How we talk about Afghanistan

Hello again! Finally back after a long hiatus, we are hear again to talk about how we talk about war and politics. Today, we're going back to Afghanistan, where our narratives and stories we tell ourselves continue to do a disservice to Afghans. As mentioned, here are the books and articles mentioned in the episode: https://hurstpublishers.com/book/the-decline-and-fall-of-republican-afghanistan/https://www.routledge.com/Inside-Afghanistan-Political-Networks-Informal-Order-and-State-Disruption/Sharan/p/book/9781032334943https://www.versobooks.com/products/2961-the-forty-year-war-in-afghanistanhttps://jacobin.com/2026/09/the-many-casualties-of-precision-warfare

Today I'm joined by an absolute legend, Van Jackson, author of books including The Rivalry Peril, Pacific Power Paradox, Grand Strategies of the Left, and On the Brink, and of course his podcasts Un-Diplomatic and Bang Bang. We talk about all things national security life, IR academia, the social class of defence folks, and just riff on a range of things. Go give him a follow and check out his books and substack!

I am excited to be joined in this episode by my friend (and former IU undergraduate thesis advisor) Professor Hussein Banai to discuss all the ins and outs of the attacks on higher education happening across the US and the wider world.

What's better, being an academic with a conscience that flips on corrupt folks in power and takes on the defence system for decades? Or being a servant to wealthy power brokers your whole life, while also being a shit academic? Come one people, you know the answer...

The good, the bad, and the ugly of our security studies reading lists....From the episode: The meta-writers: Empires Without Imperialism: Anglo-American Decline and the Politics of Deflection by Jeanne MorefieldHow to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States by Daniel ImmerwahrThe Atlantic Realists: Empire and International Political Thought Between Germany and the United States by Matthew SpecterThe bad: Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power by Niall FergusonThe Lesser Evil: Political Ethics in an Age of Terror by Michael IgnatieffThe Return of Marco Polo's World: War, Strategy, and American Interests in the Twenty-first Century by Robert D. KaplanColonialism: A Moral Reckoning by Nigel BiggarConfronting Saddam Hussein: George W. Bush and the Invasion of Iraq by Melvyn LefflerThe good: Revolusi: Indonesia and the Birth of the Modern World by David van ReybrouckCongo: The Epic History of a People by van ReybrouckKing Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam HochschildCulture and Imperialism + Orientalism by Edward Said (amongst many others)Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America's Police Forces by Radley BalkoThe Wretched of the Earth + Black Skin, White Masks by Frantz FanonPrimitive Rebels + On History by Eric HobsbawmUncivil War: The British Army and The Troubles, 1966-1975 by Huw BennettHomeland: The War on Terror in American Life by Richard BeckOne Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad

How does a Midwestern American raised to be a Republican, who worked as a military strategist at NATO, become a progressive arms control and decolonization advocate?

What's it like to study defense and security between two different continents? Maybe its more similar than you think...

Welcome to the first episode of Official Positions!Like the title says, what's wrong with security studies?From the insider's perspective, let's unpack the issues endemic to the security studies academic field, the defense research world it feeds, and its relationship to politics.