S5:E188🎙️LIVE with LT Ian A. Clark, US Navy Chaplain

S5:E188🎙️LIVE with LT Ian A. Clark, US Navy Chaplain

Leadership & Success Podcast with Coach BZ — Season 5:Episode 188

“Can We vs. Should We: Moral Courage, Cyber Warfare & Leadership in the Age of AI” 🤖⚓️🧭💻

I am excited to welcome my shipmate LT Ian A. Clark, USN for our next LIVE conversation on the Leadership & Success Podcast with Coach BZ!

📅 Date: Friday, September 18, 2026 ⏰ Time: 11:00 AM PT (San Francisco) | 2:00 PM ET (Washington, D.C.) 📍 LIVE on LinkedIn → RSVP & Join the Discussion

⁠Connect with LT Ian A. Clark, USN⁠

⚓️ MEET MY GUEST

LT Ian A. Clark is an active-duty U.S. Navy Chaplain, military ethicist, theologian, researcher, writer, and Ph.D. candidate in theological ethics at the University of Aberdeen. His research examines the ethical dimensions of cyberwarfare and emerging military technologies, alongside interests including International Humanitarian Law, deception, moral injury, and the evolution of military ethics.

Ian's scholarship includes “Aquinas’ Malware: How Old Theologies Can Shape the Ethical Use of New Weapons,” “The Ethical Character of Russia’s Offensive Cyber Operations in Ukraine,” “International Research Cooperation in The Tallinn Manual,” “Gen-Z Will Fight: But First, They Need to Know Why,” and “Cyberwarfare and the Challenge of Post-Conflict Accountability.” 

But Ian doesn't study these questions only from a classroom. As a Navy Chaplain, he serves alongside the warfighters confronting the human consequences of military decisions. His powerful sermon “Necessary Wounds: Reframing Moral Injury” reminds us of something increasingly important as technology transforms warfare:

“And yet, we are not machines.” 

🧭 WHAT YOU WILL LEARN…

Tomorrow we're going beyond technology to examine the human being responsible for the technology.

💻 CAN we vs. SHOULD we? — Why technological capability does not automatically establish moral justification.

🤖 AI & Autonomous Warfare — As machines become faster and more capable, where must human judgment remain non-negotiable?

⚖️ Cyberwarfare & Just War — Can centuries-old ethical principles still guide leaders confronting malware, cyber weapons, critical-infrastructure attacks, and digital warfare?

🎖️ Leadership Under Combat Conditions — What happens when academic discussions about war, ethics, sacrifice, and moral responsibility become operational realities?

🧠 Moral Injury — Can leaders make the right decision and still carry a moral wound afterward?

🙏🏽 Faith & the Profession of Arms — How does a military chaplain reconcile service, peace, human dignity, moral responsibility, and the potential necessity of lethal force?

🧑‍✈️ Leading Gen Z — Ian coauthored the provocative Proceedings article “Gen-Z Will Fight: But First, They Need to Know Why.” What are senior leaders misunderstanding about the next generation?

And perhaps our biggest leadership question:

Are we developing our CHARACTER as quickly as we are developing our TECHNOLOGY?

This conversation matters far beyond the military.

If you lead in cybersecurity, AI, technology, government, business, academia, ministry, or national security, sooner or later you will confront a decision where the question isn't merely:

“Can we?”

It is:

“Should we?”

And that is where character, judgment, ethics, accountability, and moral courage become leadership competencies.

💬 JOIN THE CONVERSATION!

🗺️ Where are you tuning in from? Drop your city, region, or country in the comments!

🙏🏽 What is one thing you are grateful for today?

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👇 YOUR TURN:

➡️ What are your three biggest takeaways from this episode?

➡️ What's one leadership insight you're applying this week?

➡️ Where should humans draw the line between what technology CAN do and what we SHOULD allow it to do?

➡️ Tag a colleague, Sailor, Marine, junior officer, cybersecurity professional, technologist, or teammate who could benefit from this conversation. ❤️🙏🏾