Social Science of War

Last September, the Harding Project launched with the objective of renewing professional writing in the US Army. A priority of General Randy George, the Army chief of staff, the project is built on the premise that professional discourse will produce a more ready force, one prepared to meet the challenges it will confront as the character of warfare evolves more and more rapidly. In this episode, Major Gabe Royal is joined by Lieutenant Colonel Zachary Griffiths, the director of the Harding Project, and Dr. Nora Bensahel, a professor of practice at the John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies who also serves as a contributing editor and columnist for War on the Rocks and has taught in the Army Strategic Education Program. Together, they describe why a culture of writing is not only a hallmark of a strong Army profession but is vital to enable the service to identify and solve problems.

Every four years, Americans choose a new commander-in-chief. US presidents have significant authority to use force, manage a global network of alliances and partnerships, as well as direct American grand strategy. How do voters decide who they want to be commander-in-chief? To explore that question, Dr. Alexandra Chinchilla is joined on this episode by three guests who have studied and written extensively about it. Dr. Jeffrey Friedman is an associate professor of government at Dartmouth College and author of The Commander in Chief Test. Dr. Kori Schake is the director of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, a former senior official in the State and Defense Departments and at the National Security Council, and coeditor of Warriors & Citizens: American Views of Our Military. And Dr. Andrew Payne is a lecturer in foreign policy and security at City, University of London and the author of War on the Ballot: How the Election Cycle Shapes Presidential Decision-Making in War. The views expressed in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect those of the United States Military Academy, the US Army, or any agency of the US government.

After the US-led coalition's invasion of Iraq and defeat of Iraqi forces in conventional operations, a series of new challenges arose. How can security forces be rebuilt and strengthened, for example, and how can peace and governance be restored? This episode is the second in a two-part discussion with Dr. Isaiah "Ike" Wilson. An Army veteran and scholar of the war in Iraq, he is the author of the book Thinking Beyond War. In this episode, he describes the challenges US forces faced in Iraq and highlights a number of lessons from the conflict—lessons that he says the US military has "gathered" but not yet fully learned. As the episode concludes, the discussion zooms out to take a broader look at the Middle East and the United States' missions in the region.

More than twenty-one years ago, when a US-led coalition invaded Iraq, the 101st Airborne Division was a key element of the operation. Dr. Isaiah "Ike" Wilson was an Army officer and the division's chief of plans. He later authored a book, Thinking Beyond War, that chronicled lessons learned from the experience. He joins this episode, the first in a two-part series, to reflect on the invasion. The discussion begins with an examination of prewar estimates of troop requirements and continues by drawing out important lessons from the war on counterinsurgency and security force assistance. It also uses the early post-9/11 years as a framework to discuss Israel's current conflict with Hamas. Be sure to subscribe to the Social Science of War so you don't miss part two in the series!