Honey Smith Walls 0:26

Welcome to the Cannaba Verum podcast, the cannabis truth podcast. I speak the language of cannabis freely and uncensored, while educating my audience on the safe use of this live Plant Therapy. You should know what’s in your cannabis, what’s good and what’s not. It does not come with an FDA stamp of approval, yet. Using cannabis mindfully, as medication is a different concept in the health care philosophy of the past 100 years. There’s a lot to learn and consider. Cannabis is not dangerous, but it is not harmless, either. This is Honey Smith Walls, a 21st century cannabis shaman here to explain the language of cannabis in historical, political, and scientific terms, so you can make educated decisions about the medicine you ingest.

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Honey Smith Walls 2:32

 Hello, my friends, you’re in for another trek around the globe as we listen to the incredible stories of my friend Hawk, now known to the world as Mike Tucker, a prolific author of dozens of books, who so valiantly served not only our country, but others in saving some of the most defenseless people on the planet from real and certain slavery. But what does legendary jazz Maestro Stan Kenton have to do with getting through a Turkish border patrol as Hawk sneaks into the country on a mission? And wait till you hear his strong opinions, formed, not only as the ears on the ground back in the day for Senator Chuck Hagel, former US Secretary of Defense, but also because of his personal service, his education, his talent in communications, as well as his participation in world history. I am honored to bring one of our American heroes to Cannaba Verum today so that you may know him, and understand history on a more personal level, and ultimately what matters most in this world, to all of us… love. And now, our continued conversation from the last episode with warrior poet, the rogue himself, Mike Tucker.

Mike Tucker 3:20

So looking at the situation, you know, right now, the situation is what I said would happen in ‘09 if we did not get out. And sadly I was right. But it’s not difficult to understand just how wrong the strategy was when you’re on the ground, seeing your friends turned into IED magnets. That’s what the American policy did. It turned the best we had- the September 11th generation who volunteered to strike and kill al Qaeda, and instead they got sent on death missions. Because Petreus still can’t get over Vietnam when you look at Petreus’s PhD from Princeton…okay, American counterinsurgency in Vietnam, etc, etc. What’s the most salient thing about why Petreus’  dissertation is a complete and utter fallacy, and a failure as an academic work and simply not true. The most salient fact is this. The number one book, to understand why the United States never should have fought in Vietnam is a book called: American Albatross. The United States, in Vietnam, 1945 – 1975 by retired Major Archimedes L. A. Patti: the number one spy in Asia, or the United States, in 1945, who led the deer team who lashed up with Ho Chi Minh and the Viet Minh. In June of 45, in northern Vietnam, and who went to and who led missions, he- L A Patti, Major Archimedes L. A. Patti, I know it’s a long name,

Honey Smith Walls 6:18

Its an amazing name.

Mike Tucker 6:23

 He was Greek by the way. That’s why he was named Archimedes Leonidas Attilio Patti. Major Patti, who was the top American spy and OSS in World War Two. He was selected for that mention because William Donovan, that spy master at OSS, looked at his record from the Mediterranean and said, This guy will come in fresh to Asia with fresh eyes. He’s never operated in Asia, but he is one of our best guys. This is the guy and he was brilliant. By the way, pick a guy like that. So Patti and the deer team parachuted and got inserted into northern Vietnam, being linked up with HoChiMinh summer of 1945. The reason that the Vietnamese Declaration of Independence, declared on September the second 1945 in Hanoi. The reason why it reads  95% exactly like the American Declaration of Independence, is because major Patti wrote it. And, yeah, and handed it to HoChiMinh and then HoChiMinh made a few changes. And he kept it, they kept the 95% That’s exactly like our Declaration of Independence, and Patti was a close friend of Ho by then. And Patti, straight up, understood that by the late summer of 1945 had won the hearts and minds of the Vietnamese peasantry completely, and in Asia, there’s the same. If you win the rice paddies, you’ve won the war. Another saying,  one I came up with is you win a guerilla war from village to village. Well, that is how the Viet Minh had won their guerilla war against the Japanese, and, and they had fought valiantly against Japanese when the Japanese forced, a famine, the Japanese burned down every field that they could, in Vietnam, to deny to force a famine on the Vietnamese and and to deny rice and food to the farmers, and at that time, Vietnam was over 70% agrarian. So, the Japanese did this god awful thing, and only one group of people stood up and fought against the Japanese when the Japanese did that 1944 going into 45 that group was the Viet Minh. At that point, Ho won the war, because the Vietnamese are very practical people, and they looked at the Viet Minh standing and fighting for them, against all odds, completely outnumbered the Vietminh were against Japanese, and that was the whole was already loved by a pretty fair amount of the Vietnamese people, but after that he was the George Washington in Vietnam. And Patti saw that Patti broke bread, he you know, ate rice with the villagers in the mountains, he carried out the joint missions in Vietminh and OSS American OSS together. And this is one of the greatest tragedies in American history is that Patty’s field intelligence reports, and all of his analyses, and letters from Ho Chi Minh to Truman, that Patti, got to the United States. In the fall of. 1945 never reached Truman’s desk.

