Guests – Colonel William Dunn, JL Wittenbraker

Ceasefires Versus Chaos: A Conversation with Colonel William Burner Dunn

The Reality of Ceasefires in Global Conflicts

As August begins with temperatures expected to reach 108 degrees in Tucson, the heat isn't just in our weather forecast but in conflicts around the world. President Trump and his administration are working to negotiate several international disputes, making it the perfect time to speak with Marine Corps Colonel William "Burner" Dunn, a military attack helicopter pilot and president of Strategic Resilience Group LLC.

Colonel Dunn brings over 33 years of Marine Corps experience to our discussion about global conflicts and the nature of ceasefires. "One of the things I've seen throughout my career is a ceasefire does not mean truce," Dunn explains. "When there are two or three actors fighting each other, they will often propose a ceasefire as an opportunity to gain advantage or to rearm, refit, and prepare for the next stage."

This pattern is particularly evident in the Middle East. "How many times have we seen Israel and Palestine, or Israel and various attacking actors, where the moment Israel gains the upper hand, the adversaries call for a ceasefire? In many cases, they're simply setting up to prepare for another event."

The Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza

The situation in Gaza presents a troubling humanitarian crisis. While aid is being sent to the region, one side or the other is preventing that aid from reaching those who need it most. Colonel Dunn draws parallels to his experiences in Somalia: "When aid was flowing in, the warlords were stealing it. It sounds like that's happening with Hamas, though I don't know for certain. It wouldn't surprise me if Hamas themselves are using that aid as bargaining chips with the Palestinians, essentially extorting them and using it to feed their soldiers rather than civilians."

These abuses occur when the rules of engagement in warfare are abandoned, resulting in unnecessary loss of life. Regarding the hostage situation in Palestine, Colonel Dunn advocates for a direct approach: "We should give Palestine a list of targets and say that starting next Friday, we're going to bomb one target a day until every hostage is released. There's nothing they could do to stop us. We have to deal with terrorist organizations in the method they understand. That's why we should never negotiate with terrorists – you can't negotiate; you have to kill them."

The disregard for human life shown by these organizations extends beyond their enemies. "They don't care how many people die. They have no regard for the sanctity of life," Dunn emphasizes. "It's not just that they don't care about how many Americans die – they don't care about how many Palestinians die either. They'll let children die for no other reason than to use them as a political tool to continue their fight against Israel, which is disgusting."

Israel's Fight for Existence

The Israel-Hamas conflict represents a fundamental struggle for survival. "Israel is fighting for their existence every day," Colonel Dunn states. "This is a total war for them, where every Israeli is willing, able, and ready to fight when needed. In contrast, for the Palestinians, it's really the Hamas element doing 99% of the fighting along with other proxies of Iran."

While Israel maintains technological, strategic, and intelligence advantages, they face significant constraints. "What they don't possess and cannot trade is time and space. Israel is a tiny country surrounded by adversaries, sometimes fighting on multiple fronts. They don't have the ability to fight a protracted war, even though they've been in a protracted conflict."

Israel's need for military superiority is existential, but the threat of being overwhelmed remains real, especially if attacked from all sides simultaneously. "That's when we, as one of their greatest allies – and them as one of our greatest allies – would have to stick together and come to their support."

Russia-Ukraine Conflict and Trump's Approach

Shifting to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Colonel Dunn believes President Trump has "shortened the fuse" for Putin by giving him a deadline. Regardless of one's views on Ukraine, Dunn is clear: "Russia was the aggressor here, no matter how you look at it."

His recommended approach involves international pressure with a strategic exit option: "We need worldwide sanctions on Russia, but we also have to give Putin a way out. If we put massive sanctions on Russia and keep them in place, his country will suffer dramatically. Then it becomes an option for him to say, 'We can't live with the sanctions, and only because the world is being mean to us, we're going to leave Ukraine for the moment, get our country back financially, and think about it later.'"

This approach acknowledges the reality that Russia cannot afford to lose face. "You can't have a loss for Russia and the Russian people in this scenario because they are a nuclear-capable country. What President Trump is doing is brilliant – putting deadlines in place. By August 8th, if sanctions come down on Russia, he will have once again proven to the world that when he says something, he executes it."

Colonel Dunn laments that had such sanctions been implemented six to eight months ago, countless lives on both sides might have been saved. The human cost of this conflict weighs heavily on him: "It's the loss of life of young men and women, but mostly men, of both countries, and the impact on future generations."

