Modern WisdomForgotten War Heroes Who Changed The World - The Fat Electrician
EVERY SPOKEN WORD
150 min read · 30,002 words- 0:00 – 1:50
What Does the Fat Electrician Actually Do?
- CWChris Williamson
A quick note. Lots of people tell us that YouTube unsubscribes them from the channel even though they already pressed it. So just check down there and see if the subscribe button is pressed. You get access to episodes before anybody else if you do. Supports me and the show, helps me to bring you bigger and better guests, uh, and it makes me very happy, so just go and give it a tap for me. I thank you. How do you describe what you do? Someone asks you at a dinner party.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I tell stories. Uh, I make, I make videos on the internet is usually my, my go-to.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I, uh, I-- It's a weird job. 32-year-old man, don't really enjoy calling myself an influencer or, uh, I guess a YouTuber is the one I'll say. I used to say content creator, then all the OnlyFans girls took that title, so I don't want people assuming I do OnlyFans.
- CWChris Williamson
It would be a very interesting kind of OnlyFans, everybody getting blown up, limbs being lost-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Well, there's that
- CWChris Williamson
... stories from history.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. Yeah. [chuckles]
- CWChris Williamson
Uh, yeah, I guess i-it is, uh, 'cause historian, content creator. I mean, I came across your stuff when I was first researching, uh, Sir Adrian Paul Ghislain Carton de Wiart.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yep.
- CWChris Williamson
Um, obviously, you know-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Mm-hmm
- CWChris Williamson
... fly the flag for British, although I think he was Belgian parents, maybe Belgian-French parents. Um, and I was like, "This is-- this stuff absolutely rules," just finding hardcore people from history and-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Main characters
- CWChris Williamson
... uh, yeah, main character energy.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Historical main character energy, and then retelling their stories in a way. There's two things. It's, uh, the telling of the story in a compelling way with interesting elements and, and detail that feels immersive, but it's also the selection of who is the person. You know, 'cause if it was just retelling stories that everybody's heard before, it wouldn't be quite so interesting. It's like the, the deep cuts-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... from history that's interesting. It's the B side songs that you should have listened to that you don't know about that are awesome.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, I mean, it's-- And you see it m-more and more.
- 1:50 – 9:46
Where Have America’s War Heroes Gone?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
The more time that goes on, the more selective the US government at least, I don't know about British, but the more selective the US government has gotten about, like, who they promote as a war hero.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Like, we've gotten to the point after Vietnam where we almost never promote war heroes. Like, I would speculate the average American can't name a single Medal of Honor recipient post-Vietnam. Almost impossible.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Gave out plenty of them during the Global War on Terror. I bet the average American can't name a single one.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
It's 'cause we quit celebrating it. We quit-
- CWChris Williamson
Why do you think that is?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... like making them famous. Uh, [chuckles] now we're gonna get into conspiracy theories. Uh, I would say the main reason is fractional reserve banking, if I had to guess.
- CWChris Williamson
For war heroes?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
War heroes and fractional reserve banking.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Well, yeah, absolutely.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's why we quit doing it.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay, go on.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, World War II, how did, how did America pay for the war? Cost a lot of money. How did we do it?
- CWChris Williamson
I don't know.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
We collected taxes.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
What happens when we didn't have enough taxes? In America, we sold, we sold these things called war bonds. It's basically a government bond that you would go to a war bond rally, and they would have, like, a war hero speak, or they'd have a presentation, get everybody amped up that America's number one, we're gonna go beat the Nazis and get revenge for Pearl Harbor, rah, rah, rah. People get amped up, and they go and they invest in war bonds, which is basically a promise from the US government of like, "Hey, give us 50 bucks, and in five years we're gonna give you 60 bucks back." That's how we did it, 'cause that's how we had to do it. So in World War II, every time somebody got a Medal of Honor, and you see this recurring in all my World War II videos, whenever somebody gets a Medal of Honor and accomplishes something incredible, almost nine times out of 10, they're immediately shipped back home to America and put on a war bonds tour.
- CWChris Williamson
Right. Okay.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They put them on a war bonds tour to go around the country to raise more money for the war because that is the most effective thing that they could be doing for the overall war effort at that point in time.
- CWChris Williamson
From war hero to fundraiser.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
War hero to fundraiser. They parade them around. They show them off. They make them famous. They become celebrities so that they can raise more money to keep fighting this war. We gotta buy more bullets. We gotta buy more tanks. We gotta buy everything, and this guy is gonna get us a million dollars to do it.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's what they do. Well, after World War II, we went away from the gold standard. We went away from all this other stuff. We have fractional reserve banking now, so the US government doesn't need to raise money from people. They can just print more money whenever they feel like it.
- CWChris Williamson
Is patriotism not a goal in itself?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Not utilizing war heroes. And-
- CWChris Williamson
There are more effective, cheaper, easier ways to do it.
- 9:46 – 13:57
What Do History’s Greatest Heroes Have in Common?
- CWChris Williamson
What's a common thread between most of the people, most of the heroes that you cover?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh, common thread. Uh, I mean, obviously, they're all, like, incredible war heroes. I really like covering the guys that you've just, you've never heard of, you know? All these guys that have accomplished incredible things, and I think that overall, history, history sucks now in school. Uh, it's boring. Um, so historians, generally speaking, at, in academia, they teach history zoomed out. Like, they start completely zoomed out, and then they slowly zoom in, but by the time you get zoomed in where all the interesting relatable stuff is, you've already lost everybody's attention, right? So, like, a, a teacher in academia is gonna talk about like, "All right, well, we're gonna talk about World War II, but before we can talk about World War II, we actually need to talk about World War I and how that led into the Treaty of Versailles and how the Treaty of Versailles is actually the reason that was the catalyst that started World War II, and then this and then that, da, da, da." Nobody cares. Like, pick a war hero and be like, "Hey, here's Richard Bong. He's a P-38 pilot in the Pacific. Why is he in the Pacific? Pearl Harbor happened. What was Pearl Harbor? It was this. Richard Bong accomplished this at this time at this battle. Here's how this battle influenced the overall course of the war." I think when you start zoomed in and then slowly zoom out, you cover less history, but people actually learn and actually retain it.
- CWChris Williamson
Have you seen those, uh, studies done on if you tell a story for a charitable, uh, uh, contribution, tell a story of one person, one, one, uh, poor kid in a, in a forgotten village somewhere that needs water, and that, look at how, uh, influential that is at donations. Then you say, "Okay, well, two kids should be twice as effective 'cause there's t- there's twice as m- and then a whole village of people, that's, you know, like 50 time or 100 times as effective," but it's not. The human brain sort of discounts the importance as you start to spread out. We're not good at doing quantitative maths, I guess. But also, we resonate with the story and the emotional impact, and I think that piercing in and going, "Hey, care about this guy or this girl-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Exactly
- CWChris Williamson
... or this fucking horse," and from there, we're now going to spread out, and you can actually begin. You're invested in this guy. Oh, why is he interesting? Well, he's actually embroiled to this sort of, this web of shit that's going on, and this is now... So I think you, I think you're totally right.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, you gotta give them something to actually relate to. Like, give them a situation they could see themselves in-
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... and be, then they're asking themselves a question like, "How would I react if that happened? Wow, he actually did that. I hope I'm the type of person that can do that."
- CWChris Williamson
Mm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And then that's how you actually get people to, like, learn other things that aren't dates and locations of battles. You can actually start teaching like, "This guy's a great dude. Here's the things that made him great. Here was the circumstances he was in, and here's the decisions that he made anyways, despite the fact it might not have been in his best interest." Like, so you're not only learning history like we think of normally, but you're learning the history of, like, decision-making and how to be a good person, a good man, a good leader, a war hero, and I think that's just as important, if not more important. I mean, what's the, the point of learning history? To not repeat mistakes? What a better way to learn it?
- CWChris Williamson
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- 13:57 – 33:49
The Forgotten Heroism of Logan Weston
- CWChris Williamson
You said that people who don't get enough attention, bringing attention to them is quite important. Who is someone that you have brought attention to that you still think your audience glosses over more? Have you got a, a personal favorite that you don't think enough people paid attention to?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I'll be honest, my audience, like once I do a video on somebody, I think they do become very, very popular. Um, the, the ones that I take the most pride in probably are the guys that I manage to track down that don't even have Wikipedia pages yet, and then after I do a video, they get a Wikipedia page. So, like there's been a couple of those. Those were really cool. Um-
- CWChris Williamson
What like?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, Logan Weston is probably the coolest one that I think I've covered that didn't have a Wikipedia page, which is incredible, 'cause the dude fought in World War II and Korea and Vietnam, and had every medal under the sun. I mean, you can pull up a picture. He's got his shadow box of medals. It's as tall as he is. Over 300 medals, crazy military career.
- CWChris Williamson
What's his name?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Logan Weston.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
The fighting preacher.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay. What did he do?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's his nickname.
- CWChris Williamson
Oh, holy fuck.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That, that's his medals. He got shafted for the Medal of Honor, but he has everything else.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay. Yeah, that's insane.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So-
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, you're right. His, from the floor to above his nipples is-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... just different medals.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yep. Absolutely crazy.
- CWChris Williamson
And what's his story?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Um, so Logan Weston was, uh, grew up and, uh, you know, poor kid. Worked in coal mines, worked as a lumberjack, doing all these jobs. And then, um, he goes through a series of events where he-- It's during the Great Depression, and one of his friends that has like a wife and kids is unable to find a job. So he goes to the coal mine that he works at and is like, "Hey, can we get my buddy a job?" And he's like, "No, we don't have any work. We barely have enough work for you." And he's like, "Okay. Well, he's a good dude. Give him my job, and I'll go not work, 'cause he's got a wife and kids to support. I don't." So he gets his buddy this job. A week later, the coal mine collapses, a bunch of people die, right? So he's-- and then he goes, gets work as a lumberjack. His buddy survives the coal mining collapse, gives his buddy his lumberjack job. Major logging accident, bunch of people die. And he just, he feels like all this death is going on around him and he, he gets in this super low point and he ends up trying to take his own life. And he sticks the gun to his head and pulls the trigger. It doesn't go off. And right as he, like, he's pulling the trigger on the gun and right before the hammer drops, he said he heard somebody say, "Wait," and he goes to stop, but the hammer drops anyways. Gun doesn't go off, and he's like, "What just happened?" And then he walks outside and shoots that same gun that didn't go off right into a tree, and it goes off. So he kinda interprets this as God giving him a second chance, and he, uh, decides he's gonna give his life to God, and he decides he's gonna go become a, a preacher. Goes to, uh, college, whatever the college, the Christian college school to become a minister or whatever. And while he's there, like his sophomore year, the draft kicks off and he finds out he's gotta go fight in World War II because you can't get a college exemption for a religious college, 'cause they don't count it at the time. So he gets drafted and, you know, this is 1940, '40 or '39. So America's not even in the war yet. Pearl Harbor hasn't happened, but they're already starting the draft. And he shows up, he just gets on the bus. He gets off the bus, and they're like, "All right. If you wanna be infantry, go over there. You wanna be a medic, go over there. You wanna be artillery, go over there. You wanna be this, go over there." There's no internet, there's no TV. At this point, he has no idea what any of these words even mean.
