S.W.B. Folsom
@swbfolsom.bsky.social
Award-winning author. Film and music enthusiast. Capable of holding two opposing ideas in my mind at the same time. Neither a tough guy nor a fool.
No more TwitterX; only Bluesky and Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/swbfolsom
No more TwitterX; only Bluesky and Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/swbfolsom
Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college:
Modern American Authors
Drugs & American Society
Foreign Policy of Russia and USSR
Life Beyond the Earth
Contemporary U.S. Foreign Policy
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
Modern American Authors
Drugs & American Society
Foreign Policy of Russia and USSR
Life Beyond the Earth
Contemporary U.S. Foreign Policy
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college
Philosophy of Law
Women in Literature: Flannery O'Connor
International Relations theory
Accounting
African History 1500-present (1990)
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
Philosophy of Law
Women in Literature: Flannery O'Connor
International Relations theory
Accounting
African History 1500-present (1990)
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college
Sage, the Way, and Zen
Shakespeare
Religion and Modern Secularism
Creative Fiction Writing
International Political Economy
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
Sage, the Way, and Zen
Shakespeare
Religion and Modern Secularism
Creative Fiction Writing
International Political Economy
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
January 31, 2026 at 1:25 AM
Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college:
Modern American Authors
Drugs & American Society
Foreign Policy of Russia and USSR
Life Beyond the Earth
Contemporary U.S. Foreign Policy
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
Modern American Authors
Drugs & American Society
Foreign Policy of Russia and USSR
Life Beyond the Earth
Contemporary U.S. Foreign Policy
Pleasantly surprised how many of these classes proved useful later in life.
I’m William Devane. Buy gold.
January 26, 2026 at 5:58 PM
I’m William Devane. Buy gold.
Jesus, I needed this today.
January 26, 2026 at 3:28 AM
Jesus, I needed this today.
Maybe the only bright spot to come out of all this is that ICE has given the senior enlisted leaders of the Army, Air Force, and National Guard a legitimate reason change their respective services’ utility uniforms.
January 25, 2026 at 11:58 PM
Maybe the only bright spot to come out of all this is that ICE has given the senior enlisted leaders of the Army, Air Force, and National Guard a legitimate reason change their respective services’ utility uniforms.
Unfortunately, it took the events of the past two weeks to compel me to *finally* write my first Substack post. I hope it resonates with everyone.
Facebook, Friends, and a Divided Country
“Think where man’s glory most begins and ends, and say my glory was I had such friends.” — W. B. Yeats
substack.com
January 25, 2026 at 8:11 PM
Unfortunately, it took the events of the past two weeks to compel me to *finally* write my first Substack post. I hope it resonates with everyone.
Re-upping this because, well, ICE has apparently murdered yet *another* American citizen in the streets.
I wrote this passage in 2015. The masked ICE agents who are rampaging through our cities could learn a lesson or two about professionalism, ethics, and compassion from my Marines in 3/7.
January 24, 2026 at 11:44 PM
Re-upping this because, well, ICE has apparently murdered yet *another* American citizen in the streets.
One day, when this self-imposed U.S. nightmare is a distant memory, I hope my friends in Australia, the UK, Canada, France, Denmark, Norway, Germany, Taiwan, & elsewhere will 1) Still talk to me, & 2) Let me visit & buy them a drink… because that’ll be the *least* I can do after all this nonsense.
January 24, 2026 at 3:15 AM
One day, when this self-imposed U.S. nightmare is a distant memory, I hope my friends in Australia, the UK, Canada, France, Denmark, Norway, Germany, Taiwan, & elsewhere will 1) Still talk to me, & 2) Let me visit & buy them a drink… because that’ll be the *least* I can do after all this nonsense.
Posted without further comment.
January 24, 2026 at 2:38 AM
Posted without further comment.
Task Force Lion’s headquarters was primarily U.S. Marines & sailors cobbled together from many different units. But who the task force was as a team — and what we accomplished in 2017-18 — wouldn’t have been possible without the many nations who supported us.
Yes, our diversity was our strength.
Yes, our diversity was our strength.
January 24, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Task Force Lion’s headquarters was primarily U.S. Marines & sailors cobbled together from many different units. But who the task force was as a team — and what we accomplished in 2017-18 — wouldn’t have been possible without the many nations who supported us.
Yes, our diversity was our strength.
Yes, our diversity was our strength.
I mentioned that the Danes led the Build Partner Capacity effort for Task Force Lion in the counter-ISIS effort. But the Danes — and we — couldn’t have done the job without the contributions from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and the Czech Republic.
January 24, 2026 at 1:49 AM
I mentioned that the Danes led the Build Partner Capacity effort for Task Force Lion in the counter-ISIS effort. But the Danes — and we — couldn’t have done the job without the contributions from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and the Czech Republic.
France too was an eager and thoroughly capable partner in the counter-ISIS fight. Task Force Wagram — a French battalion armed with Caesar cannons — advanced with Task Force Lion all the way to the Syrian border, and they had devastating effects on the ISIS fighters entrenched around al Qa’im.