Honey Smith Walls 9:28

Oh my gosh,

Mike Tucker 9:29

yeah, yeah, yeah. And you can, you can bet that weighed heavily on my mind in Afghanistan. So, years later, years later,Major Archimedes L. A. Patti, God rest his soul. Years later he wrote the book American Albatross, the United States in Vietnam 1945 1975 And he laid it all out Straight No Chaser, Point Blank. This is what went down. Now, guess which book is not on the bibliography of Petraeus’ PhD dissertation.

Honey Smith Walls 10:05

You’re kidding me, why not,

Mike Tucker 10:06

why because if you choose to read that book in the first place. Honey, what are you doing, you’re thinking, You know what, I really need to get at the whole story, the truth.

Mike Tucker 10:26

Exactly, exactly. And where is he now? Petraeus is inside the beltway, as the Americans like to do to their failures,The American government welcomes him to whatever forum he wants to go to, he wears his medals and he is praised for his failures. And what we’ve got in our country inside the national security apparatus, and so to speak, inside the beltway is we have the blind leading the blind.

Honey Smith Walls 11:01

Careful now. I may have to have you come out and stand guard outside my front door. If you start scaring me about my government.

Mike Tucker 11:08

I will. I will carry my, my old grenade launcher and I will kill that crocodile for you,

Honey Smith Walls 11:18

You sweet thing! I was looking for him this morning when I was walking the puppies around the three ponds. I didn’t see him! I think that’s the rule in Florida right you got to stay away from any water, or you really have to watch out, there might be a couple of alternatives to playing in the pond. But you gotta watch out for gators here. It was their country before it was mine. Mike tell our audience about Istanbul, just before you crossed into the other country. I just love this story I want them to hear.

Mike Tucker 12:02

Before I crossed into Northern Iraq, right. Yeah, yeah. So I flew into Istanbul on July the 13th. “The Long Patrol” rocked hard there on launch in September of, ‘03. And, here it was July 18 ‘03 and The Long Patrol had not yet been published, but of course it was September 12 of ‘03 and it just rises, 5000 copies sold, Boom, and big international publishes books and so on. But, I did that book without an advance so it was real, it was a gamble in a way but I was confident it would rock and it did. And so I still had swag and my swag was two grand, so I landed in Istanbul with two grand. And I got through immigration customs and immigration in Istanbul airports.

So what are you doing here, Mr Tucker. I said, Look, I’ve got my papers from Ego which is this magazine in the Ukraine, big travel magazine, and, and very popular magazine in Europe and in Central Asia. And,  I said I’ve got my papers and as you can see, I’m working as a freelance photographer, doing travel photographs for Ego. You can check everything out so they did. They went into a room there at the airport, and they checked everything out and then immigration officer came out and said, We have, we have spoken with the gentleman in the Ukraine, and we wish you good luck and enjoy Turkey.

So I then went into Istanbul as I planned for at least three nights. And, in Istanbul I went to this incredible jazz club which, as far as I know it does, it may not exist here. I don’t know, it’s been over 20 years. And it was both the Blue Moon Cafe, and it looked out the terrace of it. It had the ground floor, a second floor and that terrace like a half a rooftop, and then on the terrace, you could sit there, drink your drinks. The Jazz was piped in from the live band playing downstairs but it’s piped into speakers on the rooftop, and it was just Stone Cold group, and I’d never been Turkey before and, and I had I was single, and it was a great, so mercy, the band was playing a lot of Stan Getz tunes. And then on the breaks on the breaks between sets, it was all Stan Getz. It was incredible. So Getz is one of my favorite jazz artists.

Honey Smith Walls 15:01

…and bizarre to me that you’re in Istanbul and listening to Stan Getz. 

Mike Tucker 15:08

Well, you know how it is in Europe and Turkey, also in Turkey, and throughout the throughout, really you know outside of the United States, bottom line, but definitely in Europe and also in Turkey. Jazz is still quite popular. I mean, a buddy of mine asked me, man. Why do you, why did you like living in Europe so much, he was talking about Portugal, and I said, I said, Well, I’ll speak, I’ll speak bluntly man, he said, You always do. I said okay well, the Portuguese women were very cool, he said, Okay, I get that. And I said, I said I love jazz and walking down the street in Portugal, I turn a corner, and I’d hear jazz coming out of a cafe, just a little coffee shop, And then I stopped in the coffee, but I’m listening to Paul Desmond, I’m drinking coffee and listening to Paul Desmond, life is good. I get it, you know, and, and it’s something that you know. Now don’t get me wrong I dig all kinds of music, and, and I agree with Paul Desmond who said you never put down anybody any other kind of music you don’t like, you just say it’s not my taste, you know, yeah. And so they’re in Turkey. Had a great time for a couple of nights at the Blue Moon. And then I was on my way to Northern Iraq as planned. I had, of course, connected with a Kurdish Democratic Party, intelligence, with their spies in Washington.

Honey Smith Walls 16:39

So you were really undercover, trying to go in another country,

Mike Tucker  16:45

The Kurds, eventually found out I was a Ronan but I didn’t tell them that before I went in, I wanted to make sure that that I was that they, that they thought, Okay Mike Tucker’s just come in here to write this great oral history. Which I was, and did the only world history of the Kurdish revolution, “Hell is Over Voices of the Kurds After Saddam”, which, by the way, was selected by the judge at Saddam’s trial and was evidence against him, was official evidence against Saddam Hussein.

