Scott talks to Peter Lee about the ongoing Uyghur controversy in China. The Chinese government, he says, is trying to integrate their minority Uyghur Muslim population, as part of their larger project to urbanize and centralize China. There is growing concern, especially on the American right, that these efforts represent an outright genocide, with claims of mass forced birth control and up to a million people in detention centers. These fears, Lee says, tend to be exaggerated—though what the Chinese government is doing might be something more like cultural genocide. He stresses that it is important to acknowledge the horrors faced by many citizens of China’s authoritarian government, without using something like this as an excuse to advocate war.
Lyle J. Goldstein discusses the terrifying possibility of war between the U.S. and China. There are plenty of hawks in the U.S. government, he says, who might try to fight China were they to attack Taiwan or exert their influence elsewhere in the region. But even leaving aside the potential catastrophe of a nuclear war, Goldstein says American strategists don’t give enough credence to the possibility that China could now defeat the U.S. even in a conventional war. The entire doctrine of trying to be the dominant military power in the world forever is foolish, wasteful and dangerous—instead, America should make clear that it would defend its major allies against unreasonable Chinese aggression, but otherwise not try to govern the other half of the planet under the threat of military force.
Discussed on the show:
“Beijing has a plethora of military options against Taiwan after 2022” (The Hill)
“The Indo-Pacific Strategy Is a Recipe for Disaster” (Lawfare)
Scott interviews rapper Immortal Technique in a wide-ranging conversation covering the legacy of slavery in America, the false narrative about Palestine fed to most Americans and the ways that politics has become entwined in daily life like never before. He and Scott agree that the powerful have always deliberately played up the petty differences that divide us, hoping to separate and embitter people who should be natural allies. Social change is possible when regular citizens unite against those who perpetuate the evils of war, colonialism and oppression.
Immortal Technique is a Peruvian-American rapper and activist, best known for his albums Revolutionary vol. 1, Revolutionary vol. 2, The Martyr and the upcoming Middle Passage. Follow him at Viper Records or on Twitter @ImmortalTech.
If anybody wants to buy wholesale copies of the book to resell or give away, please email wholesale@libertarianinstitute.org to set it up. They’re about 6 bucks each after shipping. Minimum order 50 I guess?
Grant Smith discusses the Israeli government’s occupation of Palestine and its treatment of the Palestinians. There seems to be growing recognition that Israel is presiding over a form of apartheid, including a 2017 UN report attesting to that fact, and a small plurality of Americans, according to a recent survey, who believe America should cut aid to Israel over human rights abuses. But Smith also recognizes that government policies here and abroad often follow a “ratchet” effect—that is, small changes can be made pretty easily in one direction, but almost never get rolled back once instituted. And the trend in recent years has unmistakably been toward greater subjugation of the Palestinians by the Israelis and greater American support as they do so.
Scott talks to Larry Wilkerson, former army Colonel and Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, about America’s involvement in Asia, both during his time in the federal government and today. Wilkerson calls America’s exploits over the last few decades a part of “The Great Game,” a reference to the conflict between global powers like the British and Russian Empires over territory in the Middle East and the rest of Asia. This competition for hegemony never really ended, he says, although the players and stakes have changed to some extent. These days, the U.S. competes with China and Russia for control over fossil fuel supplies, trade routes and access to the nuclear stockpiles of smaller powers like Pakistan. But he and Scott agree that we have no business whatsoever trying to be the dominant power halfway across the world, and should pull our focus back to our own problems.
Last week, myself and a great group of antiwar veterans, led by BringOurTroopsHome.us testified before a committee of the Texas Senate in favor of new Defend the Guard legislation proposed by Rep. Bryan Slaton. (Admittedly, my statement was not so well received as a similar one was in Montana the week before that. But lessons were learned and the other guys did great, so it looks like it will pass out of committee and on to Calendars, at least.)
Thank you very much for considering this important legislation.
I’d like to mention something that is becoming a real crisis in this country, and that is the move by American liberals and progressives further to the left toward what they call “democratic socialism” in the Bernie Sanders fashion. This is especially true among the Millennials and Generation Z. It does not just mean the push for a larger welfare state, but more and more they reject market capitalism broadly defined and believe that all large holdings of wealth and property should be taxed away or otherwise taken over by governments to manage. This of course would be an absolute catastrophe.