January 24, 2026 at 1:42 AM
France too was an eager and thoroughly capable partner in the counter-ISIS fight. Task Force Wagram — a French battalion armed with Caesar cannons — advanced with Task Force Lion all the way to the Syrian border, and they had devastating effects on the ISIS fighters entrenched around al Qa’im.
I would be remiss if I neglected to mention the role Norway played in the counter-ISIS effort. The Norwegian Task Unit was an aggressive team who supported Task Force Lion by partnering with the Iraqi brigades during Operation Desert Lion. They took their job seriously, and the results were notable.
January 24, 2026 at 1:30 AM
I would be remiss if I neglected to mention the role Norway played in the counter-ISIS effort. The Norwegian Task Unit was an aggressive team who supported Task Force Lion by partnering with the Iraqi brigades during Operation Desert Lion. They took their job seriously, and the results were notable.
The UK was also a key partner in the counter-ISIS fight. Had they not led the force protection effort for Task Force Lion at al-Asad, our team wouldn’t have had the capacity to go outside the wire with the Iraqis. And, if I’m being honest, the Brits did force protection better than we could have.
January 24, 2026 at 1:24 AM
The UK was also a key partner in the counter-ISIS fight. Had they not led the force protection effort for Task Force Lion at al-Asad, our team wouldn’t have had the capacity to go outside the wire with the Iraqis. And, if I’m being honest, the Brits did force protection better than we could have.
Thank you for paying attention to this public service announcement during this week’s national weather emergency.
January 23, 2026 at 1:37 AM
Thank you for paying attention to this public service announcement during this week’s national weather emergency.
No Ozzy Osbourne “Bark at the Moon”?
No Accept “Midnight Mover”?
This will not stand, man…
No Accept “Midnight Mover”?
This will not stand, man…
Such a fun walk down memory lane with @idislikestephen.bsky.social & @annkpowers.bsky.social ❤️
www.npr.org/2026/01/20/n...
www.npr.org/2026/01/20/n...
What are the greatest videos of MTV’s golden era? : All Songs Considered
Reports from late last year about the demise of MTV were overstated; but it got us thinking about the network’s legacy and most memorable moments. So, on this episode, we remember the best of MTV with...
www.npr.org
January 21, 2026 at 10:41 PM
No Ozzy Osbourne “Bark at the Moon”?
No Accept “Midnight Mover”?
This will not stand, man…
No Accept “Midnight Mover”?
This will not stand, man…
Denmark was a key partner in the counter-ISIS mission, and they were among the most reliable and most respected members of my Task Force Lion team. This was what I wrote about their battalion that led the task force’s Build Partner Capacity.
January 21, 2026 at 9:06 PM
Denmark was a key partner in the counter-ISIS mission, and they were among the most reliable and most respected members of my Task Force Lion team. This was what I wrote about their battalion that led the task force’s Build Partner Capacity.
So long, al-Asad... but something tells me we'll be back eventually. If that's the case, I'm sure Task Force Lion will be happy to get the band back together.
January 19, 2026 at 11:58 PM
So long, al-Asad... but something tells me we'll be back eventually. If that's the case, I'm sure Task Force Lion will be happy to get the band back together.
Seen in the wild… first thing I thought of was @queenofthinair.bsky.social
January 19, 2026 at 2:49 AM
Seen in the wild… first thing I thought of was @queenofthinair.bsky.social
I wrote this passage in 2015. The masked ICE agents who are rampaging through our cities could learn a lesson or two about professionalism, ethics, and compassion from my Marines in 3/7.
January 17, 2026 at 6:03 PM
I wrote this passage in 2015. The masked ICE agents who are rampaging through our cities could learn a lesson or two about professionalism, ethics, and compassion from my Marines in 3/7.
If anyone had told me in 1996, when I was a lieutenant hanging out at the Belly Up, that I’d be watching my daughter play there 30 years later, I’d have told them they were smoking high quality crack cocaine.
January 15, 2026 at 5:44 AM
If anyone had told me in 1996, when I was a lieutenant hanging out at the Belly Up, that I’d be watching my daughter play there 30 years later, I’d have told them they were smoking high quality crack cocaine.
Given current events, seems like we probably need to bring back some public service announcements.
January 7, 2026 at 12:28 AM
Given current events, seems like we probably need to bring back some public service announcements.
Posted without comment.
January 6, 2026 at 5:38 PM
Posted without comment.
“You did WHAT last night?”
January 3, 2026 at 6:32 PM
“You did WHAT last night?”
Given current events, I urge everyone to listen to the most recent Common Sense episode by @dancarlin.bsky.social … Remember, folks… the powers the president is exercising right now won’t leave the office when he eventually does!
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
Who's the Boss?
Podcast Episode · Common Sense with Dan Carlin · 11/24/2025 · 40m
podcasts.apple.com
January 3, 2026 at 8:33 AM
Given current events, I urge everyone to listen to the most recent Common Sense episode by @dancarlin.bsky.social … Remember, folks… the powers the president is exercising right now won’t leave the office when he eventually does!
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...