Break It Down Show

Recently retired after 25 years with the United States Secret Service, Brad brings a wealth of experience from his distinguished career. In his final position as an instructor at the National Center for Credibility Assessment (NCCA), he trained thousands of federal law enforcement and intelligence agents in credibility assessment and elicitation techniques. Brad also served on the protection detail for former president George H. W. Bush and various foreign heads of state. As a federal polygraph examiner for 17 years, he secured numerous confessions in high-profile investigations and conducted the most criminal polygraph examinations in the agency's history. With a master's degree in criminology, he was honored as the U.S. Secret Service Special Agent of the Year for combating crimes against children. Recognized globally as a communications expert, Brad has delivered sought-after presentations to law enforcement and intelligence agencies worldwide. Get Tell Me Everything on Amazon at amzn.to/4bOG7qI Mastering

Dr. Salvatore R. Mercogliano is an associate professor of history at Campbell University in North Carolina and adjunct professor at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. He holds a bachelor of science in marine transportation from the State University of New York Maritime College, along with a merchant marine deck officer license (unlimited tonnage 2nd mate), a master's in maritime history and nautical archaeology from East Carolina University, and a Ph.D. in military and naval history from the University of Alabama. Sal has robust social media accounts on YouTube, X etc.... Be sure to check out @wgowshipping on YouTube

Xander Bullock is a USMA grad who spent a long and successful career fighting wars in foreign places. Xander penned a recent article discussing a famous war game. In the scenario, retired USMC 3-Star General Van Riper played the opposing force. His team, a "thinly veiled Iran" failed to cooperate with the overwhelming force. Read Xander Bullock's piece on Van Riper at dailywire.com/news/america-lost-an-infamous-wargame-to-iran-thats-why-were-winning-now Van Riper's oppo forces played the game small and out of scope. His approach was so successful the game had to be halted. Van Riper was cheating, they cried...yet Van Riper's plan was legitimate. It began a change in how we see modern combat. Pete A Turner welcome Xander Bullock to the Break It Down Show.

Retired federal economist Mitch Ferguson returns to the Break It Down Show with Pete A Turner. Mitch's experience working in the federal sphere provides experience and insight on the influence of money on foreign policy decisions.

Bill Conroy, M.A. in Mass Communications/Journalism (Marquette University), is a veteran journalist with 40 years of experience working as a staff reporter, editor-in-chief, and freelance correspondent at print and online publications across the United States and in Mexico. Get Bill's book The Great Pretense on Amazon at amzn.to/4cF89pG His journalism has been cited in more than 35 books to date. Conroy also is the author of the nonfiction books The Great Pretense: A Tour Through the Boneyard of the CIA's War for Drugs; Dispatches from the House of Death: A Juarez Cartel informant, a DEA whistleblower, mass murder and a coverup on the edge of the Empire; and Borderline Security: A Chronicle of Reprisal, Cronyism and Corruption in the U.S. Customs Service.

In this Break It Down Show episode, host Pete A Turner and guest Brad Hutchings discuss AI's promises versus realities. They critique overhyped tools that fail at simple tasks (mic switching, reliable outputs), "vibe coding" creating technical debt, AI-generated spam eroding trust, and lack of accountability when automation fails. They emphasize human effort in communication, ethical responsibility, and skepticism toward exaggerated claims, while acknowledging AI's value for mundane work when used thoughtfully. (89 words) Brad Hutchings - AI Hype vs Real Reliability

With the current situation in Iran between the US and Israel. Beyond this, the 5 EYES relationship is also interesting to examine. Let's get Mike Cote and Amber Brittain-Hale on the Break It Down Show with Pete A Turner Here's Amber's site for all of her work brainstatesinc.com Here's Mike Cote's substack rationalpolicy.com

Amber Brittain-Hale joins Pete A Turner on the Break It Down Show to discuss current events and foreign policy. The Trump administration's foreign policy approach, fronted by Marco Rubio remains on the cutting edge of world events. Rubio gave a house busting speech in Munich. His speech urged Europe to reject the same mistakes the US has made in the recent past. He acknowledged the link between Europe and the US as being an unbreakable history of success. Rubio's speech stood out from the recent messages from President Trump and Vice President JD Vance. Their more forceful tone was not received in the same way as Sec Rubio's. This sets the stage for an interesting conversation between Pete and Amber.