Mike Tucker 17:23

Yeah, yeah, it was indeed, although the irony here is that no Kurdish writer, because I’m the guy who also says in that book, George Bush has failed. And, and whatever, the American policy is in Iraq I can’t figure it out. And we should get out, etc. At the end of that book I did that, and the Kurds hated me for that. The Kurdish leadership hated me for that, the Kurdish society hated me for that because they revered George Bush, they looked at him as a great liberator, I have no idea what they looked at him now, but it was, it was that book was published November ‘04. And, of course, we’re talking about when I got in, when I got into write that book, when I went as you’re saying I went undercover to write that book I had to. And at the border,  July, the 18th of July the 18th 2003 I was at the border at Har Boar. And this was a time when no American journalists, media of any kind, was being allowed by the Turks into Northern Iraq, or, you know into, Iraq period through that border crossing. And the reason for that was an American special forces A Team had captured Turkish spies who, were believed by the 10th Group Special Forces. Those Turkish spies were believed to be on an assassination mission against British leadership in Northern Iraq.

So, the Turks retaliated to when the A teams capture of the Turkish spies by shutting down the border to all Americans. So there I was at the border with my American passport, and I had an out. In other words, if Turkish immigration in the Turkish military and Turkish intelligence at the border, had not allowed me through the hardball crossing. I was going to go clandestine there. There was a pass in the mountains that I already set up and hooked up with a plan B. Kurdish Kurdish intelligence that thought that did in Washington DC in the first place back in June, right, in our sit down. Our first sit down, we set that up.

So in any event July 18 I’m there, and the Turkish plainclothes, who I’m sure they were the Turkish intelligence or spies. They sat down, they sat me down first, and they put what we have a saying in counterterrorism. When you put the metal on the table they put it nine mil on the table with the barrel pointed at you. They then interrogated me for about 15 minutes, and it was not a rough interrogation in any way. They didn’t physically come at me, but they made it clear that if there’s anything, saying that, that they don’t like. They’re gonna kill me. And then they left these two guys and meanwhile, the people who didn’t leave, whereas guy with a shotgun right behind me, and he was in uniform, he is Turkish army and a guy with a submachine gun in front of me said a shotgun and back to me submachine gun front of me. Those guys never liked me the whole time. They made it and they were, they were, they had what we call weapons at the ready, which means that shotgun was pointed at me, the submachine gun was pointed out, and so then they left the plain closed and the Turkish Intelligence Lab, then Turkish immigration came in, they asked me the same questions.

What are you really doing here, Mr Tucker, you are Mike Tucker. You are a writer, you are a photographer, you have papers from magazines. You say, travel photography in Kuwait, But no, what are you really doing here.

I told you guys, you’re just like I told the first people who were in here. Yes, yes, I am Turkish immigration I don’t care about them. Okay, so you don’t care about him but he worked with you. Yes, I listened to me. Listen to me, we drink tea. I said great, I’m happy for you, you drink tea. He said, “Do not make fun of me!” So then I said look I get to tell you just like I told him, I’ve, as you can see in my documents, I’m here to take travel photographs in Iraq, in Kurt, excuse me in Kuwait. I said it to him very slowly and not like it just did. I sent him on my way to Kuwait to take these travel pictures. And as you can see in my passport, I have no stamps from Kuwait, I’ve never been to Kuwait, and I want to take these glorious travel photographs of the beautiful Arabian Sea. I think the men and the women in Turkey and around the world will enjoy these beautiful photographs. Can you imagine a man and a woman walking on a beach at dawn together in love, and in the evening, after the coffee and whiskey, they look at these beautiful photographs, won’t there be something else.

So he folds his arms, he points his finger at me. Alright, so then he leaves. Then they brought in two Turkish army colonels, they sat down, they just stared at me. Meanwhile the metal was still on the table . Of course the whole time a guy with a shotgun behind the guy with a submachine gun in front. And then the two Turkish colonels just sat there for like five minutes with their arms folded staring at me. You know it’s like it was when I saw, where’s later when I saw Will Ferrell’s goat staring contest. I thought that was, yeah, I remember that, you know, and, yeah, lo and behold, then one of them finally spoke and he said, Tell us why you are really going into Iraq.

Honey Smith Walls 23:25

Oh my god, I love your voices.

Mike Tucker 23:25

I said, I said I’m on my way to Kuwait, guys, I’m on my way to, you know, Colonel I’m on my way to Kuwait Colonel I’m on my way to Kuwait, and then they left. Now, they brought in now it was getting close to an hour. And they were, they were incredibly frustrated, and of course they had my passport the whole time course. And now, now, a new lieutenant came in, a Turkish Army Lieutenant. This young dude, I was, was I that was, I was 43 at that time. I was 43. This guy was maybe like 23-24 and he had a full shoulder holster. He was pretty cool in there, he just, he sat down and he just nodded perfunctorily to the guy with a shotgun and the guy with a submachine gun he just got a gesture to them. He shrugged his shoulders. He nodded. He gestured to them, and they lowered their weapons for the first time in the entire investigation.

