Angry Planet

Sometimes it’s good to back up and ask the basic questions: How do we know Iran was even developing nuclear weapons?On this episode of the show, the Arms Control Wonk Jeffrey Lewis walks us through the history of the Iranian nuclear (weapons and energy) program. It’s got it all: diplomacy, assassinations, cowardly politicians, and uranium fever.Lewis is a professor at the Middlebury Institute, member of the National Academies Committee on International Security and Arms Control, and former member of the State Department's International Security Advisory Board. He knows the tale well and he’s here to tell it straight.Damning the strikes with faint praise.“The hard part of a nuclear weapon is not the explodey part.”Making a nuclear weapon is a solved problem.The Iran-Iraq war and the origins of Iran’s nuclear weapons programThe ladders of Natanz, how they cascade downEnergy programs are always bigger than weapons programs.Unmasking the International Atomic Energy AgencyIsrael’s war on the programHow to enrich uraniumThe “torturous” process behind the Iran dealCongressional cowards“A new generation of suckers”The French movie goodbyeThe DealSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comPauline Shanks Kaurin PhD. was, until recently, the Stockdale Chair for Professional Military Ethics at the U.S. Naval War College. She’d been there since 2018, teaching philosophy and ethics to U.S. military officers and the occasional civilian. Then came Donald Trump, Pete Hegseth, and marching orders she said stifled academic freedom.So she resigned.On this episode of Angry Planet, Pauline talks us through her decision and tells us what she saw from the inside of one of the U.S. military’s most lauded academic institutions as the new administration seeks to restrict what’s taught in the classroom.Disclosures and caveats“A moral dilemma I couldn’t resolve”On ObedienceAdmiral James Stockdale“We’re all in vacation mode.”“The snitch line”Purging books, telling professors what not to talk about“I don’t want to be on Fox News”It happened fastSuggestions of pulling manuscripts at the editorWhat happens to a military that isn’t taught honor and ethics?Compliance versus deferenceAvoiding discomfort as a policy positionDisagreements as combatA heavy metal argumentThe cost of taking a moral stand“Everyday is ethics day”A Military-Ethics Professor Resigns in ProtestDisgraceful Pardons: Dishonoring Our HonorableSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You can’t win a war with airpower alone, despite what the U.S. Air Force will tell you. For more than 100 years, the masters of the air have promised that military and political objectives can be achieved if you just let them drop enough bombs.It’s a theory that’s been tested, and fallen short, many times. Operation Midnight Hammer, the Trump administration’s use of 14 GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrators on Iranian nuclear sites, is just the latest test. The promise is that this has set back Iran’s nuclear program (it probably has) but Israel is hoping for much more—regime change in the Islamic Republic.Time will tell, but I’m not betting on it.On this episode of Angry Planet we zoom out and talk about the strategy behind airpower in the 21st century. Robert Farley, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Kentucky, is on the show today to give us his thoughts on the Iran strikes, airpower in general, and the lessons to be learned from watching the war in Ukraine.Should we abolish the independent Air Force?Was Israel’s war on Iran a success?Has airpower ever forced regime change?Curtis LeMay mentionedBombing doesn’t create revolutionary fervorAirpower as theater“Israel-splaining”What’s a Golden Dome for anyway?Are FPV drones part of the air force arsenal or infantry weapons?Strikes on Iran Show the Force, and Limits, of AirpowerRobert on PBS in KentuckyBuy Grounded: The Case for Abolishing the United States Air ForceThe Five-Ring Circus: How Airpower Enthusiasts Forgot About InterdictionSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comThe ocean is vast, beautiful, and lawless. Thousands of miles from any coast, power belongs to those who seize it.On this episode of Angry Planet, journalist Ian Urbina stops by to discuss the Outlaw Ocean Project and the second season of its incredible podcast. Urbina and his team of investigative journalists are telling stories about human rights, labor, and the environment on the vast swaths of the planet covered in water.The hidden cost of the seafood supply chainWhy the ocean is such a lawless place“Crimes at the intersection of environment and human rights.”Libya is “hell on earth” for migrantsAliou’s journey to LibyaHow Europe enables Libyan militias to police its bordersThe migration to slavery pipelineA team of journalists at gunpointLife on a Chinese squid fishing vesselLow tech and high tech reporting gets the job done“That is what life is like in that niche of hell.”Listen to the Outlaw Ocean PodcastInside a migrant detention center in LibyaChina: The Superpower of SeafoodSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comThe futures of the past have curdled into the nightmares of the present. The richest and most powerful people the world has