Introducing Third Squad

In 2011, veteran and journalist Elliott Woods embedded with the twelve Marines of Third Squad in one of the most violent parts of Afghanistan at the height of the war against the Taliban. Only eleven of the twelve would make it home. A decade later—with America’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan looming—Elliott goes on a cross-country road trip to track down the Third Squad survivors, to talk about the war and coming home, and to ask: What was it all for? And where do we go from here? 

 

Third Squad is a 12-part documentary podcast hosted by Woods and produced by Airloom Media. New episodes every Thursday starting October 21, 2021.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
We all know how the war in Afghanistan ends. Now,
Afghan government and security forces collapse under a Taliban advance
and pandemonium outside cobble amples. It's clear who was now
in charge. But before the chaos and the humiliation of
the withdrawal, I was there to witness the terror and
the togetherness of battle. They could be industry that right here,

(00:24):
just waiting for us, fucking push out of the opening
light us the book up. Unless you just do it, it
it comes over. Oh my god, goddamn. I'm glad I
didn't go on. I'm Elliott Woods. I'm a veteran and
a journalist, and back in two thousand eleven I went
to Afghanistan to embed with the squad of marine My
name is John Bollinger. Michael Miner were taking David, James Foalsky,

(00:48):
Scott me Catchings, every Lipe, Manual Mendoza, Taylor Mooney, and
Matthew for It, Jeric Fry, Michael Joseph Dutcher, twelve guys
who were serving in the bloodiest stage of the twenty
year war in a place where hundreds of Marines were
getting killed and wounded. And we solved the to Taliban
out here where they plant N E d s for Taliban.

(01:10):
The Taliban's I E d s were hidden everywhere, and
all too often the Marines found them the hard way.
If you could describe saying it in in a couple of sentences, say,
probably one of the worst places on earth right now.
I interviewed each of the exhausted Marines in a sweltering
mud brick hut, and there was one who seemed a
little out of place. All right, so you're on tape, wonderful.

(01:34):
What's your full name? Michael Joseph Dutcher. Dutcher wore goofy glasses,
and he had a reputation for being smart. In fact,
he was counting the days until he could get out
of the Marines and go to college to become a teacher.
Why did you join the Marine Corps? Honestly, I have
no idea anymore. But in the meantime he had a
job to do. He had to help keep his friends safe.

(01:55):
Paying attention to everything is the only thing you have
out here to keep you off. I left Afghanistan that
summer with a hard drive full of photos and audio,
and I was just beginning to sort through it when
I got some terrible news Michael Dutcher was dead. I

(02:18):
never went on another m bed after that. After Dutcher,
I just didn't think I could handle anymore death. But
I've always felt like I abandoned the most important mission
I ever had, And in all the years since Dutch died,
I always wondered what happened to the rest of the squad.

(02:42):
So ten years after we said goodbye and sang in,
I decided to drive across the country to track them downs.
We've covered so far and we have literally come from
coast to coast to find out what they make of
the war. After all these years, I've lost too many
good people for people would just not to give a
shit about it. I wanted to ask some hard questions.

(03:04):
To the extent that you're willing to talk about it,
I would like to go there with you if you're
able to. Okay, it's time for all of us to
ask what was it all for? And where do we
go from here? Listen to Third Squad on October one

(03:30):
on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever
you get your podcasts.