Podcasts about clausewitzian

In this episode of the Contested Ground podcast, hosts Major General (Ret'd) Dr Marcus Thompson, Phil Tarrant and Liam Garman discuss the application of cyber and information in the modern threat environment, and how the White House is changing voting behaviours across the West. They begin the podcast by unpacking Thomas Rid's Cyber War Will Not Take Place, discussing the intricacies of cyber operations and how cyber continues to adhere to the Clausewitzian principles describing the political and physical dimensions of conflict. The conversation then moves across the cyber spectrum to information operations and how cyber is a carriage of information that can be used to destabilise populations. MAJGEN (Ret'd) Dr Thompson and Tarrant unpack Australia's response to global political uncertainty and the threat of tariffs, and how the White House administration is impacting elections across the globe. The podcast wraps up looking at how democracies can use truth as a competitive advantage in the information space. Enjoy the podcast, The Contested Ground team

In this episode of the Contested Ground podcast, hosts Major General (Ret'd) Dr Marcus Thompson, Phil Tarrant and Liam Garman discuss the application of cyber and information in the modern threat environment, and how the White House is changing voting behaviours across the West. They begin the podcast by unpacking Thomas Rid's Cyber War Will Not Take Place, discussing the intricacies of cyber operations and how cyber continues to adhere to the Clausewitzian principles describing the political and physical dimensions of conflict. The conversation then moves across the cyber spectrum to information operations and how cyber is a carriage of information that can be used to destabilise populations. MAJGEN (Ret'd) Dr Thompson and Tarrant unpack Australia's response to global political uncertainty and the threat of tariffs, and how the White House administration is impacting elections across the globe. The podcast wraps up looking at how democracies can use truth as a competitive advantage in the information space. Enjoy the podcast, The Contested Ground team

 Dr Peter Layton is a Visiting Fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute, Griffith University, Brisbane Australia; a Royal United Services Institute Associate Fellow; London and a Fellow of the Australian Security Leaders Climate Group Canberra. He has extensive aviation and defense experience. His research interests include grand strategy, national security policies particularly relating to middle powers, defence force structure concepts and the impacts of emerging technology. He is the author of the book “Grand Strategy” and co-author of “Warfare in the Robotic Age.”   Advances in robotics are profoundly reshaping the world but so are any other things and not all of them are technological.   The character of warfare will be different in the robotic age but the nature of warfare remains Clausewitzian, that is war is waged for political objectives.   Robots may be considered as machines able to perform four basic tasks: sense, think, act and communicate.

Christopher Harrison's book Genocidal Conscription: Drafting Victims and Perpetrators Under the Guise of War (Lexington Books, 2023) examines how some states have employed mandatory military service as a tool to capture and kill the victims of genocide by recruiting the perpetrators from other minorities, and shifting blame away from the state. The book highlights several unique intersections that connect military history, Holocaust studies, and genocide. The study details an original framework that encompasses intentions and outcomes of wartime casualties, Clausewitzian wastage, and genocidal massacres. Christopher Harrison traces and compares how two genocidal regimes at war – the Ottoman Empire during World War One and Axis-era Hungary in World War Two – implemented certain policies of military service to capture and destroy their targets amidst the carnage of modern warfare.  Following this historical comparative study, the author then summarizes relevant implications and ongoing concerns. The conclusion includes insights into conscription by contemporary authoritarian regimes. By examining these histories and crises, the book suggests that several states are at risk of carrying out genocidal conscription today. While difficult and unlikely, due to political disincentives, the implication of this analysis considers reforms which may prevent states from repeating similar policies and actions again. Kelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Christopher Harrison's book Genocidal Conscription: Drafting Victims and Perpetrators Under the Guise of War (Lexington Books, 2023) examines how some states have employed mandatory military service as a tool to capture and kill the victims of genocide by recruiting the perpetrators from other minorities, and shifting blame away from the state. The book highlights several unique intersections that connect military history, Holocaust studies, and genocide. The study details an original framework that encompasses intentions and outcomes of wartime casualties, Clausewitzian wastage, and genocidal massacres. Christopher Harrison traces and compares how two genocidal regimes at war – the Ottoman Empire during World War One and Axis-era Hungary in World War Two – implemented certain policies of military service to capture and destroy their targets amidst the carnage of modern warfare.  Following this historical comparative study, the author then summarizes relevant implications and ongoing concerns. The conclusion includes insights into conscription by contemporary authoritarian regimes. By examining these histories and crises, the book suggests that several states are at risk of carrying out genocidal conscription today. While difficult and unlikely, due to political disincentives, the implication of this analysis considers reforms which may prevent states from repeating similar policies and actions again. Kelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

