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A six Here at fifty five kr cet Talk Station, A very happy Friday to you. We're learning about the kidney Walk. In the bottom of the hour, Brett met Metas is going to join us. So he's a actual living kidney donor and Kidney Walk committee member. Cherry Pollman from the Board of Election on the need for poll workers, a conversation we have every election cycle, and a welcome back to the fifty five KRC Morning Show. My next guest, excuse me, author of the be The Weight Behind the Spear.
He is an Air Force colonel combat physician, Josh McConkie, author of the award winning best selling book we're talking about this morning's Mulitary service includes providing critical medical support in both wartime and peace time operations, more than three hundred and forty hours as a flight surge in ninety combat hours and rotor wing medical evacuation and a assault
missions in the Middle East. He's an Air Medal and Army Commendation Medal recipient for exemplary service during the Operation racking freedom. Josh, it is great to have you back on the fifty five KC Morning Show.
Thank you sir, Happy Friday.
Right back at you, brother, And for whatever reason you popped up in my head, because this book is about equipping future leaders with essential skills and the importance of us sharing our all of our learned, the experience and our collective knowledge with the younger people, the next generation, to make them productive and essential, critical members of our nation. And as you emphasize this, which is critical for national security.
We had a brilliant man on every week on this program named Jack add And who's a former anchor, and he's an author, and he was a lawyer and he's a historian. But he talked about H. G. Wells, who was a big fan of socialism. We all know that the failures of socialism and I think one of the reasons it fails is because it does not encourage work. There is no reward for what you do when you participate. But also it made me think about and comment on
we are the ones responsible for our elect officials. In elected officials don't always have the most altruistic motives and in their minds they think more about themselves tend to be malignant narcissists and end up not helping society at large, but only using the job as a springboard for their own personal benefit.
Yeah. I agree with that completely. I ran a congressional race last year. I was outspent by twelve million dollars pees and just kind of learned that money less in the hard way.
Well, and you know, of course, as you have showing this book, if you're the type of person we need in that leadership capacity, you're not driven by self motivation. You're driven by this this shared experience. Is this idea of using what you learned as a combat surgeon and in your business life to help others out and equip these future leaders with these essential skills. What are we missing in society here? What's your biggest concern for the future of America?
Josh Boy Yeah. I go to work every day as an emergency doctor, and I see the anxiety, the depression, the suicide, and this younger population. We have so much work to do. And then as a military commander, I deal with them at eighteen to twenty five years old. They're joining the military, they have good intentions, and they just they lack the resiliency skills. They lack the ability
to adapt the communication skills. This is just a generation that we shut them out of so during critical time and their development, we shut them out of school, we shut them out of church. And they already had communication issues to begin with, you know, because this is the whole social media generation. They've never known a world without that. And so now more than ever, it is important to get out there and contribute in your community, like face to face, get out there and coach, get out there
and volunteer, get involved in your church. You know, work with some animals. You know, those are go to emotional support animals that these animal shells. So there's so many ways that you contribute. The government is not going to save us. It has to be you get out there. Do you see?
And I have to assume you're going to agree with me on this one. But I've observed over the years, and I've talked to so many people in various capacities, from doctors to politicians, to authors and psychiatrists, psychologists, law enforcement officers. The breakdown of the family unit. This whole idea that children are being born and without you know, a solid foundation's family structure. You know, young people especially, I think boys being brought up in households without a
father in them. Did you see any of that or do you see any of that with the recruits in the American military or do most of them come from stable, traditional families.
You know, they're certainly coming from all walks of life. I think it's a very safe assumption that the large portion of some mental health issues and then you look at you know, crime, and they do tend to come from households without that type of support. You know, just sitting down at the dinner table with your family means everything. Everyone is so busy, regardless of how many parents are in the household, finding that time. You can get that support,
but you have to make time. Just sit down at the dinner table, talk about today, what went well, what didn't go well? You know, hopefully they're making some mistakes they can learn from and then we can talk about what different choices could have been made to have a different outcome for those for those decisions. But the further we get away from that, I think you'll find a
large portion of that. Think of the crime and boy, you see a lot of these school shooters, how many of these shooters actually have a stable household with the two parents, right. I think if you do some background, you're gonna find most of them do not.
Most of them do not, And you see that with the crime in the streets at night. You know, I don't know what kind of structure you grew up with, a doctor, Colonel Maconkey, but you know I had to be at home by a curfew. My parents implemented a curfew, and damn it, if you weren't home or did not call them for an extension, you're in a world of
hot water hurt we have. You know, young people running around, running amuck in the city of Cincinnati can maybe acts of vandalism and crime and congregating in the streets and scaring the living hell out of the folks that just want to go down and have a nice evening out. You know, I always hear about that, and I think what is going on at home that they can even get away with that?