But so then why is this happening? It is not because of the failures of free markets to deliver prosperity, but primarily the failure of American militarism which destroys trillions of dollars and wastes billions of hours of man and brain power that would otherwise go to productive uses.
It was Republican President and former 5-Star General Dwight Eisenhower who warned about the corrupting influence of what he called the Military-Industrial Complex now 60 years ago, but there has been no reckoning since. Recent presidents Obama and Trump both echoed Ike’s same complaint about Pentagon officials overriding the will of the country’s civilian leaders to roll back U.S. intervention.
America stays at war largely because Lockheed-Martin, Boeing, Raytheon, Northrup-Grumman and other major military contractors spend millions of dollars buying up lobbyists, think tankers, Pentagon officials and Congressman to make certain the government continues to patronize their firms. It is as simple as that. It is not unmentionable. Everyone knows it. And it is as wrong as it can be.
American militarism also necessitates an inflationary monetary policy so that the government can continue to expand its overseas footprint without having to raise taxes, which can cause too much open resistance. But this monetary inflation leads not only to rising prices across the board, but to massive bubbles in certain sectors, leading to terrible economic crashes as we’ve survived in 2000, 2008 and last year, which, though forced by the lockdowns, was due anyway, even though so many Americans had never recovered from the last bust. And as anyone living through the massive inflation in the housing market in Texas today can tell you, there have never been so many homeless families living on the streets of our state.
For all these problems, the free market takes the rap. Capitalism in general is said to be discredited. The distortions caused by permanent war then threaten all of our prosperity in even more severe ways in the future if present trends continue.
And this proves the case: we can have either a republic or an empire but we cannot have it both ways.
The best thing you can do to help to preserve our freedom and prosperity would be for you to prove the Constitution is still the law and that American is still a republic. Texas could lead the more than 30 states considering similar Defend the Guard legislation this year to let it be known that the people of this country want an end to unconstitutional wars and that the states’ legislatures in fact do represent them and are determined to demonstrate that it is so.
Scott interviews Jacob Sullum about the trial of Derek Chauvin for the death of George Floyd. Sullum highlights two important features of the prosecution’s case so far: the first is that paramedics testified to Floyd’s already being dead when they showed up, and the second is an argument about Floyd’s possible drug overdose. Sullum explains that while the level of fentanyl found in Floyd’s system during the autopsy might be high for a normal person, it was actually on the extreme low end of what can cause an overdose, especially for a habitual opioid user. These factors make it unlikely that drug overdose was a primary cause in Floyd’s death—but more importantly, whether drugs played some role or not, the relevant fact in a murder or manslaughter trial is whether the victim would still be alive had the defendant not done what he did. In this case, argues Sullum, Floyd pretty clearly would be.
Discussed on the show:
“Derek Chauvin Argues That His Use of Force Was Appropriate and Did Not Kill George Floyd” (Reason)
“Derek Chauvin’s Belief That George Floyd Was Intoxicated Does Not Help His Case” (Reason)
“Derek Chauvin Blames His Former Colleagues for George Floyd’s Death” (Reason)
Daniel Davis talks to Scott about the possibility of war with China. Davis fears that despite what would seem to be common sense arguments against ever fighting such a war, that’s the direction that the American military establishment is heading in. The war planners in Washington seem to think that even though the U.S. and China both have large nuclear arsenals, we could fight a conventional war without either side resorting to nukes. This is the height of foolishness, says Davis, but even if we did somehow avoid nuclear war, China could probably defeat the United States easily using only conventional weapons, if we tried to come to them on their turf. We must find a way to disentangle ourselves from distant conflicts in which we have no interest, like the dispute between China and Taiwan, before it’s too late to turn back.
Discussed on the show:
“Surprise Attack: How China Could Start a War Against Taiwan” (19FortyFive)
“US War With China Over Taiwan Would Be Foolish and Costly” (Business Insider)
Jack Matlock, America’s second-to-last ambassador to the Soviet Union, talks to Scott about relations with Russia today. He stresses that the real ideological differences that once divided America and the USSR don’t stand in the way anymore, and we need not continue to have a hostile relationship with a country that for the most part means us well. In fact, given that Russia, like America, has a huge stockpile of nuclear weapons, friendly cooperation between the two countries is far more important than any small issues like claims of election interference and personal insults between political leaders.
