Angry Planet

Latest Episodes:

On the Frontlines of Ukraine and a Roe Reaction in Real Time Jun 27, 2022

Show notes

The war in Ukraine grinds on. As the West’s attention wanes, Ukrainians fight for their lives and freedom. They need more of everything. Weapons, ammunition, supplies, people.

Today we have various stories from the war, as told by returning guest Danny Gold. Gold is a writer and producer who focuses on crime and conflict. He’s also a reluctant podcaster who co-hosts the excellent Underworld Podcast.

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Proud Boys, January 6, and When a U-Haul Is a Clown Car Jun 17, 2022

Show notes

The January 6th committee has gone public with its hearings and once again the Proud Boys are in the news. Charges against 5 members of the group, including its leader, Enrique Tarrio have been superseded. Now, we’re talking about straight up sedition.

So, it’s time to look again at what this group — and related groups — did on January 6, and just how dangerous they really are. We’ll also talk about accelerationism, what it is and what accelerationists want.

Joining us are two people who are following the situation closely:

Matthew Kriner is a Senior Research Scholar at the Center on Terrorism, Extremism, and Counterterrorism.

And Jon Lewis is a Research Fellow at the Program on Extremism at George Washington University.

Angry Planet has a substack! Join the Information War to get weekly insights into our angry planet and hear more conversations about a world in conflict.

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You can listen to Angry Planet on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. Our website is angryplanetpod.com. You can reach us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/angryplanetpodcast/; and on Twitter: @angryplanetpod.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege.

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The Dream of the Kurds Is Alive and in Danger Jun 10, 2022

Show notes

With America’s retreat from Afghanistan still fresh, it’s popular for politicians and pundits to bemoan America’s inability to fight and win a war. That line ignores an important bit of recent history we’ve memory-holed—the war against he Islamic State.

America didn’t fight that war alone, however. Far from it. An international coalition of trained soldiers and volunteer troops recognized a horrifying threat and came together to defeat it. As terrifying as the Islamic State is, the successful campaign against it simply isn’t talked about much anymore.

Today let’s resurrect the memory. With me here to talk about the war is someone who fought in it: Till ‘Baaz’ Paasche.

Along with fellow soldiers John Foxx and Shaun Murray, 'Baz' is the author of America’s War in Syria: Fighting With Kurdish Anti-ISIS Forces.

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We All Believe Conspiracy Theories May 26, 2022

Show notes

Conspiracy Theories are part of the foundation of the United States. Our first strong third party, the Anti-Masonic party, had its roots in the belief in a conspiracy theory. Years later the John Birch society shaped American politics.

Things feel different now. Lies are doing something to the United States that no foreign enemy has been able to achieve: Shredding it.

The bizarre QAnon, imaginary purple elephant and, far more dangerous, the big lie of a stolen election.

It’s time to talk about our gaslit nation and what this conspiratorial bullshit means going forward.

Joining us to do just that is Joseph Uscinski. He’s professor of political science at the University of Miami. He’s the coauthor of American Conspiracy Theories (Oxford, 2014) and editor of Conspiracy Theories and the People Who Believe Them (Oxford, 2018). And we’re lucky to have him.

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When the Battlefield Is the Home Front May 19, 2022

Show notes

Right now, Russia is learning a lesson as old as combat, morale is at the center of any fighting force. How does it change things when you can pick up your cell phone and call your mom to share your experiences, or even complain about your commander?

How do you build a band of brothers when home is just a phone call away?

Colonel John Spencer asked himself these questions and wrote a book about it called Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War. Spencer is the chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the modern war institute at West Point.

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SPONSORED: The Mega-Tank of the Future May 18, 2022

Show notes

Today’s episode is brought to you by Auroch Digital, makers of many fine video games including the one we’re here to talk about today: Ogre.

For almost fifty years, it has terrorized our future. The Ogre. A massive AI-controlled tank hell bent on the destruction of the human race. Ogre. That’s both the name of the game and the name of the game’s strongest unit. First published in 1977, Ogre became a phenomenon in the wargame scene. It was asymmetric, deceptively simple, and has endured for 45 years.

Ogre is out now on the PlayStation and Xbox. It will hit the Nintendo Switch on May 25.

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Checking In With The White House's New Disinformation Czar May 06, 2022

Show notes

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Will There Be a Nuclear War? Apr 28, 2022

Show notes

When it comes to U.S.-Russia relations, everything old is new again. Russia and the West are separating. Fast. For those of us who were alive in the 1980s, it all feels bracingly familiar. That includes, especially, nuclear saber rattling. Putin, the Duman, and Russian TV feel like they’ve gone out of their way to remind the rest of the world: hey, we’ve got nukes.

But how likely is the possibility of nuclear war, really? And what are Russia’s nuclear capabilities exactly?

Here to help us answer those questions is Emma Claire Foley. Foley is an Associate Partner for Research & Policy at Global Zero, an organization working to reduce the likelihood of nuclear war and ultimately eliminate nuclear weapons.

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"America Is an Idealist Power in a Reapolitik World" Apr 15, 2022

Show notes

Over the past month, we’ve discussed a lot of specifics regarding the War in Ukraine. We’ve gone over the role of tanks, talked about Putin’s motives, and discussed War Crimes. What we haven’t done, really, is look at the big picture.

What does this war mean, not just for Ukraine, but for Europe and America. What is the future of NATO? Increasingly, it feels like we’re on the precipice of something … new and, perhaps, frightening.

With us today to talk through all this is Charles A. Kupchan. Kupchan is a professor of international affairs at Georgetown University and a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.

He’s just written an op-ed in the New York Times titled Putin’s War in Ukraine Is a Watershed. Time for America to Get Real.

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Bucha, Chechnya, and Russian War Crimes Apr 09, 2022

Show notes

Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine are being revealed as its military is pushed back. In the Kyiv suburbs, evidence of summary executions, torture and rape are being revealed.

All countries are guilty of crimes during war, but Russia deserves special mention for its actions in the last hundred years.

At the end of World War II and the occupation of Germany after, at least 2 million German women were raped by Russian soldiers, along with other atrocities on the most brutal front in the war.

In the Afghan war, Russia was infamous for using landmines that looked like toys for kids to pick up.

And in Chechnya more rape, bombardment of civilians and executions.

Joining us to talk about this cheery topic today is Professor Amir Weiner of Stanford. He studies the Soviet Union and Russia and their way of war.

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