You know, I used to my dad was very strict. I came from a family of five kids, and boy, I thought I had it bad grown up right. And the older I get, the more I relate to that, Like mynd goodness. I was so fortunate to have that discipline, and I wouldn't be anywhere right now without that. So I was very blessed.
Well, considering you're still involved in the American military, commander of the what four fifty ninth Aeromedical Staging Squadron, have you seen the uptick in recruits? And you know, as a corollary to that, if there's some parents out there with, you know, young people that are getting to be of military service age, put in a plug and tell tell my listeners why you would recommend that as a good choice for their young people.
Boy, So, ten years ago we had right around a third of Americans aged eighteen to twenty four we're eligible just medically and physically to serve in the military. It is now down to like less than twenty three percent, oh jeez, and less than yeah, and less than zero point four percent of the population the overall American population serves. So your country needs you. You can be part of
a team, something bigger than yourself. We started to see a huge increase in recruiting in December of last year, just with the policy changes. Thank goodness, seventy six million Americans got together and decided to move things in a different direction, which I was very happy with. You can take pride in your service. We're heading in the right direction, we have the right support, and then you can be part of something bigger than yourself. So America needs.
You, and that seems to me to be the answer to this lack of socialization. That children are stuck in front of their devices all day long. They have no apparent desire to interact with their fellow human beings. Isolationism. You know, kids aren't getting married and have no desire
to have married or children anymore. But being part of that group, being a critical element of a team, and having others rely upon you as much as you're relying upon them, that has got to be so I mean, just life changing for the good.
That lack of connection has everything to do with the mental health crisis that we're having now. People need that. We have to get back to that. And I know I take a lot of pride in my service. It's been twenty four years now, and it's the thing that I'm most proud of professionally. You know, my family, my three children and my wife. That's but I'm most proud of personally, and then professionally, it's my military service.
Well, since you're the author of the book we're talking about, Well, we haven't really talked directly about the book. Be the weight behind the sphere. Explain sort of a thumbnail sketch of what the book is about and the audience you directed the book toward.
So be the weight behind the sphere. That's my personal leadership ethos. I've been very blessed in my military career. I've worked with some special operations, combat search and rescue, with medical director for PJS. So that's the tip of the spear. These are the men kicking down doors, taking down Ben Lauden, rescuing the children in those Taie cave systems in twenty eighteen. I'm a doctor. I don't take lives, I save lives. I can't be the tip of the spear,
but I can be the weight behind that sphere. And that's what our best resource is in this country. It's people. It's teachers, it's coaches, it's volunteers and families. Every special operator, those heroes have those in their lives. That's the way behind their spear. That's where America, that's what sets us apart, is a country. So I need people to engage their communities,
volunteer coach, be a mentor. That is what's going to help this generation make us stronger as a nation, and that is our national security.
And so your book is really like a motivational book to get people who are maybe disconnected or not sharing their knowledge base with others to actually get out there and do.
Something about it. Absolutely, this is my prescription to the problem, and I've been very blessed. It's done quite well and was nominated for Purwitzer Prize next month.
Actually, oh, congratulations on that. Well, you just sold yourself a few more copies. Is based upon that nomination alone, notwithstanding the message that you bring here. Now, would you also recommend it for perhaps young adults as well?
Dude, that was initially who I wrote it. Four. So the whole first session of the book is just the leadership accountabody taking ownership, you know, decision making, those basics that I see lacking in our current younger military and children that are coming to my emergency departments. They're clearly lacking those skills, and I'm hoping this is a great way for them to learn. I've got some great stories in there from the er and some combat experiences, and
I hope those help some other people. And it looks like it has so far.
Well apparently so very well received, obviously with the Pulitzer Prize nomination. Doctor uh, doctor, colonel or colonel doctor. I think I joke with you last time you're on about that order of importance. My listeners will decide. Josh McConkie, author of Weight, be the weight behind the spear. Your book is hooked up to my blog and webpage at fifty five caresee dot com. My producer edited so it's easy for our listeners to get a copy. What's all I mcourage them to do, and it's now in paperback
form as well. I can't thank you enough for what you are doing with by but what you've done with writing the book, your service to our country, and your continued service through your motivational efforts. And let's hope some people will buy the book and maybe share it with their friends once they get motivated to do to help out as well.
Thank you very much. I appreciate the opportunity to be on the show.
It's been a real pleasure. I'll keep my fingers crossed on the awards or well deserved, Doctor McConkie. It's been a pleasure. It's eight eighteen here fifty five k c DE talk station. It's also a pleasure to recommend to you. But Herbert Motors they're going to take great care of you. Folks at Butt Herbert Motors are so proud of well, but Herbert. It's I guess great grandfather this juncture. They're
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