A RON Site Tragedy | Mike Drop Clip - Episode 132

About this video

A guest recounts calling in an AC-130 airstrike on what appeared to be two armed adult males near a RON (Rest Overnight) site in Afghanistan, only to discover afterward that the targets were actually two children aged around 8-12. He describes the immediate aftermath when villagers brought the bodies, the guilt and PTSD that followed for years, and his eventual realization that he needed professional help after nearly endangering his own children while driving.

Key takeaways

• The guest describes how intelligence indicated armed adult males approaching their position, leading him to authorize an AC-130 strike that killed two children who had been given weapons by ISIS
• The guest struggled with severe guilt and PTSD for years, isolating himself emotionally and avoiding burdening his family, until a dangerous dissociative episode while driving his children prompted him to seek help
• The guest emphasizes the tendency in the Special Operations community to handle trauma alone rather than seeking support or ‘dealing other people into their problems’

Episode details: published April 11, 2023 · 9K views · 13:15 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Stories told by Mike Ritland’s podcast guests are the guests’ own accounts, attributed to them — not independently verified. Commentary is Ritland’s, presented as his analysis.

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