“Building on George Shultz’s Vision of a World Without Nukes” (WSJ)
Jack Matlock is a career diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to the Soviet Union when the Cold War ended. Since retiring from the Foreign Service, he has focused on understanding how the Cold War ended and how the lessons from that experience might be applied to public policy today.
Matthew Hoh comes back on the show to talk about Afghanistan. President Biden said in a recent press conference that due to logistical difficulties, America is unlikely to meet the May 1 withdrawal deadline laid out in the Doha agreement signed under President Trump. Hoh points out that there shouldn’t really be logistical difficulties in getting about 3,000 American troops out of Afghanistan in a month (not to mention the many months both presidents have had already)—really, this is political cover to avoid pulling America out once and for all. No president has been willing to do so so far, largely because of the fear of what will happen in Afghanistan when we leave. The power vacuum created by America’s absence will lead to some chaos, to be sure, but Hoh says there’s simply no way around that fact. The only question now is when America will leave, not if. Staying any longer only continues to put American lives at risk.
Matthew Hoh is a senior fellow at the Center for International Policy and formerly worked for the U.S. State Department. Hoh received the Ridenhour Prize Recipient for Truth Telling in 2010. Hoh is a member of the Board of Directors for Council for a Livable World and is an Advisory Board Member for Expose Facts. He writes on issues of war, peace and post-traumatic stress disorder recovery at matthewhoh.com.
US News New Mexico legalizes marijuana. The bill doesn’t legalize the sale of cannabis until 2022. The bill expunged low-level marijuana offenses. [Link] The number of US soldiers with serious sleep disorders is increasing. [Link] Mexico doubled the number of troops...
By Thomas o Falk at Aljazeera Is their an end in sight for the war in Yemen? Pathway to peace? Meanwhile, the US, United Nations, and regional mediator Oman still see an opportunity for negotiations. With the mediation of Oman, the Houthis have been negotiating with...
The Fite 4 Liberty Show Freedom Hub The Importance of Bitcoin in the Liberty Movement - Rollo and Slappy Thanks to Everyone's Orphan for rounding these up.
If anybody wants to buy wholesale copies of the book to resell or give away, please email wholesale@libertarianinstitute.org to set it up. They're about 6 bucks each after shipping. Minimum order 50 I guess?
Last week, myself and a great group of antiwar veterans, led by BringOurTroopsHome.us testified before a committee of the Texas Senate in favor of new Defend the Guard legislation proposed by Rep. Bryan Slaton. (Admittedly, my statement was not so well received as a...
George Gammon and attorney Robert Barnes are suing the Federal Reserve under the FOI act. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-WGI3VfVYI It's Time To Sue The Fed Under The Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA) #EndTheFed Since 1913 the Fed has destroyed the purchasing power...
Scott interviews Hassan El-Tayyab from the Friends Committee on National Legislation about the effort to end the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. Although the Biden administration announced an end to support for "offensive operations" in Yemen, thanks to the Saudi...
Scott talks to Jay Schweikert about the promising developments in New Mexico, where a new state-wide law has been enacted that repeals qualified immunity as a legal defense for any public official. This is a similar move, says Schweikert, to legislation adopted...
Scott interviews national security attorney Jesselyn Radack about her work in the protection of whistleblowers. Daniel Hale, the man who leaked the so-called "drone papers" to the Intercept in 2014, has just pleaded guilty to violations of the Espionage Act in what...
Trita Parsi talks about the state of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. President Trump, of course, made a point of withdrawing from the JCPOA and increasing hostilities with Iran, deliberately parting ways with one of President Obama's signature issues. But the...
60 Minutes NSFW Angela McArdle is the Chair of the Libertarian Party of Los Angeles and is running for national chair at the 2022 convention. Aaron is 1/4 of the TimeLine Earth Podcast. Both join Pete today to talk about the inevitability of vaccine passports and ways...
68 Minutes Safe for Work Scott Horton is director of the Libertarian Institute, editorial director of Antiwar.com, host of Antiwar Radio on Pacifica, 90.7 FM KPFK in Los Angeles, California and podcasts the Scott Horton Show from ScottHorton.org. He’s the author of...