 

Honey Smith Walls 24:29

Well that’s different body language than you were getting before.

Mike Tucker 24:32

That’s right, that’s right. And so, and the metal was still on the table. And he said, Do you want a cup of coffee. I said sure, and he nods to the guy with submachine gun of the Turkish soldiers’ submachine gun goes out, gets two cups of coffee and brings them in. I guess he understood if he’s going to get one for me, it’s going to get one for the lieutenant, and it was good coffee. It was good coffee, matter of fact was that damn good Turkish coffee that was the that was the only good thing about the interrogation. That what was coming, was the best thing.

So then the lieutenant, as we’re drinking our coffee, he just, He just shoots it at me. So, you are going to take the travel photographs in Kuwait. I said, That’s right. I see. And now I’m drinking coffee again. He’s drinking coffee, and then he looks at me again, puts his coffee down and now he looks at me. So why didn’t you just fly from New York City to Kuwait. You know he had me then that second I thought, I have no stamps in my passport from Turkey, I had, I had worked in the UAE 2000 to 2002 gotten a thorough immersion in Arab culture in the UAE, which turned out very providential saved my life in Iraq on a couple of occasions, and of course was the, was the foundation for the covert work, I did as a Ronan in Saudi Arabia for the Europeans, 2010 2015, but I never flown to Istanbul.

Honey Smith Walls 26:08

I cant believe your mind would even go to a blank passport as an excuse but it did, it did. Thanks be to God.

Mike Tucker 26:18

You know, it must have been that, that those, those hill tribe the hunting, two or three days hunting in the mountains, you’re on your own and you get, you know, so

Honey Smith Walls 26:31

So did he get it. He said get it? You said, so look at my passport.

Mike Tucker 26:34

So, in that split second I just smiled and I said, well you can see in my passport, I have no stamps from Istanbul I’ve never been to Turkey. And he’s, and he folds his arms, he says, so. I said so, I wanted to come and see some of your beautiful country, before I made my way to Kuwait to take these great travel photographs of the Arabian coastline, the Arabian Sea coastline, there in Kuwait, and while I was in Istanbul, man I had a great time. I see. So. Well, you know, I’ll tell you I was at this incredible place, a great jazz club, and then when I said jazz club, his whole demeanor changed.

He leaned forward, he moved his coffee aside, he named forward. Both hands on the table. Very Al Pacinoesque. Right. And, and, and very Dineroesque even more De Niro esque than Pacino and, and God bless them both. So he then looks at me and says, tell me about the jazz club, just like that.

And I said well this incredible place Blue Moon cafe. They’ve got a ground floor, second floor and this terrace, this, this like half of the half of the rooftop. And you can see over the Mediterranean there man it’s, it’s a spectacular view that it’s glorious just makes you feel good to be alive.

And now, he drinks a little of his coffee. Again, in the Dineroesque way. And he smiles and he says, Blue Moon cafe, who is the owner of that Blue Moon Cafe, and I had talked to the owner when I was there I made it happen. If I’m at a jazz club in any part of the world. I’ve never been there before, I want to remember it. And also want the people there to know, hey, you guys are fantastic and I want to thank whoever runs a joint. Right.

And so I had met Uncle Turk as he referred to himself, and it was really just a jovial affable cat, as jazz club owners tend to be, and he was about. He was about 5’11 a little heavy set, smoking a Cuban cigar, and he had big big glass of red wine in one hand a Cuban cigar and the other, and we’re talking about Stan Getz at the Blue Moon cafe and when I met Uncle Turk because I, I just talked with bartender said he’s the owner here, I want  out to be his uncle Turk because here you are American. I said, Yeah, you’re the only American here tonight. I said Yeah, I guess. Wow. And okay, I will delegate Uncle Turk is in the back room so Uncle Turk came out back room, and walked up, he says, So you’re the American. What can I do for you. I just want to thank you for having such a great jazz club man its fantastic and it’s really cool people and I Thank you for playing so much Stan Getz on the break between sets and thanks for your band playin so many tunes by Stan Getz yeah Stan Getz is one of my favorite musicians. God bless you and, you know, I thank you so much. You really like Stan Getz. I sure do. Come back tomorrow night. Drinks are on me. You are the only American I’ve seen for at least six months here, so.

Mike Tucker 30:11

Drinks on me. We talked about jazz and I introduced you to some Turkish women. I said okay, definitely

Mike Tucker 30:21

Oh yeah and and and. So lo and behold, I was there the next night is zoned and then now literally three three nights later, three days later, I’m at the border that Har Boar. No, going, going in covert, basically. And now telling him when I said when I said to him, you know, Uncle Turk I said well, Uncle Turk is the owner and that Turkish Army Lieutenant slapped the table. He was so excited and that and that piece that nine mil on the table rattled of course, and he’s smiles and the guy with the shotgun looks at him like, Oh, is something wrong, and the Turkish Army Lieutenant says, Oh you know my Uncle Turk!

