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Scott brings William Van Wagenen back on the show to continue their deep dive on the CIA’s covert operations to remake the Middle East. This time, they discuss the origins of the Arab Spring uprisings and look closely at how the so-called Syrian Civil War began.  

Discussed on the show:

• Creative Chaos: Inside the CIA’s Covert War to Topple the Syrian Government by William Van Wagenen

William Van Wagenen is the author of Creative Chaos: Inside the CIA’s Covert War to Topple the Syrian Government. He has a BA in German literature From Brigham Young University and an MA in Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School. You can read his other writings on Syria for the Libertarian Institute here. Follow him on Twitter @wvanwagenen

For more on Scott’s work:

Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org

Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show

Read Scott’s books:

Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com)

Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw

Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0

Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow

And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.comYou can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/ https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow

David Swanson discusses the new congressional and presidential war powers legislation that’s been proposed by Senators Murphy, Lee and Sanders. Swanson describes his initial fears about the bill, given how bad previous attempts to modify congressional war powers and AUMFs have been in recent years. And yet this bill is surprisingly good: it addresses issues like cutting off funding for unauthorized wars, shortening the time that a president can wage such a war before seeking congressional approval and ensuring that the U.S. has a specific enemy any time it wants to start some new conflict. The legislation still leaves room for some of the loopholes and ambiguities we’ve come to expect, but in general, Swanson is pleased with the effort and optimistic about its future.

Discussed on the show:

• “War Powers Reform Bill Far Better Than Feared” (Scoop News)
• Civil Resistance: What Everyone Needs to Know
  
• “The Singing Revolution (2006)” (IMDb)

David Swanson is an author, activist, journalist, radio host, and Nobel Peace Prize Nominee. He is the author of War is a Lie, When the World Outlawed War and Leaving World War II Behind. Find him on Twitter @davidcnswanson.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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Scott talks to Dave DeCamp about what’s going on in the various corners of America’s would-be empire. In Afghanistan, as predicted, the Taliban have been making gains against the Afghan government as the U.S. military withdraws—but the Biden administration’s withdrawal is still tepid, as they plan to keep a small number of troops to protect the embassy and to keep funding the Afghan military until at least 2022. In Iraq, things might be even worse, since DeCamp thinks the recent announcement that the U.S. is ending its “combat mission” is nothing more than a PR move that redefines the mission without actually changing it. Scott and DeCamp also touch on Yemen, Russia, China and Israel.

Discussed on the show:

• “U.S. Troops to Withdraw From Iraq—on Paper at Least” (Foreign Policy)
• “British Warships Enter South China Sea” (Antiwar.com)
• “US Air Force to send dozens of F-22 fighter jets to the Pacific amid tensions with China” (CNN)
• “Opinion | What Ben & Jerry’s Has to Do With Israel and Cybersecurity” (The New York Times)
• “‘It shows that BDS works’: Wafic Faour on how a group of Vermont activists got Ben & Jerry’s to move” (Mondoweiss)
• “Poll finds a quarter of US Jews think Israel is ‘apartheid state’” (The Times of Israel)

Dave DeCamp is the assistant news editor of Antiwar.com. Follow him on Twitter @decampdave.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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Scott interviews journalist Mark Curtis about his investigations into the UK role in the wars in Syria and Yemen. Regarding Yemen, Britain has long denied any involvement in that war, says Curtis, but it’s now been revealed that they, like the U.S., have been helping the Saudi coalition for years. The precise nature of the help the British government is giving isn’t exactly clear, but it likely involves the same things the Americans have been doing all along: training Saudi troops, assisting them with bomb targeting and providing weapons and spare parts, without which they could never wage this war. Curtis also reiterates just how desperate the situation is for the civilian population of Yemen, who have been facing what the UN calls the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. Curtis and Scott also discuss the British government’s efforts to promote regime change in Syria.

Discussed on the show:

• “Revealed: The UK has spent £350-million promoting regime change in Syria” (Declassified UK)

Mark Curtis is a British journalist and foreign policy analyst. He is the author of The Great Deception, Web of Deceit and, most recently, Secret Affairs: Britain’s Collusion with Radical Islam. Follow him on Twitter @markcurtis30.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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Peter McCormack discusses the latest developments in the world of Bitcoin. The most important news is that El Salvador moved to make Bitcoin legal tender, alongside the U.S. dollar, which McCormack says is huge for its viability as a mainstream currency. Bitcoin should help to solve several problems that have long plagued El Salvador’s economy, and other Latin American countries may well follow suit. More and more people are also spending and accepting Bitcoin around the world, rather than just using it as an investment, especially as payment networks get better. Of course, the U.S. government isn’t terribly happy about any of this, since it threatens the position of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency. The beautiful thing about Bitcoin, McCormack says, is that there’s nothing they can do to stop it.

