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A bonus episode this week. On May 22, I moderated a panel organized by Vita Golod and the UNC Center for Slavic, Eurasian, and East European Studies. The focus was on the U.S.-Ukraine Mineral Security Partnership, and it features Ivan Us, Chief Consultant at the Center for Foreign Policy at the National Institute for Strategic Studies; Jim Mullinax, a Senior Foreign Service Officer and former Consul General at the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu (closed in 2020); Grzegorz Stec, Senior Analyst and Head of the Brussels Office at MERICS; and Xu Qinduo, journalist at CGTN and Senior Fellow at the Pangoal Institution. The panel explores the background and the implications of the minerals deal, signed on May 1, 2025, for the ongoing war in Ukraine, and prospects for post-war reconstruction. I hope you enjoy what I thought was a fascinating conversation.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Israel's brutal genocide in Gaza reached new disastrous levels, and some European governments have taken a slight shift in tone of their support of Israel. Tune in for another episode of Give The People What They Want! with Zoe Alexandra, Indian journalist Prasanth R and Roger McKenzie, international editor of Morning Star, as they dig into this story and more. They discuss the ground invasion of Gaza by the Israeli Occupation Forces, talks between Iran and the United States, an update on the situation in DRC, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's calls for the establishment of a pan-Eurasian platform, the arrest of human rights defender Ruth Eleonora López in El Salvador as well as the upcoming elections in Venezuela.
History, Marshall Poe wrote in December 2023, shows that Israel will never win a “war of occupation”. Eighteen months later, with Israel on the brink of a full scale occupation of Gaza, Poe's argument is even more relevant. the Gaza war, the historian warns, is turning into Israel's Vietnam - an unwinnable occupation that will only bring shame on the invaders. Trust Poe on the Vietnam analogy. His last book was about the Mai Lai massacre in Vietnam, so he's all too familiar with the catastrophic consequences of imperial wars of counter-insurgency. Five Takeaways * Counterinsurgency operations typically evolve into prolonged occupations, as forces cannot easily identify and eliminate insurgents without alienating the local population.* Military occupations historically fail when the entire civilian population becomes hostile to occupying forces, leading to ethical compromises and potential atrocities.* The My Lai massacre in Vietnam exemplifies how poor intelligence and leadership can result in civilian casualties when soldiers cannot distinguish between combatants and non-combatants.* Population relocation, a strategy being discussed for Gaza, has historically been catastrophic whenever attempted in the 20th century.* The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has limited viable solutions, with Poe suggesting the two-state solution is no longer realistic and expressing skepticism that external powers like the US can resolve the situation.Marshall Tillbrook Poe is an American historian, writer, editor, and founder of the New Books Network, an online collection of podcast interviews with a wide range of nonfiction authors. He has taught Russian, European, Eurasian, and world history at various universities including Harvard, Columbia, University of Iowa, and, currently, the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Poe is the author or editor of a number of books for children and adults.Keen On America is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting the daily KEEN ON show, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy interview series. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe
In Strangers in the Family: Gender, Patriliny, and the Chinese in Colonial Indonesia (SAPP, 2023), Guo-Quan Seng provides a gendered history of settler Chinese community formation in Indonesia during the Dutch colonial period (1816–1942). At the heart of this story lies the creolization of patrilineal Confucian marital and familial norms to the colonial legal, moral, and sexual conditions of urban Java. Departing from male-centered narratives of overseas Chinese communities, Strangers in the Family tells the history of community- formation from the perspective of women who were subordinate to, and alienated from, full Chinese selfhood. From native concubines and mothers, creole Chinese daughters, and wives and matriarchs, to the first generation of colonial-educated feminists, Seng showcases women's moral agency as they negotiated, manipulated, and debated men in positions of authority over their rights in marriage formation and dissolution. In dialogue with critical studies of colonial Eurasian intimacies, this book explores Asian-centered inter-ethnic patterns of intimate encounters. It shows how contestations over women's place in marriage and in society were formative of a Chinese racial identity in colonial Indonesia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies
