Ranger Confidential

Author: Andrea Lankford
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 0762762683
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 259

Book Description
For twelve years, Andrea Lankford lived in the biggest, most impressive national parks in the world, working a job she loved. She chaperoned baby sea turtles on their journey to sea. She pursued bad guys on her galloping patrol horse. She jumped into rescue helicopters bound for the heart of the Grand Canyon. She won arguments with bears. She slept with a few too many rattlesnakes. Hell yeah, it was the best job in the world! Fortunately, Andrea survived it. In this graphic and yet surprisingly funny account of her and others’ extraordinary careers, Lankford unveils a world in which park rangers struggle to maintain their idealism in the face of death, disillusionment, and the loss of a comrade killed while holding that thin green line between protecting the park from the people, the people from the park, and the people from each other. Ranger Confidential is the story behind the scenery of the nation’s crown jewels—Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Great Smokies, Denali. In these iconic landscapes, where nature and humanity constantly collide, scenery can be as cruel as it is redemptive.

The Unique Life of a Ranger

Author: Ajay Tegala
Publisher: The History Press
ISBN: 1803991364
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 357

Book Description
Few people have had the privilege of living on an isolated nature reserve of international importance, their every move judged by countless critics. Young ranger Ajay Tegala, embarking on his placement at Blakeney Point aged just nineteen, would have to stand firm in the face of many challenges to protect the wildlife of one of Britain's prime nature sites. In over 120 years, only a select few rangers have devoted their heart and soul to the wildlife of Norfolk's Blakeney Point. Watching and learning from his predecessors, Ajay faced head-on the challenges of the elements, predators and an ever-interested public. From the excitement of monitoring the growing grey seal population, to the struggles of trying to safeguard nesting birds from a plethora of threats, in The Unique Life of a Ranger, Ajay shares the many emotions of life on the edge of land and sea with honesty and affection.

Sua Sponte

Author: Dick Couch
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0425253600
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 386

Book Description
Sua Sponte Latin for “Of Their Own Accord” The 75th Ranger Regiment’s Motto Army Rangers are not born. They are made. The modern 75th Ranger Regiment represents the culmination of 250 years of American soldiering. As a fighting force with our nation’s oldest and deepest tradition, the Regiment traces its origins to Richard Rogers’s Rangers during the prerevolutionary French and Indian War, through the likes of Francis Marion and John Mosby, to the five active Ranger battalions of the Second World War, and finally, to the four battalions of the current Ranger regiment engaged in modern combat. Granted unprecedented access to the training of this highly restricted component of America’s Special Operations Forces in a time of war, retired Navy captain Dick Couch tells the personal story of the young men who begin this difficult and dangerous journey to become Rangers. Many will try, but only a select few will survive to serve in the 75th Ranger Regiment. Sua Sponte follows a group of these aspiring young warriors through the crucible that is Ranger training and their preparation for direct-action missions in Afghanistan against America’s enemies, anywhere, any time, and under any conditions. INCLUDES PHOTOGRAPHS

American Warrior

Author: Gary O'Neal
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 1250022754
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 311

Book Description
The epic story of one of America's greatest soldiers, Ranger Hall of Fame member Gary O'Neal, who served his country for forty years Chief Warrant Officer Gary O'Neal is no ordinary soldier. For nearly forty years, he has fought America's enemies, becoming one of the greatest Warriors this nation has ever known. Part Native American, O'Neal was trained in both military combat and the ways of his native people, combining his commitment to freedom with his respect for the enemy, his technical fighting skills with his fierce warrior spirit. From his first tour in Vietnam at seventeen to fighting in both Gulf wars, O'Neal was nothing less than a super soldier. A minefield of aggression bordering on a justice-seeking vigilante, O'Neal kept fighting even when wounded, refusing to surrender in the face of nine serious injuries and being left more than once. O'Neal earned countless military honors as a member of the elite Army Rangers corps, a founding member of the legendary first Department of Defense antiterrorist team, a member of the Golden Knights Parachuting Team, and more, devoting his life to training the next generation of soldiers. His unbelievable true stories are both shocking and moving, a reminder of what it means to be a true American hero. In O'Neal's own words, he "wasn't born a warrior"—life made him one. American Warrior will serve as inspiration for American men and women in uniform today, as well as appeal to the countless veterans who served their country alongside O'Neal.

Heart of a Ranger

Author: Bill Lunn
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781634890670
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 360

Book Description
Ben's death had been recorded on paper more than twenty-four hours previously. But in the very late hours of July 19, 2009, Ben finally no longer had a pulse. The heart of a Ranger was still but alive and awaiting its next mission.

Violence of Action

Author: Marty Skovlund
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780998900506
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 404

Book Description
These are the stories of the 75th Ranger Regiment during the The Global War on Terrorism (GWoT) from 911 - 2011. These events/missions forever changed the world view of Special Operations Forces. The 75th is a small but essential part of an elite fraternity of quiet professionals who selflessly dedicate their lives to protecting our freedom.

