

What a Hell of a Way to Dad
What a Hell of a Way to Dad
Francis and Nate bring you weekly dad chats, plotting the growth of their daughters and themselves. Episodes are interspersed with interviews with various authors and journalists. The hosts are both veterans, so also expect a lot of meandering stories
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 17, 2020 • 1h 16min
CGI Reagan and the War Crimes Simulator (feat. Kevin Frint)
This week, Francis is on vacation and Nate is joined by the What a Hell of a Way to Die official zoomer correspondent Kevin Frint (@kevin_frint) to discuss the Call of Duty franchise. Didn't we just discuss this on a bonus episode with Brock? Yes, but we're not good at scheduling things. Anyway, in anticipation of the new COD installment, Kevin takes us through the storied and increasingly fascist story arcs of the entire series. This week's bonus features Nate and Francis in combination with the Well There's Your Problem podcast on the topic of technicals. Have you ever wanted to know what constitutes a technical? Have you ever wanted to weld a machine gun to a zamboni and declare yourself the rightful lord of the manor? If so, get the episode on Patreon at the $5 tier here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/41575118 *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Sep 17, 2020 • 10min
*PREVIEW* On the Subtle Art of the Technical feat. Well There's Your Problem
It's a combo episode of What a Hell of a Way to Die and Well There's Your Problem, in which we discuss the history of the technical and have a debate about what actually counts as one. You will love it hopefully as much as Uday and Qusay Hussain loved technicals. If you want to hear the whole thing, get it on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/41575118

Sep 10, 2020 • 1h 4min
The Worst President You Know Just Made a Great Point
Donald Trump is at war with the generals. Well, not really, but he's a big idiot and is lashing out at anyone he thinks is criticizing him -- which has led him to make the statement that the military rank-and-file love him, but the top brass don't because they just want to go to war in order to make money for defense contractors. Now, we're not saying we agree with him, and we don't endorse him in any capacity, but this is perhaps an example of why our big wet baby leader is right for the wrong reasons. Because yes, when you get down to it, it does all seem like one big money-making enterprise. We do a bit of a DadChat at the beginning, but the regular discussion starts at 9:26 This week's bonus features Francis and extreme friend of the show Brock Wilbur discussing the Call of Duty series. It's got a lot of war crimes! You can learn about it here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/41248364 *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Sep 3, 2020 • 1h 10min
Tik Tok and Army Lieutenants: Hell is Real
You know what's bad? The general concept of 'military TikTok.' You know what's even worse? An active duty Army lieutenant posting a Holocaust joke on his TikTok with 3 million followers. But, as we point out in our discussion, he's only telling the kind of jokes that anyone who grew up in a majority white and Christian part of America grew up hearing. We argue that the true reckoning should be asking yourself why people think jokes like that are funny. The story about said lieutenant is here: https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/08/31/fort-bragg-investigating-army-officer-crass-holocaust-joke-tiktok.html We do a bit of a DadChat at the beginning, but the regular discussion starts at 13:35. This week's bonus features Nate and Milo from the Trashfuture podcast discussing British war movies about WWII, the deep national psychosis that springs from them, and why A Bridge Too Far is just a stone-cold classic. Get it here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/41037380 Get the trans rights AK pin! $5 from each pin goes to support Trans Lifeline: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/product-page/transgender-ak-pin *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Aug 27, 2020 • 1h 4min
SEAL Team S***poster: The McHooyah Story
Why is it that there's one particularly online SEAL, the guy who shot Bin Laden, and he won't stop talking about it? Have you ever read his book? Well, Nate and Francis dug through the McHooyah story and have brought out some choice quotes for you to examine. We explore the deeply unwell psychology of the Navy SEALs and why this particular guy is just so much all the time. We do a bit of a DadChat at the beginning, but the regular discussion starts at 11:43. This week's bonus features Francis speaking with Air Force legal guy Pat about Guantanamo Bay, the absurd lack of any real judicial process there, and why it's basically becoming a geriatric home for people we're hoping to have die before they get to stand trial. Get it on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/40698677 *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Aug 21, 2020 • 1h 28min
Osprey: The Elevator of Death feat. Well There's Your Problem
We did a joint episode with the cast of the Well There's Your Problem podcast (@wtyppod), covering the checkered history of the V-22 Osprey. We're going to do another bonus episode with WTYP soon, so check out the Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/Hellofawaytodie *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Aug 20, 2020 • 1h 9min
The Audacity of No Hope for Anything Ever
The DNC platform didn't exactly make a strong impression on us, so we decided to discuss it in detail -- with specific emphasis on the stuff that pertains to America's wars. We're both really excited about 'right-sizing' our presence in combat zones! For this week's bonus, Francis speaks with journalist Jasper Craven (@Jasper_Craven) about the right-wing veteran mythos and why ex-SEAL Carl Higbie will probably survive the Trump administration and factor in our lives for a while, despite being a huge piece of garbage. Get it on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/40598382 Jasper has a substack and you should absolutely sign up for it: https://battleborne.substack.com/people/2318067-jasper-craven *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Aug 12, 2020 • 1h 1min
Don't Mind Me, I'm Just an Ex-SEAL Chucking Pipe Bombs
This week features a story that very few people outside of Oregon have seen fit to cover. The story of what appears to be an ex-Navy SEAL chucking pipe bombs at protestors in Portland and then bragging about it on LinkedIn. A tale as old as time: what is wrong with the Navy. (Source: https://www.opb.org/article/2020/08/10/man-seen-in-area-of-homemade-explosive-at-portland-protest-ided-as-ex-navy-seal/?outputType=amp&__twitter_impression=true) This week's bonus features Francis speaking with defense reporter Kelsey Atherton (@AthertonKD) about the usage of nuclear weapons, the reasons for mushroom clouds, the weird fixation on drones as a solution to everything, and much more. Get it on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/40276380 *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Aug 6, 2020 • 1h 3min
DHS: The President's Private Army
This week, Nate and Francis are joined by special guest and friend of the show Ken Klippenstein (@KenKlippenstein), a reporter for the Nation who has become the master of leaks. We discuss his recent reporting about DHS's "Fusion Cells" in Portland, their presence as masked goons disappearing people into rental vans, and how the entire structure of the agency is a holdover of Bush-era paranoia. This week's bonus is a DadChat, and it's available on Patreon at the $1 tier. Get it here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/40020160 *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang

Jul 30, 2020 • 1h 4min
Banning Recruiting on Twitch? How About Everywhere Else, Too
This week, Nate and Francis discuss the amendment put forth by Rep. Ocasio-Cortez to defund the military's recruiting on Twitch and similar platforms. We talk about how recruiting worked when we were in school, how people get assigned to be recruiters, and why (once again) the correct position is Do Not Join. (source: https://thehill.com/policy/defense/budget-appropriations/509218-ocasio-cortez-calls-for-end-to-federal-funding-for) This week's bonus features Joe Kassabian of the Lions Led by Donkeys podcast on the topic of the '90s TV series Young Indiana Jones. Get it at the $3 tier on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/39746069 *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang


