Understanding the War in Ukraine — Part 1: The Disputes Behind the War
An analysis from the opening months of the 2022 invasion — seven substantive issues that help explain what Russia and Ukraine are fighting over, from separatist regions and a land bridge to Crimea to energy, water, and the denazification claim.
Hostomel Airport and the Battle for Kyiv — Part 1: Why Russia Chose Hostomel
On February 24, 2022, an unassuming cargo airport on the outskirts of Kyiv became the single most important place in Ukraine. From the An-225 to a 300-man garrison, here is how the assault on Kyiv was meant to unfold.
The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Economy — Part 1: From Serfdom to Revolution
While the West crashed in 1929, the Soviet Union boomed — industrial output up 50% in five years, near-zero unemployment. But the roots of that miracle, and its eventual collapse, reach back to 14th-century feudalism, the Black Death, and a revolution that replaced one extractive elite with another.
World War II Part One: How the Conflict Became a Global War
From the invasion of Poland to Pearl Harbor — the first years of the biggest, bloodiest war in history, fought across every continent and in the skies, seas, and trenches of a world on fire.
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Military TechAir Power in the War in Ukraine — Part 1: How Drones and Glide Bombs Changed the War
From the era of the Reaper to industrial-scale quadcopters and Soviet glide bombs — how cheap, clever engineering reshaped the skies over Ukraine and overturned the assumptions of modern air warfare.
Military TechAir Power in the War in Ukraine — Part 2: How Ukraine Defends Its Skies and Carries the Air War Into Russia
From cell-phone Shahed detection networks to strikes on Russian oil refineries and Wildberries warehouses — how Ukraine turned cheap drones into a strategic campaign that reached deep inside Russia.
AnalysisUnderstanding the War in Ukraine — Part 1: The Disputes Behind the War
An analysis from the opening months of the 2022 invasion — seven substantive issues that help explain what Russia and Ukraine are fighting over, from separatist regions and a land bridge to Crimea to energy, water, and the denazification claim.
AnalysisUnderstanding the War in Ukraine — Part 2: Why Disputes Alone Do Not Explain War
An analysis from the opening months of the 2022 invasion — territory, energy, and autonomy are at best half-causes of war. To understand why fighting happens at all, we need a bargaining friction that blocks a negotiated settlement.
AnalysisUnderstanding the War in Ukraine — Part 3: Why Russia and Ukraine Failed to Reach a Deal
An analysis from the opening months of the 2022 invasion — to get war, we need both an issue worth fighting over and a bargaining friction that blocks a settlement. Preventive war, preemptive war, miscalculation, and political survival each help explain why no deal was reached.
AnalysisUnderstanding the War in Ukraine — Part 4: How Wars End and What That Means for Ukraine
An analysis from the opening months of the 2022 invasion — from military defeat and changing leadership to the removal of a power shift and the slow learning process of convergence, the causes of the war point toward very different ways it might end.
HistoricalThe Rise and Fall of the Soviet Economy — Part 1: From Serfdom to Revolution
While the West crashed in 1929, the Soviet Union boomed — industrial output up 50% in five years, near-zero unemployment. But the roots of that miracle, and its eventual collapse, reach back to 14th-century feudalism, the Black Death, and a revolution that replaced one extractive elite with another.
HistoricalThe Rise and Fall of the Soviet Economy — Part 2: How It Rose So Fast and Why It Collapsed
The Soviet economy grew rapidly by directing labor and resources into heavy industry. But its problems with incentives, information, and innovation made that growth unsustainable — and the seeds of collapse were planted before the nation even existed.
Modern ConflictHostomel Airport and the Battle for Kyiv — Part 1: Why Russia Chose Hostomel
On February 24, 2022, an unassuming cargo airport on the outskirts of Kyiv became the single most important place in Ukraine. From the An-225 to a 300-man garrison, here is how the assault on Kyiv was meant to unfold.
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2-Part SeriesAir Power in the War in Ukraine
How drones, glide bombs, and loitering munitions overturned the assumptions of modern air warfare.
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4-Part SeriesUnderstanding the War in Ukraine
A four-part analysis of why Russia and Ukraine went to war — and how it might end.
Read series2-Part SeriesThe Rise and Fall of the Soviet Economy
From serfdom to revolution to collapse — the economic story of the USSR.
Read series2-Part SeriesHostomel Airport and the Battle for Kyiv
The opening hours of the 2022 invasion and the fight that saved Kyiv.
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How the biggest, bloodiest war in history became a global war.
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How drones and glide bombs changed the war in Ukraine
Military Tech · 13 min - 02
The seven disputes behind the war in Ukraine
Analysis · 9 min - 03
Inside Hostomel — the airport battle that saved Kyiv
Modern Conflict · 11 min - 04
From serfdom to revolution — the roots of the Soviet economy
Historical · 14 min - 05
How Russia became so big and culturally diverse
Historical · 10 min - 06
How Korea became divided into North and South
Historical · 12 min