Mike Tucker 31:14

I said, Wow, that’s incredible brother, and he says, ah, and then he leans forward you really know about Stan Getz. Tell me, what is your favorite song by Stan Getz. and, and I said I love his version of Falling In Love. And, and the guy leans back in the chair now completely relaxed and at this point. Very Pachino-esque  when Pacino leans back in a chair is just like I am, I am the great PICINO and the world is good, he has that look on his face like that. And, and then, and he said, that is a very good song. What about the album Anniversary? Where was that recorded? And I thought, this guy really knows his Stan Getz. I looked at him and that’s one of, that’s one of my favorite albums I guess and I said that was recorded live in Northern Europe.

He goes, Yes, you. You are. You are who you say you are, and then pulled out this box from under the table and I had no line of sight on the table never looked under the table the old interrogation of course. You don’t move, and, and so he pulls out this little box he pulls out an ink pad and a couple stamps and so on. And this little, you know, whatever they call it and He stamped my passport. And he said, You are free to go. You walk across the bridge, and you’re in northern Iraq, Kurdistan. I wish you good luck and take great photos of Arabian Sea my friend. and then he raised his hand, he slapped the table again and he says, ah, Stan Getz.

Honey Smith Walls 33:11

I never in a million years would have believed that the name of one of America’s finest jazz musicians would keep you out of trouble.

Break

Mike Tucker 34:22

And then strangely enough, Honey, you’ll love this story your listeners will love this story. Years later, as a deep cover Ronan, as a freelance samurai for the Europeans in Saudi Arabia 2010- 2015, hunting down and taking down al qaeda  financiers in Saudi Arabia, just as you know if the Saudis had ever known what I was doing, then I would have been hanged for espionage. But, I beat them.

So, at that time in 2012 I was in a taxi going from a place in central Saudi Arabia, which is one of the places where a lot of kinds of financiers were, and a few of them still are. And I was on my way to Riyadh, I was on my way to get into the diplomatic quarter, and have my meeting with the Europeans, one of my meetings with the Europeans. And then, as we were, as we were rolling through the desert on both sides. The taxi driver who was from Kerala, from India, and who is Muslim, of course, he put in the, the CD, Sweet Rain by Stan Getz.  And he started, he started talking about this and that, and he said, You are American right. And I said yes I am, and he said, I want America to survive. I am a good Muslim. And then he pointed out the desert to this huge building just like a three story concrete building out in the middle nowhere and he said that was a prison that holds 2800 or so. Al Qaeda terrorists. They will be there for a long time. And this is when this is the kind of thing that Americans have very little understanding of, because the CIA has an unwritten agreement, and they will never admit this on public record, but I got this straight from a CIA Clandestine Service Officer.

Right. The CIA has an unwritten agreement since 1947 with the Saudi government to and the Saudi royal family, to never carry out clandestine operations inside Saudi Arabia. So, you know, one of the reasons I was there was because I knew that beforehand, and I knew. Hey, since the CIA failed in Saudi Arabia. I will not fail, I’ll get in there, I’ll work with the Europeans and I’ll get the job done. And meanwhile, you know, that kind of detail, those kinds of facts about just how deep the network is of al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia. Something Americans really need to know. And if, if the CIA had ever carried out clandestine operations inside Saudi Arabia in the 1980s and the 1990s, September 11 never would have happened.

Honey Smith Walls 37:36

Well, it sounds like we’ve got a bone to pick with the CIA.

Mike Tucker 37:40

Oh absolutely, absolutely. I mean, they just won’t know how to execute clandestine, that’s the bottom line. They are simply incompetent clandestine,

Honey Smith Walls 38:00

Then why are they in the middle of it then?

Mike Tucker 38:02

yeah and and and. And also, I guess the main thing that the CIA and the Pentagon don’t understand is that real politique, is dead, but history is not geopolitics is dead, but history in is not what has driven a stake through the heart of geopolitics is the same thing that has driven a stake through the heart of job of real politic, and that is climate change.

And the Americans put climate change at the very top of the heap on all policy, then the Americans will continue to fail. A. What also Americans don’t understand I’m talking about at the highest levels, I’m talking about Yale, Harvard, Cornell, all the, all the intellectual factories, so to speak. These are the people that feed the CIA and feed the Pentagon. This is also to a great extent, at the service academies. Right. The service academies where I lectured at the United States Naval Academy three times and, and I was, to the best of my knowledge I was the only writer in the years after September 11, who was invited back twice, I wasn’t invited once. I was invited back twice , and what I told them was, look, this is a clandestine fight, you do not send soldiers to hunt down and kill terrorists, terrorists can see a soldier in uniform, because soldiers wear uniforms. You can see a soldier coming at you from 10,000 miles away, but terrorists can see a soldier coming at them from 10,000 miles away, but you cannot see a counter terrorist and including me, Ronan, was I was, you know, Jason Bourne without amnesia and no issues. My great look. By the way, my great literary agent, Daniel Serrano, I must give credit where credit’s due to Daniel Serrano, my good friend and great literary and film rights agent. This is what he said after we signed the contract: we’re drinking coffee in December. Right. And, yeah, I still say coffee like Brooklyn, because there was a guy doing the brewed coffee, you know what let’s go have some coffee Epsom, hey Hawk, we’re gonna have some whiskey and coffee should badass get coffee bro. No, no, I’m from Brooklyn. It’s cawffee.

