Here it is: my Scott Horton themed “Best of 2017” list. No “who we lost this year” lists, no “top 10 news stories that changed the world” lists and no recaps of the weather. We’re talking war machine and if you are light on current Middle East foreign policy knowledge, then Scott Horton is the cure. And if you’re like me, you need be hit over the head with information time and time again before it sinks in.
I mentioned in a previous Denver Libertarian article that there is a ton information is out there regarding the reality of US foreign policy. Some resources are more accessible than others, but the podcast episodes listed below are very accessible when you are on the go, in your car, or sitting in your office chair. There are a lot of players in the foreign policy world and it’s a challenge to keep all the factions straight; who is on who’s side and how often is the US on both sides.
So when you are nursing your hangover on New Year’s Day, listen to these podcasts and hear Scott give a digital beat down of the standard foreign policy talking points that you get from both parties.
Of course, you could always go straight to the source at www.libertarianinstitute.org, www.scotthorton.org for a daily dose of foreign policy, anti-war goodness that is Scott Horton, but sometimes it’s fun to hear people quiz Scott and play devil’s advocate; this will no doubt help with water cooler debate skills or drunken bar room debates, whichever you prefer.
This by no means an comprehensive list – let me know if I missed one of your favorites. Email me and I’ll add it to the list.
Also, go buy Scott Horton’s book Fool’s Errand. I own it and highly recommend it. Give it to your Republican and Democrat friends. Sit back and watch them throw it at the wall in disgust.
Horton is cranking out these appearances faster than I can listen to them and that’s a good thing. Queue up these podcasts and learn something new.
Full disclosure, I get nothing out of any of the links in this post. I just think these are great episodes to gain some knowledge. Or get you fired up if you disagree. Enjoy!
The Tom Woods Show
11.13.17 Episode #1037 A War on Terror Scorecard, with Scott Horton
Start here for the best overview because this one has it all. Tom and Scott work their way through the sordid reality of seven “interventions” in which the US currently embroiled. Seven? Yes, seven (that we know of). This show is so packed full of information you might need to listen to it twice. Zoom on over to the 35 minute mark for Yemen, where the full wight of US culpability in the vomiting and diarrhea-ing to death of the people is plainly evident all to placate Saudi. Listen now to see what other horrors Tom and Scott reveal.
The Jason Stapleton Program
12.12.17 Episode #659 The Great Scott Horton
This is Scott’s second appearance on the program, see below for the first appearance. Jason and Scott tackle Yemen, North Korea, and Scott has an epic rant regarding Israel-Palestine. Love it or hate it, you don’t want to miss it. If nothing else, it will inspire you to look into it instead of avoiding it when the topic comes up with your friends. Scott also manages to throw in Building 7 curve ball that might just catch you off guard. You might not like it, but it will certainly challenge your beliefs.
Dave Smith’s Part of the Problem
12.12.17 Episode 56 Scott Horton
The show starts with domestic issues and the cognitive dissonance of tacitly allowing force used in other neighborhoods and never thinking that same force could be visited upon you, “get out of jail free cards,” double standards and other perks for cops and the ridiculousness of what has been referred to by some as the “newly” politicized FBI (Wilson never targeted any of his personal enemies, right?). The latter half of the shows goes full boar into foreign policy with Horton expounding on why he prefers the term “backdraft” in regards to our foreign policy and John McCain laments the US Air Force is flying as Iran’s Air Force in Iraq, but is totally cool with the US doing a similar thing in Yemen. That can’t be true, can it?
Freedomain Radio with Stefan Molyneaux
12.12.17 Episode 3928 Endless War | Scott Horton and Stefan Molyneaux
Stefan and Scott begin with Cold War foreign policy and the US attempting to give the USSR their own Vietnam, the US population’s penchant for referring to the Clinton years as “peacetime,” and the similarities between the Iraq embargo and the current Yemen embargo. Throw in a little bit of “how do you goad the world’s superpower” to bleed themselves dry and how this whole Middle East mess is far beyond Bin Laden’s wildest dreams that would only be better if the US were to take out Iran and you’ve got yourself a great show.
Unregistered with Thaddeus Russell
10.03.17 Episode #27: Scott Horton
The episode begins with a summary of the grisly truth of the war in Yemen including the US-led air campaign against civilian infrastructure, how moving the central bank contributed to the current cholera epidemic and what the IMF and World Bank have to do with creating a 90% export economy based on coffee (and how that might backfire just a little bit under a US sponsored blockade). The conversation continues with the US effort to placate Saudi as an unspoken part of the Iran nuclear deal and musings on how different the world would be if the US had just issued a Marque and Reprisal and killed Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri and told the world how awesome freedom and tolerance are. But there’s more in this one! A hypothetical Japanese takeover of California in 1941, Churchill’s blockade of Germany in WWII and why everything is Woodrow Wilson’s fault. You don’t want to miss out on listening to this one. Disagreements abound, yet no name calling; this is what good debate is all about.
Contra Krugman
09.16.17 Episode #104 Another 9/11 Anniversary, and the Political Class Is Still Stupid (and/or Evil)
This one packs a punch for a 40 minute podcast and goes way beyond economics. Tom, Bob and Scott discuss a 9/11 Krugman blog post “The Day Nothing Changed,” and the discussion meanders from the enduring legacy of the Bush ideology of embracing the dark side of Force as the new American Way (otherwise the terrorists win, right?), to whether or not the Pearl Harbor attack proved an existential threat to the US and wrap up with the reality of how Obama’s support for “moderates” in Syria aided Al Qaeda (I thought those were the bad guys?). Oh, and Participatory Fascism! Better listen to find out about that!
Dangerous History Podcast
11.02.17 Episode #145 Fool’s Errand: Scott Horton on America’s War in Afghanistan
This show is packed with great book references including books by Anond Gopal, Eric Margolis and most notably, Gary Berntsen’s book “Jawbreaker” which includes a recounting of Bush/Cheney’s refusal to allow CIA to call in the Rangers and Marines to help corner and kill Osama bin Laden and al-Zawahiri in December 2001. The show dives into some very detailed incidents, to wit: what does a local tribesman’s logging business have to do with US military adventures in the Korengal Valley? And would it have been better to have burnt all the dollars versus spending them in Afghanistan?
Wake Up Call Podcast
10.20.17 Episode #171 Why It’s Time to End the War in Afghanistan
The show starts with a discussion on the unifying aspect of fighting foreigners and the apparent “metrics of success” being: hey, as long as we don’t leave, we can’t lose, right? The show ventures back to the Reagan era Operation Cyclone and the horribly classic Zbigniew Brzezinski quote regarding “stirred-up Muslims” and how we are always helping the mythical “moderates” in nearly every conflict. Finally, the show wraps with how easily Americans were led to conflate the Taliban and Al Qaeda and the lies we tell ourselves to shrug it off like it doesn’t matter when it comes to our 40 years long meddling in the Middle East.
The Jason Stapleton Program
11.22.16 Episode: Scott Horton Talks Yemen
Lest you think shedding light on foreign policy follies is something new for Scott (other than thousands of archived interviews that he has from his own show), check out this interview with Jason from about a year ago. If you didn’t know about the situation in Yemen at this time, big surprise, Scott already did.