Christopher Harrison's book Genocidal Conscription: Drafting Victims and Perpetrators Under the Guise of War (Lexington Books, 2023) examines how some states have employed mandatory military service as a tool to capture and kill the victims of genocide by recruiting the perpetrators from other minorities, and shifting blame away from the state. The book highlights several unique intersections that connect military history, Holocaust studies, and genocide. The study details an original framework that encompasses intentions and outcomes of wartime casualties, Clausewitzian wastage, and genocidal massacres. Christopher Harrison traces and compares how two genocidal regimes at war – the Ottoman Empire during World War One and Axis-era Hungary in World War Two – implemented certain policies of military service to capture and destroy their targets amidst the carnage of modern warfare.  Following this historical comparative study, the author then summarizes relevant implications and ongoing concerns. The conclusion includes insights into conscription by contemporary authoritarian regimes. By examining these histories and crises, the book suggests that several states are at risk of carrying out genocidal conscription today. While difficult and unlikely, due to political disincentives, the implication of this analysis considers reforms which may prevent states from repeating similar policies and actions again. Kelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/military-history

Christopher Harrison's book Genocidal Conscription: Drafting Victims and Perpetrators Under the Guise of War (Lexington Books, 2023) examines how some states have employed mandatory military service as a tool to capture and kill the victims of genocide by recruiting the perpetrators from other minorities, and shifting blame away from the state. The book highlights several unique intersections that connect military history, Holocaust studies, and genocide. The study details an original framework that encompasses intentions and outcomes of wartime casualties, Clausewitzian wastage, and genocidal massacres. Christopher Harrison traces and compares how two genocidal regimes at war – the Ottoman Empire during World War One and Axis-era Hungary in World War Two – implemented certain policies of military service to capture and destroy their targets amidst the carnage of modern warfare.  Following this historical comparative study, the author then summarizes relevant implications and ongoing concerns. The conclusion includes insights into conscription by contemporary authoritarian regimes. By examining these histories and crises, the book suggests that several states are at risk of carrying out genocidal conscription today. While difficult and unlikely, due to political disincentives, the implication of this analysis considers reforms which may prevent states from repeating similar policies and actions again. Kelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/middle-eastern-studies

Christopher Harrison's book Genocidal Conscription: Drafting Victims and Perpetrators Under the Guise of War (Lexington Books, 2023) examines how some states have employed mandatory military service as a tool to capture and kill the victims of genocide by recruiting the perpetrators from other minorities, and shifting blame away from the state. The book highlights several unique intersections that connect military history, Holocaust studies, and genocide. The study details an original framework that encompasses intentions and outcomes of wartime casualties, Clausewitzian wastage, and genocidal massacres. Christopher Harrison traces and compares how two genocidal regimes at war – the Ottoman Empire during World War One and Axis-era Hungary in World War Two – implemented certain policies of military service to capture and destroy their targets amidst the carnage of modern warfare.  Following this historical comparative study, the author then summarizes relevant implications and ongoing concerns. The conclusion includes insights into conscription by contemporary authoritarian regimes. By examining these histories and crises, the book suggests that several states are at risk of carrying out genocidal conscription today. While difficult and unlikely, due to political disincentives, the implication of this analysis considers reforms which may prevent states from repeating similar policies and actions again. Kelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/genocide-studies

