A Mushroom Cloud Over Small Town America | Adam B. | Ep. 441

Adam B. is an active-duty police officer in Ohio, a 17-year military veteran, and a former M1 Abrams tanker who deployed to Iraq and Korea. He grew up in the foster care system after being removed from a violent home in Cleveland at age four, was adopted into a rural family that changed his trajectory, and went on to serve in the Army, the National Guard as an MP, work corrections at the Cuyahoga County jail, earn a spot on a SWAT team, and build a career in patrol.

This conversation covers a lot of ground. Adam walks through what it was like growing up with 12 siblings in a house that got raided by the DEA. He talks about what drew him to the military, what it felt like to hold a dying child overseas, and why that moment still makes it hard to hold his own kids. He describes working the tenth floor of one of Ohio's roughest jails, responding to a domestic violence murder in front of three children, and why most patrol officers are dangerously undertrained compared to SWAT. Then the conversation turns to East Palestine. Adam was activated with the National Guard and sent to the site of the Norfolk Southern train derailment. He stood 200 yards from a controlled chemical detonation with no protective equipment. He watched a mushroom cloud rise and tasted vinyl chloride in the air. Within weeks, his appendix had to be removed. Three years later, he's dealing with memory loss, vision problems, and symptoms his doctors are still trying to explain. Norfolk Southern spent millions lobbying against the very safety regulations proposed after the disaster.

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Timestamps:

[00:00:00] Opening clip and disclaimer

[00:04:31] Abrams tank roles and layout

[00:10:43] Childhood chaos and foster care

[00:18:40] Policing empathy and domestic violence

[00:28:58] Marriage, family, and enlistment

[00:35:37] Combat loss and stress reactions

[00:41:43] Reserve MP service and investigations

[00:54:39] Jiu-jitsu, SWAT, and police training

[01:09:23] East Palestine derailment response

[01:24:49] Appendicitis and ongoing health issues

[01:31:30] Settlements, politics, and accountability

[01:47:57] Symptoms, career impact, and uncertainty

[02:00:24] Faith, loss, and legacy

[02:12:23] Whistleblowing and medical follow-up

[02:18:03] Knife gift and Montana plans