A Better Peace: The War Room Podcast

Prolific author, sociologist, historian, civil rights activist and co-founder of the NAACP, W.E.B. Du Bois is one of the most prominent scholars and activists in African-American history. He and his unpublished work about the betrayal of Black soldiers during World War I are the topic of Chad Williams new book The Wounded World: W. E. B. Du Bois and the First World War. Chad joins podcast host Michael Neiberg for another episode of On Writing to examine the origin, research and the process behind his book. It's a fascinating conversation that goes beyond a simple biography and examines Du Bois's struggles with his own disillusionment with WW I and his transformation to anti-war activist as he described it in his unpublished manuscript.

2023 is, of course, the 20th anniversary of the United States' invasion of Iraq. There has already been and surely will be much more examination of the event and the subsequent consequences of the war but very little of the analysis has been from the viewpoint of the Iraqis. Sam Helfont changed that with his new book "Iraq against the World: Saddam, America, and the Post-Cold War Order." He joins podcast editor, Ron Granieri, to explain how he gained access to internal Ba'th Party files that reveal the foreign policy, inner workings and previously unknown actors in Saddam Hussein's regime. It's a fascinating discussion of the decade leading up to the invasion from the view of the Iraqis, and how they were able to disrupt global norms and divide Western states.

In March 2023, the Society for Military History held its annual meeting in San Diego. During the conference, Phil Shackleford, librarian, military historian and host of The Modern Scholar Podcast, moderated a roundtable titled Making Airwaves – The Profession of History and the World of Podcasting. Phil was kind enough to share the live recording of the roundtable and we want to share it with you, our listeners. The panel included the hosts of multiple podcast hosts in the military history sphere: Bill Allison, Georgia Southern University, Co-Host, Military Historians are People, Too! https://www.mhptpodcast.com/ Alycia Asai, Sonoma State University, Host, Civics & Coffee https://www.civicsandcoffee.com/ Kelly DeVries, Loyola University Maryland, Co-Host, Bow and Blade https://bowandblade.libsyn.com/website Ron Granieri, Army War College, Host, A Better Peace: The War Room Podcast https://warroom.armywarcollege.edu/category/podcasts/ Philip C. Shackelford, South Arkansas Community College, Host, The Modern Scholar Podcast https://modernscholarpodcast.com/ Be sure to check out the fascinating podcasts from the other panel participants. *This episode was recorded live during a conference session, so please excuse any irregularities in audio quality. It originally aired on The Modern Scholar Podcast on 1 April 2023.

Lou Yuengert and Tom Galvin are back in the studio for another episode of "How Should the Army Run?" This episode focuses on Lou's recent service on the Army's Talent Management Task Force. The Army has done relatively well at placing its top performers in appropriate leadership positions, but in an organization of high performers are the other 90% of the personnel being placed where they are best suited while still meeting the needs of the service? Lou shares his experience as the Army struggles to move from an industrial age strength management system to a system that puts the right people in the right jobs routinely throughout their career. It's a big task and there is a lot of information that has to be measured, managed and available to make it work.

At the end of January 2023 we ran an article by John Nagl and Matthew Woessner about a fictional student's ill-informed preparation for his War College comprehensive exams. It was a bit tongue-in-cheek, demonstrating how the student learns the exact wrong lessons by skimming Thucydides' The History of the Peloponnesian War. Today, 28 March 2023, is the first day of comps for the AY23 resident class and Woessner and Nagl felt they had to step up to the mics to help the students with that last minute cram session. They join podcast editor Ron Granieri to explain the origin of the idea and what students really need to know about T-Diddy.

Valley Forge, the 1777-1778 winter encampment of Washington's Continental Army, is the stuff of legend and lore. Tales of brutal temperatures, bare footed soldiers and near starvation are what come to mind when recollecting middle school American History courses. Rick Herrera set out to understand the strategic importance of Valley Forge and the logistics challenges that Washington and his staff overcame. He captures many lessons still applicable today in his new book "Feeding Washington’s Army: Surviving the Valley Forge Winter of 1778", and he's in the studio with podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss it.

General Charles Flynn, Commanding General of U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC), was in Carlisle to address the AY23 resident class of the U.S. Army War College. He took the time to sit down with our Editor-in-Chief JP Clark to discuss what the Army is doing in the Pacific. Their conversation includes the 4Cs framework, allies and partners, wargaming and campaigning in the region and the responsibilities of the theater Army to set the theater for the joint force. General Flynn shares his extensive experience in the Pacific and at the senior level of Army leadership to provide a clear picture of the Army's activities and contributions to joint operations in the INDOPACOM theater.