88 Minutes PG-13 Bird is one-fourth of the hosts of the Timeline Earth podcast. Bird joins Pete to go over the thought of the pre-eminent Post-Marxist in the world, Hans-Hermann Hoppe. Episode 547: Marxism Part 4 - The Utter Brutality of Abimael Guzmán and the...
85 Minutes PG-13 Keith Knight of the "Don't Tread on Anyone" podcast invited Pete and Sal the Agorist to come on his show to about ways to communicate the "self-evident" truths mentioned in the Declaration of Independence to the masses. They also get into ways using...
On COI #92, Will and Kyle discuss the Biden administration's role in developing a flurry of vaccine passport apps alongside tech companies and the implications they will have for human liberty. While the government insists the efforts are fully private, the White...
The US government has preached to its citizens the need to be compliant and accept extreme limitations of freedoms in the name of fighting Covid. However, the government has continued - and even added some new - massive, wasteful spending projects. The US frequently...
On COI #90, Kyle breaks down some good news for Americans’ individual liberty. The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the ‘bump-stock ban’ regulation the DoJ adopted under Trump. The ruling also limits regulators' ability to reinterpret criminal law. New York...
On COI #89, Kyle and Will discuss Joe Biden's plans for the military budget. Recent reports suggest he has no intention to press for any significant cuts and will keep spending around the same level as the Trump administration before him, which itself increased the...
https://youtu.be/UdRaJXs9HbE Capitalist production is the only method by which poverty can be wiped out. ... only freedom allows people to produce in the best and most efficient way possible. Force and violence may “distribute,” but it cannot produce. Intervention...
https://youtu.be/SSX3jlsertI Whenever a third party coercively intervenes in a voluntary exchange, the voluntary parties are both worse off. "Any statute or administrative regulation necessarily makes actions illegal that are not overt initiations of crimes or torts...
https://youtu.be/FfVX4lMm-d0 ... fraud may be considered as theft, because one individual receives the other’s property but does not fulfill his part of the exchange bargain ... Murray N. Rothbard Man, Economy, and State with Power and Market, p. 176 LBRY /...
https://youtu.be/YTzRi58kbpk The gravest crimes in the State’s lexicon are almost invariably not invasions of private person or property, but dangers to its own contentment, for example, treason, desertion of a soldier to the enemy, failure to register for the draft ,...
https://youtu.be/5uKAzDMvefI Dave of the Law of Liberty Podcast and I dissect Rothbard's specific views on fundamental legal concepts. Dave is a graduating law student and alumnus of Mises University. He is one half of the Law of Liberty Podcast with his cohost...
https://youtu.be/8bnxh5Oe0Qs Jose Galison returns to the show to discuss Agorism in action. We also discuss the Neocon Twitter wars, Tower Gang!, the culture war, and what it means to be a man in today's society. Follow Jose Galison: No Way, Jose! YouTube Channel No...
https://youtu.be/P-RZK0AMX7c I invited Nick Ashley on the show to discuss how the COVID19 dystopia has affected the human condition. We also discuss Nick's his journey from neoconservative to libertarian anarchist. In doing so, we touch on several libertarian topics...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYK-2A5Wo14 I had a great chat with John Odermatt about his work in criminal justice reform. We discuss, for the first time on air, how John became interested in criminal justice reform. We also discuss how we balance liberty activism...
Spike Cohen joined Tommy to discuss his history, the libertarian party, lockdowns, libertarian infighting, and cancel culture. Donate Spike YouTube https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/strangerencounterspodcast/spike_cohen.mp3
Tommy invited JJ Boogie to come on the podcast and discuss the culture, touring, music, and raising children in 2021. Donate https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/strangerencounterspodcast/jjboogie.mp3
Josh joins Tommy once again. In this episode they look at the news surrounding the southern border and the facilities children are being kept in. Donate Josh's Twitter https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/strangerencounterspodcast/josh_final.mp3
David Sanchez, vocalist of Havok and host of Riffs or Die, joined Tommy to discuss culture, metal, and touring. https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/strangerencounterspodcast/davidsanchezfinal.mp3 Donate Havok merch RiffsOrDie.com patreon.com/riffsordie...
