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Marine Veteran Rob Riggle addresses Thousand Oaks shooting
By Neil A. Carousso, ConnectingVets.com
“Freedom is not free.”
That was the resounding theme of Rob Riggle’s speech at the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Heroes Gala.
“There is nothing free about freedom and our men and women today sacrifice life and limb to protect those freedoms,” said Riggle to a room filled with veterans and service members from all branches.
Riggle retired as a lieutenant colonel after 23 years of service in the Marines Corps Reserve. He served in Afghanistan, earning two Meritorious Service Medals, National Defense Service Medals, the Humanitarian Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, among other decorations.
He is known for his comedic roles on The Daily Show and films such as 21 Jump Street and The Hangover. His former Daily Show colleague Stephen Colbert was a guest speaker at the gala.
Stephen Colbert, host of CBS’ “Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” speaks at the IAVA Heroes Gala. Riggle spoke of his priorities for veterans while praising the IAVA for their unrelenting support of our heroes through education and legislative pursuits. He also emphasized the need for a modernization of an “antiquated” Department of Veterans Affairs system, exclaiming that in this day and age, no veteran should be unaware of the benefits they earned.
Sporting a full beard for a role in an unspecified project, Riggle addressed the Thousand Oaks, California shooting in which the alleged gunman Ian David Long was a veteran of the Marine Corps.
Riggle said it’s imperative to emphasize that a veteran carrying out a mass shooting is the exception and that vets are more likely to harm themselves than anyone else. He called on more mental health awareness and resources to reduce the average of 22 veteran suicides a day.
“There’s a reason I get teary-eyed when I hear the National Anthem. It’s my home. I love my home,” said Riggle. He called for unity around core values at a time when partisans use events to fit their agendas.
“Our Constitutional rights – be it freedom of religion or speech or due process – we all still enjoy it today hundreds of years later because of what those brave Americans did in their time and what millions of brave Americans are doing right now in their time,” Riggle said.
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48th NYC Marathon Winds Through The 5 Boroughs
NEW YORK (AP/WCBS 880) — Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia has won the New York City Marathon, holding off countryman Shura Kitata by 1.99 seconds.
Desisa finished in 2 hours, 5 minutes, 59 seconds. Last year’s winner, Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya, finished third.
Mary Keitany of Kenya became the second woman to win the marathon four times, beating countrywoman Vivian Cheruiyot by 3 minutes, 13 seconds.
Keitany ran the race in 2:22:48, the second fastest in history. Margaret Okayo of Kenya holds the record of 2:22:31, which was set in 2003.
The victory was Keitany’s fourth in New York in the last five years. She won in 2014, 2015 and 2016 before coming in second last year to American Shalane Flanagan. Keitany joined Grete Waitz as the only women to win the marathon four times. Waitz, a Norwegian, won the marathon nine times between 1978-1988.
Flanagan finished third.
More than 50,000 runners began their 26.2-mile journey across the five boroughs on a sunny Sunday morning as part of the 47th New York City Marathon.
They trained in darkness and rain, and through pain, for this day, which starts on Staten Island, winding through Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan and the Bronx, before ending back in Central Park.
2018 New York City Marathon in Photos
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Cheers! West Point Grad’s Liquor Lab Brings People Together
By Neil A. Carousso, ConnectingVets.com and WCBS Newsradio 880
NEW YORK, NY – A West Point graduate created a unique social experience in an age when no one seems to look up from their cell phones.
“Drinks are things that bring people together,” said Owen Meyer, CEO of Liquor Lab, which is billed as “Manhattan’s first interactive cocktail experience.”
On a crisp autumn evening, a diverse group of people arrived at the cozy second-floor space in the SoHo neighborhood on a romantic cobblestone street reminiscent of old New York to indulge in a French-themed night of cognacs and cuisine.
“Four different cocktails on every menu and the menus are relegated by themes,” said Meyer, adding, “We might have margaritas and tacos one night, we might have bourbon and barbecue, we might have Japanese spirits and sushi.”
