Studio Notes — October is live: drafts in motion, what I’m reading, and what’s next for #TempleOfLiberty. Free preview + credit unlock for the full post: open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

In a republic, there are no kings. Here are the five tests I’ll use to judge leaders—left or right—and four habits any citizen can apply. A standard, not a jersey. #TempleOfLiberty open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

What didn’t fit in print—on the oldest-to-youngest slice, the oath, and why small rituals matter. Director’s Cut: “A Blueberry Muffin, a Candle, and 250 Years of the Marines” open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

First in a new series of leadership reflections from nearly 30 years in uniform—starting not with a heroic moment but with the night I answered a platoon sergeant’s question the “wrong” way. Honest followership is the apprenticeship to real leadership: open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

New today: "Letter from Taipei: Building a Resilient Society." A morning walk along the Keelung River—grandparents walking kids to school, shelter signs on city streets, jets overhead—raises hard questions about demography, doubt, and deterrence. open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

New today on #TempleOfLiberty: my November Field Notes from Japan and Taiwan — shipyards, libraries, air-raid shelters, and what they showed me about deterrence and democracy. Field Notes, November 2025: Walking the Rim open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

Congress is moving National Intelligence University toward National Defense University. The transfer may be inevitable; mission drift isn’t—if campus access, research, and cross-IC participation are protected now. New essay: “Don’t Adopt the Child and Sell the House.” open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

Fort Meade can’t afford a learning curve at the top. New post on the Rudd nomination to lead NSA/CSS + USCYBERCOM: competence, stewardship, and the SASC Republicans/Senate Armed Services Committee/Tom Cotton/Mark Warner questions that actually matter. open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

Five years after Jan 6, three scenes: at the Pentagon, in Lafayette Square, and a crowded room where the oath was spoken plainly. This isn’t a call for anyone in uniform to “freelance.” It’s about restraint, and the civic culture that makes it possible. open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

New on Temple of Liberty: "Letter from Hsinchu," a field report from Taiwan’s Silicon Valley, and why it matters for China/Taiwan, export controls, and deterrence. open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…

New on #TempleOfLiberty: Don’t burn the bridge between the military and Boston’s classrooms. Cutting off contact between officers and civilian universities is a peculiar way to build judgment and trust. Boston’s classrooms have been a national asset. open.substack.com/pub/templeofli…