Angry Planet Subscriber Feed

The Pentagon always wants more money and it usually gets its way. Between sequestration and the War on Terror, America’s military often feels like it’s stretched thin. The Navy says it needs more sailors to prevent disaster, U.S. nukes need upkeep to stay safe, and the Special Operations Forces need more and more support to do their job.

Yet the American military outspends every other major military power on the planet and watch dogs constantly complain of waste, fraud, and abuse at the Pentagon. What’s going on? Here to help us sort it out is one of the watchdogs, former Marine Corps officer and current Project on Government Oversight employee Dan Grazier.

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

It’s been a while since the Air Force built a new bomber. In fact, it’s still flying an aircraft that’s 60 years old, the B-52. The more recent B-1 and B-2 bombers were beset by problems during their development and construction, and are now long in the tooth themselves.

So, here comes the B-21, still in its development stage. In this episode, we talk with retired Air Force General David A. Deptula about what the new plane’s mission and capabilities will be.

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

It's a blast from the past this week and Jason and Matthew get ready for 2018. Here's what we said back then:

From Star Wars to Battlestar Galactica, few battlefields are as fought over in pop-culture as space. Which makes sense. Since the end of World War Two, people have looked to the stars as the next great frontier of both exploration and warfare.

For the United States, the Space Race was about both prestige and gaining an advantage over its Cold War enemies. And since the Soviet Union launched Sputnik in 1957, peopled have looked to the skies above and wondered if the next great war might take place in literal vacuum.

But according to David Axe, editor-in-chief of War Is Boring, the war in space won’t look anything like what Hollywood has long pictured. Slow moving robots, lasers and logistics will dominate combat above the skies.

In this week’s War College, Axe dispels the popular myths of space as a battlefield and let’s us know what’s really going on in Earth’s orbit. Axe describes how to weaponize existing satellites, the missiles America and China have developed to knock those satellites out of the sky and the low-cost plans the Pentagon has to maintain its edge in the stratosphere.

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

ICYMI: This holiday week we're re-running the first episode of the new era! We'll be back after the new year.

The Weimar Republic was doomed from the start. World War I left Germany in a precarious position. The Treaty of Versailles ended outright aggression but it also left the German economy crippled and saddled its people with a government they never quite believed in. Worse, it stipulated that Germany take full responsibility for the most devastating war in human history.

This week on War College, Jason Fields--the show’s co-creator and digital editor at the Holocaust Museum--returns to walk us through how the Nazis came to power during the interwar years. From the beer halls to Hugo Boss and the Night of Long Knives, Fields tells the story of how streetfights and national shame led to “blood and soil.”

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

Marty Skovlund Jr. first went to Afghanistan as an Army Ranger. This year he returned as a journalist. His reports offer a sharp contrast to the main narrative about a place that’s been at war for decades. He sees some hope in the form of Special Operations forces, along with well-trained commandos and police units. But are these really signs of peace to come?

Check out Skovlund’s excellent reporting on the War in Afghanistan over at Task and Purpose.

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

War. War has changed.

Anyone can keep up to date with the latest conflict on Twitter. Facebook is a great place to watch the propaganda game of entire countries unfold. YouTube amplifies previously marginalized conspiracy theories to millions. Everything is different now.

This week on War College, we talk to author and journalist David Patrikarakos about his new book War in 140 Characters: How Social Media Is Reshaping Conflict in the Twenty-First Century.

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

On a Summer day in 1346, a small army of upstart British peasants cut the heart out of the French aristocracy. That’s the story anyway.

The Battle of Crécy was one of the most important of the Hundred Years War. A British army led by Edward III faced an overwhelming French force backed by Genoese crossbowmen. The French outnumbered the British two to one, had the initiative, and attacked in its own territory.

The British won, killed hundreds of French nobles, and showed the world a new way to go to war. This week on War College, David Crowther—host of The History of England Podcast—walks us through the battle. The truth, as always, is more complicated than the legend but no less fascinating.

You can listen to The History of England on iTunes, Stitcher, or follow it directly on Crowther’s website. If you like the series, consider supporting him on Patreon.

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

As Jason and Matthew sleep off their holiday induced Turkey Comas, War College presents an episode from the early days of the show. Here’s what we said back then—

The media in Russia is lively, often entertaining and largely state controlled. Still, an illusion of freedom remains key for the Kremlin to maintain its grasp over a country that spans 11 time zones.

In this episode of War College, we look at how Russian president Vladimir Putin crafts his message for both internal and external consumption.

For many in the West, watching Russian TV is like staring into a broken mirror. At first glance, networks such as RT seem like any other channel, but viewers who watch long enough are treated to a bevy of bizarre pundits and conspiratorial spin.

That’s by design.

We’re speaking with journalist, author and former Russian TV producer Peter Pomerantsev. His book Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible explores Putin’s postmodern dictatorship and how the Kremlin uses television to control the country.

“If Stalin was 75 percent violence and 25 percent propaganda,” Pomerantsev explains. “Putin is 75 percent propaganda and 25 percent violence.”

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

If you just look at the number of warheads, the U.S. nuclear arsenal is a small fraction of the size it was during the Cold War. But is that even the right measure anymore? This week on War College, Reuters’ Scott Paltrow discusses a special report the wire service will release this week.

Paltrow’s investigation discovered vast improvements to bombs whose names have stayed the same as their power increased tenfold, and weapons with adjustable yields that could lead to the ultimate temptation—dropping the big one.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe

War is hell and the people who fight often have a hard time coming home. Kevin Lacz didn’t. Lacz is a former U.S. Navy SEAL who served alongside Chris Kyle in the battle of Ramadi. He survived, came home, and thrived. He’s written books, spoken to crowds, and even played himself in Clint Eastwood’s American Sniper.

This week on War College, Lacz tells us what it’s like to go to war, what it’s like to want to kill people, and how to turn off the warrior when you come home.

You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. You can reach us on our new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit angryplanetpod.com/subscribe