Discussed on the show:

• “How Bitcoiners Are Working With El Salvador’s Leaders” (Decrypt)
• “Contra Corner Monetary Arsonists At Work” (David Stockman’s Contra Corner)

Peter McCormack is the host of the What Bitcoin Did podcast. Follow him on Twitter @PeterMcCormack.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee; Zippix Toothpicks and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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Ron Enzweiler discusses the unlearned lessons of America’s wasteful and doomed wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. First of all, he says, we should have known that the only thing keeping Iraq together was Saddam Hussein’s stranglehold on power, which prevented a civil war from breaking out. After the United States deposed him, explains Enzweiler, those tensions were going to bubble over no matter what. The best thing to do now would be to leave Iraq as soon as possible, but stubborn superstitions like the “safe haven” myth and the idea that President Obama pulled troops out too quickly make it hard for anyone to push withdrawal even today. In the case of Afghanistan, Enzweiler says that some fear the Taliban will not only take over that country, but will also try to export their vision of Islam to other nations. But this is a fundamental misunderstanding of who the Taliban are and what they want. They aren’t jihadists, says Enzweiler—they just want to spread their way of life within their own country and keep out foreign occupiers who try to change that. Social progress and cosmopolitanism may come to Afghanistan eventually, but we cannot force those things at the point of a gun.

Discussed on the show:

• “Iraq and Afghan Wars: Requiem for America’s Ineffectual War State” (Antiwar.com)

Ron Enzweiler is an air force veteran and worked for USAID in Iraq for seven years. He is the author of When Will We Ever Learn. You can follow his writing at Antiwar.com.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee; Zippix Toothpicks and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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Scott talks to Doug Bandow about the recent assassination of Haiti’s president and the ensuing calls for U.S. intervention. Bandow warns about the perils of interventions like this, even when they are seemingly justified by the noble cause of humanitarianism. In Haiti in particular, he says, a history of disastrous foreign intervention is fresh in people’s minds, and any military response is likely to backfire. Luckily, Bandow doesn’t think Biden is especially keen on responding to the calls for intervention in this case. Similarly, in the case of China, where the more hawkish members of America’s foreign policy establishment have been beating the war drum, Bandow believes Biden has no real desire for war. Unfortunately, with pressure shifting from the Middle East toward Russia and China, tensions could escalate quickly and even an accidental provocation could escalate to full-scale war if the world’s governments aren’t firmly and carefully committed to maintaining peace.

Discussed on the show:

• “The Tragedy of Haiti: Washington Should Keep Its Troops at Home” (Cato Institute)
• “State Department Cables” (WikiLeaks)
• “Wolf Warrior (2015)” (IMDb)

Doug Bandow is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and a regular contributor at Forbes Magazine, the National Interest, and elsewhere. He’s on Twitter @Doug_Bandow.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee; Zippix Toothpicks and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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Scott talks to Dave DeCamp about some of the latest stories at antiwar.com. Recently, says DeCamp, it’s been reported that Iran was urging Iraqi militias not to retaliate against the U.S., after they’d been the target of airstrikes by the Biden administration. Needless to say, this doesn’t exactly comport with the mainstream narrative about Iran, and you won’t see stories like this widely covered. Dave and Scott go on to discuss a rumored American withdrawal from Iraq and wrap up with an update on the negotiations between the U.S. and Iran surrounding a reinstatement of the nuclear deal.

Discussed on the show:

• “Iraqi Militias Defy Iran By Attacking US Forces” (Antiwar.com)
• “Keeping up attacks, some Iraq militias challenge patron Iran” (Associated Press)
• “Iraq Says U.S. Discusses Troop Withdrawal, Biden Administration Denies” (Newsweek)
• “US Denies Troop Withdrawal Was Discussed in Iraq” (Antiwar.com)
• “Iran Not Ready to Resume Nuclear Talks Until New President Takes Office” (Antiwar.com)

Dave DeCamp is the assistant news editor of Antiwar.com. Follow him on Twitter @decampdave.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee; Zippix Toothpicks and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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Branko Marcetic discusses the stunning lack of mainstream media coverage of Julian Assange’s case. Besides being the right thing to do, since Assange has heroically helped expose heinous crimes by many of the world’s governments, journalists also have a selfish reason to care about Assange’s plight: what he does at WikiLeaks is not categorically different from what any of them does when covering stories that originated from leaked documents. And yet nearly everyone in the press seems content to let Assange rot in solitary confinement.

Discussed on the show:

• “The Julian Assange Media Blackout Must End” (Jacobin)
• “7/1/21 Bjartmar Alexandersson on the Lies of America’s Star Witness Against Julian Assange” (The Libertarian Institute)
• Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media
  
• “Vault7” (WikiLeaks)
• “Baghdad War Diary” (WikiLeaks)
• “Collateral Murder” (WikiLeaks)
• “State Department Cables” (WikiLeaks)
• “The Kafkaesque Nightmare of Attorney Steven Donziger, a Literal Prisoner of the Chevron Corporation” (Jacobin)

Branko Marcetic is a writer for Jacobin Magazine, a fellow at In These Times, and host of the 1/200 podcast. He is the author of Yesterday’s Man: The Case Against Joe Biden. Follow him on Twitter @BMarchetich.

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; EasyShip; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt; Lorenzotti Coffee; Zippix Toothpicks and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

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