- CWChris Williamson
You just get to choose?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
He gets to choose, but he, he, he doesn't-
- CWChris Williamson
Take your own adventure for military
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... but he doesn't even know what the words are. You know what I mean?
- CWChris Williamson
Okay.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
'Cause like today we kinda have a general idea of like, oh, this is that. That's a... I've watched TV, I've seen movies. None of that. So he's like, "I, I don't know." So he just wanders over to infantry and goes off and becomes an infantryman. And he's at, I think he just finished up AIT to become an infantryman, gets stationed at his unit when Pearl Harbor gets attacked. And mass chaos everywhere. Nobody knows what's going on. He gets stationed and sent out with a group of guys to basically guard the Mississippi River in case the Japanese launch some type of other attack through this major waterway.
- CWChris Williamson
That was a fear that, that was-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh, yeah, they were, they were deploying troops all over the country because they had, they had no idea what was going on or where they were gonna attack next. Nobody knew anything, and you have hundreds of thousands of guys with guns ready to like, you know, spread them out, I guess. Stop them somewhere if they show up, so-
- CWChris Williamson
Put some over there, put some over here.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. I mean, he was like literally camping out on the Mississippi River for like six weeks, I think he said. And then they called him back in and He winds up getting deployed. He gets sent over to the Pacific, and he's getting told, you know, "You're gonna be the tip of the spear. When we get off this boat, you're gonna hop in the Higgins boat," like Saving Private Ryan, like the movies. "You're gonna make an amphibious landing into enemy territory. You're gonna be taking machine gun fire." By this point, he's, he's leading a platoon. He's a platoon sergeant 'cause he was in before Pearl Harbor even happened, so he's one of the most experienced guys even though he's never been in war yet. And, um, yeah, the, the door drops, and he goes running off this Higgins boat, almost drowns. He storms the beach, and is like, "Enemy's not shooting at us. What's going on?" And then they start walking up this beach, and it's like there's dead bodies everywhere. There's, uh, dead bodies. There's-- It looks like everything's just been destroyed and ransacked, and he's like, "What is going on?" Then they, then they bump into the Marines. Well, it turns out he got sent to Guadalcanal, which is a major battle in the Pacific for the Marine Corps, and he was told they were gonna be the first ones there. He showed up, like, five months after the Marine Corps had already been there. Like, that battle already took place and was over by the time he got there. But he ran off this Higgins boat, like, heart racing, like he was about to get into the shit, and it was like, it was done by the time he got there.
- 33:49 – 37:07
How Logan Weston Became a Green Beret
- TEThe Fat Electrician
good.
- CWChris Williamson
Unreal. Okay, so then he gets through the Korean incursion.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yep. So he gets through the Korean War, and by this time he is, you know, he's, he's been there, done that.
- CWChris Williamson
How old is he now?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
He's done all of it. He's, uh, in his mid-40s by the end of the Korean War. And after the Korean War, they come to him, and they're like, "Hey, uh, we got this new thing we're trying to start up. It's called the Green Berets Special Forces. You're 46. Um, you wanna try out and become a Green Beret?" He's like, "Sure." So he go, he goes and becomes a Green Beret at the age of 46 years old, gets jump-qualified. He's jumping out of planes at 46. Becomes a Green Beret. Uh, from here, he gets sent to the Pentagon, where he helps write, literally write the book on jungle warfare and counterinsurgency tactics-
- CWChris Williamson
Mm
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... from his experience with Merrill's Marauders. Um, he then goes on to be an advisor on behalf of the US government in Laos during the Vietnam War. Um, if you don't know, Laos and Cambodia during the Vietnam War is where MACV-SOG was operating. Basically, Vietnam is a long country up and down, and you have Laos and Cambodia right here. So what was happening was Vietnam is split. So what was happening is, like, bad guys up top, communists, rather than trying to fight through the American lines to deliver supplies to their guerrilla fighters, they would just cut over into Laos and Cambodia, run down, run over, drop the supplies off, run back. So we were sending in MACV-SOG special operators to go in and basically conduct a shadow war that didn't happen for another 40 years the entire time, and he was a advisor in Laos while that was going on.
- CWChris Williamson
So this guy is just incredibly-- I, I can't work out if I think that he's the luckiest or the unluckiest man. He's really the barbell of luck.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
He's the main character for sure. [laughs]
- CWChris Williamson
He's got, he's got, yeah, it on, on both sides. Holy shit.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, his last day in Korea, day before his last day in Korea, gets hit with a sn- hit- gets hit by an enemy sniper right in the chest. Bullet gets stopped by the Bible in his breast pocket.
- CWChris Williamson
No fucking way.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Goes, does the Vietnam thing, comes back home, retires, becomes the, I forget the official job title, but basically the chaplain for Texas A&M for 10 years.
- CWChris Williamson
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- 37:07 – 41:39
Does Modern Warfare Have Room For Heroes?
- CWChris Williamson
These pe-- I, so I've, I've, I've had this sort of idea ever since watching a lot of your stuff and getting more interested in these kinds of stories. Carthon DeWitt was the first one that got me into it. Um, uh, Alistair Urquhart, uh, the Forgotten Highlander.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh, yeah, yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah. So, um, that was one of the first stories that got me into this. Uh, and then I guess a similar one like John Boyd-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... fighter pilot guy. Like, y-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... okay, I'm, I'm, I'm kind of excited, I'm kind of interested in this. But there is this sense in the back of our mind that, well, war's not stopped. War's kept on going. Why is it that all of the heroic stories that I'm hearing about seem to- there's, there's like an expiration date on the new models of these coming out? Why is it that we've not got new war heroes in the same way? And you've got your-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
My theory
- CWChris Williamson
... your theory behind that.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
My conspiracy theory.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah. Well, I, I don't-- it's, you know way more about it than me. But there is this sense, I think, that like, first off, wars now, when I think about war, I'm not thinking about guys with tactics. I'm thinking about drones and missiles hitting schools and shit. I, I don't even know if we have room for war heroes in the same way-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Wrong
- CWChris Williamson
... anymore.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
We don't.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Every-- Again, me being a conspiracy theorist, uh, I think they portray it that way on purpose. I, I really think that very powerful organizations, governments, entities, people, whatever, they don't want you to realize how powerful one man or a small group of men that are determined to accomplish something, how powerful that is-
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... and what they can actually accomplish, right? And, uh, the analogy that I'll give you is you always hear, uh, one of the big criticisms of, like, the Second Amendment is like, I understand the Second Amendment was created to stop a tyrannical government, but the tyrannical government has Abrams tanks. What are you gonna do with your AR-15? It's like all that tells me is you have no concept of how war actually works, right? Like, yeah, the government does have a lot of re- very big, very powerful, very fancy toys. They're very, very fragile, especially in America, for example. Like the amount of logistics that has to go in to keeping an Abrams tank on the battlefield is insane.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
The amount of mechanics, equipment, specialized stuff, all of that, and it's like America has somewhere in the vicinity of 8,000 Abrams tanks. Let's go to magical fairytale land. Okay, let's say they run on fucking magic. They don't run on diesel. They're autonomous. They're ran by robots. They're solar powered. They self-charge. They don't need any logistical capability whatsoever. 8,000 of them to cover all of the United States if there was some war scenario where the people tried to rise up against the government. That's one Abrams tanks for, like, every 1,200 square miles-ish. What's one tank gonna do in covering 1,200 square miles? It's, so it's just kind of the concept of, like, war is always gonna come down to one guy with a gun, and you're gonna have all the big fancy toys, you're gonna have drones, you're gonna h- And all of that is gonna be on the very front end of the war, and then the supply chains are gonna get broken, and shit's gonna quit working. Somebody at the factory, the factory that makes the drones is gonna get blown up. Somebody's gonna figure out how to interrupt the Bluetooth signal. That's why all the drones over in Ukraine now are guide-by-wire. Somebody-- It's all gonna ch- It's always gonna come down to dudes on the ground getting shit done.
- CWChris Williamson
Do you think there's-- Does society suffer if there's no outlet for heroism?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I don't know that it needs an outlet for heroism, but I think society suffers when you quit glorifying heroism.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Like, I think that needs to continue, and I think that's a big reason, like, why-- I think that's one of the big downsides of not promoting war heroes anymore, for example.
- CWChris Williamson
You don't give people someone to strive for, someone to emulate.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
You're not giving people good role models. You're not saying like, "Hey, this is the guy you should be looking up to." This guy knew that he was gonna die, ran into the Burnie building anyways to save these people. Like, you quit glorifying that guy, people quit doing those things. You quit-- And on top of that, some of these stories like Logan Weston, like, it seems impossible, but it's possible. And like, if you know that that's possible, maybe you'll be inclined to do it too, and then you can accomplish something great. But people don't wanna, people don't wanna share
- 41:39 – 53:12
Why Did WWII Veterans Stay Silent?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
the stories.
- CWChris Williamson
How many of the stories that you cover end with Alistair Urquhart living in his family's country estate until 80 or-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
An outrageous amount
- CWChris Williamson
... like, lots and lots of the heroes actually make it home and just become a chaplain at UT or whatever the fuck?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
A significant portion. And like, that's the coolest part to me, is you take somebody like Logan Weston that was able to do what he did, and like, that dude objectively killed a lot of people.
