Digital Commons Network^™

2025, Richard Delgado

Seattle University Law Review

"In a cutting and provocative social critique in one of the more extended Rodrigo Chronicles, Richard Delgado in 2025 employs skillful narrative—one of CRT’s many contributions to legal scholarship —to tell a gripping story of just how far the nation has descended into darkness with President Trump’s re-election. In Delgado’s vision, law professors—along with other political opponents of the President: immigrants, people of color, LGBTQ+ people, women, the underserved—have targets on their backs."

-excerpt from Kevin Johnson's review of 2025

Table Of Contents - Vol. 50, Spring 2026

Southern Illinois University Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Article 5 Of The North Atlantic Treaty And U.S.-Polish Relations, Agata Kleczkowska

Southern Illinois University Law Journal

Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty (NAT) is the cornerstone of the world's largest military alliance. Its wording reflects a carefully balanced compromise: while it affirms that an armed attack against one ally shall be considered an attack against all, each member state has significant discretion in determining whether the requisite casus foederis has arisen, and in deciding what form its assistance should take.For Poland, since NATO accession in 1999, Article 5 has not only been the benefit of membership in the Alliance but also a shared responsibility. Against this background, the aim of the article is to analyze …

Multidomain Operations: The Pursuit Of Battlefield Dominance In The 21st Century. Edited By Amos Fox And Franz-Stefan Gady. Howgate Publishing, 2026., Nathan Jones

Journal of Strategic Security

No abstract provided.

Human-Ai Teaming Under Fire: Lessons From Ukraine’S Human-In-The-Loop Combat Ai Systems, Rahul Kumar Tiwari, Ram Babu

Journal of Strategic Security

This article examines human-artificial intelligence (AI) teaming in Ukrainian combat operations from 2022 to 2025, exploring the integration of AI systems with human decision-making in military contexts and how crisis-driven innovation can lead to human-AI teaming. The research addresses three questions: the effectiveness of human-AI teams compared with human-only or fully autonomous systems; the effect of organizational structures on the sustainability of AI integration; and strategic implications for the development of the doctrine and international security governance in the case of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The methodology uses mixed-method comparative case study analysis of three different Ukrainian systems: …

‘Insistent’ Objectors: The (Ab)Use Of Procedural Defenses Before The International Court Of Justice, Damian A. Gonzalez-Salzberg, Eoin Campbell

Michigan Journal of International Law

Procedural defenses refer to tactical devices that object to either a court’s jurisdiction or to the admissibility of an application, aimed at stopping a court from deciding on the merits of a case or, at least, at limiting the scope of its decision. From its creation in June 1945 and up to the end of 2024, the International Court of Justice (“ICJ”) has adjudicated 101 cases, with almost 80% of them featuring procedural defenses raised by states. These defenses have not only been plentiful, but have been extremely effective, leading to the ICJ’s refusal to decide on the merits of …

Calibrations And Compliance: The Role Of Motivations In Policy Instrument Design, Panchali Guha, Ishani Mukherjee

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Most research on the role of policy calibrations in fostering policy target compliance has focused on the calibration of incentives and deterrents; less attention has been paid to examining the deployment and calibration of a wider range of policy instruments with the intention of eliciting a greater degree of compliance from policy targets with heterogeneous motivations. This article addresses this gap in the literature by empirically testing multiple hypotheses on the relationship between the calibration of different kinds of policy instruments and policy compliance for policy targets characterized by different motivations. Using data from a vignette experiment set in the …

Counterinsurgency In Afghanistan: Doctrine, Implementation, Cannibalization, Noah S. Fischer

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The Taliban return to power in Afghanistan on August 15th, 2021, is a watershed moment in the 21^st century history of the United States of America. The swift collapse of the U.S. backed Afghan government shocked American politicians, military leadership, and the general public. To many, trillions of dollars were wasted in funding a government that could not even survive a month without U.S. troops. But those dollars were used by U.S. military leadership to implement a new and innovative strategy those same leaders thought would guarantee success: counterinsurgency, abbreviated as COIN. In this thesis, I will ask: what …

Escalation By Algorithm, Restraint By Architecture: Pakistan’S Military Ai Divergence, Sajjad Ahmed, Ahmad Nizar Yaakub, Asma Javed

Journal of Strategic Security

Debates on military artificial intelligence (AI) remain skewed toward great power dynamics, oscillating between techno-optimist celebrations of speed and techno-pessimist warnings of collapse. This binary overlooks how middle powers, operating under nuclearized rivalry and asymmetric sanction risk, embed restraint into organizational and technical practice. This article develops Systems Restrained Realism (SRR), a framework that extends defensive realism into the machine age by theorizing restraint as a deliberate doctrinal posture rather than a symptom of incapacity. Using Pakistan as a critical case, the study draws on expert interviews, procurement manuals, and UN submissions to demonstrate how restraint is operationalized through latency …

