The Libertarian Institute - All Podcasts

James Carroll discusses President Trump's intent to withdraw from the INF treaty, which he thinks could usher in a new age of nuclear expansion. The INF helped reverse the buildup of nuclear weapons that was taking place between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, and its reversal might mean a return to the same kind of arms race we saw during the cold war. Most alarmingly of all, nobody in the mainstream seems to care about this and no media outlets will give it much attention.

Discussed on the show:

"Tomgram: James Carroll, Entering the Second Nuclear Age?" (TomDispatch)

Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty

START II

The Doomsday Machine: Confessions of a Nuclear War Planner

James Carroll is the author of twenty books, including House of War: The Pentagon and the Disastrous Rise of American Power. He is also a novelist and former columnist for the Boston Globe. Find him at his website jamescarroll.net.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

Cato's John Glaser joins the show to talk about the new oil sanctions on Iran. He and Scott discuss what this means for U.S. relations with Iran, beginning with the fact that sanctions only achieve the policy desired by the imposing nation about 30% of the time, and a dismal 5% of the time when the concern is security, as opposed to economic. In general, says Glaser, President Trump has taken the wrong approach to negotiating with foreign countries, even though his instincts are often good. He seems to believe that bluster and threats are the way to make a deal, instead of just trying to make friends outright.

Discussed on the show:

"Failure Forecast: Sanctions Won’t Work on Iran" (Cato)

Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action

Trita Parsi

Sunset clause

Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Terrorists

John Glaser is the director of Foreign Policy Studies for the Cato Institute. Follow him on Twitter @jwcglaser.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

Brian McGlinchey talks about the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act and the lobbying campaign by the Saudi government against it. The Saudis spread a false narrative among American veterans that this type of legislation could open up American soldiers for prosecution under foreign laws, when in reality it would do no such thing. This act was President Obama's only overridden veto.

Discussed on the show:

The 28 Pages

S.2040 - Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act

Jamal Khashoggi

Brian McGlinchey is the director of 28Pages.org. Find him on Twitter @LibertyMcG.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

Sheldon Richman shares his election day experience, one where he got to choose exactly the outcome he wanted and take home real products afterward—namely, he went to the grocery store. Richman contrasts the voting of the marketplace that we do every day with our dollars, with the political system that supposedly gives each citizen a vote but in reality provides only a pointless display of participation and consent without real effect. Richman's latest article in the TGIF series explores real examples of how an anarchist society has and could work.

Discussed on the show:

"TGIF: My Most Excellent Election Day Experience" (Libertarian Institute)

Benjamin Constant

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Sheldon Richman is the executive editor of the Libertarian Institute and the author of America’s Counter-Revolution: The Constitution Revisited. Follow him on Twitter @SheldonRichman.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

Arnold Isaacs joins the show to discuss the flawed ways the Vietnam War is remembered and commemorated. All too often, he explains, American crimes are whitewashed or left out altogether. If we don't face up to the deeds of our military and government in previous wars though, we risk repeating the same mistakes in future ones.

Discussed on the show:

"8/1/18 Arnold Isaacs on Fake Islamophobia in America" (Libertarian Institute)

"Tomgram: Arnold Isaacs, Misremembering Vietnam" (Tom Dispatch)

Secrets: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers

Arnold Isaacs is a writer, educator, and the author of From Troubled Lands: Listening to Pakistani Americans and Afghan Americans in post 9/11 America. His website is ArnoldIsaacs.net, and you can read his work at antiwar.com and tomdispatch.com.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

Grant Smith comes on the show to talk about his latest article on the close ties between the U.S. and Israeli military intelligence communities. He reveals that not only do American agencies share pretty much all their intel with their counterparts in Israel, but also how the U.S. agencies supplement their budgets with funding from the activities they're supposedly helping to prevent, like drug and arms sales.

Discussed on the show:

"Israel and the Trillion-Dollar 2005-2018 US Intelligence Budget" (Antiwar.com)

Zero Days

Snowden's 'Black Budget' Leaks

Iran–Contra affair

The Shadow Factory: The NSA from 9/11 to the Eavesdropping on America

"The Israel Lobby in the U.S." (YouTube)

Grant F. Smith is the author of a number of books including “Big Israel: How Israel’s Lobby Moves America” and “Divert!”. He is director of the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy in Washington, D.C.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

Hassan El-Tayyab talks about various movements to stop the U.S.-backed war in Yemen, and what we can all do to help. Tayyab explains that millions of civilians there are on the brink of the worst famine in 100 years. So far political will has not really been behind ending the war, but following the murder of Jamal Khashoggi things may finally be changing. Tayyab's organization is tracking the progress of two congressional resolutions that would invoke the War Powers Act to end American involvement in the war. If the President declares an end to U.S. support, says Tayyab, the war would just about end immediately.

Discussed on the show:

Just Foreign Policy

H.Con.Res.138

S.J.Res.54

H.Con.Res.81

War Powers Resolution

Jamal Khashoggi

"US supplied bomb that killed 40 children on Yemen school bus" (The Guardian)

"11/5/18 Scott Paul on Yemen" (Libertarian Institute)

Hassan El-Tayyab is a musician and peace activist based in Chicago. Find his work at justforeignpolicy.org.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

Major Danny Sjursen comes back on the show to talk about the many errors of the various American wars in Iraq. Sjursen has written a new article discussing a recently leaked report that was commissioned during and about Iraq War 2, but was deliberately stymied and kept from the American people.

Discussed on the show:

"The Army Stymied Its Own Study of the Iraq War" (Wall Street Journal)

"Will Iraq Become Another ‘Lesson Lost’ Like Vietnam?" (The American Conservative)

Pentagon Papers

Raymond T. Odierno

Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq

Sean MacFarland

Muqtada al-Sadr

"Collateral Murder" (Wikileaks)

The Good Soldiers

Badr Organization

Danny Sjursen is a major in the U.S. army and former history instructor at West Point. He writes regularly for TomDispatch.com and he’s the author of “Ghost Riders of Baghdad: Soldiers, Civilians, and the Myth of the Surge.” Follow him on Twitter @SkepticalVet.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; Zen Cash; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and LibertyStickers.com.

Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

On FPF #269, I discuss how the destructive US foreign policy was not an issue on election night. The US foreign policy is the most harmful for the American people. US interventionism is extremely costly and damaging to the Americans who enact it. The policy does not enrich Americans or improve the lives of people around the world. However, a significant American election will have little impact on how the US empire believes overseas. 

Links

FPF #243 - Skripal

On FPF #268, I discuss the 2018 Midterm Elections. I explain why I did not vote. Little of the debate in the leadup to the midterms has been on what US foreign policy. Most of Congress takes no interest in wars and ignore their Constitutional duties. I look at some issues that could be impacted by the midterm elections. 

Links

Gareth Porter - Russian linked accounts