Dr. Daniel Gerstein is a national security professional who has served as a senior government civilian, in uniform, in industry, in think tanks and in academia. As a senior government civilian, he served in the Department of Homeland Security as Under Secretary (Acting) and Deputy Under Secretary in the Science and Technology Directorate, where he directed the organization's over $1 billion annual budget. Get Gerstin's War Without Humanity on Amazon at amzn.to/4b5ULJR During his service in the U.S. Army, he served on four continents while participating in combat, peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance and homeland security and served for more than a decade in the Pentagon in various high-level staff assignments. Dr. Gerstein also has extensive experience in international negotiations having served on the Holbrooke Delegation that negotiated the peace settlement in Bosnia. He is a frequent national security contributor and has published numerous books, articles and commentaries on a wide variety of national and

Sebastian Junger nearly died. It was close. Along the way, a bunch of decisions happened to go his way. At one point, during his near death experience, a dark void opened up on his left, it was drawing him closer. His father, who had died years ago, was encouraging him to move towards the void. He, survived, and wrote his latest book about the experience. In his style, Junger teaches us about near death experiences, the science that confounds the scientists and what he thinks about death and dying. This is Sebastian's third visit to the Break It Down Show with Pete A Turner Get Sebastian's book on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3Vo5C95 Joining Pete and Sebastian is Josh Mantz. Josh was shot and killed in Iraq. He was dead for over 10 minutes. When he came back, everything had changed. Josh's understanding of the world beyond the veil is leading towards a PhD. This conversation is something you won't find on any other platform. Josh doesn't speak publicly. Pete was able to convince Josh to sit with him and Sebastia

Ramses Patino teaches folks in Orange County the art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Ramses is the lead instructor at the dojo where Pete A Turner trains. Pete and Ramses sit down to explore the world of BJJ and how it informs people. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has exploded in popularity over the past 30 years. Gracie Barra, the school to which Pete and Ramses belong is the largest in the world with 1000s of locations across the planet. More than a way to beat people up, BJJ is a way to live, train and improve. Pete A Turner is proud to present Ramses Patino on the Break It Down Show More on Ramses head to gbsantaana.com and read below Ramses Patino is a multi-degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and the head instructor at Gracie Barra Santa Ana, a premier Gracie Barra school in Orange County, California. With deep roots in the Gracie lineage, he trains students in the art and philosophy of BJJ, emphasizing technique, discipline, and personal growth. Featured on podcasts like the Break It Down Show, Ramses shares insigh

Amber Brittain Hale joins Pete A Turner on the Break It Down Show to discuss current events in the world of policy. In this episode of the Break It Down Show, host Pete A Turner interviews Amber Brittain-Hale on policy-focused current events. They differentiate politics from policy, stressing objective analysis over bias and the need for ground-truth insights in decision-making.The core discussion explores transition operations and stabilization in unstable regions, contrasting successful post-WWII cases (Germany, Japan, South Korea) with failures (Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya). Key lessons: adapt to local context, prioritize security and basic services, avoid top-down Western impositions, and secure local buy-in.They apply these to Venezuela—a narco-state needing corruption cleanup—discussing potential U.S.-backed economic levers like oil sector reform, asset recovery, and light-footprint stabilization under figures like Secretary Rubio. Tulsi Gabbard is mentioned in the title but deferred for a future talk.The

Keith Zlomsowitch recounts the previously undisclosed details that he experienced with Nicole Brown Simpson and how it forever changed his life. From his fateful meeting of Nicole, to their deep love affair and eventual friendship, to her brutal murder and the media frenzy that ensued. No one has such a unique perspective as Keith does. He and Nicole were stalked by O.J. Simpson on multiple occasions, and like the book tagline indicates, it truly could have been him that was killed, whether alongside Nicole, or by himself. Buy STALKED on Amazon at amzn.to/4tkY0En On one night in particular, while at Nicole's house, Keith tells of a haunting encounter that will for sure leave readers horrified and dismayed. The entire case and saga, from the events of June 12th all the way up until the devastating acquittal on October 3rd, is considered by most to be the greatest American murder mystery of all time. To see the entire saga played out through Keith's eyes is truly a once-in-a-lifetime event and perspective. Pete

Pete A Turner joins us as a guest. With Ken Orrock hosting the Break It Down Show. This is the first time Pete has been interviewed on his own show by a fellow counterintelligence agent. Ken's deep experience as a cop, spy and prosecutor will help reveal elements of Pete's background and his techniques that we don't often get to see.

