Podcast

 In this episode, I talked to retired Marine Corpsman Denny Sedlack. Denny and I explore the themes of veteran suicide and touch upon many areas that are otherwise left out of the conversation from our point of view. Denny was a practicing psychotherapist after he returned from the war and is uniquely positioned to comment on this issue more broadly. 

Ben Cardamone was born in Utica, New York, Nov 1946.

Joined the Marine Corps in August 1966 (around 20) and was discharged end of 1969. While enlisted, Ben's duties included jet mechanic, helicopter crew chief & machine gunner, among other duties. He Flew a bunch of missions in Vietnam. Before Vietnam, he was on an aircraft carrier to Cuba, Haiti, Panama, and all the other islands in the Caribbean; he had front-row seats to some unique moments in American military history, which we talk about briefly.

In the ‘70s, Ben moved to Colorado, lived in a commune, and was involved at the beginning of natural food distribution in the whole united states. He started by unloading trucks and moved up to driving 18-wheelers, became transportation manager, and finally, VP of operations, where he held the position for at least 20 years.

As you will see, Ben has had to work with many personal demons, and his journey is unique. We talk about war, the nature of human connection, “thanking veterans” for their service, what is actually medicinal, and how he figured out his way through life.

Ben has been kind enough to volunteer his time here, and I thought he captured a unique way in which Vietnam-era veterans have had to work with their experience. I hope his nature comes through here since we all benefit from his wisdom in my opinion.

 In this conversation, I sit with former district attorney Jason Kramer and a local SWAT commander (whose identity will be kept secret for privacy). We discuss the complexities of what it means to enforce the law and the interaction between law enforcement and mental health issues. The difficulty in addressing systemic issues in training on mental health and law enforcement. The exploration is fruitful and thought-provoking, partially concluding that empathy training is a must-have across all areas of involvement. 

 Denny Sedlack describes his journey of over 50 years to come home from war. His insights as a Corpsman in combat, and then as a physical therapist, counselor, father and grandfather. In his own words: "...My job is to preserve life and limb. But if we want to preserve life and limb why are we sending men into wars of choice? We were not fighting to win this war. We’re fighting just to be in this war. I am in this formation standing at attention just like all others in the formation. My mind is screaming what bull shit. I lift my eyes and look up to the sky to scream a deadly silent scream.  “GOD, I don’t like your rules, I don’t like your game, I will never love again." 

 This discussion explores the embodiment of crazy wisdom in the historical and mythological figure of Dorje Tröllö (one of the incarnations of Padmasambhava/Guru Rinpoche). Dorje Tröllö, with his rugged, dynamic, and unconventional style of teaching the Dharma brought Buddhism to Tibet from India when many from the monastic tradition had failed. This figure had a deep influence on Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, who was one of the first Tibetan teachers to bring the Dharma to the west. They explore the powerful image of Dorje Tröllö and the wrathful compassion, discernment, and penetrating understanding of emptiness that he symbolizes. Ultimately the discussion gestures towards the question: what role does the potent clarity, sanity, and harsh directness of crazy wisdom play in confronting the confusion, delusion, and insanity of the current moment?