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Scott interviews Lyle Goldstein about the danger posed by escalating conflicts in Europe and the Pacific. First Goldstein, who correctly predicted the February invasion, gives his account of where the war in Ukraine stands today and where it’s likely to go. He and Scott then talk about some of the important details for listeners to understand about nuclear weapons and nuclear war. Lastly, they discuss the growing tension over Taiwan. Goldstein is worried that the war in Ukraine mixed with the promise of greater western military aid for Taiwan years down the road will convince Beijing that now is the best time to invade the island. 

Discussed on the show:

• “Threat Inflation, Russian Military Weakness, and the Resulting Nuclear Paradox: Implications of the War in Ukraine for U.S. Military Spending” (Cost of War Project)
• “Don’t Rule Out Diplomacy in Ukraine” (Foreign Affairs)
• Thirteen Days (2000)
• Rumsfeld: His Rise, Fall, and Catastrophic Legacy by Andrew Cockburn
• “The Scary War Game Over Taiwan That the U.S. Loses Again and Again” (Real Clear Investigations)

Lyle J. Goldstein is the Director of Asia Engagement at Defense Priorities. He is the author of Meeting China Halfway: How to Defuse the Emerging US-China Rivalry. Follow his work at The National Interest.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and Thc Hemp Spot.

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Independent historian and journalist Gareth Porter discusses the limits of America’s awesome military might when it comes to fighting insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan; Iraq’s brutal sectarian civil war in 2006-2007; how the US helped increase Iranian influence in Iraq; and Gen. Petraeus’s influence on COIN doctrine and the “victory in defeat” PR campaign.

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Dahr Jamail, author of Beyond the Green Zone, discusses life in Iraq today – 10 years after the US invasion in 2003; the 1 million displaced Iraqis and the greatly increased cancer and birth defect rates; Prime Minister al-Maliki’s adoption of US counterinsurgency tactics, including rape, execution and torture; al-Malilki’s fears that Syrian rebels will target Iraq next and revitalize the Sunni resistance; and the problems with an independent Kurdistan.

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Jamal Abdi, Policy Director at the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), discusses how Senate Resolution 65 is a backdoor to war with Iran; Congress’s attempts at limiting Obama’s diplomatic options; and the possibility of a compromise on Iran’s nuclear program – lifting some sanctions in exchange for Iran suspending 20% uranium enrichment.

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Sheldon Richman, vice president of The Future of Freedom Foundation, discusses why the record-high DOW index does not indicate a recovering economy; how the Fed’s low-interest-rate policy forces savers into risky investments (like stocks); the fudge-factor in economic measurements like CPI and the unemployment rate; and the nonsensical things Paul Krugman says.

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Retired USAF Lieutenant Colonel Karen Kwiatkowski discusses her firsthand account of the Bush administration’s backroom machinations to lie us into the Iraq War; the draft invasion plans that long preceded the push to war in 2003; the Bush officials who have never been held accountable for leaking classified information and outright lies to a compliant media; and the permanent global war philosophy of neoconservatives.

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Eric Margolis, journalist and author of American Raj, discusses the Showtime documentary on Dick Cheney, who casually dismisses his responsibility for starting the disastrous war in Iraq; the African dictators who go to war crimes tribunals while Cheney goes fishing; the confusing US policy of simultaneously attacking and supporting “terrorists” in Iraq, Libya and Syria; and the French intervention in western Africa.

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Stephen Zunes, Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, discusses his article “Remembering Those Responsible on the 10th Anniversary of the Iraq War;” the know-nothing US occupation staffers brought in to remake Iraqi society; how US foreign policy has radicalized a generation of Muslims and greatly increased the chance of another major terrorist attack; and the many Democrats who supported the Bush administration’s war effort.

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Gary Gambill, Associate Fellow at Middle East Forum, discusses why “Bush Was Right” on ending US support for Middle East dictatorships (even the compliant ones); how pro-American autocracies breed Islamic extremism by closing all other avenues of political expression; restricting World Bank and IMF loans to democratic governments; what constitutes an Islamic moderate; and why the US should not get involved in Syria’s ongoing “Lebanonization.”

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