Tensions rise in the Middle East in the aftermath of a recent U.S. drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani, an Iranian major general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. 

It's been a tense beginning to 2020 friends... but before we get to the storm brewing in the Middle East, we look aat how a recent historical review of documents released by the British National Archives may indicate how our UK allies meddled in a U.S. election. We also explore the ever-sensitive issue of free speech, as it relates to social media and tech corporation monopolies... are there times when inaction is a form of action, especially when it comes to governmental oversight of the tech industry?

However, the big news this week involves the recent drone strike which killed Qasem Soleimani, an Iranian major general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. It is the latest in a long string of actions over the course of Donald Trump's presidency which have led to worsening relations between the U.S. and Iran. While some critics are asking Trump fully understands the significance of Soleimani, even one-time Trump supporters like Ann Coulter are taking to Twitter, saying "We Thought Trump Was Different About Starting Wars." However, not all agree that this was pure recklessness on part of the Trump administration, and point to the longstanding interest Pentagon officials had in targeting Soleimani.

We examine this unfolding story (even as news of retaliatory strikes by Iran on bases housing U.S. troops are making headlines) on this first 2020 edition of Middle Theory. 

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SHOW NOTES

• HEAVY MEDDLE: Did Britain meddle in a US presidential election?
• BIG CENSORSHIP: Permitting the growth of monopolies is a form of government censorship
• IRAN STRIKE: Qasem Soleimani: US kills top Iranian general in Baghdad air strike
• Russian Lawmaker: ‘Trump Did Not Understand the Significance of Soleimani’
• COULTER SHOULDER: Ann Coulter: ‘We Thought Trump Was Different’ About Starting Wars
• Uproar and consequences mount for Trump after Soleimani killing
• WW3 ON THE WWW: 'World War III' was trending
• WAR BROS: 'We're going to war, bro': Fort Bragg's 82nd Airborne deploys to the Middle East
• HOSTAGE CONCERNS: Death of Iran general spurs anxiety over fate of US hostages
• ATTACK OF THE DRONES: US forces on high alert for possible Iranian drone attacks, and intelligence shows Iran moving military equipment
• CULTURE CONFLICT: Trump's Twitter threats against Iran cultural sites borrow from the ISIS playbook
• A war with Iran is awful, and Iraq knows it. Why doesn't America — especially Democrats?
• AL JAZEERA: Soleimani is no anti-imperialist hero. And Trump's reckless decision to assassinate him will not result in 'World War III'.
• After the killing of Iran Gen. Qassem Soleimani, it's time for America to leave Iraq
• Rose McGowan, you're dismissed
• DECISIVE OR IMPULSIVE? The two words that could tip the debate on Iran -- and help decide the next election

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