Music sets the mood and people make new friends over drinks and food, catered by local establishments. They also learn a little history related to the night’s theme and how to be their own bartender.
This week, Liquor Lab launched Dollar Cocktail Club, a product line of $12 mix kits with the exact ingredients to make a dozen drinks with a bottle of liquor. Meyer expects it to be a popular holiday gift item that is cross-promotional with their classes.
Courtesy: Neil A. Carousso Liquor Lab has a calendar of events on their website, which they sell-out every night with a capacity of 50 people to maximize the intimate experience they label “social mixology.” They also offer private and corporate events.
“We have a little old couple sitting in the back corner, we have a newly met couple in the front corner, they’re having the same experience and they’re enjoying it equally as much,” Meyer said.
But, not everyone is on a date. Friends, colleagues and strangers come by for a cheerful evening that costs less than most nights out in the Big Apple – $65 for most classes.
Meyer, who turns 33 next month, is an old soul who feels he’s in a traditional industry unaffected by technological advancements. His company could fill a societal need when seemingly everything has become politically divided and intense. The atmosphere at Liquor Lab is the opposite – relaxed, enlightening and refreshing.
“After I got out of the military, I wanted to do something that was a little more interactive and fun, so I started working with Jim Beam, now known as Beam Suntory,” said Meyer who worked there for nearly three years as a “spirit specialist” and in a sales capacity after two foot injuries and a back injury cut his military career short.
Meyer said he has come to realize the “cliché” of taking calculated risks is true. He honed his leadership skills at West Point.
“SOP – Standard Operating Procedures – we harp on that here probably more than anything because everything we do here is very repetitive,” said Meyer of his staff’s routine in setting each table. “In the military, it’s your weapons, your equipment, it’s your gear, it’s your reports. From an officer’s standpoint and a manager’s standpoint there’s also an assimilation there with managing people, making it very clear their task and purpose each day, and those are things we do every day here.”
Courtesy: Neil A. Carousso Meyer tested Liquor Lab in Chicago and launched a pop-up shop in Southampton before opening in SoHo last September. Liquor Lab has been profitable since its inception, gaining customers solely by word-of-mouth.
They are expanding nationwide over the next year, opening in 10 cities, including Nashville, Denver and Las Vegas.
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Recipe for success: 2 Army vets, 1 part fitness, 1 part passion
By Neil A. Carousso, ConnectingVets.com
NEW YORK, NY — Two brothers – both Army veterans – are expanding their unique meal plan company called Kettlebell Kitchen, which incorporates the fitness and nutritional routines they mastered in the service.
“It came from a class of mine at HBS (Harvard Business School) where I thought deeply about what I’m passionate about,” said Joe Lopez-Gallego who graduated Harvard after his time as an Army Black Hawk helicopter pilot where he managed three airfields and 80 soldiers, and led a platoon that flied VIP’s such as General Ricardo Sanchez.
“[The class] tells you to think about what you are passionate about and try to build a career around that, and for me, it’s about helping people and I have a particular passion for fitness.” Joe was a certified fitness instructor in the Army and he played water polo at West Point.
He put his class syllabus into practice. He combined his love for fitness and food, which he and his younger brother Andy inherited from his parents.
“It started by helping my mom manage her weight, putting her on an exercise and nutrition program that gave her significant results – both in her weight and in her energy level,” Joe said.
Photo Courtesy of Kettlebell Kitchen He called Andy and they both agreed there was a need for a personalized meal plan program that they felt no company on the market did successfully. Andy hopped on a plane from California to New York and started the business with Joe in 2013.
“[We] researched recipes, weights, portions and looked at the really quality match of nutrients that matter in a meal, how they affect the body, how they do their training and what different timing windows that work,” said Andy, a retired Army platoon leader and combat engineer.
Joe and Andy felt they could fill a void by developing personalized products for specific goals of strength, endurance and cardio – skills they developed in the military.