So, I’m looking at the whole situation, what this CIA and Pentagon failed to understand about counterterrorism. In the 1990s, is what contributed greatly to September 11 happening is the same thing that has contributed greatly to the continued failure of American counterterrorism in 2021, and it comes down to this, don’t send grunts, send counter terrorists.

If we, if we as the American, talking about the American government. If the American government would sit down and listen to the British on counterterrorism, and listen to the Australians they would discover. And here’s a huge problem too, pride, the Americans, the Americans at that level, including the people in the Ivy League, the Ivy League mafia will not listen to fact. British Secret Intelligence Service, and the Australian Secret Intelligence Service, both of which are far more competent at taking down terrorist seizing terrorist assets hunting down and killing al Qaeda, Jim Islamia Islamic State and so on. Why are the British and the Australians so successful and the Americans are not here. why. The British do not listen to their generals and their admirals at all… on counterterrorism, who do they listen to… they listen to their James Bonds. And also, also, and women will dig this, There are Jane Bonds and have been for quite some time. Yeah, absolutely. And they are incredibly smart, incredibly well skilled and incredibly effective. And who listens to them, not only with the Director of MI6, I mean I’m talking one on one listens to them, but the British prime minister.

Honey Smith Walls 42:53

How come you haven’t written Jane Bond?

Mike Tucker 43:05

Cause I already have, I’ve got Julie in the Cheiftan Trilogy. Julie is not a Jane Bond but I don’t want to make Julie jealous. Okay. And if Rachel hears this, I think she will. I don’t want to make Rachel jealous either.

Honey Smith Walls 43:27

I see you kind of love your characters in your books. Yeah, yeah. Rachel is not a character in a book but she’s a sweetheart and she’s a New Mexico cowgirl.

Mike Tucker 43:41

Oh, yeah, so merciful heaven. Looking at that whole dynamic, for instance, your listeners will no doubt, hopefully, dig this, and, and here it is in the Strait of Malacca, and specifically in Sumatra the strategy in 1995 against al Qaeda in Sumatra and also against Gemma Islamia which is a big jihadist terrorist group in Southeast Asia. Now, the Australians look very hard at this situation in Sumatra, and then this fellow Australian sat down, Australian Secret Intelligence Service their James Bonds, they sat down with Indonesian intelligence and Indonesian counterterrorism police and Malaysia’s Special Branch counterterrorism unit, and also Mulay Special Branch period, and which is in Malaysia Special Branch in Malaysia is both FBI and CIA for Malaysia and far more effective than, then both by the way, but the Australian said listen, here’s the number one thing.

We are not going to send one Australian soldier to Sumatra, ever. And, the Australians, and the Indonesian and Malaysians also the Singaporeans were in the same meeting, and the Singapore intelligence. Malaysian intelligence is a really special branch, really, like counterterrorism Indonesian intelligence and the Indonesian counterterrorist police said, You are very wise, because that’s what we were going to tell you, but it appears we’re already on the same page. And, and they all raised their glasses and said, Now, now let’s, let’s work out the counterterrorism strategy, and the counterterrorism strategy is rooted in. And this is why they have saved, literally hundreds of 1000s of lives in the Strait of Malacca, and I worked as a ronin in the Strait of Malacca so yeah I was on the inside of this and in oh four and then again in oh seven and an O eight and later in 0 six.

Honey Smith Walls 45:57

By the way, I’ve got my Atlas out. Look, you know, I’ve had to jump from page to page to page to page just to keep up with your travels. It’s a, you just had an incredible, many, many lifetimes of experiences, Mike, it’s just amazing.

Mike Tucker 46:29

The great thing now is it’s all in the books. Yeah, so all in The Road Trilogy, it’s all in The Chieftain Trilogy. It’s all in The Journey Trilogy, and I could not be more fortunate and blessed to have written all the trilogies but especially For Suzanne, because without love, there’s no life and love makes life worth living.

Honey Smith Walls 46:53

It’s so incongruous to me, you know, I can’t, I can’t peg hole you as as a major service to our country, because you’re also a major writer of love. And, and the two are such a dichotomy in so many ways and yet, you know, if you didn’t love your country the way you do you never would have had to do the things that you volunteer to do for us. You just blow me away, just thinking about all of the things, the places you’ve been, the people you’ve seen and met and, the history that you’ve made and become a huge part of, in, in our own American history. Honestly, I’m, I’m wondering what you see, for our future. In politics, now that we’re in a different in a new day, so to speak. Right, that’s more comfortable for you, for our country.

Mike Tucker 48:10

No, only we have to make some and Biden may not be the president to do this, but we have to make some real choices, as a people, as Americans, that make our country a better place. And among them. First is we have to hold people accountable.

 

The fact that the United States Attorney General Merrick Garland is a coward and a fool and refuses to do his job which is enforce the law is a shame that is beyond all shame and the fact that the media is covering for him, and refusing to state what is the truth that Garland refuses to enforce the law against Trump.