- CWChris Williamson
Across three wars.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Across three wars, a 38-year-long career, and he went back home and became a preacher, outstanding member in his community. Probably ha- would've had no idea that he was anywhere near that badass ever, and he just went back to being normal. Like, that's the most incredible part to me, is, you know, what's the, what's the, uh, quote, "The best deterrent for bad guys is good men skilled in violence"? Like, that's those guys, and they're just wandering around. And like you've talked ab- you've talked about having DJ Shipley on and, like, all these other special operators. Like, I've never met him or Andy Stump, but I've met plenty of people like them, and they're usually the most, like, chill, uns- I mean, they don't look like they're a pansy ass or anything, but you're not sitting there being like, "Yeah, that's that level of badass." They're unassuming.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They're just normal dudes for the most part.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah. There is a-- Andy, Andy in particular is an unnerving human because I feel like if he was killing me, he would kill me with a smile on his face and enjoy a coffee afterward. That, that, that is a-- I don't know. Like, do you think that- These-- are, are these people built different? What, what is it that sort of distinguishes the kinds of people that you cover from what normal people assume? I- would a normal person, if put into that situation, just behave the same? What have you come to think about the difference between heroes and, and people that don't-- that aren't?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I don't know. It's interesting. Um, obviously, like PTSD is a relatively new discovery or like understanding. Um, but I think-
- CWChris Williamson
Shell shock in World War I, World War II
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, but like the, the thing that catches me up that I find really interesting about that is I think it changes a lot based on, you know, just media has changed everything. So w- what I'm trying to say is, for example, when you look at the archetype of like Vietnam, Korea, World War II, s-specifically World War II, all those guys came back home, and the story's the same. I hear it from-- I get emails and everything. "My grandpa was in World War II. We never talked about it. He never talked about it. He never talked about it. He never told me anything." The amount of times I get an email where it's like, "This w-- I found this in my grandpa's attic after he passed away, and it's like his shadow box with all his medals. I have no idea what I'm looking at. Can you tell me what I'm looking at?" And like grandpa's got like five Bronze Stars with V device, and it's like, oh, grandpa's a fucking badass.
- CWChris Williamson
What's V device?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
V device, so you have a Bronze Star, and then if you have a Bronze Star with V device, V device means you did something with valor. So like you can have a Bronze Star for like being really good at organizing shit and doing paperwork for the company, but if you've got a Bronze Star with V device, you did some badass shit on the battlefield.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Right? So it's like grandpa's got five of those and, uh, you know, expert infantry and like all this other stuff. Like grandpa was a badass. I don't know what he did, but he did some shit.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And I think the part with technology where it's like these guys never talked about it because they couldn't talk about it. So think about the average World War II veteran. Grew up in the 1920s, 1930s, no TV. Everybody thinks like 1920s, and they picture New York in their head, like Model Ts running around, the stock market, mobsters, Tommy guns, all this cool shit. That was New York. That was one small sliver. The rest of the country was 30 years in the past living in log cabins still. People didn't have power. They didn't have indoor plumbing for the most part. They were poor, and that's all the dudes that fought World War II. So imagine you're some kid from Nebraska that grew up in a log cabin with no power, no running water in your house, and there's one rich guy in town that's got a Model T. You've never seen an airplane, and you get drafted, and you get sent, and you wind up at fucking D-Day flying in a fucking plane bigger than the house you grew up in, jumping into combat with a magical gun that can shoot 100 rounds a, a minute or whatever, and all this technological advancement and radios and radars and all this shit, and then you have to go back home five years later, and your dad asks you, "What was it like?" How do you explain to a guy who doesn't have TV, who can't fathom-- It's sci-fi to them. I'd have kept quiet too. Imagine trying to explain that to some dude who's seen Mo- a Model T one time being like, "There's a tank. Imagine a Model T but 1,000 times heavier with a gun-"
- CWChris Williamson
[laughs]
- TEThe Fat Electrician
"... with a gun." Like-
- CWChris Williamson
It's like Space War.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
It's like some Star Wars shit.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
It's, it's like trying to explain a color to a blind person.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Like what does it look like? "I sh-- Dude, I don't know how to explain this. You just had to be there." So you know what? No wonder they never talked about it, and that's why they hid out at the VFW with the people that could understand.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So-
- CWChris Williamson
Do you think that that is a form of PTSD? What do you, uh, what do you think is going on there?
- 53:12 – 1:07:52
The Rebellious Pappy Gunn
- CWChris Williamson
at checkout. What do you think it is about military's sort of worst behaved soldiers so often being its best fighters? I think about John Boyd putting a cigar out on the tie of his commanding officer or, uh, Cartondewa got, got promoted for 24 hours and then I think he got demoted for punching his sergeant in the throat. Uh, what's... Is that rebellious, mutinous solo guy thing, is that more common, less common?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I, I think in, in everything in life there... Anybody that's highly successful that you look up to has a delusional self-confidence that they are right in their belief.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And I think you see that everywhere. It's not just the military. Um, everybody that accomplishes anything is going up against whatever's in their way, whether that be the government, the market, whatever, whatever, whatever. They have to have this self-confidence of like, "They're telling me this is wrong. I know it's right. Fuck you, I'm gonna do it anyways." I mean, what's, uh... One of my favorite quotes was Henry Ford, and he said, "If I'd have gave the people what they wanted, I would've been breeding faster horses." Like, "No, fuck you, I'm making a car. You don't know it yet, but this is what we need." And you see that over and over and over again with these war heroes. Like, "No, this isn't the, this isn't the way we need to be doing this."
- CWChris Williamson
Mm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
"This is what needs to happen." And I think that's what it is.
- CWChris Williamson
High conviction. Who are, or who comes to mind when you think about a sort of rebellious, singular-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Pappy Gunn.
- CWChris Williamson
Who's that?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Pappy Gunn, Paul Irvin Gunn, uh, he was a fighter pilot between World War I and World War II. He was part of the Top Hatters, some of the guys that pioneered, like, carrier landings and stuff with planes. And, uh, by the time World War II rolled around, he had already been long since retired. Um, but the dude was a flight fanatic. Incredible pilot. Uh, when he was still in the Navy, uh, being basically a stunt pilot and a fighter pilot pioneering modern fighter, um, piloting, uh, he kept having cavities, and he kept going to the dentist to get root canals and shit, and he finally got fed up 'cause it was taking up too much of his time. So he goes to the dentist and is just like, "Just fucking pull all my teeth out." And the na-
- CWChris Williamson
All of them.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
All of them. "Give me dentures. I'm sick of this shit." And he goes to the, uh- Goes to the Navy dentist, they're like, "No, we're not doing that." So he goes to the civilian dentist and pays him and gets it done, gets dentures. Uh, after he retires, he's in his 40s, he moves to the Philippines 'cause he was stationed there, fell in love with it, knows that his money goes a lot further there. He moves out to the Philippines, and he starts-- he buys a plane and just starts being a pilot in the Philippines, and, like, that's his life. He's got a wife, two kids, and he's living out in the Philippines having a great time, and World War II is going on. Pearl Harbor gets attacked. He's been in the Navy for 20 years, and he's like, "The only reason they would attack Pearl Harbor first is because they want to attack everywhere else with impunity." So he knows that they're coming to the Philippines, so he's trying to get his wife and kids off the island. He can't. The American forces in the Philippines are trying, are scrambling around. They're basically commandeering all the planes, military or not. Like, "US government's confiscating this. You're working for us now. We need you to fly these high-ranking generals here. We need you to fly these people there. Do this, do that." And, uh, he winds up basically getting assured that, you know, the Japanese aren't coming. Malta's defended where his family is, and he gets ordered to take his personal plane and fly, I think it's MacArthur's, like, right-hand man to Australia. While he's on this flight to Australia, MacArthur declares Malta an open city, which basically just means to the Japanese, "Hey, Malta's a historic city. There's a lot of civilians. We're not gonna fight you for it. Don't carpet bomb this fucking place. You can just have it." So they basically turned it over to the Japanese. His wife and kids get captured. He flies off the fucking handle and basically gets recommissioned in the military, 'cause he was an officer beforehand. Gets recommissioned and just starts commandeering planes, trying to fly back to the Philippines to rescue his family. Has multiple rescue attempts, fails on all of them, keeps getting it back to Australia, and then eventually he links up with some fighter squad unit that's, like, trying to actually win the war. And he's at the airstrip one day, and there's a, like, I think it's nine or 12 B, B-25 Mitchells. Is that what it is? Hold on. Sorry. B-25 Mitchells? Yeah. Yeah, so- Oh, look at that. So they belong to the Dutch, and he's like, "Why the fuck does the Dutch have brand new bombers when America's struggling to get our own planes here? Why do they have American planes?" And it's just bureaucratic government bullshit. He asks the Dutch, like, "What are you guys doing with them?" "Oh, we don't really know what we're doing with them yet." So he's like, "Fuck this." He goes back to his unit, grabs a bunch of pilots. They roll up, forge documents, and fucking steal them. Steals a fleet of medium bombers and flies them back to his- From the Dutch ... From the Dutch, and flies them back to our airfield. They get back to the airfield, and they're like, "Bad news. There's no bomb sights." The Dutch must have taken the bomb sights out and put them in the supply sergeant's armory, and Pappy's like, "Got it." Pappy flies back and then robs the supply sergeant with a [chuckles] fucking gun and takes the bomb sights and leaves. Yeah. So he gets all these bomb sights. He continues flying missions, and then eventually he comes to the realization that at the time when they were trying to launch this air battle against the Japanese Navy, medium bomber, you're flying, you know, tens of thousands of feet up in the air, and they're basically just flying really high, dropping bombs from really high, hoping they hit this small moving target. Yeah. He's like, "That shit's not effective. We need, we gotta fly right over the top of them and just drop it right on their fucking forehead. That's the only way we're gonna sink these fuckers." He's like, "But we need cover." So he gets a bunch of light bombers. I believe they're A, A-20 Havocs. He gets a bunch of A-20 Havocs, and he's like... He's also, like, a, a genius mechanic and engineer. So he rips up these A-20 Havocs, and he mounts six .50 caliber machine guns in the nose, which the, it's not like you can just, "Oh, I'm just gonna throw some guns in the nose of a plane." There's aerodynamics, there's weight distributions, there's all kinds of shit going on with this. Vibration from the, from the guns. Yeah. Vibration from the guns. Everything. Yeah. It, the amount of weight you actually lose just from the ammunition getting expended is a huge factor. The plane is losing- The balance is all over the place. Yeah. The, the plane is losing hundreds of pounds of weight just by you opening up with the guns. Like, it's a nightmare. Mm. Figures it out, gets a fleet of these things, gets a fleet of the bombers, and develops a new tactic where basically, "All right, we're gonna send the A-20s in. They're gonna strafe the deck of the gun to drive everybody off the anti-aircraft guns." Mm. "And that's gonna clear it so the Mitchells can fly low and drop the bombs right on top of them." Okay? He does that. Well, then he comes to the realization, "Why don't I just fucking put guns in the Mitchells too? Then they can strafe for themselves while they fly in." [laughs] That is- Fuck yeah. Just some dude MacGyvering this shit. And bear in mind, this is like, if I could pick one, like, there's a lot of movies that I want made, but this is just, like, the ultimate Hollywood movie because this is a dad that's just MacGyvering new planes and going out on experimental missions- Sellotape and cable ties ... to save his wife and kids because they're in an internment camp for the Japanese. Mm-hmm. Like, name a better- Does he know that they're alive? He finds out that they're alive. Right. There's a period of time that he doesn't, but he does find out that they are alive, and he is the most motivated man on the planet to get back. He's working, like, 70 hours a, a week. Like, insane. They said he was just sleeping in planes on the flight line working on these things, and he's still going out on all the missions with them and everything else. So he ends up putting eight .50 caliber machine guns in the nose of the B-25s. That must have been what that was, four at the front and then two and two? No, no. I think that... Uh, yeah, so that was a different one. Okay. I, I'm gonna get there. Okay. That, that one's different. Save that picture. Okay. Um, so he mounts eight .50 calibers in the Mitchell's nose cone and, you know, they go out on missions. They work exactly how he wanted, and this... You know, he goes out on all these missions, but it ultimately... Oh, I forgot about his pinky. During this period of time where he's going out on these missions, developing these planes, building these planes for the US Navy, he breaks his pinky.