Angry Planet

The world’s great military powers seem to have forgotten how to end wars. The traditional Clausewitzian model of armed conflict sees war as an expression of political power. It’s about using military might to extract concessions from an opponent. But the enemy always gets a vote and defeat must always look more attractive than the continuation of fighting. Russia wants unconditional surrender from Ukraine. Trump and Hegseth want Iran to give up everything. Given those circumstances, why not keep fighting?It wasn’t always this way.On this episode of Angry Planet, Jason stops by with guest Sam Winter-Levy, a senior fellow studying technology and international affairs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Winter-Levy just co-authored an article in Foreign Affairs about how the myth of unconditional surrender has changed how the world fights wars for the worse.The myth of unconditional surrenderGermany and Japan’s armies at the end of World War IIThe difference between the Gulf War and the Iraq WarHow nuclear weapons change the bargainWar and diplomacy in 2026How to negotiate with a nuclear superpower or die tryingThe AI and nuclear war tangentThe Myth of Military VictorySupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Air Force Secretary Troy Meink casually dropped the news that America had space-based weapons during the keynote address at a cyber conference. “We are increasing readiness against existing threats, and the United States has on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the Joint Force against hostile adversary action,” he said.But what, exactly, are those space weapons? Why has space become so important for war? How do we fight up there and what are the consequences?On this episode of Angry Planet, Bleddyn Bowen and Cameron Hunter return to the show to answer all my questions about war in space. Bowen is a professor of astropolitics at Durham University and Hunter is a researcher at the University of Copenhagen. Both are deeply knowledgeable about deterrence, lasers, missile defense systems, and the Fallout video game series.EMPs, jammers, and kineticsWhy missile defense (mostly) doesn’t workGPS and GLONASS and BeiDou and GalileoIntelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance from SpaceRumsfeld in spaceCan lasers work?What are we fighting for up there?The historic folly of Golden DomeMoscow and Beijing’s Perspective on U.S. DefenseSome Fallout talkSecAF announces on-orbit space control weaponsThe ambivalent nuclear politics of Fallout video gamesOriginal Sin: Power, Technology and War in Outer SpaceWar in Space: Strategy, Spacepower, GeopoliticsSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A lot of people are afraid right now. I’ve lost track of the times OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta have announced they lost control of their AI. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei wants to “pace the frontier” and Bill Gates is warning there’s a non-zero chance that AI will kill billions. The US military has embraced AI and it’s leading to grave mistakes. In Ukraine, an AI-controlled drone has killed three people.Something is bothering me about all these stories and it’s not the thought that artificial intelligence could wipe out humanity. It’s the distance AI has given human designers from the consequences of their actions.This week on the show Eryk Salvaggio stops by to talk about intentionality, design, AI doom, and the messy way we’re all talking about this new technology. Salvaggio is a Gates Scholar at Cambridge University.A bad frame from the jumpDefining AIWhat the Hugging Face attack was and wasn’tWho’s accountable?Our anthropomorphic media narrativeDesign vs intentionalityLanguage loses its magicSpin not marketingGeopolitical stakesPrompts and outputsThe future of regulationRogue AI didn’t breach Hugging Face, human decisions didUS military had close call after using AI for false intelligence report, sources sayInside the US ‘Kill Chain’ that Destroyed an Iranian SchoolSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Journalist Jasper Craven joins the show today to talk about his new book God Forgives, Brothers Don’t. The book is a deep dive into the history of the American military academy and how it has shaped the country’s conception of manhood. Craven’s investigation led him from Valley Forge to West Point, uncovered a strange 20th century Joe Rogan who changed his name so it sounded like a lion’s roar, and landed him multiple interviews with Graham Platner.A brief history of Jasper CravenWhere lost boys flyThe Nancy Mace skeleton keyFrom West Point to the Citadel“The gentleman soldier”Army engineers as public relations campaignBernarr MacfaddenMasculinity, American styleThe Scabbard and the BladeOfficers versus enlisted“Send me”“What the military does is create powerful bonds between men.”God Forgives, Brothers Don’tThe Complications of Graham Platner’s Veteran IdentityBattle of the SexesSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The world I grew up in no longer exists. The decades after World War II were boom times for free trade lovers. During the Pax Americana it seemed that most diplomatic problems could be solved by exporting blue jeans and lowering the cost of consumer goods for everyone. But in 2026 trade is a serious weapon and economic policy seems less a path to prosperity and more a weapon for waging war.On this episode of Angry Planet, Chad P Bown is here to talk about his new book How to Win a Trade War. Bown is a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics and co-authored the book with journalist Soumaya Keynes. The book is a brisk walk through a history of economic conflict full of humor and history.The world according to nerd trade economistsIf we must fight, fight this way“It’s a China story”Rare earth minerals, magnets, and the weaponization of tradeWhat’s the goal of our trade war?The Hormuz of it allThe trade war against China isn’t going greatChina’s delicate danceTrade war as precursor to kinetic warSome thoughts on robotics and AIBuy How to Win a Trade WarSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.