Rangers

Author: Michael Julius King
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Government publications
Languages : en
Pages : 102

Book Description
This Leavenworth Paper is a critical reconstruction of World War II Ranger operations conducted at or near Djebel el Ank, Tunisia; Porto Empedocle, Sicily; Cisterna, Italy; Zerf, Germany; and Cabanatuan in the Philippines. It is not intended to be a comprehensive account of World War II Ranger operations, for such a study would have to include numerous minor actions that are too poorly documented to be studied to advantage. It is, however, representative for it examines several types of operations conducted against the troops of three enemy nations in a variety of physical and tactical environments. As such, it draws a wide range of lessons useful to combat leaders who may have to conduct such operations or be on guard against them in the future. Many factors determined the outcomes of the operations featured in this Leavenworth Paper, and of these there are four that are important enough to merit special emphasis. These are surprise, the quality of opposing forces, the success of friendly forces with which the Rangers were cooperating, and popular support.

Cult of Glory

Author: Doug J. Swanson
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101979879
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 481

Book Description
“Swanson has done a crucial public service by exposing the barbarous side of the Rangers.” —The New York Times Book Review A twenty-first century reckoning with the legendary Texas Rangers that does justice to their heroic moments while also documenting atrocities, brutality, oppression, and corruption The Texas Rangers came to life in 1823, when Texas was still part of Mexico. Nearly 200 years later, the Rangers are still going--one of the most famous of all law enforcement agencies. In Cult of Glory, Doug J. Swanson has written a sweeping account of the Rangers that chronicles their epic, daring escapades while showing how the white and propertied power structures of Texas used them as enforcers, protectors and officially sanctioned killers. Cult of Glory begins with the Rangers' emergence as conquerors of the wild and violent Texas frontier. They fought the fierce Comanches, chased outlaws, and served in the U.S. Army during the Mexican War. As Texas developed, the Rangers were called upon to catch rustlers, tame oil boomtowns, and patrol the perilous Texas-Mexico border. In the 1930s they began their transformation into a professionally trained police force. Countless movies, television shows, and pulp novels have celebrated the Rangers as Wild West supermen. In many cases, they deserve their plaudits. But often the truth has been obliterated. Swanson demonstrates how the Rangers and their supporters have operated a propaganda machine that turned agency disasters and misdeeds into fables of triumph, transformed murderous rampages--including the killing of scores of Mexican civilians--into valorous feats, and elevated scoundrels to sainthood. Cult of Glory sets the record straight. Beginning with the Texas Indian wars, Cult of Glory embraces the great, majestic arc of Lone Star history. It tells of border battles, range disputes, gunslingers, massacres, slavery, political intrigue, race riots, labor strife, and the dangerous lure of celebrity. And it reveals how legends of the American West--the real and the false--are truly made.

Ranger Games

Author: Ben Blum
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0385538448
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 453

Book Description
"A gloriously good writer...Ranger Games is both surprising and moving...A memorable, novelistic account."—Jennifer Senior, New York Times Intricate, heartrending, and morally urgent, Ranger Games is a crime story like no other Alex Blum was a good kid, a popular high school hockey star from a tight-knit Colorado family. He had one goal in life: endure a brutally difficult selection program, become a U.S. Army Ranger, and fight terrorists for his country. He poured everything into achieving his dream. In the first hours of his final leave before deployment to Iraq, Alex was supposed to fly home to see his family and beloved girlfriend. Instead, he got into his car with two fellow soldiers and two strangers, drove to a local bank in Tacoma, and committed armed robbery... The question that haunted the entire Blum family was: Why? Why would he ruin his life in such a spectacularly foolish way? At first, Alex insisted he thought the robbery was just another exercise in the famously daunting Ranger program. His attorney presented a case based on the theory that the Ranger indoctrination mirrored that of a cult. In the midst of his own personal crisis, and in the hopes of helping both Alex and his splintering family cope, Ben Blum, Alex’s first cousin, delved into these mysteries, growing closer to Alex in the process. As he probed further, Ben began to question not only Alex, but the influence of his superior, Luke Elliot Sommer, the man who planned the robbery. A charismatic combat veteran, Sommer’s manipulative tendencies combined with a magnetic personality pulled Ben into a relationship that put his loyalties to the test.

The Ranger

Author: Monica McCarty
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0345518268
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 418

Book Description
Chosen to help Robert the Bruce in his quest to free Scotland from English rule and claim his crown, the legendary team of warriors known as the Highland Guard battles on. Embedded deep behind enemy lines, Arthur “Ranger” Campbell is prized for his razor-sharp senses and his ability to blend into the shadows. But when Arthur infiltrates the clan of the chieftain who murdered his father, his heart is locked on revenge. Inside he faces unexpected resistance from the sweetest of obstacles—a honey-haired siren who is his enemy’s daughter. Intrigued by this ruggedly handsome newcomer to her father’s forces, the vivacious, enchanting Anna MacDougall is a woman whose skill at uncovering deception rivals Arthur’s own. Though yearning for a quiet life with a good man to love, Anna is drawn to this mysterious knight whose eyes devour her but whose words push her away. As danger, treachery, and the threat of looming war draw them closer into each other’s arms, a warrior made of steel must make a choice from the heart: love or revenge.