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And he keeps re-breaking it, and it's just getting in his fucking way. He's turning wrenches all day
- CWChris Williamson
I can see where this is going. The man that got his teeth ripped out
- TEThe Fat Electrician
He goes to the medic and is like, "Cut my pinky off." And the medic is like, "I'm not cutting your pinky off." And he's like, "Let's go to the doctor and see if the surgeon will cut it off." The medic is homeboys with him, like they're buddies. He gets it, and he's like, "This pinky's coming off one way or the other." So the medic and Pappy go to the surgeon, and the surgeon's like, "I'm not taking your pinky off. I can't ethically remove a good finger. Just splint it and heal." At which point Pappy pulls out his 1911 and says, "You're gonna cut it off or you're gonna clean it off your wall. What do you wanna do?" He cut the pinky off. So he gets his pinky removed so he can keep working, and then this whole thing boils to a head at a place called the Battle of the Bismarck Sea. So basically, uh, war in the Pacific, everybody's fighting over New Guinea at this point in time. The Japanese are about to reinforce New Guinea to fight the Americans with an entire division of Japanese infantry. They're get- they're coming in on, I believe, eight, eight troop carriers, and those are being escorted by destroyers and everything else. We gotta stop them. So he takes his fleet out. He's got A-20s, he's got B, B-25s. They take them out, and what ends up happening at this battle is the Japanese Navy sees the A-20s coming in really low. Well, the A-20s coming in low for-- They don't know that these things exist. They, they were just Mad Maxed by this fucking crazy guy trying to get his kids back. They don't know about this technology. So what they assume it is, is they assume it's torpedo bombers.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Right? So the boat's coming this way. The planes are coming this way. This is the broad side of the boat. The planes are coming this way. Naval doctrine for a torpedo bomber is to turn into the bombers because a torpedo would land in the water, and you want the big broad side of the ship, you want the bigger target. So they turn into the formation because that would minimize the surface area to get hit by torpedoes, not realizing that their goal is to actually strafe the decks. So they go in, and well, that lined it up perfect to be able to clear the whole thing. They strafe all the decks of these ships that are covered in enemy infantry. They strafe the decks. The B-25s come in. They skip bombs right into the side of them. They sink all eight troop carriers at once.
- CWChris Williamson
How many people is that?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, a division.
- CWChris Williamson
Is this, oh, the, the Battle of the Bismarck Sea?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Eight to 12,000.
- CWChris Williamson
Oh, fuck. This is it. He's got trouble enough, temporally anyway. Let's find a clean skin.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Fun fact about this footage, it's taken from Pappy's planes.
- CWChris Williamson
Well enough up to now.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So-
- CWChris Williamson
Sorry, who-- Just one, one point on that while you're going. Who the fuck is the guy with the video camera? Generally, in these... You know, when you see-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Combat cam- combat cameramen
- CWChris Williamson
... and you're just like, "Hey, we're gonna go do this thing. We might get shot down-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- 1:07:52 – 1:10:48
Why WWII Heroes Were Built Different
- TEThe Fat Electrician
you. Like-
- CWChris Williamson
The number of people, the number of heroes in World War II that were gangster as fuck-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh, it's insane
- CWChris Williamson
... is... I, I don't know whether there is another per- Again, maybe it's the right distance from time, fractional reserve, da, da, da, da, but it really does feel like there was something in the water.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
It's volume. It's volume.
- CWChris Williamson
There's just so many people that are in the war that-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, I mean-
- CWChris Williamson
... you have surface area
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... World War, uh, America specifically, not that, you know, Great Britain and other nations didn't have their badasses also.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They certainly did, like Patty Mane, incredible. But, um, it's just the American military, when World War II kicked off, had, like, 300,000 people, and those ranks swelled to 16 million. So it's like you, you've got 300,000 people that are a culture, and you're trying to multiply that culture out to 16 million people. It's just the rules and regulations and guidelines and, um, I don't know, the respect for that, that culture doesn't really permeate that much. But-
- CWChris Williamson
Why is, why does that make fertile ground?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Because you got s- "Oh, we can't, we can't not follow orders. We're supposed to... Uh, the commander's down. We're supposed to bed down and be defensive and wait for, wait for orders to come down." No, fuck that. Shoot that guy.
- CWChris Williamson
[laughs]
- TEThe Fat Electrician
You know what I mean? Like, uh, they're just gonna get default aggressive. What else do you do?
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, some farm boy from fucking Iowa or whatever.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, 100%.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They're fucking going in, man.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah. No, I, I... It's interesting, the, the British versus American sort of insight for this because, at least my experience, British people are, are very orderly. We have, we... I mean, there was even a, a video recently. Did you see, uh, our, uh, foreign secretary said British people love a queue? You see... Have you got the, um, I'd like a-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
[laughs]
- CWChris Williamson
... fruity vegan flapjack, please video?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Like a, like a line?
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
[laughs]
- CWChris Williamson
We love queuing. Just search fruity vegan flapjack video. So this is the guy currently for the UK. I mean, this is why the rest of the world, including this nation, is terrified, right, of Britain. Uh, uh, we're a hard nation. We're filled with hard people, specifically the man that is basically in charge of ensuring that globally to other countries we are feared. And, um, he's talking about how, uh, the, the way that, like, tax is put together, and it's fair when you stand in a queue for a bakery. And then at the very, very e- It's a semi-scripted video. It's almost like a, a, a, an advert. And then at the very end, he says, "I'd like a fruity vegan flapjack, please." And it is... Here it is. Fruity vegan flapjack, please. That, just that... So just go back to the beginning. Go back to the beginning of the man that's supposed to be- I'd like a fruity vegan flapjack, please. Are you not terrified? Are you not terrified-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I'm shaking
- CWChris Williamson
... of the man that wants a fruity vegan flapjack, please?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Brit.
- CWChris Williamson
[laughs] That, that meme around the UK was, like, one of the fucking biggest things.
- 1:10:48 – 1:18:20
Why Britain Refuses to Embrace Air Conditioning
- CWChris Williamson
Go ahead
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... I've got questions for you about the UK.
- CWChris Williamson
Go ahead.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
What's going on with the air conditioning situation?
- CWChris Williamson
Uh, more people died from, uh-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
175, 174,000 Europeans died last year from heat-related illnesses.
- CWChris Williamson
More people than died from gun deaths in America.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
By a lot.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, by, like, factor of three.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, uh, significantly more.
- CWChris Williamson
Isn't it 50,000 per year, I think, in America, including suicides?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
No. Go check those numbers.
- CWChris Williamson
How many people, how many people die from gun-related deaths in America last year, Mr. ChatGPT?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
If you don't include suicides, I believe it's, like, a couple thousand.
- CWChris Williamson
Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But I think with including suicides there's, there's a lot of, uh, I, look, lots-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I'm gonna go with significantly less
- CWChris Williamson
... lots, lots, lots. Okay. So I mean, look, what, what would I say about this? Um, in defense of a country I no longer live in, it's not that hot most of the time. It's quite cold.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Hear me out.
- CWChris Williamson
Go ahead.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I've had a spare tire in every car I've ever owned. I've never had to use it. I still fucking got it.
- CWChris Williamson
It's true. The difference between trying to add a spare tire to a car that has a s- room for a spare tire or retrofit a Victorian era building with-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They got, they got floor units
- CWChris Williamson
... the, uh, like as you should put it in the wall.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
[laughs]
- CWChris Williamson
But again, that would be unused for... Uh, I'm from Newcastle, which is as north as north goes.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
That would be unused for 11 months and two weeks of the year. It would be work for the-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... for the fortnight that I require it, for the 14 days that I need it, it would be great, but how many people died, Mark? 44,000. I said 50,000. That's not far off.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Wow.
- 1:18:20 – 1:22:48
Britain’s Craziest Military Inventions
- CWChris Williamson
Going back to, to, uh... You've given us a couple of stories that are to do with Americans. Is there a favorite that you have that's from somebody outside of your home nation, or do you refuse to, uh, feel as, as patriotic around the world?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
No, I don't, I don't, I don't refuse. I can appreciate, um, I can appreciate a hero, you know, fighting for his own nation. I've covered some British people before.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I've covered, um, some French people. Uh, I still am in the works for doing a video on Paddy Maine, British. Um, so yeah, no, they're... I've, I've done them before. I'll do them again.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
But, uh, Paddy Maine's probably the next one I'll do that's not American.
- CWChris Williamson
That's pretty exciting.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, I, I, I mean, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare was a little bit of a shame, uh-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
The movie?
