How did Rome build an empire without destroying everything in its path? This episode unpacks the early Roman Republic’s secret weapon: a flexible system of alliances, patronage, and partial citizenship that let it dominate Italy before ever touching Carthage. We break down Rome’s bizarre founding myths, its mafia-like foreign policy, and why even conquered enemies wanted in. Did the Republic’s real power lie in its soft control, not its swords?

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The short answer is yes, but it's a terrible idea haha.

On today's episode, we talk about the history of weather modification, from rain dances to cloud seeding. We go a little off the rails talking about some of the conspiracy too.

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#312

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Germany wins World War I—but then what? We run an AI-driven counterfactual scenario exploring how a victorious Germany could have reshaped Europe, triggered an early Russian Revolution, and avoided the Treaty of Versailles altogether. Would France collapse? Would the U.S. stay isolationist? Would Hitler end up a blogger instead of a dictator? This alternate timeline might blow up your map of the 20th century.

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Artificial intelligence is changing the world, and warfare is no exception. From self-piloting drones to missiles that can identify their own targets, AI weapons systems are rapidly developing, raising urgent ethical and strategic questions.

On today's episode, we look into the complex history and evolution of Lethal Autonomous Weapons (or LAWS) in warfare, from early guided missiles to today's autonomous AI powered drones.

Join us as we explore the technological, ethical, and geopolitical dimensions of AI weapons and ask: Can we ensure human control in an increasingly autonomous future?

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#310

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On today's episode, we discuss the very weird story about how the Soviet Union tried to cross-breed humans and apes.

The craziest parts of this story are less about their failed attempt to create hybrids, and more about the ideals and sensibilities of the scientific community around the world at the time.

Bonus: Here's a link to our new music video inspired by this episode: "Soviet Monkey Business" - https://youtu.be/ALelKgYOhHk

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#309

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On today's episode, we try our best to wrap our heads around Hannah Arendt's book "The Origins of Totalitarianism," published in 1951.

We focus primarily on her arguments around the history of Anti-semitism. While we struggle a bit to fully grip the text, we make a good faith effort to better understand the historical context of anti-semitism in the 20th century

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#308

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Trump was just convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business documents. We couldn't help ourselves.

On today's episode, we give the background of this and other charges trump is currently facing, and have an open conversation about what we feel like this means for the coming election.

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#307

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On today's episode, we talk about MeK, an Iranian opposition group operating out of Albania who's entire purpose is to overthrow the Islamic republic of Iran.

Also, they're pretty much a cult, definitely a terrorist group, and has been buying up US politicians since the early 00's.

Enjoy

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#306

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On today's episode we discuss the recent events surrounding Gaza's final battleground - the southern city of Rafah.

We also discuss the implications of the ongoing pro-palestinian protests in schools and universities, as well as a recent bill passed in the house which attempts to codify into law the definition of anti-semitism.

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#305

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In today's episode, we unpack the strategic lessons learned from one of the most costly war games in U.S. history, where unconventional tactics by General Van Riper dramatically challenged traditional military doctrines. We analyze how these lessons hold up against the backdrop of today’s geopolitical tensions with Iran, examining potential strategies, the role of technology, and the political implications of military planning

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#304

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