked at this facility. World War II was over, but the Cold War was just getting started, and in turn, the arms race. 

Between 1946 to 1962, the United States conducted hundreds of  nuclear detonation tests. Four hundred thousand servicemen served and worked at these facilities, sometimes at ground zero of the testing sites, with limited protective equipment. At the time, nuclear testing was projected as an endeavor necessary for keeping democracy and liberty alive across the free world. Servicemen who participated in nuclear testing during this atomic age were an instrumental part of this. However, after their service, veterans exposed to harmful levels of radiation faced many obstacles securing health benefits from the VA, an issue that persists today among the military community for a variety of different health related issues. 

SNAFUBAR is hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠,  Chair of the Applied Humanties department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠who is an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni, lecturer with the history department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and Roman Sotomayor. 

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Works Cited: 

ACHRE Report: Chapter 10: Human Research at the Bomb Tests

Andrew Bacevich, Ballpark Liturgy: America’s New Civic Religion: Cheap Grace at Fenway

Atomic Veterans Were Silenced for 50 Years. Now, They're Talking.

Clyde Haberman, Veterans of Atomic Test Blasts: No Warning, and Late Amends, 2016

Edward Abbey Desert Solitaire 

Jesus Hits Like the Atom Bomb

Department of Defense: Atomic Veterans Commemorative Service Medal.

History of the Nevada Test Site and Nuclear Testing Background

Hidden History: America’s Atomic Veterans

Jesus Hits Like An Atom Bomb 

National Association of Atomic Veterans: Newsletter

National Association of Atomic Veterans, Minnesota’s Atomic Veterans Day, 2021

Nuclear Tourism: When Atomic Tests Were a Tourist Attraction in Las Vegas, 1950s - Rare Historical Photos

New York State Department of Health, Radiation and Health

Operation Buster Jangle, 1951

Operation Plumbbob, 1957

Operation UPSHOT-KNOTHOLE, 1953

Pamela Engle, America Came To A Standstill During The O.J. Verdict — Here's Everything That Stopped, 2014.

Shot Hood Nuclear Test, Plumbbob series, 1957

Smedley Butler, War is a Racket, 1935

Tales from the Atomic Age - Pigs in Uniform | Museum of Radiation and Radioactivity

These Atomic Bomb Tests Used U.S. Troops as Guinea Pigs

The Atomic Soldiers: U.S. Veterans, Used as Guinea Pigs, Break the Silence - The Atlantic
"The Clan of One-Breasted Women" by Terry Tempest Williams, 1991

In 1953 the CIA conducted a covert operation to overthrow Muhammad Mossadegh, the democratically elected leader of Iran. This was the CIA’s very first mission dedicated to regime change and done in collaboration with British intelligence in order to install a government that was sympathetic to western business interests.  

The consequences of this action were severe and lasting, casting a long shadow. Join us as we unpack the details that led up to the overthrow, the people who played a role in this operation, and the suffering and death that followed. 

SNAFUBAR is hosted by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sara Hart⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Chair of the Department of Applied Humanities at Cal Poly Humboldt, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jeff Crane ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠who is an Environmental Historian and Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. 

Research and writing for the show is done by Liam Salcuni and Roman Sotomayor 

SNAFUBAR is produced by Abigail Smithson and brought to you by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at Cal Poly Humboldt. 

Works Cited:

Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952-1954, Iran, 1951-1954

Harry S. Truman Presidential Library, Central Intelligence Agency (Declassified 1999): Analysis of Iranian Political Situation, 1951

Harry S. Truman Presidential Library: The Creation of the CIA

Office of the Historian: National Security Document 68

Office of the Historian: National Security Act of 1947

Office of the Director of National Intelligence: National Security Act of 1947  

Steven Kinzer, All the Shah’s Men, 2003

Teaching American History: The Long Telegram

The Mossadegh Project: Biography 

The Mossadegh Project: Mossadegh and Truman

Winston Churchill, “The Sinews of Peace Speech, 1947, International Churchill Society