Christopher Harrison's book Genocidal Conscription: Drafting Victims and Perpetrators Under the Guise of War (Lexington Books, 2023) examines how some states have employed mandatory military service as a tool to capture and kill the victims of genocide by recruiting the perpetrators from other minorities, and shifting blame away from the state. The book highlights several unique intersections that connect military history, Holocaust studies, and genocide. The study details an original framework that encompasses intentions and outcomes of wartime casualties, Clausewitzian wastage, and genocidal massacres. Christopher Harrison traces and compares how two genocidal regimes at war – the Ottoman Empire during World War One and Axis-era Hungary in World War Two – implemented certain policies of military service to capture and destroy their targets amidst the carnage of modern warfare.  Following this historical comparative study, the author then summarizes relevant implications and ongoing concerns. The conclusion includes insights into conscription by contemporary authoritarian regimes. By examining these histories and crises, the book suggests that several states are at risk of carrying out genocidal conscription today. While difficult and unlikely, due to political disincentives, the implication of this analysis considers reforms which may prevent states from repeating similar policies and actions again. Kelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/eastern-european-studies

Christopher Harrison's book Genocidal Conscription: Drafting Victims and Perpetrators Under the Guise of War (Lexington Books, 2023) examines how some states have employed mandatory military service as a tool to capture and kill the victims of genocide by recruiting the perpetrators from other minorities, and shifting blame away from the state. The book highlights several unique intersections that connect military history, Holocaust studies, and genocide. The study details an original framework that encompasses intentions and outcomes of wartime casualties, Clausewitzian wastage, and genocidal massacres. Christopher Harrison traces and compares how two genocidal regimes at war – the Ottoman Empire during World War One and Axis-era Hungary in World War Two – implemented certain policies of military service to capture and destroy their targets amidst the carnage of modern warfare.  Following this historical comparative study, the author then summarizes relevant implications and ongoing concerns. The conclusion includes insights into conscription by contemporary authoritarian regimes. By examining these histories and crises, the book suggests that several states are at risk of carrying out genocidal conscription today. While difficult and unlikely, due to political disincentives, the implication of this analysis considers reforms which may prevent states from repeating similar policies and actions again. Kelly McFall is Professor of History and Director of the Honors Program at Newman University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aleksandr Andreevich Svechin was an ethnic Russian born in Odessa in 1878. He became an officer of the imperial Russian army and then of the Red Army, where he rose to the rank of general and wrote a definitive manual on strategy. A ‘Clausewitzian' in approach, stressing the uniqueness of each war and rejecting one-size-fits-all principles, Svechin advocated the defence in depth of the young USSR. This idea was abhorrent to Stalin who, in the 1930s, dismantled the homeland defence structures in favour of an offensive posture for the Red Army, which in turn directly contributed to the catastrophic effects of the German surprise attack of 1941. But by then Svechin was long dead, executed on Stalin's personal orders in 1938 during the Great Purge. Like Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz, Svechin was sceptical about theories and very much agreed with Clausewitz that what strategic studies can do is reflexive: ‘Theory is capable of benefitting only those who have raised themselves above the fray and have become completely dispassionate... A narrow doctrine would probably confuse us more than guide us.' His reading of ‘bourgeois' authors was held against him as the USSR entered into a phase of great intolerance under Stalin, culminating in the Great Purge. Svechin's good name was restored under Gorbachev, and he was even praised in 2013 by Russian General Staff Chief Army General Valery Gerasimov. Professor Gudrun Persson joins Paul and Beatrice for this week's episode. She is deputy research director at the Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI) and associate professor at the Department of Slavic Studies, Stockholm University. She holds a PhD from LSE and has published widely on Russian affairs, including Learning from Foreign Wars: Russian Military Thinking 1859–73 (Helion, 2013), and is working on a further book on Russian strategic thought.

Clausewitz--or at least the version of Clausewitz that is taught in many war colleges--has bedeviled generations of students by offering several "trinities." First, there is the relationship between emotion, chance, and reason which governs events in war. Emotion itself can be broken down as a balance between hatred, violence, and primordial enmity.  At the level of strategy, however, the trinity on which most students of Clausewitz focus is the relationship between the army, the government, and the people. In this week's Horns of a Dilemma, a panel of three experts discusses the ongoing Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. While they didn't set out to discuss a Clausewitzian trinity, Michael Kofman of the Center for Naval Analyses, Mark Pomar of the Clements Center for National Security, and Alexandra Sukalo, also of the Clements Center, offer insights that focus our attention exactly on these three critical elements. This discussion was moderated by Texas National Security Review Executive Editor Doyle Hodges, and was recorded on April 7, 2022.