The principle of "peace through strength" resonates with Dunn – not just as a saying, but as a demonstration that a nation has capabilities it doesn't need to use because it's developed them and is a benevolent country. He believes the United States embodies this principle but worries about its sustainability given political term limits.

Understanding Russia's Aggression

While acknowledging corruption in both Russia and Ukraine, Colonel Dunn maintains that Russia's role as the aggressor justifies supporting Ukraine. "I didn't object to providing military equipment to give them something, but this went so far beyond what I thought was reasonable. At some point in the last four years, we put the needs of the Ukrainian people ahead of the needs of the American people."

However, he also notes that supporting Ukraine may serve American interests by preventing a wider conflict: "The needs of the Ukrainian people may equate to the needs of the American people if it prevents World War Three. We don't know if Putin had European aspirations beyond Ukraine. Some say he did, some say he will."

Russia's failures in Ukraine may have inadvertently protected Europe: "His failure in Ukraine has saved Europe because they've realized that if Ukrainians can shoot down their fifth-generation aircraft and wipe them off the chessboard, then the US could do ten times worse. I think that has opened his eyes and reduced his aspirations for any European moves."

The path forward is clear to Dunn: "All we have to do is get him to go home out of Ukraine. Unless two things happen – one, if Ukraine lost Zelensky, and two, if we stopped supplying weapons – then Ukraine would fall. But other than that, Russia will never win that battle."

The human toll remains staggering: "You're talking about 40-some million Ukrainians fighting a force of maybe a couple hundred thousand or even a million Russians. They're losing thousands per day on both sides, and eventually, Ukraine could literally run out of fighting men before Russia will. It's a war of attrition."

Gunfighters Rule: A Marine Colonel's Journey

From Boot Camp to Squadron Commander

Colonel William "Burner" Dunn's military career began when he was just 17 years old, following personal hardships including his father's passing and losing his home to a fire. "I was one of those kids that was struggling for direction. I decided the Marine Corps was going to be my way," he recalls. Unlike most recruits, Dunn embraced the challenges: "People that know me know that I really did love boot camp. Most people think I'm crazy, but I loved it."

Rising through the ranks, Dunn became a sergeant before receiving his commission. His varied career included roles as an infantry officer, pilot, and forward air controller during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. His book, "Gunfighters Rule," chronicles these experiences, with particular focus on his time as squadron commander of HMLA-369 in Iraq.

"I took 334 Marines and sailors into Iraq during 2006-2008 out of Al Qaim and Ramadi. We fought the enemy for seven months, and we brought everybody home," Dunn states proudly.

Writing the book proved emotionally challenging but fulfilled two important purposes. First, it responded to his fellow Marines who had encouraged him to document their experiences during the Iraq invasion. Second, and perhaps more importantly, it helped bridge the gap between his military and personal lives.

"Anyone who's been in combat will know what I'm saying – it changes you," Dunn reflects. "I realized that my family didn't really know me. They had heard the stories, but I wanted my two grown daughters to know me and know what their mom, who has been married to me the entire time I was in the Marine Corps, went through."

Strategic Resilience Group: Supporting Today's Military

Colonel Dunn continues to serve the military community through his company, Strategic Resilience Group, which he runs with other retired Marines. "We are supporting DoD all over the world. We have people in the Middle East right now," he explains.

He notes a significant shift in the operational environment under the current administration: "The big difference is that when they were there during the Biden administration, they would get attacked and nothing would happen. Now, in the Trump administration, they know they're safe."

This security is crucial for American personnel stationed globally. As Dunn emphasizes, "Our brothers and sisters are over and away all over the world, and we want them to be safe."

The transfer of knowledge from experienced veterans to the current military is vital, and Dunn believes the military is headed in the right direction: "We're heading the right direction with the setup and President Trump. The recruitment is up, and our men and women are proud again to be serving a great commander."

Tackling Tucson's Challenges: A Conversation with Janet Wittenbraker

The Critical Need for Change in City Leadership

As Tucson faces a primary election on August 5th, city council candidate Janet "JL" Wittenbraker brings a message of urgency about the need for new leadership. "Tucson is struggling, and we all see it, but what we've yet to motivate people to do is actually vote," Wittenbraker emphasizes.

