Horseshoe around me

Weekly Roundup

• ********EMERGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT***

• Are You a Creative Genius?

  FF Updates and we’re looking for contributors.

• Why Veteran Employment Conferences are Bullshit

  We could be assassinated for saying this.

• AUSA Pops off Next Week

  Get drunk on Raytheon’s dime and get some free swag.

• Your Job. Your Service. Your Attorney.
  Brian Lawler is his name, USERRA is his game.

• Call for Submissions: The Fall 2025 Special Operations Style Guide

  Do you have the X factor we’re looking for?

• PART⚡TIME News: What Happened Last Week
  This week’s top headlines affecting the Reserve and Guard community.

• Support the Fight: Donate to Friendly Forces

  We help US companies financially enable your service. Financially enable us by making a donation.

Interested in becoming a featured newsletter sponsor? Make us an offer we can’t refuse. Email [email protected]

EMERGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT

We all saw this. I’ve linked the article down at the bottom. I get it, we all go through some…softer…phases throughout life, particularly the longer we’ve been in.

But please, IF YOU ARE CURRENTLY A FATBODY, BEGIN DE-FATTING YOURSELF IMMEDIATELY.

It’s embarrassing for us all.

Friendly Forces

Are You a Creative Genius?

First things, first. Friendly Forces has some potentially massive partnerships incoming. We are also working on some cool new tools for reservists and companies to use as well as authoring some white papers to help companies understand why they absolutely should be implementing generous paid military leave policies in their organizations.

We will share those as they come out, and on LinkedIn. In fact, give Friendly Forces a follow on LinkedIn right now.

We are assembling a team of writers/content creators for the PTH Newsletter and probably some other stuff we have going. We’re looking for creative types, great writers, funny people, etc. that contribute humorously and/or informatively in the newsletter. Guard/Reserve experience would help, but it’s not necessarily a requirement.

This opportunity is literally like buying Bitcoin at $1. If interested, shoot a rezzie and some kind of writing or content sample to [email protected]

Why Veteran Employment Conferences are Bullshit

I think “Action” Jack Barker said it best in Silicon Valley, “So, before you waste time with some freeform jazz odyssey of masturbatory bullshit, just tell me what concrete information you have for me that I do not already possess!”

I was recently perusing LinkedIn as one does at 130AM on a Thursday and came across this panel.

It’s always the wrong people in room at these things. This is ostensibly a panel of experts that are supposed to be talking to other industry members about real ways to attract and retain Guard and Reserve members in the workforce. Except, here’s what’s wrong. I’ll try to be gentle.

1) All three panelists work at private companies in recruiting.

2) A third of the panelists never served in the military.

3) Two thirds of the panelists never served in the Guard or Reserve.

4) The one guy that actually did serve in the Guard works at a company with a terrible military leave policy (USIC).

5) I was unable to verify what kind of paid military leave US Foods and United Rentals provide, if any.

So….how exactly are any of these companies attracting and retaining Guard and Reserve members? Without supportive paid military leave, your company isn’t doing shit to attract and retain Guard/Reserve members.

And why are these the people being put on a panel about this very niche subject about which they clearly have no domain knowledge?

This is reason 1000 why we founded Friendly Forces. These are the people out there “advising” industry and being looked to as helpers and leaders for Reservists.

I have absolutely nothing against these folks personally, but this is why it’s so hard to enact actual change.

The people given the platform are usually the wrong ones.

AUSA Pops Off Next Week

AUSA is the Army’s big, expensive annual conference where GOs and industry vendors get to make sweet, sweet love to each other in downtown DC and get shit housed at industry sponsored happy hours.

If you’ve never been, it actually is pretty cool—all the new gadgets and weapons that people are trying to sell to the Army are on display for you to f*ck with. The Army also uses this conference as a platform to release new policies and for senior leaders to talk about their priorities.

If you’re in town and have nothing to do, it’s worth going to. Some of us may even stop by.

It’s free for military. You can register here if you want.

Your Job. Your Service. Your Attorney.

Boss giving you grief about your military commitments? Call Brian Lawler.

If you’re running into problems with your employer due to your military service, contact Brian Lawler.

Brian’s a former Marine pilot, reservist, and one of the top USERRA attorneys in the country. He knows the law better than your HR department, and he’s made a career out of holding employers accountable.

Free consult. No win, no fee.
If your job’s on the line, Brian’s the guy you want in the fight.

Set up a meeting here.

The Fratty Guard

Call for Submissions: The Fall 2025 Special Operations Style Guide

Get your submissions in. This going to be fun.

All submissions MUST be submitted via email to [email protected] 

For your merch needs, if you want the GOAT classics, check out The Fratty Guard Store.

If you want to make baller ass unit gear repping our logo suite, check out The Fratty Guard Unit Collab Store. Units are making some awesome shit.

PART⚡TIME News: What Happened Last week

Pentagon agrees to host Qatari F-15 fighter jets and pilots at Idaho air base

High cost of military leave: Southwest Airlines pays $18,5 million

Trump's use of National Guard strays from role as 'minutemen,' military experts say

Judge temporarily blocks Trump National Guard deployment to Chicago area

Hegseth decried 'fat troops.' Then a photo of hefty National Guard soldiers went viral.

Mike Johnson Rejects Bill for US Military Pay as Shutdown Continues

US Army accepting roughly $1 million donation to bring senior leaders to DC conference as troops brace for missed paycheck

Support the Fight

If you support the work that Friendly Forces does, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to help keep the lights on. Every bit helps. Turns out stuff is expensive and we put countless man hours into the work.

That’s it for this week.

Absolutely massive things coming.