Trump Donald J Trump perpetrated federal felonies on January 6 2021. Donald J Trump should have already been indicted for sedition, incite to violence, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy. I’m not the only one saying this former federal prosecutors, like Glenn Kirschner, these are people who’ve spent their entire lives, as prosecutors, who are saying Garland must prosecute Trump or the United States of America is basically finished is the only thing that holds us together truly in history is the Constitution, and if the Constitution is not the law of the land, then as a people and as a country, we’re done.

And Biden is classic middle of the road. He’s a caretaker. He is not showing the leadership that he has to, as a president. If Bobby Kennedy, or if Bobby Kennedy, or more to the point, if we had an attorney general, with the spirit and the conviction, and with the moral compass, and the, and the guts of Bobby Kennedy, as Attorney General, right now. Trump, Donald J Trump would already have been indicted prosecuted and convicted.

Honey Smith Walls 50:32

Isn’t possible that Merrick Garland is just gathering data, and, you know, trying to make the best fullest, most comprehensive indictment that he possibly can. Or do you know him better than I do, is that just my hopeful cowgirl wishes,

Mike Tucker 50:55

I think, I think that, I think that you’re being very generous,

Mike Tucker 51:08

What I see is simply when Garland came in, he made this famous pronouncement. I’m not going to look backwards,

Honey Smith Walls 51:15

I remember him saying that in fact Yeah, I was very disappointed to hear him say that I thought that was a weird thing to say coming into this.

Mike Tucker 51:25

right, right, and, and that is Ivy League shorthand for, I don’t have the guts to stand and do my job, and enforce the law. And this is a tragedy for the United States of America and what’s a greater tragedy is that nobody on CNN, nobody on MSNBC, nobody at a press conference is saying to President Biden, why do you continue to have an attorney general who refuses to do the number one duty of the sworn duty of the United States Attorney General, which is enforced the law.

Honey Smith Walls 52:09

I’m hearing anybody say that on PBS or any of the others, yeah Cheddar Politics or any of those either. So yeah, they’re not given him any guff about Garland that I can tell. But even if Merrick Garland doesn’t do anything about it, there could be others behind him. No, I’m sorry. Couldn’t there be somebody, you know, behind Merrick Garland who could do something, I mean who could pick up the ball and..

Mike Tucker 52:41

oh heck yes, what will happen, what, what I have already put on public record. On LinkedIn, a number of times is. Biden has to fire Merrick Garland, straight away, he can do it two ways he can, he can pull them into the Oval Office and say, Merrick, go back. Go back to wherever you were, if I can make you a judge somewhere, whatever, but you’re no longer the United States Attorney General, or he could say to him, I need your letter of resignation ASAP. You know within forms, and in either case you get Merrick Garland, out of the United States Department of Justice because the United States Department of Justice has to do one thing first and foremost, it has to enforce the law. And for instance, in Washington DC, Holly, in Washington DC. I said Holly god, I’m so sorry. Okay, so Honey inside Washington DC. If anyone breaks into like a Best Buy or any, any store any store that sells televisions and they steal over $1,000 worth of  televisions or any property in that amount, but let’s say let’s steal $1,000 with the televisions, they will go to jail for three years, and they will pay a $5,000 fine and yes I checked all this out.

Now, Donald J Trump didn’t try to steal televisions, he tried to steal the election, and he tried to steal the Constitution. And he incited a mob, he incited a mob, he knew exactly what he was doing. He had poisoned the well for over two months before that. And with his constant diatribe of the election was stolen from me and, and there are, there are evil, naked babies, running around, under in cells under American streets and highways, who are slaves, and, and they stole all the ballots and all this nonsense, all this rubbish.

Honey Smith Walls 54:50

Well utter nonsense. Oh, crap.

Mike Tucker 54:54

Exactly. And that mob showed up on January 6 Because he wanted them there. Now, and federal prosecutors have said on public record, including former federal prosecutors have said on public record, including Glenn Kirschner, these are people who really understand the law. Yeah, they have said straight up. If I was back as a federal prosecutor, I would have been prosecuting Donald J Trump right now. And, and what and the US Capitol, the US Capitol Building is where I handed Among Warriors in Iraq and Hell Is Over Voices of the Kurds to Senator Hagel and told them we have to end the Iraq War, and also later got him, Ronan, of course, which indeed Ronan absolutely helped end the Iraq War.

That’s, you know, I met Senator Heigel on the stairway, I was on the way to his office, and by the grace of God. I met him and he reaches out his hand and before he could say anything I said Senator Hagel, Mike Tucker. I’m a Marine veteran, and I had the books in my hand, signed copies, for. I was on my way to the office but as it turned out I never had to get to his office. He was on his way to vote on the Senate floor, because that’s what senators do right when the US Capitol Building has not been seized by domestic terrorists. And, Senator Hagel, in, in February, ‘05 he looks at me, reaches out his hand, I shake his hand, he says, Mike. I’m honored to meet you. And I said I’ve got these books I was in, I was in Iraq for 14 months, and I would really appreciate it if you could read them. We have to find a way to end the war, Senator Hagel. And he looks at me very grave and remember saying Hagel went to Vietnam that, and he was wounded..

Honey Smith Walls 56:44

I can see his face, Chuck Hagel, right now.

