ReConsider

Latest Episodes:

Climate Change Part 1: The Geopolitical Map Changes Mar 17, 2020

Show notes

Climate change will, in addition to all of its other havoc, cause major changes to the geopolitical future. The entire board will change.

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Around the world in 2020 Mar 07, 2020

Show notes

Jacob Shapiro joins the show again to take a snapshot of the global geopolitical environment at the turn of the decade.

(Sorry it's late; been a crazy month!)

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The Amazingly Complicated Brokered Presidential Convention Feb 05, 2020

Show notes

It's Iowa Caucus time, which means people make hay by predicting a brokered convention!

...But what is a brokered convention? How does it work? How likely is it?

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Iran's Role in the Middle East in Context, with Iftah Burman Jan 27, 2020

Show notes

Iftah Burman, founder of the Middle East Learning Academy, joins us to go over Iran’s broader role in the Middle East, particularly its operations outside of its own borders: what are its goals, what is the impact, and is Iran succeeding?

Itfah is a Middle East scholar that regularly briefs diplomats, foreign officials, academics, and different levels of young professionals. He also acts as the director of foreign senior-level mission to Israel of US government officials, US military officers, and different think-tank researchers. He’s also deeply involved with education, and regularly gives lectures to students and tour groups seeking broader context and understanding of the complexities in the region. He’s currently working on his PhD, with a dissertation focused on Hezbollah and Syria, but also studies and briefs experts on the Arab-Israeli conflict and Iranian-Western relations. Clearly, a relevant topic right now.

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The Soleimani Airstrike in Geopolitical Context, With Jacob Shapiro Jan 15, 2020

Show notes

Jacob Shapiro (cofounder of Geopolitical Futures) joins us today to help us break down what in the absolute heck happened in Iran, what might happen next, and what the heck might be the strategic/geopolitical driver behind it.

We also do a followup about our last episode, where we cover some key errata about our analysis of the UK election that our listeners pointed out for us #humblepie and get a bit of help from Jacob on the implications.

Lots of good stuff :)

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The Political Phenomenons We Refuse to Understand Jan 02, 2020

Show notes

Boris Johnson won big and Brexit is go for launch.

Donald Trump was impeached… and still his popularity holds steady. Heck, he might get re-elected.

Americans and Britons seem to have, within themselves, two incompatible narratives about these men. How is that possible?

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ReConsidering GDP Dec 11, 2019

Show notes

Recently Erik saw an article in which nobel-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz says an obsession with looking at GDP has become a problem:

“The world is facing three existential crises: a climate crisis, an inequality crisis and a crisis in democracy,” he writes. “Yet the accepted ways by which we measure economic performance give absolutely no hint that we might be facing a problem.”

“If we measure the wrong thing, we will do the wrong thing,”

Do we need to reconsider how useful GDP can be as a measure of economic health?

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How Lebanese Protests Over a WhatsApp Tax Can Turn the World Nov 20, 2019

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A few isolated Lebanese protests over a tax on WhatsApp calls have become, perhaps a national revolution, with huge consequences for the region and perhaps even American strategy. Why?

How could such a small thing have such a large potential impact? And how can we possibly spot what "small things" in the world really matter, and which big ones are more smoke than substance?

Getting this one out earlier than normal because the topic is timely!

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What In a Name? Would a Cop by Any Other Not Protect as Well? Nov 12, 2019

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Amid the hard facts of distrust and violence between police and some communities in the US, debate descends into fanatical screaming between two tribes. We forget the solution we all want: effective policing with great community relationships. Today we interview Lisa Broderick, who founded Police2Peace, with a radically simple experiment to help our police and communities cooperate like never before.

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Is America's Syria Withdrawal a Betrayal of the Kurds? Oct 28, 2019

Show notes

Turkey invades Syria amid a hasty and poorly-planned US withdrawal. It's not the first time: why is it getting this level of media attention and international outrage?

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