Foreign policy drives how nations approach and respond to the world around them. With Davos in the rearview mirror, did anything change? How will Europe, the US and the rest of the world begin to do, what's next? Here's Mike's website, rationalpolicy.com Here is Amber's website, brainstatesinc.com We here at the Break It Down Show, wanted to take a moment to recognize the life of Dr Ambassador Robert Hunter. Robert has been a friend of Pete's for a number of years. We've had him on the show many times...we are sad to hear of his passing. He lived his life well and full. We'll do something bigger on Robert's life soon.

Robin Dreeke Returns to the Break It Down Show with Pete A Turner. Robin is discussing his new book Unbreakable Allies. Robin and Pete always vibe well and inspire one another. This will be a great episode. Get Unbreakable Alliances: A Spy Recruiter's Authoritative Guide to Cultivating Powerful and Lasting Connectionsamzn.to/3YQcDB6 A blub from Robin's new book . From the former Chief of the FBI Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program comes an authoritative guide on how to unlock the power of alliances, build unbreakable relationships, and achieve unparalleled success in your personal and professional life. The solution to life's challenges lies in establishing genuine connections with others. Along with anecdotes from his work in business and as an international spy recruiter, Robin Dreeke offers practical strategies for: Building and keeping trust Communicating with impact across diverse communication styles and languages Inspiring others by crafting compelling narratives that leave a lasting impact

How's this for cool? We're hanging with Scott Weldy and Dan Goldbacher who study and work with birds of prey at the Orange County Bird of Prey Center. Dan Goldbacher and Scott Weldy are experts in birds of pretty. How we managed their habitat is one of the most fascinating things you'll encounter. Joining us from the Irvine Ranch Conservancy is David Raetz David produced this episode. To learn more about the OCBoPC ocbpc.org The Orange County Bird of Prey Center (OCBPC) is a state- and federally-licensed 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Orange County, CA, dedicated to treating and rehabilitating injured raptors and returning them to the wild. We believe that education is the best long-term solution to prevent and mitigate many of the challenges that raptors face and that raptors play an integral role in the balance of nature. We reintroduce raptors under specific conditions: following state and federal guidelines, respecting current wild raptor population cycles and considering environmental factors.

Brad Hutchings returns to discuss AI. Pete A Turner of the Break It Down Show has been working to use AI in some of his projects. He tried to find the Median debut for all baseball players. He did the work to find Detroit Tiger phenom, Jim Proctor who today is the middle player in all players, based on debut date, in MLB history (per baseball reference). Pete Writes about Jim in an article on X. Brad and Pete discuss Grok's inability to find the median player. Pete tried a few other AIs...they just don't work this way. Brad notes that AIs will give loquacious answers, but the results are more fantasy than fact. Then a funny test happens...what happens when you ask an AI, while offline, to reference an online resource...well...AI does a performance of giving an answer. This is a fun one.

Post military career former Green Beret Matt Tardio hit the ground running. HIs company tardioconsultinggroup.com focuses on Risk Management, SOP development and other custom solutions for companies. Beyond Matt's consulting work he runs the Speak The Truth channel on YouTube @SpeakTheTruthActual Pete A Turner hosts Matt to talk about practical tactical realities about the new President Trump administration. From DOGE, USAID, Dept of State adventures, Gaza and plane crashes...there's a lot of ground for Pete and Matt to cover on the Break It Down Show

Director Tony Tost returns to the Break It Down Show with Pete A Turner. Tony hit Hollywood running. The perfect man to take Craig Johnson's brilliant Longmire series to the small screen. Since climbing the ranks at Longmire, Tony has directed/written several projects. Tony created the series Damnation. Then he directed the 2nd season of The Terror. Then back to the northern great planes to direct Americana with Sydney Sweeney. His most recent project, that is so fresh we can only mention it, is he is the Show Runner for season 2 of Poker Face. This is gonna be a huge episode.