Youtube As A Tool For Digital Diplomacy And Strategic Security: A Comparative Analysis Of Russia And Kazakhstan, Bekzat Baktybekovna Baktybekova, Elmira Kagazbaeva, Botagoz Ali

Journal of Strategic Security

In the context of growing competition in the information space, digital diplomacy is gaining key importance for the strategic security of states. This study analyzes how Russia and Kazakhstan use the YouTube platform to promote their foreign policy narratives, shape the image of the state, and strengthen digital sovereignty. Based on a qualitative analysis of 60 videos (30 for each country) published by official government channels between 2020 and 2024, differences in strategies, visual codes, tonality, and patterns of interaction with the audience were identified. The Russian approach is characterized by an aggressive narrative, antagonism to Western structures, and a …

Classified Information Management In Kosovo: Lessons From Nato, The European Union, And The Western Balkans, Bahri Gashi, Ngadhnjim Brovina, Arian Kadriu

Journal of Strategic Security

This study examines the legal framework for the protection of classified information in Kosovo, focusing on the role of the Agency for the Protection of Classified Information (APCI). The selection of APCI as the focal institution stems from its central role in implementing Kosovo’s legal and institutional framework for classified information, following the country’s efforts to align with Euro-Atlantic standards. In a newly established state like Kosovo, protecting sensitive information is crucial for national security. The study compares Kosovo’s model with those of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union (EU), and Western Balkan countries, highlighting its alignment …

The Role Of Special Services In Providing National Information Security, Volodymyr Artemov, Alexander Rusnak, Viktor Trepak, Grygorii Ostafiichuk, Alexandr Kalinin

Journal of Strategic Security

The growing dependence of states on digital infrastructures has elevated national information security to a matter of strategic importance. This study examines the role of special services (intelligence agencies) in protecting against cyber threats, focusing on their legal, operational, and technological functions. Using a combination of comparative legal analysis, case law review, expert surveys, and statistical modelling across 20 countries, the research highlights both strengths and limitations of current approaches. The findings demonstrate that states with clear and specific legislation on intelligence and cybersecurity achieve a 26% higher rate of preventive success than those with ambiguous frameworks. Strong judicial oversight …

Public-Private Cooperation In European Cybersecurity, Andreea Nicoleta Dragomir, Daiana Maura Vesmaș

Journal of Strategic Security

This article critically examines if the public–private partnerships (PPPs) help the European Union strengthen its cyber resilience, a challenge that is now closely tied to the Union’s broader strategic security goals. The discussion does not rely on one single angle. It moves back and forth between the legal side—looking at instruments such as the Network and Information Systems 2 (NIS2) Directive, the Cybersecurity Act, the proposed Cyber Resilience Act, and the Cyber Solidarity Act—and the lessons that come from practice. Examples include the dismantling of Operation Avalanche, the experience of the European Cyber Security Challenge, and the information-sharing efforts of …

Analysis Of Security Concerns In India-Central Asia Relations, Anmol Mukhia, Anurag Tripathi, Sanjeev Kumar Tiwari

Journal of Strategic Security

India-Central Asia relations have gained strategic significance driven by its historical ties, growing economic interests, and, most importantly, evolving security dynamics. This article deals with multifaceted security concerns such as drug trafficking, terrorism, radicalization, and the implications of instability in Afghanistan. The findings show that security concerns in the region, particularly in Afghanistan and Pakistan, constitute a significant obstacle, alongside geographical challenges, to India’s connectivity with the Central Asian Republics (CARS). India’s rising aspiration to increase connectivity and build closer ties with the region in energy, trade, and commerce heavily relies on a peaceful, prosperous, and stable Central and South …

Shadow Logistics: Military Vulnerability Through Civilian Dependence, Gilles A. Paché

Journal of Strategic Security

The rapid evolution of civilian-origin technologies repurposed for defense is reshaping the foundations of logistical advantage and altering the conditions under which armed forces operate. Modern missions rely on an extensive ecosystem of infrastructures—port terminals, cloud services, data platforms, and civilian contractors—whose reliability frequently lies beyond the authority of public institutions. This environment gives rise to shadow logistics, a network of civilian systems largely absent from conventional doctrine yet capable of producing significant operational disruptions when failures occur. Case studies show that some dark assets, whether physical or informational, can act as multipliers of effectiveness while simultaneously creating systemic vulnerabilities …

The Evolution Of U.S. Geoeconomic Grand Strategy Toward China And South Korea’S Strategic Space: A Comparative Analysis Of Neomercantilist Types In The Trump And Biden Administrations, Hyungbo Kim

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study examines the evolutionary trajectory of U.S. geoeconomic grand strategy toward China from the inauguration of the first Trump administration in 2017, through the Biden administration, to the second Trump administration launched in 2025, while exploring South Korea’s survival strategies in response. The findings confirm that U.S. foreign economic policy has radicalized into "Expanded Malevolent Neomercantilism," which moves beyond simple protectionism to weaponize global economic networks in the name of national security and exploit even allies.