Remember the Tank War? No? Well, then you really should listen to this episode. In the 1980s, Iran and Iraq, embroiled in a massive land war, engaged in a series of shoot-outs on the high seas. Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, supported by the United States, believe it or not, started the whole thing. He began attacking Iranian shipping vessels in an attempt to weaken Iran's ability to fight on land. The US eventually became involved and, with the world watching, the whole thing became, well....it became really complicated. American forces were involved in a series of exchanges at sea. An Iraqi jet fire two missiles into an American frigate, killing 37 Navy Sailors. An American ship hit a naval mine. Our Navy engaged in the largest American sea battle since WWII. This is a WILD story, one in which Clausewitzian fog of war serves as a principle character. In 1988, an Iranian passenger plane was tragically shot out of the sky by an American guided missile cruiser, killing all 290 on board in a chaotic mistake. To this day, many in Iran believe this was a targeted shoot down ordered by the White House. We have no better guide on this compelling journey back to the Reagan days of foreign policy: David Crist, a senior historian for the Department of Defense and the author of a RIVETING book published in 2012 titled "The Twilight War: The Secret History of America's Thirty-Year Conflict With Iran." David has been studying Iran for decades and he joins host Joe Buccino to describe the Tanker War in vivid detail. This is a story that begins with Iran as an early Cold War American ally. It's a story of the Iranian Revolution and the subsequent hostage crisis. It's a story with big moments: the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing, the storming of an Iranian ship by Navy SEALS, the American shelling of an Iranian oil platform. It's a story of big global figures: Ronald Reagan, Ayatollah Khomeini, Zbigniew Brezinski, Casper Wienberger, Oliver North. It's also a story of American miscalculation and incompetence.  Finally, it's a story that involves the bizarre Iran-Contra scandal that almost brought down the Reagan presidency. All these elements are manifest in this episode. So, give us an hour and 5 minutes, because we break all this down in this fantastic episode. Anyone looking to understand our relationship with Iran today must first understand how we came to the edge of a full-scale war with the Islamic Republic during the Tanker War. This is an episode rich with insight about the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, and Tehran's motivations.  

On this week's new episode of the Joint Geeks of Staff, join hosts Eric Muirhead and Ian Boley as we welcome our guest, Dr. Nyri Bakkalian to discuss the role of history and national security in influencing Japanese science fiction and anime.  How did centuries of military dictatorship influence post-World War II movies, manga, and television? How do Kaiju represent Japanese fears of foreign invasion? When did Ronald McDonald first arrive in Japan? The answers might surprise you… Check out Nyri's weekly podcast Friday Night History at https://anchor.fm/fridaynighthistory Also, check out her appearance on Preble Hall with Claude, talking about the Shogunate Navy:https://www.owltail.com/podcast/7s9Ll-Preble-Hall/best-episodes Works cited: Learn more about how the “Closed Country” myth isn't really true with historian Ronald Toby:https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=3142 Did Early Modern Japanese always follow the rules and tell the truth to their superiors? Luke Roberts begs to differ:https://uhpress.hawaii.edu/title/performing-the-great-peace-political-space-and-open-secrets-in-tokugawa-japan/ Recommended reading for those interested in the more serious side of Japanese media and national security: First, above all else (Ian is embarrassed he didn't mention this on the show) check out Mobile Suit Gundam: the 08th MS Team on Hulu. Basically, this 12-episode series is a well-done Vietnam War movie with very realistically-portrayed giant robots. Themes explored include the inhumanity of war, the plight of the average soldier, and the challenges of mechanized war in a hostile environment. If you have ever enjoyed any Vietnam War movie and any sci-fi property, this one is easy to sink your teeth into.  After that, Ian suggests exploring one of two options. The first is Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, which is streaming on Netflix. Code Geass is about a high school prodigy who leads a Japanese ethno-nationalist insurgency against a globe-spanning superpower. Themes include political legitimacy, the nature of insurgencies, and the role of the individual actor in international affairs. Want to watch a rebellion in the 1984 world with giant robots? This might be your jam. Alternatively, you can check out Aldnoah.Zero on HBOMax. This show is about a war between a technologically superior Martian civilization and a more-or-less present-day Earth. This story follows a group of Terran high school students as they get swept up by the conflict and are forced to fight as part of a local militia force. Themes include Clausewitzian theories of war, political legitimacy, and the relative advantages of discipline vs firepower. Come for the incredible soundtrack, stay for the hard-sf battles in the Terran orbital debris belt.  These are some of the more accessible military sci-fi anime out there, but there are also other media to check out, like the light novels All You Need is Kill (the basis for Edge of Tomorrow) and Yukikaze (an aerial combat piece that has been compared to Starship Troopers in terms of its impact on Japanese sci-fi). Feel free to ask around in the Discord for more recommendations!  Check out our Discord at discord.gg/6xg2sApfGJ The Joint Geeks on this episode are: Eric Muirhead (@StarfleetHIST) and Ian Boley (@IBBoley); our guest is Dr. Nyri Bakkalian (@riversidewings) 