“We look to formulate specific meals around those fitness elements,” Andy said, adding, “We’re a brand that’s performance-driven and fitness-based.”
With the consultation of dietitians, they tested their products in a small rental kitchen in the Bronx. Now, along with Chef and Culinary Expert Greg Grossman, they deliver tens and thousands of heathy, customized meal plans nationally each week.
Kettlebell Kitchen is expanding to Los Angeles where they will deliver meal kits to trendy fitness gyms for people to coordinate their nutrition and exercise. They found a niche in sending their meals to gyms where trainers can coach their clients on the most effective timing for diet and exercise.
The mantra that they work by is “Feed the Champion in You” – a motto that motivates and inspires the co-founders and their customers to meet their fitness goals.
Photo Courtesy of Kettlebell Kitchen Kettlebell Kitchen landed on the Inc. 5000 issue of Inc. Magazine of the fastest growing and innovative companies in the United States, earning $12.5 million in revenue last year. Joe and Andy employ about 300 people.
Photo Courtesy of Kettlebell Kitchen Joe said the leadership positions that he held in the service were invaluable experience for his career.
“They put you as second lieutenant in charge of a group of folks who have much more experience, much more knowledge than you and you learn to lead them and you learn to work with them,” said Joe, continuing, “That taught me how I can leverage the expertise of all the people on the team to build a cohesive unit together and to get results and I think that was a very valuable piece of training that still serves me today.”
Joe and Andy look back on the birth of Kettlebell Kitchen, when they crafted a diet and exercise framework for their mother, and see their role today as delivering those personalized plans to one client at a time.
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Anthony Scaramucci on Brett Kavanaugh Allegations, Confirmation Process
By Neil A. Carousso, “Mooch and the Mrs.” Producer
NEW YORK, NY — Anthony Scaramucci and his wife, Deidre, say the allegations against Judge Brett Kavanaugh, dating back to high school, have gone too far.
“Suppose you’re 17 years old and you made this absolutely regrettable mistake,” said Scaramucci, the former White House communications director who was fired after 11 days in the position when he made profanity-laced comments about former Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon, on the latest episode of Mooch and the Mrs., an exclusive podcast available via Radio.com.
“I think it’s a shame because I know I did that for sure,” added Deidre. “I wouldn’t want to be talking about anything I did in high school or college, so I think it’s bad.”
Anthony and Deidre, who sit on opposite sides of the political spectrum, just launched their podcast, Mooch and the Mrs., only on Radio.com and the Radio.com app. New episodes appear every Tuesday, where the couple discusses the struggles they face as a couple who do not see eye-to-eye politically (Scaramucci’s job in President Donald J. Trump’s White House almost cost them their marriage). Anthony has five children — including two with Deidre, his second wife.
“My message to the older kids is, ‘Hey, you have to be super careful now because we now decided everybody’s game and everybody can get their reputation eviscerated in five minutes,” said Anthony.
His wife agreed and sees social media as a culprit for stifling social growth and putting innocent and maturing children’s lives in the spotlight.
“It’s just a terrible way to live,” she said.
Judge Kavanagh has been accused by three women of sexual assault, with the allegations dating back to his high school and college years. Democrats have called for Kavanaugh’s nomination to be withheld or delayed until after the November midterms. Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee have scheduled a hearing for Thursday for both Kavanaugh and one of his accusers to testify under oath, and a vote on his nomination on Friday morning.
Judge Kavanaugh has vehemently denied the allegations in several written statements and in an emotional interview beside his wife, Ashley, with Fox News Channel’s Martha MacCallum on Monday night. He asked for a “fair process” to be heard by the Committee. President Trump has stood by his Supreme Court nominee with increasing assertiveness.
Kavanaugh is the president’s pick to fill the empty Supreme Court chair left by Justice Anthony Kennedy when he retired in June.
Anthony Scaramucci believes Kavanaugh will be confirmed and discusses why in the second episode of the Mooch and the Mrs. on Radio.com.