- CWChris Williamson
No, the book.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh, okay.
- CWChris Williamson
Because I was such a fan of the book first, and I don't know whether you ever listened to the audiobook that's behind it.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Mm-hmm.
- CWChris Williamson
But the guy that did the audiobook has just got the most brilliant, classic sort of f- 1940s posh British accent. It's so won- it's so immersive to, like, have somebody speak it. "Well, you know, what was very interesting about Churchill's war," and you're like, "Oh, I'm there. I'm fucking there, dude." Right? Like, "Give me the Enigma machine. Like, we're gonna rip this thing."
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
And, um, uh, I loved- That era of what I think British people are particularly good at, which is the, um, it is the MacGyvering. It's the sort of spit and sawdust and sellotape and cable ties of coming up with relatively innovative solutions. And one of the ones, you know, the, uh, the depth charge mine, the limpet mine-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Mm
- CWChris Williamson
... that was invented as a, a, a part of this in, in the UK. And what they needed to do is they needed to find something that would reliably dissolve at the same rate, and they're trying all of these different complex, uh, uh, chemical interactions betw- well, with the saline and the saltwater, and sometimes it changes at different depths. It's gonna be different parts of the ocean. What are we gonna use? And then it turned out that an aniseed ball, a sweet, like a little sweet, that would be perfect to keep the two firing pins apart. And when you drop it, uh, it's very reliable of how long it takes to dissolve in saltwater over time, and then it goes up. But in order to protect the ball so that it didn't degrade, um, uh, humidity that was in the air, they needed to use condoms. They were like, "Well, we're gonna, we'll wrap it in a condom, and we'll keep, we'll keep it dry by having, by having the condom around it." And in the book, the guy says, um, so in an effort to not be found out about what it was that they were using, they covered their tracks by going to each of the different pharmacies in the local village, and they were buying all of the condoms. But different people were going, and they weren't going at the same time, and they were going from overtime and distributing themselves around. And he just had this little parentheses, and he said, um, "It is unclear whether or not nine months later the, uh, births in Little Hington had increased due to the shortage-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's funny
- CWChris Williamson
... of condoms that were available because they'd all been taken to create these fucking limpet mines or these depth charges."
- TEThe Fat Electrician
It's exactly the cause and effect you'd look for, though-
- CWChris Williamson
Yes. Yes, yes, yes
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... which is hilarious.
- CWChris Williamson
Yes. Yes. Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, you guys also were famous for, uh, putting chickens inside of nuclear landmines if I, if I recall.
- CWChris Williamson
Chickens in nuclear landmines.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Why would you do that?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. That's how you kept them warm.
- 1:22:48 – 1:28:06
Did the Allies Try to Feminise Hitler?
- CWChris Williamson
more of. One of my favorite ones, so I had John Lyle on, "The Dirty Tricks Department." He's here in Austin, and what I love about him is he's got access to the archives, and he goes and does so much of the research, like of source, source, source-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... material in the archives, dusting shit off. Have you heard the story about how there was a psychological assessment done of Hitler, and in an attempt that w- w- the... Perhaps somebody didn't need to do a psychological assessment of it to work this out. Hitler had a fragile hold on his masculinity. That was one of the things that the psychometric evaluation, the psychological, uh, evaluation had, had determined. So their, the Allies' attempt was if we can somehow disrupt Hitler's relationship with his own masculinity, then he will begin to go so insane that he won't be able to maintain the control that he needs. So their plan was to literally trans Hitler. They found the gardener that grew the vegetables for the Crow's Nest. What was, what was the-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Eagle's Nest?
- CWChris Williamson
Eagle's Nest.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Thank you. They found the gardener that grew the vegetables for it, and they, um, uh, did the bring you on board slowly, slowly, uh, uh, recruitment, uh, process, and they gave him female sex hormones, that the plan was to inject the female sex hormones into the vegetables, and then Hitler would eat the vegetables, but his estrogen would go up, and his mustache would fall out, and his hair would go, and his voice would go soprano and, and, and, and, and he would lose his mind, and his m- masculinity would be destroyed, and we'd win the war. And like, that was one of the plans that the Dirty Tricks Department-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Did they go through it?
- CWChris Williamson
They, they gave him the sex hormones. They don't know if the gardener, the vegetable grow man ended up putting it in, whether or not Hitler ate it, et cetera, et cetera. But that was one of the plans. That was one of the attempts.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's fucking insane.
- CWChris Williamson
[laughs]
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I love it. I love everything about it.
- CWChris Williamson
Uh, there was another one. One of my favorite stories from "The Dirty Tricks Department" by John is, I think foxes are a bad omen for Japanese people.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Okay.
- CWChris Williamson
They're seen as a, a, a horrible omen. So one of the plans that they had was, well, if we can get a bunch of foxes, and we can dump them on the shore, that will, uh, the dead foxes on the shore of, of Japan, that will demoralize the Japanese. They will see it as this horrible omen and, and it'll mean that they're not going to fight back, and we'll get to win the war. Um, but it turns out that they couldn't find enough foxes. Like, the total number of foxes that they could get ahold of wasn't big enough. So they decided instead to paint raccoons because they could get tons of raccoons. So they're like, "Well, we can paint the raccoons and actually, fuck it, we might as well paint them ... with a luminous paint, 'cause this would be, that, that would be scarier. Like, if they were all glowing in the dark, that would be great. Um, but we can't get close enough without being detected, so what we'll do is we'll work out where the tides are going, get them at low tide, dump them off the coast, and then they'll get, like, swept in, and they'll be left on the shoreline, and then everyone will be really worried. Well, first off, they got the tides wrong. Secondly, the water washed all of the paint off them, so there was just some dead raccoons that appeared. So they were like, "Okay, that, that didn't fucking work. Okay, so this is what we're gonna do. We're gonna get a massive loudspeaker with a pre-recorded message in a scary voice talking in Japanese, and we're gonna get, like, an animatronic fox head and stick it on the side of a boat, and just broadcast messages as if this frox- fox is, like, speaking about them." It's like, this is-- You've gone backward to wa- from, you know, advanced military technology to, like, medieval, feudal, like, God. W- We're just going to sow seeds of discord by saying-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's-
- CWChris Williamson
... like, Zeus is mad at you type thing.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
But-
- CWChris Williamson
That was what they assumed
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... also trying to demoralize the Japanese is an uphill battle. Those guys were fanatics. I mean, I think the last guy surrendered in '76.
- CWChris Williamson
Still fighting in the jungle?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, Hiroo Onoda in the Philippines. He didn't surrender till 30 years after the fact.
- CWChris Williamson
And what-- He heard people walking around, right? And assumed that it was enemy troops.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh.
- CWChris Williamson
It's allied, and it's-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh, oh, they sent, they sent his, uh, I, I think they sent his wife over at one point to try to talk to him, and he's, like, not buying it. They finally got him to quit by finding his old commander, like 30 years after the fact. They had to go out in the jungle and get him and tell him, like, it was over. Like, those guys weren't believing shit. But also, crazy military. Have you seen, uh, do you know about the bat bombs?
- CWChris Williamson
Oh, they tried to put-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
You're talking about where-
- CWChris Williamson
... bombs on bats.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
No, they did put bombs on bats.
- 1:28:06 – 1:39:12
The Most Hardcore Animals Ever Used in Warfare
- CWChris Williamson
What are some of the other more surprisingly hardcore animals from history that have been used?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, you got Wojtek, the Polish artillery bear. You've got-
- CWChris Williamson
What?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
The Polish, uh, the Polish were held POWs for a period of time, I think by the Russians, and then they got released to go fight back at the Battle of Monte Cassino. And, like, while they were on their way there, they picked up a, I believe it was a Siberian brown bear, named, they named it Wojtek. And, uh-
- CWChris Williamson
That's a pretty sick name for a bear
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... that was, like, their pet bear. And, uh-
- CWChris Williamson
Are you fucking kidding me? That's a man in a bear suit. That's not a-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
No, that's, that's not a real picture, but, like, it's-- there's a lot of mock-ups of it. But, like, it really happened. They had a, they had a pet bear that they were using to help just, like, carry ammunition and shit, like loading it on its back. Well, the bear was smart. It liked them, and it kinda, like, figured out, like, oh, during the battle when it's really loud and the guns are going off, all the guys are picking up these big artillery shells and carrying them to the guns. So it, it learned it-
- CWChris Williamson
I'm gonna help
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... and it, it started doing that, too, walking artillery to the gun. Yeah. And then, uh, there was another story where they, like, used it during an interrogation to scare the shit out of some guy. Like, "I'm gonna feed you to the pet bear."
- CWChris Williamson
Bring Wojtek in.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. [laughs] Like, uh, so you got that. Sergeant Reckless is probably my favorite. Um-
- CWChris Williamson
Sergeant Reckless?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. Horse.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
America's war horse, man.
- CWChris Williamson
Okay.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Um, during the Korean War, again, um-
- CWChris Williamson
Hang on. They were still using horses during the Korean War?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
No. No, the Marines acquired one.
- CWChris Williamson
What's that mean? Word acquired is doing a lot of heavy lifting there.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They, they acquired it, okay? Um, basically, at the ass end of the Korean War, at the, you know, the 32nd parallel, basically where the border is today, it's very mountainous, hilly terrain. So what was happening at this point in time is, like, diplomatic relations are going on, and Americans are basically up on h- on high points on hills all across the peninsula, and they're just trying to hold this line long enough to get this peace treaty signed. Whereas the Chinese and the North Koreans want to punch through because they only have, like, 15, 16 miles to get to Seoul. And if they can take over Seoul, negotiations are gonna go mu- go much better in their favor. So America's just trying to hold the line. And up top, these hills are like, you know, it's not a terrain you can drive a truck up, and the only way they're gonna be able to hold these hills from these massive meat walls that communists are willing to throw is artillery, but they can't get artillery up there. So the best thing they have is this thing called a, a recoilless rifle. It's basically a big bazooka on a tripod, a 75-millimeter recoilless rifle.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They can walk these up there and then walk the ammunition up, and that's what they're having to do. They're just running ammunition up these hills to fire this big bazooka. And, uh, eventually that gets tiring, so they're like, they go down to Seoul, they go to the racetrack, and they're like, "We're buying a fucking horse." So they buy this horse. It's a Mongolian mare. And, um, they bring the horse back. The Marines put it through hoof camp, boot camp, hoof camp. See what they did there? It was clever.