According to the analysis, the U.S. progressed from the "Malevolent Neomercantilism" of Trump's first term, which focused on trade deficits, to the "Developmental …

Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems And The Principles Of Distinction And Proportionality, Nicholas Cromie

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) challenge the core principles of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), distinction and proportionality, by delegating life-and-death decisions to algorithms rather than human judgment.  This dissertation examines whether LAWS can conform to these principles and, if so, under what conditions.  Through process tracing, the study traces the historical integration of disruptive weapons technologies, including chemical, biological, nuclear, and armed drones, into IHL-compliant frameworks or their exclusion via prohibition.  Each case reveals distinct pathways: outright bans for indiscriminate or inherently inhumane systems (chemical and biological weapons), normative restraint and limited acceptance despite destructive power (nuclear weapons) and phased …

Tackling The Transfer Of Knowledge Problem In Intelligence Analysis Training, Pedro Sotomayor

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

Intelligence analysis training faces a persistent challenge: analysts trained in critical and creative thinking strategies often struggle to apply those strategies in their demanding work environments. This synthesis paper examines the problem of knowledge transfer in intelligence analysis training, specifically, how to facilitate the application of analytic techniques from the classroom to the analysts' workplace. Drawing on educational psychology literature, including the Theory of Identical Elements, the Theory of Analogy and Abstraction, and research on near and far transfer, the paper argues that knowledge transfer cannot be achieved through curriculum design alone. Variables such as student motivation, the open nature …

Digital Communication And The Evolution Of Ideological Narratives In Indonesia: Insights From Social Media Platforms, Tia Mariatul Kibtiah, Muhammad Fikri Fawazi

Journal of Terrorism Studies

This study examines how pro-caliphate and anti-democratic narratives are articulated and normalised within YouTube comment spaces in Indonesia. As the world’s largest Muslim-majority country with high levels of digital engagement, Indonesia provides an important context for analysing how political-religious discourses circulate through everyday digital interaction. The research analyses 1,354 YouTube comments related to the caliphate, governance, and democracy. Data were collected using Google Apps Script, manually filtered for relevance, and examined through qualitative content analysis informed by Social Network Theory (SNT) and the Radicalisation Factor Model (RFM). The findings show that 34.49% of comments endorsed ideological pro-caliphate narratives, while 35.97% …

What’S In A Name? Much Ado About “War-Sustaining” Objects, W. Casey Biggerstaff

International Law Studies

Recent conflicts have renewed the long-running debate over the legality of attacking economic objects under the law of armed conflict. Within that discourse, observers frequently frame the controversy in relation to an abstract U.S. “war-sustaining” position. Critics often characterize the United States as advancing a distinctive and overly permissive interpretation of military objectives that allegedly departs from the targeting criteria set forth in Article 52(2) of Additional Protocol I. This article challenges that characterization. It concludes that the United States does not apply a separate “war-sustaining” lex specialis to economic objects. Rather, U.S. practice reflects a contextual application of Article …

American Struggle: Democracy, Dissent, And The Pursuit Of A More Perfect Union: An Anthology, Jay Nathan

Journal of Global Awareness

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of War Exposure On Psychological Well-Being And Social Preferences, Jacinta B. Duncan

Master's Theses

Using original survey and experimental data collected in Ukraine in 2023 and 2024, this paper estimates the causal impact of exposure to war-related violence on psychological outcomes, social preferences, and cognitive functioning. I combine a disaggregated war experience index with two incentivized economic experiments - a modified Dictator Game and an Emotional Stroop Test - and exploit randomized variation in task order as a priming treatment to establish causal identification. I find that war exposure has clear and consistently negative effects on psychological well-being, with direct personal experience producing the largest reduction in DASS well-being (β=−0.338 SD, p < 0.01), and that these effects are broadly distributed across demographic groups - though women report disproportionately higher psychological distress even at low levels of exposure. Social support emerges as the most effective buffer against war-related psychological harm, nearly eliminating the well-being gap between high- and low-exposure individuals, while economic hardship compounds distress and drives passive coping responses. In contrast, war exposure has limited and context-specific effects on social preferences: property loss and direct exposure increase prosocial behavior, but only when sharing is costless, consistent with solidarity norms operating within binding resource constraints. Cognitive task performance is largely unaffected by war exposure or emotional priming, with education emerging as the dominant predictor of Stroop performance across all specifications. Taken together, these findings support targeted, gender-sensitive mental health interventions and community-based support programs as high-leverage instruments for mitigating the long-term human costs of conflict.

