AUSA Launches New Series: The Harding Papers

With a lively new cover, contributions from famous authors, and a focus on progressive military thought, then-Major Forrest Harding renewed the Infantry Journal in the 1930s. Today, Infantry Journal is ARMY, published by the Association of the United States Army (AUSA). AUSA has long helped the Army foster professional discourse. 

This partnership continues. Over the past year, AUSA has partnered with Army University Press to stand up and support the LTG (Ret) James M. Dubik Writing Fellows Program—a voluntary, non-resident writing fellowship to encourage discourse that contributes to a community of military and national security professionals. As a part of AUSA’s support of this annual Fellowship, The Harding Papers publishes the work and scholarship of the Dubik Writing Fellows. 

In September of 2024, AUSA published the first two Harding Papers, now available online at The Harding Papers homepage and also in hard copy. If you’d like free hard copies of these, please reach out to me. Hard copies will also be available at AUSA’s annual meeting in October. Additional Harding Papers are already scheduled for publication in November and December of this year, and AUSA looks forward to continuing this publication program in 2025.

The First Two

In Harding Paper 24-1, “Slick Sleeves,” author MAJ Ryan Crayne, USA, takes a critical look at the Army-wide institutional mindset that, without combat patches on their Army Combat Uniforms, Soldiers will be hopelessly inexperienced. He argues that non-combat deployments and rigorous training and education are just as important in shaping a Soldier’s ability and professional prowess. He highlights that we are currently in an era in which many Soldiers have never deployed to a combat zone, and yet are excellent and capable individuals who reflect creditably on the Army profession. Further, Crayne notes that, with the evolving nature of warfare, tomorrow’s wars will look a lot different from yesterday’s wars; yesterday’s expertise does not guarantee tomorrow’s victory.

MAJ Crayne is a U.S. Army Marketing and Behavioral Economics Officer who has served in leadership and combat roles in the 1st Infantry Division, 75th Ranger Regiment and the 82nd Airborne Division. He holds an MBA from the University of Michigan and currently serves as the Director of the Center for Junior Officers at West Point.

In Harding Paper 24-2, “Find, Fix, Commit: How Commanders Will Win the Next Conflict with Software,” authors CPT Matthew Moellering, USA, and CW3 Nicholas Vettore, USA, contend that the military that best integrates modern software practices into warfighting will gain a decisive advantage in contemporary conflict. While they acknowledge that skeptics may consider the fusion of software and combat to be unattainable, or even impractical, they nonetheless warn that this new battlefield reality is here to stay. In this new era, where algorithms and machines dictate the tempo of conflict, software has become the new arsenal. Thereby, the authors introduce a new framework, forged from industry best practices, that seeks to revolutionize warfighting capabilities by seamlessly integrating software, data and cybersecurity, all tailored to the unique needs and challenges of American military forces.

CPT Matthew Moellering previously served at the Army Artificial Intelligence and Integration Center after completing the AI Scholar Program. He also volunteers for the Irregular Warfare Initiative, serving as a cohost for the Irregular Warfare podcast. CW3 Nicholas Vettore has served over 19 years as an Army Communications specialist. He has deployed to Afghanistan and Europe, and he has a strong background in both tactical and strategic level communications. He is currently serving at the Artificial Intelligence Factory at the Artificial Intelligence Integration Center.

Join the Dubik Fellows and Publish a Harding Paper

Anyone interested in learning more about the LTG (Ret) James M. Dubik Writing Fellows Program, or in applying for selection in the 2025–2026 cohort of Fellows, can visit this site. Please note that the application window opens on 1 January 2025 and closes on 3 February 2025.

Ellen Toner is a Senior Editorial Manager at AUSA. She has a BA in English from the University of Dallas and is a graduate of the Denver Publishing Institute. She lives with her husband, writer Jamey Toner, and their three kids in rural MA.