In this episode, Mick chats with Clausewitzian poet, Olivia Garard. They discuss the recently published edited work, An Annotated Guide to Tactics.  Olivia discusses Clausewitz's lesser-studied works and how they can complement professional military education.  Olivia provides an insightful answer to the final question. Become a member of our social network, the #TDPCommunity, to access bonus content from this episode.  You can also grab a book & crack on here.

I see [Jomini] as one of the final products of the Enlightenment -- the idea of this ability to find scientific principles ... that anyone can use, [such as] in this case, war In this episode in our Great Strategists series, U.S. Army War College historians Bill Johnsen and Con Crane present one of the more enigmatic figures in military theory, Baron Antoine-Henri Jomini. Historians have given Jomini mixed reviews in terms of evaluating his theories and contributions, but almost all recognize his influence. Modern analysts often pit Jomini and his contemporary, Carl von Clausewitz, as polar opposites, creating "Jominian" and "Clausewitzian" camps. In reality, both were informed by their experiences with the Napoleonic Wars, but they took different perspectives--Clausewitz from the Prussian perspective, Jomini from the French. And while Clausewitz died in 1831, Jomini lived to be an old man and prolific writer, so you can see elements of Clausewitzian thought in Jomini's writing. Still, Jomini was interested in finding general principles of warfare that could translate directly to success on the battlefield; a task that seemed simple when he could draw from observations of Napoleon's greatest victories. Bill and Con tell Jomini's story, contributions to theories of war and relations with other thinkers, and the contemporary relevance of his ideas. WAR ROOM Editor-in-Chief Jacqueline E. Whitt moderates.     Bill Johnsen recently retired as Professor at the U.S. Army War College. Con Crane is a military historian with the Army Heritage and Education Center. Jacqueline E. Whitt is Professor of Strategy at the U.S. Army War College and the Editor-in-Chief of WAR ROOM.   Other releases in the "Great Strategists" series: HOW MUCH FOR THE PEN? SCHELLING (GREAT STRATEGISTS)A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO WAR? ANTOINE-HENRI JOMINI (GREAT STRATEGISTS)THE NATURE AND CHARACTER OF WAR — THUCYDIDES (GREAT STRATEGISTS)BEYOND THUCYDIDES: HERODOTUS, XENOPHON & UNDERSTANDING WAR (GREAT STRATEGISTS)JOHN WARDEN AND THE ENEMY AS A SYSTEM (GREAT STRATEGISTS)JOHN BOYD AND THE “OODA” LOOP (GREAT STRATEGISTS)THREE PIONEERS OF AIRPOWER — GREAT STRATEGISTSMAHAN AND SEA POWER — GREAT STRATEGISTS (EPISODE 4)KAUTILYA, THE ARTHASHASTRA, AND ANCIENT REALISM — GREAT STRATEGISTS (EPISODE 3)SUN TZU AND THE ART OF WAR — GREAT STRATEGISTS (EPISODE 2)ON CARL VON CLAUSEWITZ – GREAT STRATEGISTS (EPISODE 1)

