Angry Planet

Latest Episodes:

50 Years Since the Draft Feb 27, 2023

Show notes

In 1973, as most American troops left Vietnam, President Richard M. Nixon ended compulsory military service for males over the age of 18. It was an end of system that had been in place since the Second World War and came in answer—at least in part—to an ever-growing anti-war, anti-draft movement. Historian and writer Max Boot joins us to talk about the history of the draft and the all-volunteer force that now has 50 years under its belt.

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It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's a ... Balloon? Feb 21, 2023

Show notes

What’s the biggest Chinese threat to the United States? Well, if you ask security expert Stephanie Carvin, it’s not a balloon—no matter how large and how many missiles it takes to shoot down. So, what should we really be worried about from China’s security apparatus? Well, you could start with more traditional spying, but there’s a lot more to it than that.

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The Rise of South Korea Feb 13, 2023

Show notes

All three Angry Planet guys are on the show today. Kevin went to South Korea in September and he’s here to tell us all about it.

“A shrimp stuck between two whales.”
Shopping for a frigate in a glossy catalog
Why America doesn’t remember the Korean War
The Don Draper connection
“MASH was about Vietnam.”
A nuclear penninsula?
No one knows what’s going in in North Korea.

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The Complexities of China's Liberal Nationalism Jan 30, 2023

Show notes

Only Nixon can go to China. The now-forgotten aphorism once represented so much in American politics. After Nixon met with Mao, relations between the Communist country and America thawed. Trade opened up and, the popular notion went, with economic benefits would come a lessening of authoritarianism in China and the eventual end of Communism.

Here in 2023 the idea that economic modernization and prosperity would lead to a flourishing of democracy in China seems quaint. What happened? And do the West’s preconceptions of what democracy and freedom are vibe with what’s actually going on in China.

That’s what we’re here today to talk about. With us is Sungmin Cho, the author of the new article Does China’s Case Falsify Modernization Theory? Cho is a professor at the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies.

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What a War Game Tells Us About Taiwan Jan 23, 2023

Show notes

It’s only human to play games. Some might argue it’s in the DNA. Games are part of how we learn, and can be the best way to teach or solve a problem. But some games are more serious than others.

A game recently played at a Washington think tank is about as serious as it gets. It looked at what might happen if China attacked Taiwan, and the results weren’t pretty for anyone.

Joining us today to discuss what they found in playing the game is Mark Cancian. He is a retired marine corps colonel and is a senior adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies International Security Program.

Here’s a link to the report.

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The Long Weird History of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle Jan 16, 2023

Show notes

The Bradley Fighting Vehicle is on its way to Ukraine. Fifty of them, to be precise. This armored personnel carrier on tracks is not a tank. Don’t call it a tank. Once maligned as a boondoggle that represented everything wrong with Pentagon weapon’s programs, the Bradley is now a much desired piece of armor.

With us today to suss this all out is Sebastian Roblin. Roblin is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in NBC, Forbes, and—of course—War Is Boring.

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Israel's New Coalition from Hell Jan 09, 2023

Show notes

Benjamin Netanyahu is back and he's brought a right-wing coalition like nothing Israel has seen.

Dan Perry knows the game and all the players and and he joins Angry Planet to talk about what might be the end of democracy in the Jewish State and what it means for the Palestinians and relations with the U.S.

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The Wagner Group Gives Putin Implausible Deniability Dec 19, 2022

Show notes

The shine has come off Russia’s regular armed forces. We’ve all seen the pictures in Ukraine of burned out vehicles and crashed drones, everything already starting to rust. Casualties for the Russian military are estimated to be over 100,000.

But the Russian Army isn’t the only force in Ukraine fighting on Moscow’s behalf. The Wagner Group is there, too, and we know far less about them and what they’re doing.

To help us get a better view, we’re joined by Jason Blazakis. He’s Director of the Center on Terrorism, Extremism, and Counterterrorism at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, and a senior research fellow at the Soufan Group. and wrote an op-ed for Newsweek on Wagner last week.

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The Precarious Nature of Being Jewish Dec 12, 2022

Show notes

Or: Why Jason has a Velcro mezuzah.

An episode about Kanye West and violent family histories.

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Talking Russia with the CIA's Former Eurasian Bureau Chief Dec 05, 2022

Show notes

We’ve talked a lot on this program about electronic intelligence—the amazing stuff you can do with satellites, user generated content and sophisticated software.

Nice.

But we’ve left out all the men and women who still do work on the ground, all over the world.

Paul Kolbe is here to remind us about human intelligence and the role it plays. Kolbe is a CIA veteran, having worked in the directorate of operations for 25 years before moving on to private industry. He’s currently director of the Intelligence project at the Belfer Center at Harvard.

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