Scott Horton Show - Just the Interviews 10/31/25 Bill Buppert on the Follies of American Militarism
10 snips
Nov 3, 2025 In this conversation, Bill Buppert, a former U.S. military officer and Smedley D. Butler Fellow for Military Affairs, critiques the failures of American militarism since 1945. He shares insights from his military background and discusses his research on irregular warfare, highlighting lessons from historical conflicts. Buppert examines the consequences of Obama's interventions in Libya and the ongoing issues in Somalia. He also addresses the impact of modern technology on warfare and the challenges of Pentagon bureaucracy, drawing parallels with the show 'Yes Minister'.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Military Built For The Wrong Century
- The U.S. built the most expensive military tailored to 20th-century pure combat that fails for 21st-century conflicts.
- Bill Buppert argues America's military is a self-licking ice cream cone feeding an intelligence-industrial habit that misfits modern threats.
Wars Birth More Wars
- Large conflicts spawn future conflicts by energizing dormant tensions and creating new wars down the line.
- Buppert emphasizes a recurring cascade: each war breeds more instability and future violence.
From Enlisted Sailor To Army Officer
- Bill Buppert recounts joining the Navy at 17, later joining the Army as an officer to avoid sea duty, and serving in infantry and intelligence roles.
- He retired in 2003 partly in protest of the false pretexts for the Iraq War and later worked as a contractor in Afghanistan.
