Angry Planet

The United States is at war and has been for more than a decade. Although major combat operations in Iraq in Afghanistan have ended, America still maintains a presence in both and will for years to come. It also funds Syrian rebels, bombs Islamic State strongholds in the region and runs drones from Afghanistan to the Horn of Africa.

With America fighting on so many fronts, it’s hard to understand the Pentagon’s strategy or the endgame for the various conflicts. Retired U.S. Army Colonel Andrew Bacevich says it feels that way because it is that way. According to Bacevich, the American military is fighting a war that began decades before 9/11.

This week on War College, Bacevich walks us through what he calls America’s War With the Greater Middle East and tells us how it started and why he thinks it must end.

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In the West, people tend to think of Russian President Vladimir Putin as a strongman dictator – a former KGB man who oppresses his people, censors the media and antagonizes Russia’s neighbors. From the outside, it’s hard for anyone to understand how Putin stays in power, let alone stays popular.

And Putin is popular. Pollsters put his approval rating at more than 80 percent. It makes perfect sense if you understand Russia.

This week on War College, we sit down with Anne Garrels, a longtime Russia correspondent for NPR. Since the collapse of the USSR, Garrels has spent more and more time in smaller Russian cities and towns, getting to know people who don’t live the cosmopolitan lifestyle of the country's capital.

Garrels gives the reasons why Russians love Putin, and why it’s in the best interests of the West to understand them.

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Suicide attacks in Paris, Brussels, Orlando, Istanbul. And where to begin in Syria, Libya, Iraq, Nigeria, Israel? Further back, attacks in the United States, Mumbai. Nearly commonplace in Afghanistan and Yemen. Why? What are these young men and women thinking? Are their minds focused on a reward in a world beyond this one, or are the motives more earthly - human?

This week on War College, we speak with Roger Griffin, an expert on the motivation behind militant attacks. He offers explanations for actions that seem inexplicable.

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Until 1947, the Air Force was part of the U.S. Army. Of course, even then, the Navy had its own airplanes launching from aircraft carriers, protecting the fleets and attacking the enemy largely at sea.

Nowadays, the Army has helicopters and transport planes. The Marines have their own fighter jets. Naval aviators are as renowned as their Air Force colleagues and fly missions against ground-based targets.

This week on War College we talk with a man who believes the Air Force should be disbanded. That having it separate from the Army does little beyond creating a bureaucracy. In fact, he argues, a separate Air Force has changed the nature of warfare and not in a good way. If all you have is a hammer, he says, all problems become nails.

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There’s an argument to be made that humans evolved to fight each other – and to be good at it. But as the United States approaches its 15th straight year at war, rates of post-traumatic stress disorder are high. Many soldiers come home uncertain as to where they fit in and dealing with depression, anxiety and other issues.

This week on War College, we look at whether PTSD is a modern phenomenon. If it is, what is it about the way we live now that makes it so hard to transition home from the battlefield?

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The United States keeps some very old, very strange-looking planes in its arsenal. But each serves a purpose. The A-10 Warthog provides close-air support to ground troops. The B-52 drops bombs, but is so large and easy to spot that it also sends a message. The AC-130 is also a plane with a specific purpose. It’s propeller-driven and has its guns mounted on only one side. This week on War College, we look at this anachronism and the damage it can still do. Of course, any weapon system is only as good as its guidance.

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For a group of scientists working on weapons — some of which could end the world — DARPA has a surprisingly good reputation. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is credited with creating the Internet and runs public contests for human-looking robots and self-driving cars. This week on War College, we look at DARPA and some of the projects that still being carried out under the cover of official darkness.

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If you’re looking for a place on the globe likely to spark a world war, you could do worse than the South China Sea. The United States, China, Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines and Japan all have claims there. China is building artificial islands and the U.S. Navy is patrolling close by. There have been confrontations at sea and in the air. This week on War College, we’re looking at this global sore spot and asking just how heated is the situation likely to get.

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It was just this year that U.S. women were officially allowed in combat roles. That’s officially. But in Afghanistan, American women were on the front lines on night raids with commandos, including the Navy SEALs, six years ago. This week on War College we talk about their stories.

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An economy in deep trouble. A scandal involving billions in off-shore bank accounts and shell companies. Seemingly endless military entanglements. Sounds like a recipe to bring down any world leader. This week, War College looks at what makes Russian President Vladimir Putin the ultimate special case.

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