- CWChris Williamson
Oh, yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. So they, they train the horse. They get it acclimated to, like, hearing gunshots and stuff and, like, get it, get it so it's immune to that, and they basically train this horse to just walk ammunition up and down these hills, um, during firefights and stuff. And she's awesome. Like, the Marines love her. And during the Battle of Outpost Vegas Um, there's basically three hills that form a triangle called the Iron Triangle, and it's like right there. It's like the spot they would really wanna punch through to get to Seoul.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And it's called, um, the three hills are Reno, Nevada, and Carson, the three Las Vegas gambling cities, 'cause it's a gamble whether or not we can hold them.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And the Battle of Outpost Vegas is what it's called, and they throw everything they have at these Marines. And this horse, Sergeant Reckless, is- carries, I forget in the video, it's, it's hundreds of tons of ammunition this horse carries up and down the battlefield, getting new ammo to the guns during this fight. And she's like arguably the reason they were able to get through was this horse delivered so much ammunition. She covered like-- it was like a ridiculous amount of mileage just going up and down these hills. She was carrying wounded soldiers back down. Like this one horse was this humongous game changer.
- 1:39:12 – 1:44:25
Why the Battle of Trenton Changed America
- CWChris Williamson
Um, going a little bit further back, you looked at, uh, Washington before Trenton-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... stuff, right?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Like, uh, obviously, it's kinda weird, I guess. American people don't realize how little British people learn about the Revolution and about-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
[laughs] That is hilarious
- CWChris Williamson
... I mean, like you don't, you don't, you don't tend to talk about your losses in the same way that you talk about your Ws.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Right? Um, but what, what did you... 'Cause that seems like a really fascinating story that not many people know about, like that period of sort of Washington's existence. What, like, what have you learned from sort of looking at that and, and the kind of characters that have been around that, that era of history?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Oh, God. Uh, again, I mean, it's, it's all the same dudes, man. War, war changes. The men that fight it never do. It's always just some dude that is too stupid to quit with a never-say-die attitude that's willing to tell you to go fuck yourself-
- CWChris Williamson
Mm
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... that changes the world every single time.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Um, I guess are you asking specifically about the Battle of Trenton or just Revolutionary War?
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, the Trenton one is, is particularly good 'cause it's like on, whatever, midnight on December 31st was like a uniquely important day.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. So I mean, basically what had happened up, uh, till this point in the war is Washington, you know, we had initial success, and then it's just been... Washington has basically done the textbook right thing, and we talked about how you're supposed to do the, the right thing, not the, you know, the bold, rebellious thing. Uh, uh, for the rest of the war, you know, through New York and everything, he basically fights a very conservative, defensive war, trying to basically nickel and dime the British and make it too expensive for you guys to wanna keep going. And by this point in the war, his back is up against the wall, and he's like, "Fuck it. I need a W. I'm gonna cross a frozen river and kill a bunch of you guys in your sleep to inspire people to keep going." And the reason it was really important is because l- at this point in time, a lot of the colonials are just volunteers, or they signed like a one-year contract, and their contracts are about to expire. Winter's about to hit, and if that contract expires and everybody goes home and we end this fighting season, so to speak, 'cause you don't really fight in winter at this point. If we end the fighting season of this war after I just racked up, you know, eight, 10, 12 losses and we've done nothing but get our asses kicked the entire time, when summer and springtime comes back around, nobody's showing up to fight, and this is, this is over. So th- it was basically his back was up against the wall, and he needed a W, and he found a way to make it fucking happen. Um, he... Hold on. Sorry. The, um... So Battle of Trenton, he basically coordinates with three separate units. They have to go, and they're like, "We have to cross this river. We have to do it at night." And they go, and they commandeer all these boats that are on the river. This part of the river's used for, like, a lot of commerce and everything else, so they have these, I don't know, they're like big fucking canoes basically that you can put like iron ore and crops and shit in and, and ship them down the river. So at first, they try to buy them. They're like, 'cause, you know, you don't wanna upset all the local people. Like, y- it's hard to be like, "Hey, we're f- we're fighting a rebellion against the tyrannical government. We're here to steal your shit."
- CWChris Williamson
Give me your stuff.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. So they try to buy them at first, and if they can't buy them, they try to rent them, and then finally, if they can't rent them, they're like, "Oh, well, we're, we're fucking taking it, sorry." And, uh, they take it, and they wind up getting... Only two of the three groups actually wind up making it across the river and where they're supposed to get. They launch this ambush on Trenton, and the, the coolest part about this battle for me is Henry Knox, who is Fort Knox, the military base, he's kinda like the godfather of American artillery. Like, he's the man. He's a 24-year-old built like a brick sh- Everybody always portrays him as fat, but he was like, he was taller, and he was like 220.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Like, I'm pretty sure he was just a built fucking dude.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
But, uh, he was, he ran a bookstore, and he was just a huge nerd, and he just read everything about military tactics that he could, and he just became our artillery guy. So Henry Knox is on this mission, and artillery, cannons, it's usually like put them up on the hill and we're gonna rain hell down on the enemy. He's like, "Nah, we're trying to take a town. I'm gonna bring the fucking artillery with me." So he actually, when they go into Trenton, they basically wheel the artillery in into crossroads and are like All right, this road's ours. Anybody-
- CWChris Williamson
My crossroad now
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... any- anybody tries to come down this road, they're fucking getting it with canister shot, which is basically a giant fucking shotgun. So can- canister shot is instead of one big cannonball, imagine a burlap sack of pool ball sized cannonballs. Boof.
- CWChris Williamson
No, thank you.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Just clears everything-
- CWChris Williamson
Yep
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... in that direction. Um, but yeah, I mean, they ransack it. Uh, a bunch of civilians actually start helping them out with the battle. Uh, most of them were Hessians. They weren't actually, um, British regulars. Hessians were the German mercenaries, more or less, loyal to the British. But yeah, they took over Trenton, chased them all the way back up, got that victory. And then after that, I believe they went into Valley Forge.
- 1:44:25 – 1:47:42
What Everyone Gets Wrong About Bravery
- CWChris Williamson
After researching all of these people, what do you think most normal humans misunderstand about bravery? 'Cause it sounds from the outside like everybody involved in this incredibly courageous, a, a, a single-minded mission, et cetera, et cetera. What do people get wrong about bravery?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I think they underestimate themselves, for sure. I mean, I think that there's a lot of people that if you put, if you put them in the same exact circumstance, that they would've done something or tried to do something similar at the very least. Um, so I don't know. But I think that kind of bleeds into, like, if you can't imagine yourself in that circumstance, you can't imagine how you would react, so then you just avoid putting yourself in that circumstance. So, like, I don't think-- I don't know. I just think it's, uh, I think the average person is capable of a lot more than they wanna believe they are.
- CWChris Williamson
Craig Jones, who is a Brazilian jujitsu guy-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yep
- CWChris Williamson
... and spent a good bit of time in different war zones, now appears to be on this weird, like, child predator sting thing. Like, he's now a private investigator tracking this dude down around Australia. It's kind of strange. Uh, anyway, he told me a story about when he'd gone to Ukraine. He spent a good bit of time in Ukraine, and he was, like, near to where the coal bombing was happening, and there was this lady who had a bakery. So older, nice lady, and he'd been eating there. And then the windows of her bakery had been blown out by the aftershock of some bomb at some point. And the next day, she'd got up and was serving baked goods through the newly broken window. They had just, like, you know, taken a broom handle and cleared the rest of the-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... Jason Bourne film, was like, "Oh, I've got a new hatch to serve through." And I think that point to me is like, you don't know what situation-- uh, you don't know your reaction until you're in a situation like that. And I think what's interesting, at least about the Ukraine war, there was only one going on, right, when Ukraine and Russia happened. There was only one, like, kinetic incursion, so we were able to watch it. Now it's like having cable as opposed to, like, you know, five channels. There's so many conflicts. Like, which one do I wanna watch? And I get confused. Uh, but with that, you got to see this thing firsthand, and he was telling me these stories, and I saw this too. I saw how many people that from the outside you wouldn't assume would have this bit of, this heroic tumor or the streak in them, normal people doing what seemed to be extraordinary things.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Well, I think it's very hard for both of us to relate to it just 'cause y- you're UK, I'm American. Both of our countries have pretty much been hosting away games the entire time. You know what I mean? I think it's-- I, I don't think the average person realizes that, like, in these war zones that are urban areas and, like, when shit happens, people literally do just pick up and continue on with their lives by and large-
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... a lot of the time.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Like, why? Because there's nothing else to do.
- CWChris Williamson
What else would you do? Do you just say you have-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
You wake up one day and you're like, "My favorite coffee shop just got blown up. I guess I gotta find somewhere else to get coffee?" Like, and it's weird and it's horrible, but, like, what else do you do? Like, it's gonna keep going on, and people just live through that. And I think Americans and British people are very disconnected 'cause again, like, when was the last time either of those nations had a war on their soil and had to even remotely experience that? Like, nobody alive today.
- 1:47:42 – 1:51:32
Why America Really Wants Greenland
- CWChris Williamson
What do you make of the Greenland thing? Uh, you know, I, I'm kind of fascinated by how different periods of history have been facilitated by tactical advantages that maybe weren't so visible at the time. Like, uh, Europe having, uh, deep ports, right? Meaning that you've got, uh, a better access to navy, better ships, et cetera, et cetera. Um, it seems like Greenland, from a tactical perspective, potentially quite keystone-y. You know, it's an area that's very, very important. What do you make of that? Presumably you've been tracking it, thinking about it from a military perspective.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
It's not-- uh, I have a video on it. Um, I-- it's not one of the videos I brushed up on before coming here. But, um, basically Greenland, what-- a, a lot of it is just backlash because people just don't like Trump and they won't like anything that he does. But America wanting control of Greenland is not new, and we've wanted it for over 100 years. We have tried to buy Greenland multiple times. We've had bases there since World War II. We've had, uh, we had a secret underground ice base there at one point. Uh, you can look up Operation, I believe it's called Operation Iceworm. We had a secret underground nuclear facility that we built there without telling anybody. Um, America has always wanted access to Greenland because it controls that North Sea, and it's the only way that the USSR is gonna be able to actually launch, like, a major naval campaign-
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... or the fastest way for them to do it. Like, it's extremely important. It has been for hundreds of years. Um, it's not new that we want control of it at all.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm. Yeah, it's interesting thinking about. I, I looked at a breakdown of the specifics of the deal, and I think that there's something in it that even if Greenland was to separate from the Dutch with regards to its relationship, that the American deal would still hold. It's like in perpetuity for now and forever.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
In sickness and in health, like we get to play-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Unless you can make us move, America's not moving. And it doesn't matter if it's a Republican or a Democrat in office, America will not give up military control of Greenland. And I understand like, "Oh, Greenland belongs to these people," blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. It really belongs to whoever the fuck has the most guns there.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's America. You can say whatever you want, America has control of that island. They have for since World War II.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
They're not giving it up for anybody. That's just the way it is.