Mike Tucker 56:51

And he said, I’ll get back to you and I’m gonna read your books, but right now I have to vote. I said, God bless you, and he said, Mike, thank you so much. And then, his aides called me, I was in Annapolis Maryland that time for a little one. His aides called me that day. And, yeah, and they said, Senator Hegel’s very very, high praise you know, thank you so much for getting your book info on books and so on and, and we’re gonna stay in touch with you, Mike. And where are you going? I said I’m on my way to Afghanistan or possibly back to Iraq, and they said good keep in touch with us if, if you’re back in the Iraq War, please let us know straight up everything, and it was that time I’d already made my strategy. My strategy was, I will not go to the media, with my plan to end the Iraq War, I’ll go to Senator Hagel, because he was

Honey Smith Walls 57:50

His aides just asked you to be their ears!

Mike Tucker 57:52

Exactly, exactly. That’s it. So when I came back I survived the ronin tour where I nearly got killed a bunch of times in Fallujah, second times in Fallujah. All of that is in Ronan and Ronan, of course made history in a number of ways but the main way that Ronan made history is the way that I’m able to put on public record now, which is simply Ronan helped, and the Iraq War Ronin, a Marine Scout Sniper platoon in Iraq,  99% of that book is the voices of the snipers, and they have now been able to tell them this year, guys, I had to hold this back over the years, but I’m going on public record with it. Ronan and Marine Scout Sniper platoon, you guys, you snipers you Scout Snipers. You helped end the Iraq War and they are just ecstatic, even though it was so wild one of their wives said I can’t believe it!

Mike Tucker 58:50

And it was, yeah, yeah, so, you know, after Ronan, I got the raw field Intel, and all my analysis of al Qaeda thoroughly penetrating the Fallujah police force,  al Qaeda controlled the Fallujah police force. That’s why I nearly got killed a few times. That’s why some of my friends died on that tour, on the Ronan tour of September 1 ‘05  to late April ‘06,

Honey Smith Walls 59:20

and how you know those dates, you just fill those dates like, you know, the numbers written on the back of your hand, how do you remember all of that Mike?

Mike Tucker 59:33

I’ll tell you how Honey, this is how you ready. Okay. Because of my cancer. Right, I’m still recovering from my cancer. I can’t officially say I’m in remission until September 2022 According to the great Dr J. Michael J Martinez, the wild man who walks in, whenever I’m there and he’s given me an update on my condition wherever the wild man Dr. Martinez says, mazel tov, good to see you again. And he’s not Jewish, but it’s cool. Yeah, the reason I’m able to remember those dates is because in my cancer fighting in my cancer regimen since my radiation in 2020. Since then, I’ve been on a very strict diet and exercise plan and the exercise I’d already been doing, but the diet is part of it. I can only drink one glass of red wine in a 24 hour period. I can only drink half a shot of brandy or whiskey in that same 24 hour period.

Honey Smith Walls 1:00:40

Oh that’s a serious limitation there,

Mike Tucker 1:00:41

That is but I tell you what, when, when the doc is looking at you and the cancer nutritionist is in the same room, and they’re telling you, excellent progress Hawk, and your PSA is so low and you are recovering great from the prostate cancer. And, tell, tell us about the Jack Dempsey workouts again, and then I tell them about the Jack Dempsey, and they’re like slapping the table.

Honey Smith Walls 1:01:23

Thought we’d give you a couple of days to digest these stories before taking you on the next leg of his death defying travels. Which book have you decided to buy first? I just left a review at Amazon on his title For Suzanne, but please start wherever you want. I can’t wait for his two new books, he’s got me so excited about them. Just go to Amazon and search Mike Tucker, Rogue ROGUE, you’ll begin to see all of his titles. Mike will be back on the next episode to take us on that magic carpet ride to places far far away in cultures, most of us will never see firsthand. But with the spirit of Hemingway firmly planted in his chest. Mike Tucker, will make you taste the air. Come back for more on the next Cannaba Verum podcast, wherever you listen.

Thanks for joining us today. You’ve been listening to another Cannaba Verum podcast with 21st century cannabis shaman Honey Smith Walls, about the importance of using safe hemp and marijuana products. The process of taking your records with your symptoms and diagnosis to a cannabis specialist can lead you to the correct cannabinoid therapy for your best results. Otherwise, you’re just your own guinea pig looking for answers without any foundational knowledge or ability to determine the best choices. Unless otherwise proven by a reputable third party lab test. Please be advised that all street weed is contaminated. It may do grave harm to a patient with a delicate immune system. (3) I challenge you to check the veracity of my statements in each episode by checking the medical citations posted on my podcast blog on CannabaVerum.com

Resources: 

• …all street weed is contaminated
  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5022003/
• Handbook of Cannabis for Clinicians, Practices and Principles by Dr. Dustin Sulak
  https://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Cannabis-Clinicians-Principles-Practice/dp/0393714187 and healer.com
• Certificate of Analysis (COA)
  https://www.pharmtech.com/view/certificates-analysis-don-t-trust-verify

Mike Tucker book links:

The Rogue Trilogy on Amazon

Mike Tucker On Amazon

On Google

Note: This podcast transcribed by https://otter.ai