NEW VIDEO SERIES: Haywire History!

Happy New Year, everyone! I am so grateful for the support of each and every one of you. For those who have already joined the new MandatoryMafia membership tiers, there are lots of new perks, interactive events and content coming this year! I am really excited to spend more time with you guys and get to know you all better as I transition out of the Army.

I am also experimenting with some different types of content. You’ve seen the flag animation news, and now get ready for HAYWIRE HISTORY: a wartime “how it was made” series where I explore the history and function of military products from the past. The first episode covers WWII-era Proctor & Gamble’s unlikely mass production of…explosives?

In this episode, I break down the pre-war marketing machine (the original “soap operas”), the chemistry (soap → glycerin → nitro), the home-front logistics, and the ordnance plants that helped arm U.S. forces in Europe and the Pacific.

Check it out to learn all about the surprisingly predictable partnership of this soap company and the war department.

While you’re there, let me know what you think of the new series, and send me your ideas for more products to cover.

***MFD UPDATES***

If you made it this far, you can help me expand my newsletter this year. One of my goals is to bring you more than just loveably awkward geopolitical news and history videos.

I am also going to start adding a weekly update section to my newsletter, and I will be letting my members vote on what I talk about in polls on my subscriber site. The first poll is going up this week and I will be adding new sections to the newsletter as soon as it resolves, so if you want to vote on the topics, make sure you sign up at the link at the bottom of this page.

Also for members: you might have heard about my classic car restomod project— you picked the car, and there will be more polls on my subscriber site very soon so you all can help me choose different aspects of the design and build.

I’ve got lots of goals for 2026 and I can’t wait to share them with all of you. You make it all possible, and I appreciate you.

If you like the merch in the video, you can get it here at www.themandatoryfunday.com. Join the MandatoryMafia and get 20% off all purchases forever, plus you get access to exclusive video content, members only merch, and you can even message me directly. I will read every single one. Click the link below and use discount code “NEWMEMBER” for a 50% discount on your first month of membership.