
Stephen Hunnewell - Service, Narratives, and a Changing World Order
From At the Coalface by Philippe Rose
May 20, 2026 · 1h 0m · Episode 122
About this episode
Stephen Hunnewell discusses his experiences in national security and the impact of personal values shaped by his upbringing and significant historical events.
In this episode, I sit down with Stephen Hunnewell, a former national security and irregular warfare practitioner whose career has spanned Special Operations, geopolitics, technology, and strategic competition. Steve reflects on growing up in a single-parent household, the values that shaped him early on, and the impact 9/11 had on his generation. We talk about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the limits of overwhelming military force, and the mismatch between Western assumptions and local r...
People in this episode
Host: Philippe Rose
Guest: Stephen Hunnewell
Topics covered
- national security
- geopolitics
- military strategy
- personal values
- impact of 9/11
Keywords
- national security
- geopolitics
- military force
- 9/11
- Afghanistan
- Iraq
- strategic competition
Mentioned in this episode
Places: Afghanistan, Iraq
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