- CWChris Williamson
What do you think's the likelihood that, um, Canada, uh, has... Or America tries to make a bigger push toward Canada?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Well, very, very small. Like, try to take over Canada?
- CWChris Williamson
Uh, maybe not try to take over it, but tries to do something diplomatic to subsume it as best they can.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Um, I could see, uh, what is it, Alberta, that kind of already has a political movement to join America. I mean, I could see America allowing it.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Um, I don't know that they're, like, overly interested in taking it. Um, Canada's just, from what I know of it, which granted is not a lot, it's a very, it's a very weird country just 'cause the majority of their population, it's like 80% or more is localized within 60 miles of the US border. I mean, it's right there, and the rest of it's just uncharted tundra.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
You know what I mean? So I don't know. It's-
- CWChris Williamson
Have you ever seen the, uh, population distribution of Iceland? Like the, it's like a, like a donut, but like a really, really, really fucking thin donut, and almost the entire middle of this thing is, like, sweet fuck all, and then you've got Reykjavik down here, and then a little bit more. And then there's, like, some other stuff up here.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Australia-
- CWChris Williamson
It's like Australia kind of
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... Australia's sort of the same, yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Yep, yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, exactly.
- CWChris Williamson
You got, like, Perth on one side, and then that coast, and then, like, the middle is just a big empty donut, and that's kind of it. Um-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
It's me. I'll be in the middle.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah. That's where-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's where I wanna
- 1:51:32 – 1:55:55
The Forgotten Jobs That Win Wars
- TEThe Fat Electrician
be at.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, yeah, yeah. What, um, what are some of the more unglamorous jobs that during the research that you've done looking at wars people maybe don't think about giving enough credit to? I mean, a horse that carries-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... artillery up and down hills is maybe one of them. But I have to assume that not all of the most obvious positions are perhaps the ones that are the most pivotal or, like, highly contributing, or they're a little bit less glamorous but are still very important.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I mean, it's, it's all of them to a large degree. You know? Like, every- everybody glamorizes, you know, the dude on the front lines with the gun actually, you know, doing the work or whatever. But the amount of logistics and people that you have to have working behind you to get you on the front line with ammunition, with food and water, it's, it's hu- it's like 100, 150 people per guy on the front line-
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... working on the back end to actually get everything done. I mean, that's where the saying, "War is won by logistics," comes from.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So I mean, everybody's job is super important. Um, and yeah, nobody, nobody gets all the credit that it, they deserve when they're just like, "Ah, I was, I was just a cook. I was just a that. I was ju- " But you know what I mean? Like, how far do we get without all of those people? Not very far.
- CWChris Williamson
The guy with the gun can't shoot, sh- can't shoot much if he hasn't had a meal for a week.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. But I mean, uh, to give you, like, a very specific answer, if I had to pick one, it would be truck drivers. Like, military truck drivers are, like, the unsung heroes of... You know, during World War II you had, like, the Red Ball Express. Uh, during GWOT you had all the 88 Mikes that were out there doing missions. Like, everybody's like, "Oh, what do you do?" "I'm, I'm just a truck driver." It's like, "Oh, well, what's your job?" "Oh, I drive through IED-infested roads to get food and water to the guys that are actually fighting these guys."
- CWChris Williamson
In a massive target, a massive moving target that can be seen for miles away.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Exactly. And, like, you see the truck drivers in all the wars having to improvise and adapt and do a bunch of gangster shit just to survive. This is the same thing, where it's like enemy knows logistics wins wars, and if we can stop their logistics, we win the war. During Vietnam, the truck drivers were literally doing this shit. They were turning their trucks for supplies into heavily armored gun ships.
- CWChris Williamson
What's that on top?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
To fu- that's a fucking .50 cal. It's a giant antenna and two .50 cals. Uh, look up the Vietnam, the Eye of Destruction gun truck.
- CWChris Williamson
The Eye of Destruction. You know what I wanna know? I wanna know who the guy is that gets to co- the copywriting department that comes up with the, [laughs] the nomenclature for this.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Dude, it's just-
- CWChris Williamson
That's who, that's what I want. That's my job. "Hey, what was your job? You're just as import- the cook. Very important apparently. I spoke to a, a historian who's very, uh, very influential in this." "Oh, what was your job in the, during the war, Chris?" "Oh, um, I came up with the sick names."
- TEThe Fat Electrician
No, I mean, but that's just-
- CWChris Williamson
"I came up with the scary, sick names"
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... that's just, that's just, that's just the guys that run the crew, bro. Like, tank, tanks always have funny names. Like, you know what I think about if World War III breaks out? 'Cause, you know, like, World War II we were having, like... Like, now you can't do it because we're not in, like, big, you know, big wartime. You can't be painting shit all over your planes.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
But, like, World War II, people were painting pinups and shit on all their planes and stuff. And it's, like, now, like, dude, if we have World War III, 100% they're gonna be painting anime chicks with massive tits on the side of a bomber.
- CWChris Williamson
Hentai.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
1,000%-
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... that's happening.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, the big natural bomber.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. [laughs] Like... That's-
- CWChris Williamson
See? That's why you should be employed. What's this, what's this big scary thing? Is this it?
- 1:55:55 – 2:11:32
The Incredible Story of Sniper Ed Eaton
- CWChris Williamson
If you could go back, if I could transport you back to any point- Place in history, time in history, battle, what do you think you'd want to be a spectator of? What are some of the ones that, uh, something that comes to mind where you're like, "Oh God, it would be fucking sick to just watch that thing unfold"? Is there something that comes to mind?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Dude, there's so many. Um, I just did a video on my friend Ed. It's the first time I've ever done a video on somebody that's still alive. Seeing his, his battle would be pretty cool. He, uh... So Ed, Ed Eaton was a sniper in Vietnam and, um, he's, he's still around. He was on my podcast over on Unsubscribe, and, uh, met him, talked with him. So worked really hard on the video, 'cause it was the first time I actually had the real source. Like, I could call him and ask him questions, and he got to watch the video before I uploaded it and be like, "Yep, send it." So, like, that meant a lot to me. Um, and basically his story is he joins Vietnam fairly late into Vietnam just 'cause he's a young kid, just graduated high school, wanted to go off, see what he was made of. And, uh, he volunteers to go. He wanted to be a, a medic, but they made him infantry instead. And they send him out on infantry, and immediately he's just, he's in over his head. He, uh... You know, the boat, before he even gets to his military base of operations in the Mekong Delta, gets hit with, uh, like a sabotage attack, and he wakes up at the belly of this ship on his first day in country getting transported there. And he wakes up, and the c- room that he's in is filling up with diesel fuel, like up to the fucking ceiling, and it's up past, you know how the portholes in a boat are like this and there's like this much space? It's already past the door. So he's, like, treading diesel fuel, and he fucking has to duck and swim under, through diesel fuel to get up a ladder to get on top of the ship. And, uh, by the time he gets up top, he's soaked in diesel fuel, and they're stuck there for, like, a day waiting for somebody to come rescue him. So he's sitting there in the sun of the Mekong Delta. Everybody's naked. They took their clothes off 'cause they were soaked in diesel fuel, just getting sunburnt to shit. That was, like, his first day he was there. And then he winds up going on a mission and, uh, they make him the RTO, the radio guy. Wou- kind of common to have the new guy be the RTO 'cause the RTO sticks right next to the, the squad leader, 'cause the squad leader needs to have access to the radio.
- CWChris Williamson
So he's kind of like an assistant?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, I mean, his job is to carry the radio and do whatever, but his job necessitates him being right there next to the, the head guy in charge. So the head guy in charge kind of gets to keep an eye on him.
- CWChris Williamson
Oh, okay. I see.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Right.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah, yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So, like, that was his job initially.
- CWChris Williamson
Trainee, trainee kind of.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. And his first mission, you know, he has multiple people get heatstroke. Uh, four of them wind up getting brain damage. They have heatstroke so bad. And every time they call in a medevac for these guys, they're like, "Bring more water. We don't have water, and nobody has water." They never bring the fucking water. He almost falls out with heatstroke. Um, winds up surviving. Like, the first couple missions that he walks you through, and I go over them in the video and in his book, are just-- it's brutal, just trying to adapt to the climate and the heat and the mosquitoes eating him alive and everything else. And, um, it's kind of a story of how he goes from this kid that just got in way over his head to becoming the guy that can survive this environment.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And then eventually he gets the opportunity to go to sniper school. And sniper school was brand new at this point in time. It was just getting stood up. It was a, it was a new thing. Usually military schools are, like, trained or taught at this base in America and whatever. They were literally teaching these guys in Vietnam. So he goes back to a base in Vietnam, and he talks about, like, enemy snipers taking pop shots at him while he's at sniper school learning how to be a sniper.