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018), by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking, outlines the history of social media platforms and their use in popular culture and modern conflict.  The authors make comparisons to previous technological advancements (such as telegraph and radio) and connect the use of social media to a Clausewitzian view of war. The use of social media by insurgents, criminal organizations, and nation-states raises questions about whether the medium is the message or if new communication channels are propaganda in another form. Beth Windisch is a national security practitioner. You can tweet her @bethwindisch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018), by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking, outlines the history of social media platforms and their use in popular culture and modern conflict.  The authors make comparisons to previous technological advancements (such as telegraph and radio) and connect the use of social media to a Clausewitzian view of war. The use of social media by insurgents, criminal organizations, and nation-states raises questions about whether the medium is the message or if new communication channels are propaganda in another form. Beth Windisch is a national security practitioner. You can tweet her @bethwindisch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018), by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking, outlines the history of social media platforms and their use in popular culture and modern conflict.  The authors make comparisons to previous technological advancements (such as telegraph and radio) and connect the use of social media to a Clausewitzian view of war. The use of social media by insurgents, criminal organizations, and nation-states raises questions about whether the medium is the message or if new communication channels are propaganda in another form. Beth Windisch is a national security practitioner. You can tweet her @bethwindisch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018), by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking, outlines the history of social media platforms and their use in popular culture and modern conflict.  The authors make comparisons to previous technological advancements (such as telegraph and radio) and connect the use of social media to a Clausewitzian view of war. The use of social media by insurgents, criminal organizations, and nation-states raises questions about whether the medium is the message or if new communication channels are propaganda in another form. Beth Windisch is a national security practitioner. You can tweet her @bethwindisch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018), by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking, outlines the history of social media platforms and their use in popular culture and modern conflict.  The authors make comparisons to previous technological advancements (such as telegraph and radio) and connect the use of social media to a Clausewitzian view of war. The use of social media by insurgents, criminal organizations, and nation-states raises questions about whether the medium is the message or if new communication channels are propaganda in another form. Beth Windisch is a national security practitioner. You can tweet her @bethwindisch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018), by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking, outlines the history of social media platforms and their use in popular culture and modern conflict.  The authors make comparisons to previous technological advancements (such as telegraph and radio) and connect the use of social media to a Clausewitzian view of war. The use of social media by insurgents, criminal organizations, and nation-states raises questions about whether the medium is the message or if new communication channels are propaganda in another form. Beth Windisch is a national security practitioner. You can tweet her @bethwindisch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In which we start with cricket get to Imram Khan, discuss how hunky he was as a young cricketer and how his populism and the nukes he now controls may make him somewhat less attractive. Then on to the expanding realm of hybrid warfare, what it means in Clausewitzian terms, what that may all mean in terms of Metternich and then of inevitably, on to the proliferation of vegetables of mass destruction (VMDs). Rosa Brooks, Kori Schake and Evelyn Farkas join and elucidate. Tune in!Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In which we start with cricket get to Imram Khan, discuss how hunky he was as a young cricketer and how his populism and the nukes he now controls may make him somewhat less attractive. Then on to the expanding realm of hybrid warfare, what it means in Clausewitzian terms, what that may all mean in terms of Metternich and then of inevitably, on to the proliferation of vegetables of mass destruction (VMDs). Rosa Brooks, Kori Schake and Evelyn Farkas join and elucidate. Tune in! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Gideon Rose is the editor of Foreign Affairs, and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is also the author of the book How Wars End: Why We Always Fight the Last Battle. In this week’s episode, Mr. Rose discusses why, no matter the war, we see the same mistakes occur throughout U.S. history. The truth be told, the end state in war is often too broad. The lack of planning by civilian decision-makers based on these broad and vague terms, leads to a longer-than-necessary war that could have very well been prevented, and had lives spared. However, war is inherently political, and leaving just the violence to military officials, and politics to politicians, is not the realistic balance and conclusion we all crave.   