Hello from the Heartland. My name is Jenna, and this is Smarter News, news when it matters and why it matters.

Our Smarter series features unique people who help us think and live smarter.

Today, we're going to do something different.

So often the news delivers an avalanche of information, dates and data, names, and places, without enough of a pause to really explain why it all matters and what exactly we should remember.

This is why I believe less is more, because often the story behind one name can tell

us so much. And this is true of the story of Mike Span. We should remember Mike Span. Mike Span is a name

you should remember because after 9-11, he was the very first American killed in combat in the war on

terror, the very first one. He served in the war on terror, the very first one. He served

in the CIA and was one of the first Americans on the ground in Afghanistan after the September

11th attacks. His goal was to help track down those terrorists responsible for murdering thousands

of Americans. Now, in Afghanistan, right before he died, Mike Span came into contact with another history-making

American, a name you should also know, but for very different reasons, John Walker Lind.

John Walker Lind is the first American-born enemy combatant in the war on terror.

Enemy combatant simply means an American accused of fighting

for the enemy. He was taken into custody in Afghanistan, brought back to the United States, and

convicted of supporting the Taliban. He served 17 years of a 20-year sentence. This past Memorial Day,

in 2019, he was released early for good behavior.

His family denies he's a terrorist.

Others, obviously, disagree.

Big picture, there are others like John Walker-Lind,

Americans behind bars for their role with or supporting terrorist organizations or terrorist acts,

who will walk free. How we handle their

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