- CWChris Williamson
Well, there's nothing like learning on the job.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Right. Like, it's just crazy. Like, and you know, sniper school has a super high attrition rate. A lot of people flunk out, and basically what, what they did was the first week they were there, they had some initial training, and then they had a competition, and they only kept the top 10 guys. Everybody else got kicked out. He was the top shot out of those 10 guys, so he stayed. Goes all the way through sniper school. Uh, goes to do his final and then misses the 900-meter target on his final, and he's the-- out of the, out of the 10 that actually made it to do all of sniper school, he's the first guy to ever fail. He was the third iteration of sniper school ever.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So there's only 20 dudes that are snipers at this point, and he was supposed to be 30, and he failed, so now there's only 29. So he just gets sent back to his unit to be an infantryman, and he goes and does that. I mean, he winds up being a squad leader, then a platoon leader. He learns every job. He's a grenadier for a while. He's, he does it all. He's, he goes from being, you know, the fucking new guy that doesn't know anything to being the experienced guy that is trying to get himself and other people through this.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
And eventually they start running these missions that are basically checkerboarding strategy. Like, instead of, like, moving troops into an area and, like, controlling that area, they're just gonna be like, "We got intel that there's enemies in this village." And they're like, "We're gonna fly in at night with helicopters, insert, hit the village in 10 minutes, and then get back on the helicopters and dip out." And that's what they're doing. And on April 3rd, he winds up... You know, he's been in the field for three days doing normal missions, and they're doing this volunteer-only mission, and him and all of his more experienced guys are all smoked, and they're like, "I'm not gonna go." And his commander, Captain Perkins, basically, you know, asks him, like, "Uh, all I've got's fucking new guys for this volunteer-only mission. Ed, can you come with me?" And by this point in time, Ed has already-- He's not a sniper, but he's friends with all the snipers, so he has acquired a sniper rifle-
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... with a Starlight scope, which is like an early version of a night vision scope.
- CWChris Williamson
Again, acquired's doing a lot of heavy lifting.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Acquired.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, he acquired it. Don't worry about it. Um- So he's like, "Fuck fine." He's been in the field for three days. He's like, "Fuck fine, I'll go." So he goes out on this mission, and they land in this rice paddy, and he said the mud was just like peanut butter. He said it was like trying to walk through two feet of peanut butter. And, like, the whole scope of these missions are get on the ground, clear the village, 10 minutes in and out, we gotta fucking dip. So they go in and they clear this village. They don't really find anything, but they find a cave network that has concrete. That's not normal in Vietnam, especially in the Mekong Delta. Tunnel networks weren't common in the Mekong Delta, but having a concrete reinforced structure, definitely not fucking normal. Kind of the tip of, like, there's a lot bigger military presence here than we're ready to handle with-
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm
- TEThe Fat Electrician
... two helicopters full of guys.
- CWChris Williamson
Hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So, like, we gotta go right now. So they hightail it back out to this rice paddy, and they're waiting for the helicopters and, like the meme, the trees start speaking Vietnamese. And Captain Perkins and Ed can both, like, kind of speak Vietnamese at this point. They know enough to hear them talking about machine guns and rockets and helicopters, which basically tells them they've got the big guns and they're waiting for the helicopters to show up to try to shoot the helicopters down on their way out.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm. Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Helicopters get in, they load the helicopters, and they fucking take off. The Cobras come in with the Hueys. The Cobras light up the wood line with a bunch of machine gun fire, rockets, give them covering fire. They load the Hueys. They, they dip. As they're taking off, they do a head count. They're fucking missing a guy. And by this point, the mission's over as far as each individual helicopter is concerned, so the Cobras have already changed radio frequency and they're headed to their next spot. Captain Perkins in the helo with Ed basically, like, "Turn around. We gotta see if we can fucking find this new guy that's not on the helicopter." And they turn around, they see him in the fucking rice paddy, and Captain Perkins said he did the sign of the-- like he knew he was gonna die. So Captain Perkins is like, "Fucking we're gonna go get him." So they land down. They touch down. This guy jumps on the helicopter on the left side or the right side, whatever, and then apparently they didn't fucking-- everybody wasn't on the same page as to what we were fucking doing because as he hops in the helicopter on one side, one of the other fucking new guys hops out on the other side, and the helicopters take off again.
- 2:11:32 – 2:18:42
Is It Intimidating to Cover Someone Who’s Still Alive?
- CWChris Williamson
How does it feel doing a story about someone that you know is gonna get to see it?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Intimidating. It's the first time I've ever done it. It was, uh, yeah, it was, it was scary. It's probably the, the coolest thing I've ever done, also the scariest thing I've ever done.
- CWChris Williamson
Mm-hmm.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, obviously, it takes way more work. I gotta do, you know, noth- I don't ever want anybody to, uh... Like, my biggest fear when I do these videos is for somebody's fam- like f- somebody's kid to come out of the woodwork and be like, "I hated your video." Like-
- CWChris Williamson
Didn't you do one on Colonel Sanders, and his, like, nephew was like, "Yeah, that's sick. Like, here's a couple of-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... amendments, but pretty much you nailed it."
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah. So, like, Colonel Sanders', like, distant relative was happy with h- my video. I've had, uh, I don't know-
- CWChris Williamson
You don't wanna piss off the KFC guys.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah, for sure.
- CWChris Williamson
Like, the KFC mafia, that's someone you don't wanna get on the wrong side of.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
But, uh, I've had, I've had a lot of videos where family members reach out where they love the videos, and, like, that's always the coolest part for me. Like, yeah, yeah, I usually pin the comment, and then I usually reach out to the family and, like, talk to them. But I mean, that's happened multiple times. But to be able to do it with the guy that actually, that actually did it, and the, the cool part for me is, you know, I, I s- "Hey, here's the rough draft of this video. What do you think?" And he's like, "You know..." And I, I went through, and I, I refilmed a lot of that video. I made corrections 'cause he didn't like the way I portrayed this, or he didn't, my verbiage was wrong here, and I, I... So it, it was a lot more work, but that's completely fine. And the, the cool part for me is the, you know, the other criticism was like, "I feel like you're kinda making a bigger deal about some of these things than they really were." And I go, "Of course you feel that way." Like, you get, like, you-
- CWChris Williamson
Classic war hero minimization.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Exactly.
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Like, you, you did it. Like, dude, that's fucking crazy to the rest of us that you managed to accomplish that. Like, it's cool that you don't think it's a big deal or that big of a deal, but, like, that shit's fucking incredible.
- CWChris Williamson
I think that if, if m- you were doing more videos about people that were still alive, or if more of the people that you were doing videos about were alive, uh, I think that would be one of the most common responses. It would be this sense of like, "Ah, well, come on." Like, if, I mean, like, a, a, factually, it happened like that.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
But, like, symbolically, it's not. You're making it a bit more of a th- And you know, maybe that is, this is really interesting. I'm kind of obsessed with this, uh, psychological bias, and it's called the fading affect bias.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Okay.
- CWChris Williamson
So fading affect bias is our psychological immune system. So, uh, good memories and bad memories both fade with time, but bad memories fade more, and they often can become good memories. Rarely do good memories become bad ones, but quite often bad ones can become less bad or maybe even funny or humorous-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah
- CWChris Williamson
... over time, right? Um, uh, fuck, who was I talking to? Some SAS guy from a few years ago, and he was telling me this story about when One of his teammates shot, accidentally shot another one of his teammates in the ass while they were being, like, uh, uh, there was attack coming in from all sides in the middle of somewhere in the Middle East. And at the time it was like, "Fuck!" Like, we need to... Now this guy's not gonna be able to walk. We need to come and get him, all this thing. It's all this stress. Afterwards, like that's one of the best ongoing jokes that they have in the entire friend group. So bad memories fade with time and so do good, but bad memories fade more. And it's part of what we call a psychological immune system, which is, uh, minimization, distancing, disassociation, stuff like that. So it's good that you and me and everyone that's listening isn't pinned underneath the challenge that we went through when we were 10, right? Because that would be highly maladaptive. Like, you need to be able to get over bad things.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Um, one of the problems of that is that it can cause you to forget the lessons that you learned from negative experiences. This is why people go back to their toxic ex. This is why people relapse into a drug that they swore they would never take again. This is why people get back into debt after they worked very hard to get out of it. Not just because there's this temptation, this sort of gravitational pull that was the reason they got in there first, but also that distance from the information doesn't mean... T- typically we assume us in the future learns more, so we're more wise, right? Wisdom tends to come with age. You get older, you got more information. But distance from emotion actually means that you are less accurate in your ability to understand how important that thing was than you were at the time. That's why you at the time is like, "I can't deal with this fucking relationship anymore. I can't deal with the arguments. I can't deal with the whatever the fuck that you're going through." And you, a year later when you bump into her on a walk around the lake, is that, "Maybe things weren't that bad."
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Wasn't that bad. Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Bingo.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
Right? Bingo.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I-
- 2:18:42 – 2:26:38
Why The Fat Electrician Is Writing Kids’ Books
- TEThe Fat Electrician
It does.
- CWChris Williamson
What is next for you? What's on the agenda? I, by the way, I do, like, everybody-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
No, you're good
- CWChris Williamson
... needs to go and subscribe to The Fat Electrician. Your stuff fucking rips.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Excellent.
- CWChris Williamson
You are one of the best storytellers I've ever seen.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Can one of you guys grab my backpack for me right on the couch out there?
- CWChris Williamson
Yeah.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Sorry.
- CWChris Williamson
Uh-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I'll show you. I brought you one.
- CWChris Williamson
Oh, thank you.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
For what's next.
- CWChris Williamson
Unreal. What, d- I mean, I, I'm just... I think what you do is this, this weird blend of like morbid curiosity, uh, masculine heroism, fantasy porn-
- TEThe Fat Electrician
[laughs]
- CWChris Williamson
... and, uh, like tribute to stuff that's great. Uh, so I, everyone needs to go and subscribe to you because as big as you are, you need to be even bigger. Nic Flood, AKA The Fat Electrician. Heroes Erased, book one: The Flight of Richard Bong.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
That's what I'm up to next.
- CWChris Williamson
Brave Books.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
10 book series.
- CWChris Williamson
What if an ultra tech tape player could blast you back in time to save history's greatest heroes? To save history's greatest heroes. Is this a kids book?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Yeah.
- CWChris Williamson
This is sick. And who's Brave Books?
- TEThe Fat Electrician
Uh, this is a publisher that I worked with.
- CWChris Williamson
Unreal.
- TEThe Fat Electrician
So basically my biggest thing that I always get for comments and requests is, "Hey, I love your videos. I, I want my kids to hear these stories, but-"
- CWChris Williamson
To make them kids
- TEThe Fat Electrician
"... you know, you're, you're too, you're too graphic. You say fuck too much," yada, yada, yada. And I tr- originally tried to do s-
- CWChris Williamson
You don't say fuck enough
- TEThe Fat Electrician
I tried to, I tried to do censored videos, and, uh, those just didn't work out, so this was my, my next swing at trying to get war hero stories to kids. Uh, so I basically impregnated a fictional story with the nonfiction story of these real, real-life war heroes.
- CWChris Williamson
Is that a plane shooting an alligator?
Episode duration: 2:47:53
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