Although Wittenbraker is unopposed in the Ward 3 primary, as is Joe Tolcoff in Ward 6, primary turnout remains crucial: "Those primary votes are so important because they are ward-specific. The general election is citywide, so if we get a high turnout in the primary, that builds energy and convinces citywide voters that we can actually do this."

Addressing Crime and Public Safety

Crime has become a pressing concern for Tucson residents, even in historically safe neighborhoods like Winterhaven. Wittenbraker recognizes that meaningful change requires a strategic approach to city governance: "The first thing I'm going to do if I'm elected is use that success in recruiting candidates for the next election in 2027, because we need a common-sense council with a majority."

She emphasizes the importance of understanding how Tucson's government actually works: "Oftentimes when I'm talking to people, they think the mayor has the ability to drive change or has superiority over the council. The mayor is actually just a member of the council – one mayor and six council members with equal votes, and the mayor has no veto authority. To create change, you need four votes."

Public safety improvements must begin with budget reallocation: "We've got to reallocate funds in our budget toward police services. We're going to have to pay through the nose to get police officers here in Tucson – pay better than Marana, better than Oro Valley, and better than other states."

The current administration has created a competitive disadvantage in police recruitment: "Tucson has lost its competitive edge when it comes to recruiting officers. We're down almost 200 spots from where we were, and technically we're probably down 400 spots based on the population and crime level. When they didn't 'defund' our police department, they underfunded it. They haven't given them the resources they need."

Tackling Homelessness with a Multi-Tiered Approach

Homelessness in Tucson requires a nuanced understanding of different populations and their needs. "You can't talk about crime and not talk about homelessness," Wittenbraker notes. "There is a very small demographic that are down on their luck and need temporary shelter and tools to get into the workforce. There are resources for that – Lisa Chastain's organization and the Gospel Rescue Mission do great jobs."

However, the majority of the homeless population faces different challenges: "The majority out there are dealing with drug addiction and mental illness, and sometimes those two things go hand-in-hand because drug-induced psychosis is real."

Wittenbraker criticizes the city's one-dimensional approach: "The city points to just one solution, which is shelter with no barriers, meaning they can continue substance abuse and criminal behaviors with no controls. If you don't put barriers in, if you don't stop the addiction and don't put any controls in, nothing's going to change. There's no incentive to change."

She advocates for a multi-faceted strategy: "We need to take a multi-tier or multi-prong approach beginning with identifying root causes. If someone is down on their luck, undereducated, and needs assistance, we can provide temporary shelter and workforce training to develop a trade. For those engulfed by addiction who want treatment, we could take advantage of Donald Trump's new executive order that provides communities money for that."

Housing and Economic Development

Tucson's housing challenges stem partly from city policies that have hindered growth and development. "We need to streamline those policies and processes across the entire housing spectrum," Wittenbraker explains. "There's a luxury home shortage, so those buyers move into middle-class neighborhoods, which starts pricing out middle-class home buyers, who then move to the next tier down."

She points to San Antonio as an example of successful housing policy that helped address homelessness. Fort Worth's workforce training program offers another model: "Work gives you pride, goes right back to Maslow's chart with self-actualization at the very top."

Economic development in Tucson has been stagnant, particularly in Ward 3, which contains some of the poorest zip codes in Arizona. "We have people barely making minimum wage. We have an obligation to bring a competitive work market to Tucson," Wittenbraker asserts.

She envisions building on Tucson's natural resources to enhance tourism: "The tourist industry hires people from entry level all the way up to professional general manager level." Recapturing past economic drivers is also essential: "We had a thriving economy. People love to come to Tucson. We lost the baseball team, we lost Hollywood – we need to focus on bringing all those things back which made Tucson wonderful, vibrant, and alive."

A Call for Voter Engagement

Wittenbraker concludes with a call to action for Tucson residents: "We need common sense people. I have the benefit of having in-depth knowledge of the city charter from working in the city manager's office before going to Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law. Our government needs to understand what their role is and what it is not."

The current city council, in her view, has exceeded its proper role: "Their job is to ensure public safety, good roads, and good parks, and they have fallen down on those three issues. It's right there in the charter."

For change to occur, voter participation is essential: "The dumbest thing we could do is leave the leadership in place, and we're not dumb people. Remember, not voting is a vote to continue to keep the mayor and council in place."