ever known want to colonize mars, live forever, and digitize human consciousness. To make these technological miracles come to pass, they say, will require people to dramatically change the way they live and work. Will it be worth it? Does science even say it’s possible?On this Angry Planet, astrophysicist and author Adam Becker joins us to explain all the problems with Silicon Valley’s dreams of the future. It’s not a short list. Much of the tech, and even the physics, don’t work the way techno-utopians say it does. Some of the people hawking robot slaves and immortality are chasing the impossible for tragic personal reasons. Others are just trying to sell you something. It’s all the subject of Becker’s new book: More Everything Forever.ShareFranics Fukuyama and the end of everything“Death is the ultimate limit, the ultimate loss of control.”Moore’s law, the singularity, and Ray Kurzweil’s fatherThe Face on Mars and large language modelsElizas all the way downThe false binaries of the tech bro futureSilicon Valley’s lost boys“Death is avoidable and taxation is theft.”Stasis for me but not for thee“Mars sucks”Against Life Extension by Francis FukuyamaMore Everything Forever on BookshopMore Everything Forever on AmazonSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comAmerica loves the Western. Stories about frontier towns, outlaws and lawmen, and—most of all—killing. How did the myth and legend of the gunfighter come to permeate the U.S.? Were there rules to gunfights? How did you become famous by killing people? Did Texas, yes Texas, make all this possible?We’ll answer those questions in this episode of the show as we discuss the new book The Gunfighters: How Texas Made the West Wild. It’s the work of returning guest (and Texan) Bryan Burrough.Texas is both the West and the SouthWhat made Texas so violentWhat, exactly, is a gunfighter?The rules of the duel“Boys, I’m killed”How to win friends while killin’ people“What is more equalizing than a man alone with a gun?”Olive, Isom PrenticeHistoriography of the gunfighterModern bank robbers are boringThe cattle business is the perfect vehicle for violenceThe future belongs ... to pirates?Buy The Gunfighters from an independent bookstore or from AmazonSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bleddyn Bowen, an associate professor of astropolitics with expertise in war studies, and Cameron Hunter, a postdoctoral researcher specializing in China's military, dissect the troubling concept of AI generals in warfare. They argue that the narrow capabilities of AI make it ill-suited for complex command decisions. The conversation critiques the misconceptions about military tech, the folly of relying on AI for strategy, and emphasizes the necessity of human judgment in combat. Their insights highlight the limitations of automated systems in grasping the chaotic nature of war.

Kevin Knodell, a Hawaii-based reporter and military expert, shares insights on the U.S. military's pivot to the Pacific. He recently returned from covering joint exercises in the Philippines, shedding light on tricky U.S.-Philippines relations. The discussion reveals China's growing influence, maritime tensions, and historical grievances in the South China Sea. Knodell also touches on the complexities of regional partnerships and the impacts of military dynamics, all while highlighting the intricate balance of power in this geopolitically charged area.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comRecorded 5/7/25India and Pakistan have been unhappy neighbors since 1947 and Britain’s decolonization of the subcontinent. They’ve fought four wars and there have been countless skirmishes. As Indian jets streak over Pakistani skies and that Muslim nation threatens retaliation, it’s unclear if this is war or just another blip between nations that plain don’t like each other.Joining us is Sushant Singh, a man with a background that includes academic, journalist and 20-year veteran in the Indian army. He’s written an article on the situation in Foreign Affairs, and brings us up to date.The state of play on the morning of May 7thThe Pahalgam attack‘The Switzerland of India’Matthew almost gets everyone into a lot of troubleHow Pakistan creates instability in KashmirThe entire history of the conflict between India and Pakistan in about five minutesChina’s looming presence‘These are non-escaltory strikes’Comparing the militariesGetting into the nuclear optionsPakistan’s tactical nuclear arsenalThe incredible monetary cost of uncertain missile defenseWe go out on a happy note for onceMore than 20 killed after gunmen open fire on tourists in Indian-administered KashmirSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stacie Goddard, a Wellesley College political science professor and expert on international relations, dives into the troubling trends of contemporary geopolitics. She discusses how Trump’s approach mirrors 19th-century dynamics with leaders like Putin and Xi. Stacie connects today's 'great power collusion' to the historical Concert of Europe, emphasizing the risks of territorial ambitions and aging dictators lacking vision. The conversation also touches on Taiwan's critical role in the semiconductor industry and its effects on global power dynamics.