Muhammad Idrees Ahmad, a sociologist and editor of Pulsemedia.org, discusses the highly contested estimated number of Iraqi deaths due to the 2003 US invasion; why Iraq Body Count (the media's go-to source) vastly under-reports casualties; how "excess death" statistical studies work; and how low-balling the costs of war - in terms of blood and treasure - distorts the public debate.

Nathan Fuller of the Bradley Manning Support Network discusses Bradley Manning's long-awaited court martial, scheduled for June 3; why a military judge ruled Manning's 3 years in pretrial detention did not violate his right to a speedy trial; the government prosecutor's claim that Manning would be charged with "aiding the enemy" even if he had leaked classified documents to the NY Times instead of WikiLeaks; the chilling effect on government whistleblowers; and the DOJ's continuing efforts to...

Doug Bandow, senior fellow at the Cato Institute, discusses how the South Korea-US "mutual defense" treaty could get us into a shooting war with North Korea; the power and influence behind young supreme leader Kim Jong-un; the reasons behind recent provocative US bomber flights on the Korean peninsula; and why North Korea doesn't have the operational capability to back up their blustery rhetoric.

Robert P. Murphy, author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism, discusses the new monthly Federal Reserve Awareness Day; the connection between central banking and war; cutting the size of government to enable long-term sustainable growth; why President Nixon ended the last vestiges of the gold standard in 1971; the non-monetary reasons for taxes; and the limits of Fed chairman Ben Bernanke's control of interest rates and inflation.

Ivan Eland, a senior fellow at the Independent Institute, discusses his articles "From War to Welfare: How taxes and entitlements begin with militarism," and "Irresponsibility in the Department of Defense;" why Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge were the last small-government Republican presidents; the perverse incentive structure for government spending; and the tripwires to war on the Korean peninsula.

Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, discusses the Obama administration's financial support of apparent state-sponsored death squads in Honduras; possible US involvement in the 2009 Honduran military coup and subsequent fraudulent election; and the long history of US contempt for leftist nationalistic governments in Central and South America.

Andrew Bacevich, professor of international relations at Boston University, discusses his open letter to Iraq War architect Paul Wolfowitz; the long overdue accounting of the Bush administration's real reasons for waging an unnecessary war in Iraq; the dumb ideas floating around in the brains of very smart guys; and Obama's continuation of Bush's preventive war doctrine. Transcript (page all the way down for the audio) Scott Horton:  All right, y’all.  Welcome back to the show.  I’m Scott...

IPS News journalist Adam Morrow discusses Egypt's difficult transition to democratic government; why President Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood haven't been given a fair chance to turn the country around; the Egyptian media's open hostility to the current government; and how the 2012 killing of 16 Egyptian border guards ended talk of opening the Gaza border.

Robert Higgs, author of Delusions of Power: New Explorations of the State, War, and Economy, discusses his article "1913 - The Final Days of the Old Regime in the United States;" the dastardly "Colonel" Edward Mandell House; the "ratchet effect" of permanently increased government power from a temporary crisis; and why the near-term outlook for liberty and prosperity in the US is rather grim.

Eric Margolis, journalist and author of American Raj, discusses his article "War Risk Rises Sharply in Korea;" the USAF's provocations that brought on North Korea's threat to nuke the US; why Americans shouldn't lose any sleep worrying about a North Korean invasion; and the admirable Dennis Rodman-Harlem Globetrotter diplomatic outreach to the Hermit Kingdom.

Jason Leopold, journalist with Truthout, discusses the growing Guantanamo hunger strike; the previous hunger strikes and "suicides" of three prisoners in 2006; the government's dismissal of prisoner complaints as petty concerns; and Obama's broken promise to close Guantanamo and release the prisoners who have been cleared by two administrations.