ICYMI: Top Lawfire posts and podcasts for 2020

AIlthough many (most?) people may not look back fondly on 2020, it was a banner year for Lawfire^® viewership. Thanks to you, I’m pleased to report that views of the blog have increased very significantly this year!

In case you missed some posts, below for your convenience is a ‘bakers’ dozen of the most-viewed essays of 2020, followed by some other favorites.  In addtion, you’ll find a list of some of the top guest posts and podcasts by an awesome goup of contributers.

You’ll note that some of the most-viewed posts for 2020 actually first appeared in a previous year, but their popularity persists (if the post appeared before 2020, the year will be indicated).

Most viewed in 2020:

1. Eight leadership lessons from the Navy carrier captain’s case 

2. The killing of General Soleimani was lawful self-defense, not “assassination” 

3. Can Presidents ‘fire’ senior military officers? Generally, yes…but it’s complicated (2016) 

4. Were Confederate soldiers tried for treason? 

5. Yes, the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden was lawful (2019) 

6. Why an apolitical military is so important in an era of an “All-Volunteer” force (2019) 

7. Why militarizing the coronavirus response is a bad idea…for now anyway 

8. Disasters and Emergencies: Legal authorities and the military’s role (2017) 

9. Would attacking sites “important” to “Iranian culture” be a “war crime”? (Not always) 

10. Have Presidents ever given the military illegal orders? Yes; the surprising list…and more about the law of military orders (2016) 

11. Mobilizing the military for domestic operations: some legal considerations 

12. COVID-19 is not “like a nuclear attack” but another kind of virus might be 

13. What are JAGs (with Duke Law connections!) doing in Afghanistan? Reviewing $1 billion in requirements and much more (2018)

Here are some more published in 2020 that you might find of interest (no particular order):

Rename our military installations…and do it now

General dissent: examining a case study of “retired officer activism”

Should Congress be able to force your spouse, your doctor, your pastor, or your lawyer to testify in investigations to enhance its “public shaming leverage”?

Are surveys of electoral preferences of active-duty military cause for concern?

Must Annie get her gun? Women, draft registration, and the Constitution

The military’s voting process is not a panacea for the challenges of the fall elections

Why the “Orders Project” is troubling

Don’t politicize traumatic brain injury

Casting police reform as a “national security” issue risks perpetuating the public safety crisis

Top Guest Posts (no particular order):

Mackenzie Eaglen on “5 Lessons the U.S. Military Learned From the Pandemic” 

Anna Page on “Finding Shared Values in Unexpected Places: The Military and Higher Education” 

Guest Post: “The just-war tradition has much wisdom to offer in this moment of heightened tension between the United States and Iran” 

LTG Pede on the COIN/CT “hangover”; ROE, war-sustaining targets, and much more! 

Guest post: “Is remote learning the future of legal education?” 

Guest Post: “Two retirees question the competence of today’s JAGs. Here’s why that’s off the mark” 

Adam Oler on “A More Comprehensive Approach to Counter-Atrocity Education”

Guest Post: David Maxwell asks “Is Kim Playing Trump?”

Guest post: Andrés Munoz Mosquera’s and Nikoleta Chalanouli’s essay: “China, an active practitioner of legal warfare”

Top Podcasts for 2020 (no particular order):

Podcast: Dean Mary-Rose Papandrea on “Whistleblowers and National Security”

Podcast: Dean Cheng on “The Challenge of China: Lawfare, Technology & More”

Don’t miss this podcast: Mike Schmitt on “Inside the Enemy’s Camp: ‘Offensive’ Cyber Ops and International Law”

Podcast: Dr. Aurel Sari on the concept of “Grey Zone War” – and more

Podcast & essay: Mark Nevitt on “Climate Change and National Security: Top 10 Questions that Demand Answers”

Looking for some books to read (or gift!) during the holidays? There will be some recommendations in upcoming posts, but in the meanwhile you may want to scan “Your 2020 summer reading and listening list! (And it’s curated for those who may be new to the national security enterprise!)”. 

Thanks again for supporting Lawfire^® with your viewership!