The End of U.S. Soft Power

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comThe Israeli military is using AI products from Microsoft to conduct its war in Gaza. Off the shelf AI products powered by the tech company’s Azure cloud computing system and OpenAI are helping the IDF sort through data, translate Arabic, and even pick targets. But AI translations aren’t perfect and these systems often make mistakes.What happens when the consequences are life and death?Associated Press global investigative reporters Garance Burke and Michael Biesecker are part of a team that broke the story about Israel’s use of Microsoft’s commercial AI in a war. They’re on the show today to help us sort through it all.Defining “AI”Off the shelf solutions for warMicrosoft Azure as war’s translator and search engine“The Israel military is one of the leading militaries in the world adopting the use of AI to assist in its war efforts. They’ve been doing this for years.”AI is picking targetsStudents to militantsAI’s mistranslationsBlaming AI for human sinsMatthew’s vision of a hellish automated futureEmployees push backThe money is just too goodHow US tech giants supplied Israel with AI models, raising questions about tech’s role in warfareAs Israel uses US-made AI models in war, concerns arise about tech’s role in who lives and who diesMicrosoft workers protest sale of AI and cloud services to Israeli militarySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comWe’re living in a bizarre age of technofascism. The richest man who has ever lived, a man who dreams of colonizing Mars with his children, is America’s CEO. Donald Trump, the man people voted for, is just the chairman of the board.What does Elon Musk believe? Is there a playbook for DOGE? How bad are things going to get? On this episode of Angry Planet journalist Gil Duran, author of The Nerd Reich newsletter, walks us through what’s coming.Over on The Shatter Zone, journalist and former Angry Planet guest Robert Evans has published a document that Democratic think tanks are passing around. It gives extra context to Duran’s reporting. All the major players and themes we talk about in this episode are there: Curtis Yarvin, Nick Land, the Butterfly Effect.If you want to understand why so many federal workers are getting fired and the Silicon Valley ideology that’s infected D.C., then give us a listen.Curtis Yarvin’s unimpressive programming career“Democracy doesn’t work”Bullshit and cherriesRAGE and RebootThe Chairman of the BoardIt’s always about the money“Move fast and break things” comes to D.C.The Engineer’s DiseaseNick Land is mentioned and I’m sorry“Trump is more intellectual property than man.”The horror of comedySelling the Nerd Reich to the Religious RightThe Nerd ReichAI Video of Trump Sucking Musk's Toes Blasted on Government Office TVsTrump’s AI Gaza Video Is the Tip of a Horrifying ‘Gaz-A-Lago’ IcebergTechno-Fascism Comes to AmericaCurtis Yarvin Says Democracy Is Done. Powerful Conservatives Are Listening.'Reboot' Revealed: Elon Musk's CEO-Dictator PlaybookSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comPresident Donald Trump wants to build an American Iron Dome. He even signed an executive order to make it happen. It’s a terrible idea, one we’ve tried before, and one that will make America less safe.In this episode, Joseph Cirincione returns to the program to detail his personal history with complicated and costly missile defense systems.It all starts during a snowstorm in 1982 and with the High FrontierZombie defense pitchesIt’s almost impossible to knock a bullet out of space with a bulletHow Israel’s Iron Dome worksSlow and hot vs fast and coldLasers don’t work, thanks TellerPitch: lasers in space. Reality: missile batteries in AlaskaThese systems only work half the time and only under perfect conditionsSpaceX contracts abound!A Pentagon Powerpoint slide enters chatJason’s Superman reverie, starring Gene Hackman as Lex LuthorHow do China and Russia react?“The enemy gets a vote.”The last arms control treatyRonald Reagan: anti-nuclear advocateHow SDI kept us from eliminating nuclear weaponsAnatomy of an arms raceAI is coming to nuclear command and controlProject 2025 and Trump Are Cooking Up a Recipe for a New Nuclear Arms RaceThe Iron Dome for America Executive OrderThe national missile defense fantasy—againProliferated Warfighter Space ArchitectureWhy the US General In Charge of Nuclear Weapons Said He Needs AISupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comU.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is the interim head of USAID, for however much longer the agency lasts. For 60 years, the massive bureaucracy was a vehicle for American soft power abroad. Trump, Elon Musk, and all their creatures don’t like it. It might soon be gone.Nicole Widdersheim is the deputy Washington director of Human Rights Watch with a long history of humanitarian work. She’s here on Angry Planet today to walk us through this new era of the American Empire.A brief history of USAIDThe size and cost of USAIDCritiquing a bureaucracyPeople like you when you give them stuffDefense, diplomacy, developmentThe real world consequences of the ending of foreign aidA mallet, not a scalpelSupporters need to get cynicalUSAID did a bad job of defending itselfAmericans don’t care about the human costThe Glorious Republic of Jasonvania wants food aidCongressionally approved rice to North KoreaIt turns out the cruelty is, in fact, the pointAt USAID, Waste and Abuse Runs DeepNo one read those reports on AfghanistanHow China’s “Belt and Road” actually worksThe end of USAID will screw over American farmersTrumpism is a lack of consistency Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comThe pros and cons of globalizationThe end of trust in the global systemWhat was behind the WTO protests of the 1990sHow 1999's WTO Protests Influenced the Policing of Protests TodayChina, China, ChinaThe Covid shockWhite goods?And we have to talk about McDonald’sHow sanctions created the multipolar world“There’s no trust between the U.S., China, and Russia.”Autocrats or historical forces?Martyring Jack MaWhat will happen to pricesHow to make a T-shirtHow much would the iPhone cost if it were made in America?The Houthis attack on the global supply chain“I don’t know why you’re so sad about McDonald’s”Goodbye Globalization: The Return of a DividedSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comBetween the idea and the reality falls the shadow. Marine Corps veteran J.D. Vance will soon be vice president. Pete Hegseth, a man with a Crusader Kings tattoo who doesn’t want women to serve in combat roles, is probably going to be confirmed as secretary of defense. Over New Years, two members of the U.S. military committed domestic terror attacks.Today on Angry Planet we get into the highs and lows of the American military with Marine Corps vet and author Phil Klay. What are the limits of amoral pragmatism?“Most troops are opposed to murder.”A rant about Crusader Kings.Vance’s view.Trump, Hegseth and the Honor of the American MilitaryAsking Pete Hegseth how many pushups he can do during a confirmation hearingThe Cult of ‘Sicario’Anguish and Anger From the Navy SEALs Who Turned In Edward GallagherSen. Ted Cruz insulted a ‘woke, emasculated’ U.S. Army ad. Angry veterans fired back.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comIt’s hard to read the mind of a dictator, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth trying.When Russian President invaded Ukraine in February of 2022, there were a million columns, videos and podcasts explaining “the real reason” for such a “crazy” move.Well, anyone who tells the story from February 2022 is missing decades of Russian interference in Ukraine, with low points coming during the Orange Revolution of 2005 and then in 2014. The Euromaidan protests ended with the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych and Russia’s annexation of Crimea.But what made Putin take that next step eight years later?Lucian Kim is a journalist with vast experience in the region, working in Berlin and as NPR’s bureau chief in Moscow. If you can trust anyone to know what brought the world to war, it’s him—hell, he wrote a book on the subject: Putin’s Revenge: Why Russia Invaded Ukraine.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comThis week on Angry Planet writer David Faris joins us to talk about his time in Syria and life in America.David’s travels from Lebanon to SyriaWhen people hoped Bashar al-Assad would change SyriaWhat a real totalitarian state feels likeThe nightmare that follows the collapse of a dictatorshipOnce again, the ugly legacy of colonialism rears its headThe post-Assad playersAfter 15 years, everyone is tired of warTurning to domestic politicsDon’t panic“Trump will govern very corruptly.”Talking politics with childrenThe Trump Cinematic Universe“We need billionaires to fight billionaires.”The collapse of the liberal intelligentsiaThe McDonald’s bombing in BeirutSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comThis week Angry Planet turns its attention to Canada. Global News investigative journalist Stewart Bell joins us to walk through his two latest pieces and give Matthew a crash course on Canadian history. What do outlaw motorcycle gangs, extrajudicial assassinations, an Indian separatist movement, and a resurgent Islamic State all have in common?Canada.Bell is here to explain it all.The pros and cons of extremists recruiting on social mediaAre you talking to a fed?Remembering Air India Flight 182 or Matthew learns Canadian historyThe Khalistan movementWhat makes a 14-year-old interested in Islamic State?Eric Hoffer on what makes a True BelieverSpreading ideologies with an answering machineThe budding new era of political violenceVisas as a tool of foreign interferenceUsing gangs to assassinate your political enemiesThe ups and downs of hiring biker gangs for intelligence workIndia’s superpower glow upISIS arrests are spiking in Canada and youths are driving the resurgenceInvestigation: Visas have become an Indian foreign interference toolSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On today’s episode, I talked to Kollen Post about how and why Silicon Valley markets their drones as “battle tested in Ukraine.” We recorded it on Thanksgiving, Jason was busy spending time with his family, and Post and I went down some weird philosophical rabbit holes.Impromptu drone developersThe Western image of the Ukrainian drone operatorOpen source is kingThe decentralized nature of Ukrainian societyFundraising for warThe ignorance of the American peopleTrump’s promise: You can forget itAmericans want to be heroesPalmer Luckey is selling drone piece loot cratesiPhone vs. LinuxJamming with GithubOnshoring the drone manufacturing process‘Battle-tested in Ukraine’ — How US drone makers turned Ukraine into a tagline to sell westUkraine’s drones have a reputation for low cost. Buntar Aerospace wants to make them boutiqueHow Palantir Is Using AI in UkraineThe Anduril merch storeSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.