It's time for part two of our Antarctica trip. In February 2023, Michele Devlin, Professor of Environmental Security at the U.S. Army War College, traveled to the Antarctica and took us along through a little technological sleight of hand. Armed with her trusty iPhone and a list of questions and topics for discussion, Michele documented her journey and her reactions along the way. In this second of two episodes, Michele is joined by Managing Editor Buck Haberichter in the virtual studio to explain the hows and whys of her trip. In part two Michele sums up her visit to Antarctica and ties it all together for national security professionals and honestly for everyone on the planet.

And now for something completely different! In February 2023 Michele Devlin, Professor of Environmental Security at the U.S. Army War College, traveled to the continent of Antarctica. Thoughtfully she took us along through a little technological sleight of hand. Armed with her trusty iPhone and a list of questions and topics for discussion Michele documented her journey and her reactions along the way. In this first of two episodes, Michele is joined by Managing Editor Buck Haberichter in the virtual studio to explain the hows and whys of her trip. Whether it's her arrival in Ushuaia, Argentina, her thoughts on the strategic importance of the polar regions or her first steps on the continent of Antarctica this is a truly interesting and engaging episode that you've got to hear.

A crucial turning point in the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Saratoga boosted the morale of the Continental Army; influenced the opinions of the French, Spanish and Dutch; and closed the door to possible invasions from the Canadian front. Kevin Weddle is in the studio to discuss the strategic lessons of this important battle as he has outlined them in his book The Compleat Victory. He joins podcast editor Ron Granieri to examine the interplay of strategic leadership, politics, personal ambition, and battlefield strategies. Their conversation visits familiar names like Washington and Howe, Gates and Burgoyne, Arnold and Morgan. It's a great discussion for those already familiar with Saratoga's importance but equally interesting to those who would like to learn more.

It's time for another episode about the U.S. Army War College's Distance Education program. COL Heather Smigowski, Chair of the Department of Distance Education, is back in the studio to offer a few suggestions to new students who just received their welcome letter to the class of academic year '25 (AY25). Heather joins podcast host Ron Granieri to describe the challenges the members of AY25 will face during their academic journey over the next two years. Whether it's the shock of going back to school, the inevitable surges of reading assignments, or the potential disruptions to "normal" life and family vacations, the next two years will require dedication and concentration. Heather offers tips and techniques for time management and effective study, and also highlights the many resources available to every student in the program.

Historical Mindedness is a form of reasoning that deals with historical material and present-day problems and it is woven throughout the U.S. Army War College curriculum. It doesn't predict the future or provide all the answers to modern international situations, but it does arm strategic thinkers with the right questions to ask of the dilemmas they face. Alexander Mikaberidze is in the studio today to look at how historical mindedness can inform our understanding of Russia's war in Ukraine. He joins Michael Neiberg to discuss his newest book "Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace"" for this episode in our On Writing series. Alexander argues that the current conflict has its roots in the 18th century and the behaviors of the House of Romanov. He notes that the Russian and Soviet governments have cast historical figures such as Field Marshal Mikhail Golenischev-Kutuzov in different ways, both positively and negatively, to suit their own purposes.

For more than one hundred years there were three recognized domains in military conflict: land, maritime and air. In the two last decades after significant debate, the cyber and space domains were officially defined by western allies. Rob Farley is in the studio with podcast editor Ron Granieri to explain why the United States and its allies need to consider adding the finance domain to the multi-domain discussion. Not to be confused with the economic lever of power in DIME, Rob makes the argument that the finance domain involves the technologies of finance and money that countries use to either maximize their own resource base or interfere in other states' abilities to maximize their resources. As with all discussions at the War College, he begins with Thucydides and moves forward in time examining the British pound, the U.S. dollar, the gold standard and looking forward at cryptocurrency and digital currency.

Tom Galvin is back in the studio for another episode of "How Should the Army Run?" He's joined today by Doug "Muddy" Waters to talk about how the Army (and the rest of DoD) gets its funding. In this stage-setting episode Tom and Muddy discuss Congressional processes like appropriations and authorizations, continuing resolutions, the "color of money", and you'll hear familiar terms like POM, OCO, O&M and RDT&E. It's a great primer on how the basics of the budget process work and a great starting point to inform change.

It's time for another episode of On Writing. A BETTER PEACE welcomes Tami Biddle to the studio to discuss her newest history project, Taking Command: The United States at War 1941-1945. Tami sits down with host Michael Neiberg for a conversation about capturing this very large and complicated topic. Tami shares her processes for organization, content selection, and how she has gone about creating and contributing something new on a topic that has been so thoroughly discussed. Their conversation provides a glimpse inside the historian's mind in the opening stages of a new, and very ambitious, project.