Stay ConnectedWhat are you reading? is a podcast dedicated to inspiring a culture of scholarship and lifelong learning in the Armed Forces. This podcast is in partnership with DODReads.com
The views presented in this podcast are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
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This is the final episode of the DODReads: What are you Reading? podcast. Thank you for listening!
In Episode 63, host Tim Bettis interviews General Stanley McChrystal, USA (Ret.) on risk, learning from history, and the importance of language skills. General McChrystal is an Army Ranger who led Joint Special Operations Command and Commanded the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and United States Forces - Afghanistan before his retirement in 2010. He is the Founder of the McChrystal Group and is a senior fellow at Yale's Jackson Institute for Global Affairs. Check out his newest book - Risk: A User's Guide.
As always, head to DODReads.com for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 62, host Bryan Wittmeyer interviews retired U.S. Army General George Casey, the 36th U.S. Army Chief of Staff and the commander of the Multi-National Force-Iraq from 2004 to 2007. The two discuss General Casey's philosophy on leadership and the skills leaders need today to succeed in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environment.
Book Recommendations:
The Revolution Trilogy, Rick Atkinson
The Liberation Trilogy, Rick Atkinson
The Mitch Rapp Saga (fiction), Vince Flynn
The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914, David McCullough
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you’d like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads.com for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 60, Julie Stabile interviews Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Environment and Energy Resilience, Richard Kidd. They discuss how to develop climate literacy, the role of junior leaders in the response to climate change, and how to manage a diverse portfolio. The DOD’s Climate Adaptation Plan discussed was released on October 7, 2021 and is linked below.
Recommendations
The Stranger by Albert Camus
Operation Barbarbossa and Germany’s Defeat in the East by David Stahel
Dream Catchers by Philip Jenkins
The Overstory by Richard Powers
Summary for Policy Makers from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
All Hell Breaking Loose by Michael Klare
Under the Sky We Make by Kimberly Nicholas
Drawdown by Paul Hawken
Scatter, Adapt, and Remember by Annalee Newitz
This Republic of Suffering by Drew Gilpin Faust
The Rise and Fall of Great Powers by Paul Kennedy
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you’d like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 59, Ryder Ashcraft interviews Rear Admiral Kenneth Bernard of the U.S. Public Health Service. They discuss the ability of government agencies to respond to a public health crisis, future biosecurity threats that may affect readiness, and how to plan for future challenges.
Book Recommendations:
Warnings, R. P. Eddy and Richard A. Clarke
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Yuval Noah Harari
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you’d like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 58, Julie Stabile interviews Vice Admiral Sandra Stosz, USCG (Ret.), the author of Breaking Ice and Breaking Glass. They discuss character development, lifelong learning, and how to continually grow as a leader.
Book recommendations:
Finding the Mother Tree, Suzanne Simard
Make Your Bed, Admiral William McRaven
The Boys in the Boat, Daniel James Brown
How Women Rise, Sally Helgesen and Marshall Goldsmith
Extreme Ownership, Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
The One-Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you’d like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 57, Ryder Ashcraft interviews Lieutenant General Michael Plehn, USAF the President of the National Defense University. They discuss higher education opportunities, the value of working with periphery allies, and the future of joint and interagency cooperation.
Book Recommendations:
-How the Word is Passed, Clint Smith
-Hungry Ghosts, Jasper Becker
-Arms and Influence, Thomas Schelling
-The Innovator's Dilemma, Clayton Christensen
-Silver, Sword and Stone, Marie Arana
-Neptune's Inferno, James Hornfischer
-Eagle Down, Jessica Donati
-One Day Too Long, Timothy Castle
-A Dawn Like Thunder, Robert Mrazek
-Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you'd like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 56, host Tim Bettis interviews retired Air Force Lieutenant General Jack Shanahan, the Inaugural Director of the Department of Defense's Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC). The two discuss graduate school, the implications of AI for international relations, and why reading broadly is crucial for leader development.
Book Recommendations:
-The Long Game, Rush Doshi
-The Myth of Artificial Intelligence, Erik Larson
-Atlas of AI, Kate Crawford
-A Brief History of Artificial Intelligence, Michael Wooldridge
-Debunking the AI Arms Race Theory, Paul Scharre
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you'd like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 55, Ryder Ashcraft and Phoebe Kotlikoff interview Admiral James Foggo, USN (Ret). They discuss working with allied partners, the importance of building relationships on the peripheries, and operating in the Arctic in an era of Great Power Competition.
Admiral Foggo Book Recommendations:
-Oil & War: How the Deadly Struggle for Fuel in WWII Meant Victory or Defeat, Robert Goralski and Russell W. Freeburg
-The War Lords and the Gallipoli Disaster: How Globalized Trade Led Britain to Its Worst Defeat of the First World War, Nicholas Lambert
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you'd like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In Episode 54, Bryan Wittmeyer interviews Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, USA (Ret.) the Pershing Chair for Strategic Studies at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), an organization dedicated to ensuring a strong and enduring transatlantic alliance rooted in democratic values and principles. He served 38 years in the U.S. Army as an Infantry Officer, commanding at every level from Platoon to Brigade Commander, including three operational deployments.
They discuss challenges facing the NATO alliance, key areas where we can strengthen the NATO alliance after COVID and why, his most influential lessons as a military leader, and the importance of taking responsibility.
LTG(R) Hodges Recommended Reading:
-Cathrine the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert K. Massie
-Peter the Great: His Life and World by Robert K. Massie
-Once an Eagle by Anton Myrer
-Defeat into Victory by Field-Marshall Sir William Slim
-George C. Marshall: Defender of the Republic by David L. Roll
-Grant and Sherman Memoirs by Ulysses S. Grant and W.T. Sherman
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you'd like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
In episode 53, the Season 3 kickoff, Ryder Ashcraft interviews Ambassador Kristie Kenney, the former Ambassador to Ecuador, the Philippines, and Thailand. They discuss the first month of leadership at a new posting/command, the importance of interagency operations during crisis management, and the relevance of Asia in foreign policy.
Interested in an interview with a particular leader? Have a question you'd like to hear answered? Contact us @DODReads or podcast@dodreads.com.
Finally, head to DODReads for more resources, free books, and interviews with military authors.
The views presented in this episode are those of the participants and do not reflect the views of the Department of Defense or its components.
Book Recommendations:
-His Truth Is Marching On: John Lewis and the Power of Hope by Jon Meacham
-Leadership: In Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin
-The Widow Clicquot by Tilar J Mazzeo
-The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara
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