From Smallpox To Synthetic Biology: The Evolving Threat Of Biological Weapons And The Jus Ad Bellum, Sabrina I. Slagowitz

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

Biological weapons are not new, but recent developments in genetic technology have fundamentally transformed their threat potential. Advances in genome sequencing, editing technologies, and CRISPR have made pathogen modification faster, cheaper, and more accessible than ever before, reinvigorating fears of large-scale biological warfare and giving rise to a new class of synthetic bioweapons. This note examines the implications of genetically modified biological weapons for the jus ad bellum, the international law governing the use of force. Drawing an analogy to cyberweapons, it argues that bioweapons share key characteristics with cyberweapons—stealth, latency, asymmetry, non-kinetic lethality, and anonymity—that will generate similar legal …

Singing About Singing: Images Of Choirs In Aquitanian 'Versaria', Eva Moreda Rodriguez

Yale Journal of Music & Religion

Charles Atkinson and Gunilla Iversen, among others, have noted and discussed the increased presence of terms relating to music, singing and sound in Latin-language liturgical or paraliturgical music of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The Aquitanian versus and Benedicamus trope repertoires provide a prime example, with words such as cantum, carmen, chorus and others recurring frequently. The recent development of scholarly strands (Emma Dillon, Sarah Kay) that considers how music and text combines (Dillon’s “sound of song”) to shape and put forward discourses that are precisely about the nature of sound, singing and music open up new opportunities to examine …

The Status Of The 2025 U.S.-Ukraine Minerals Agreement Under International Law And Why It Is Unsustainable

Washington International Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Intelligence-Based Missionary Preparedness, Barry Marbach

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This Dissertation in Praxis applies Biblical imperatives, theoretical research on leadership, relevant training models, and leading with intelligence to improve missionaries’ overall effectiveness. The dissertation supports CLUB1040 as a relational missionary movement created to contribute to the fulfillment of the Great Commission. CLUB1040 trains and mobilizes indigenous church leaders throughout the Middle East and North Africa. This mission includes inspiring the church to make this generation the one that reaches every unreached nation. Recognizing the possibility of hostility to the Gospel due to religion and culture, the intent of the training is to introduce intelligence to mitigate the danger and …

Extending Galula’S Counterinsurgency Warfare Theory: The Influence Of Political Perception And Planning On Operational Outcomes In Irregular Warfare, Bashir Safi

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation project examines the influence of political perceptions and planning on the outcome in Irregular Warfare (IW). This study addressed two research questions: How does the U.S. military’s institutional predilection for prolonged, conventionally oriented approaches influence its ability to achieve desired outcomes in irregular warfare? and how does doctrinal ambiguity within the US military influence operational outcomes in Irregular Warfare.? The structured focused comparison (SFC) approach was utilized to systematically compare three case studies: US military interventions in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021; Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) in Iraq, which began in 2003; and Operation Deliberate Force in Bosnia …

The Cold War And The Weaponization Of Digital Technology: How The United States Government Partnered With The Private Sector To Create A Technology-Driven Strategy For National Defense, Stephen J. Hoover

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Beginning with the National Security Act of 1947, the study traces the transition from conventional warfare to a sophisticated "Second Offset Strategy" defined by technological superiority. It argues that the Cold War necessitated the maturation of the alliance between the federal government and the private sector, transforming private enterprises into essential strategic partners for Cold War national defense. The research analyzes milestones in this digital shift, including the development of voice communications, air defense, space and nuclear technologies, command and control networks, and the transition from mainframes to microprocessors. Central to this analysis is the role of technology in key …

Militarized Policing In Democratic Societies: Origins, Firearms Proliferation, Impacts, And The Erosion Of Democratic Governance, Carlos Alcantar

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

Police militarization has become a global trend in recent decades across many democratic societies, often justified as a necessary improvement in policing to address contemporary threats. This shift not only changes police agencies’ equipment but also their organizational structure, training, operations, and culture, raising concerns about its impact on democratic policing practices, public safety, and civil liberties. This study examines the historical and structural developments behind this trend, focusing on military-grade equipment transfers, firearms availability, and the global diffusion of militarized security models as key drivers. Using a qualitative comparative case analysis, the research finds that police militarization is shaped …

The Offense-Defense Balance And The Modern System In Ukraine, Daniel Hogestyn

Master in Public Policy Theses

This thesis evaluates whether the Russo Ukrainian war represents a revolution in military affairs (RMA) by testing Stephen Biddle’s "modern system" theory of battlefield outcomes against recent combat operations. Applying Biddle’s formal model to the 2023 Ukrainian offensive in Zaporizhia, the thesis finds that the offensive's failure conforms closely to Biddle’s causal logic, with force employment variables drawn from 20th century combat sufficient to account for the outcome. Biddle's model in military power argues that force employment has explained victory and defeat since World War I, rather than technology or numerical preponderance alone. Many commentators claim that proliferation of small …