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You know, maybe 40, 50 years ago, when we have the draft and someone joined the guard, it was kind of like a way to avoid, you know, getting sent overseas.

And that's really not the case anymore. You know, a guard, a soldier who joins the National Guard in 2019

has a pretty good chance of being deployed.

You're listening to war.

You're listening to War College, a weekly podcast that brings you the stories from behind the

front lines. Hello, welcome to War College. I'm Matthew Gault. America's National Guard is

always there, always ready. For one weekend a month and two weekends a year,

America's state-side soldiers are its militia,

ready for the president to activate them at a time of trouble, or act as a reserve force

for ongoing operations overseas.

The Guard is one of the oldest military branches predating both the Army itself and the American Revolutionary War.

These days, it's a misunderstood part of America's military might and sometimes derided in pop culture.

Here to help us better understand the Guard is Newsrip reporter Joseph LeFave.

LeFave is a journalist who spent the better part of a year following the second of the 108 Cavalry Squadron of the Louisiana National Guard as it trains for war.

Joseph, thank you so much for joining us.

Thanks for having me.

All right, so how did you get onto this story? Why, what interested you about the National Guard?

...