Key Takeaways: [1:55] Who is Carl Van Clausewitzian and why is he relevant to how wars end? [3:30] What is war? Clausewitzian defined it in two different ways. [6:25] The end state, in this case, goes beyond the physical battlefield, and it stretches into the political realm. [6:35] Should military planners be more aware about the political ends of war, or is this a task for policy makers? [14:10] It falls down on the military in the end. For example, the Iraq War and the mission to overthrow Saddam Hussein were well-planned on the lower levels, but incredibly poorly-planned at the higher levels. [15:35] Retired military officials were the ones to speak up about the invasion of Iraq. They wanted to know what the end state was. [17:10] If war is both political and military, then it’s not possible to separate the two completely, especially in times of construction. [18:35] Military operations have their own grammar, but not their own logic. [21:55] According to Mr. Rose’s research, civilians take their wartime responsibilities far less seriously than military officials. [27:00] Saddam Hussein had to torture and dismember those who opposed him, even within his chain of command, and this made everyone too afraid to speak up to him. But in the U.S.? All it took was to be publicly shamed in front of a hearing, in order for military officials to not speak up to their head of command. [30:20] It’s a hard balance to maintain. If people acted on their own accord based on what they thought was right at the time, the entire government and military system would fall apart. However, we’ve seen through World War II history that, “I was just following orders” does not hold much weight, especially when it was towards something truly evil and unethical. [34:30] Why was General Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, absent from key decisions that were outlined in the book? What role was he playing at the time? [42:50] Iraq was the perfect storm, but truth be told, the U.S. Government and military have made similar mistakes in every single war that we’ve fought. [50:00] Mr. Rose understand there are difficult challenges, but why are the same mistakes happening, war after war, after war? It boils down to civilian decision-makers not doing enough serious planning towards the situation. [50:35] It angers Mr. Rose that his civilian counterparts who helped plan some of these wars, simply just didn’t do their jobs. [51:25] It’s imperative to take what you’re doing really, really seriously. Lives were lost and, wars were fought, that didn’t need to be, due to these mistakes. [53:00] What examples do we have of history where policy members, civilians, and military members have worked well together? [1:03:05] Let’s analyze how the George H.W. Bush administration handled the Gulf War. What was done right? What was done wrong? [1:20:25] The first year of the Korean war was very dramatic and terrible, but what people don’t realize is that all those horrible things stopped after the first year. It took two extra years for negotiation, but why did it take so long when policy was already in place, years prior? [1:27:15] When people specify what their war aims are, they often do it in a very broad way, with vague terms. This leaves room for bad planning. [1:27:55] The common saying is, “Measure twice, cut once.” So, you’d think with a subject as important as war, people would be measuring much more than twice. The reality is, people rarely measure at all. [1:30:45] How do you tell whether something was a good idea or not? It’s actually a very hard thing to do in retrospect. [1:50:45] Once you’ve made terrible mistakes upon entering a country on war pretenses, it’s very hard to correct them, after the fact. [1:50:50] The Nixon administration gets a ton of blame for how the Vietnam war was handled, but the fact is Nixon was cleaning up a mess he entered into. [1:52:20] Mr. Rose believes Nixon handled the Vietnam war much more strategically than most would. It wasn’t a success, but Nixon could not have closed it out any better. [1:59:10] How would Mr. Rose do things differently? [2:00:50] Start with the endgame, and reverse-engineer the endgame that they want. [2:03:00] It begins with professional responsibility.   Mentioned in This Episode: Gideon Rose How Wars End: Why We Always Fight the Last Battle, by Gideon Rose How Everything Became War and the Military Became Everything, by Rosa Brooks Supreme Command: Soldiers, Statesmen, and Leadership in Wartime, by Eliot CohenOnce an Eagle by Anton MyrerFredrik Logevall

May 7, 2015. As the centennial of U.S. entry into WWI approaches, Bradford Lee performs a Clausewitzian critical analysis of how the U.S. waged war and negotiated peace from 1917 to 1919, and whether the value of victory was worth the costs of achieving it. Speaker Biography: Bradford Lee is Kissinger Chair at the Library of Congress. For transcript, captions, and more information, visit http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=6770

We needed something special this week. Not just your run-of-the-mill epic, with the same bland political intrigue, the same conniving highborn jetsetters, and the same Clausewitzian martial maneuvering. Something special. What we needed was a run-of-the-mill epic, with the same bland political intrigue, the same conniving highborn jetsetters, and the same Clausewitzian martial maneuvering that […]