In Strangers in the Family: Gender, Patriliny, and the Chinese in Colonial Indonesia (SAPP, 2023), Guo-Quan Seng provides a gendered history of settler Chinese community formation in Indonesia during the Dutch colonial period (1816–1942). At the heart of this story lies the creolization of patrilineal Confucian marital and familial norms to the colonial legal, moral, and sexual conditions of urban Java. Departing from male-centered narratives of overseas Chinese communities, Strangers in the Family tells the history of community- formation from the perspective of women who were subordinate to, and alienated from, full Chinese selfhood. From native concubines and mothers, creole Chinese daughters, and wives and matriarchs, to the first generation of colonial-educated feminists, Seng showcases women's moral agency as they negotiated, manipulated, and debated men in positions of authority over their rights in marriage formation and dissolution. In dialogue with critical studies of colonial Eurasian intimacies, this book explores Asian-centered inter-ethnic patterns of intimate encounters. It shows how contestations over women's place in marriage and in society were formative of a Chinese racial identity in colonial Indonesia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network
In Strangers in the Family: Gender, Patriliny, and the Chinese in Colonial Indonesia (SAPP, 2023), Guo-Quan Seng provides a gendered history of settler Chinese community formation in Indonesia during the Dutch colonial period (1816–1942). At the heart of this story lies the creolization of patrilineal Confucian marital and familial norms to the colonial legal, moral, and sexual conditions of urban Java. Departing from male-centered narratives of overseas Chinese communities, Strangers in the Family tells the history of community- formation from the perspective of women who were subordinate to, and alienated from, full Chinese selfhood. From native concubines and mothers, creole Chinese daughters, and wives and matriarchs, to the first generation of colonial-educated feminists, Seng showcases women's moral agency as they negotiated, manipulated, and debated men in positions of authority over their rights in marriage formation and dissolution. In dialogue with critical studies of colonial Eurasian intimacies, this book explores Asian-centered inter-ethnic patterns of intimate encounters. It shows how contestations over women's place in marriage and in society were formative of a Chinese racial identity in colonial Indonesia. Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/southeast-asian-studies
In Strangers in the Family: Gender, Patriliny, and the Chinese in Colonial Indonesia (SAPP, 2023), Guo-Quan Seng provides a gendered history of settler Chinese community formation in Indonesia during the Dutch colonial period (1816–1942). At the heart of this story lies the creolization of patrilineal Confucian marital and familial norms to the colonial legal, moral, and sexual conditions of urban Java. Departing from male-centered narratives of overseas Chinese communities, Strangers in the Family tells the history of community- formation from the perspective of women who were subordinate to, and alienated from, full Chinese selfhood. From native concubines and mothers, creole Chinese daughters, and wives and matriarchs, to the first generation of colonial-educated feminists, Seng showcases women's moral agency as they negotiated, manipulated, and debated men in positions of authority over their rights in marriage formation and dissolution. In dialogue with critical studies of colonial Eurasian intimacies, this book explores Asian-centered inter-ethnic patterns of intimate encounters. It shows how contestations over women's place in marriage and in society were formative of a Chinese racial identity in colonial Indonesia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/chinese-studies
In this episode, we focus on the often-overlooked geographies of Eurasian connectivity with Dr. Wojciech Kębłowski, whose research brings attention to the Polish border towns of Małaszewicze and Narevka, key yet rarely discussed nodes in global infrastructure networks. As Eurasia undergoes a dramatic reconfiguration—with initiatives like China's Belt and Road Initiative, the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor, and numerous regional projects vying for influence—we discuss what happens at the edges. How are logistics nodes developed? Who lives in these nodes of connection, and how do they navigate the shifting tides of global ambition? Our conversation spans local politics, logistics, labor, railway connectivity, and geopolitics, offering a multidimensional view of border hubs where the global meets the local. These sites are not only shaped by supply chain logics but also by mounting geopolitical rivalries, as powers compete for infrastructural influence across continents. Dr. Kębłowski paints a vivid picture of Małaszewicze, once a booming railway town employing over 10,000 people, now economically depressed but still strategically vital. While geopolitical tensions—like the war in Ukraine—have disrupted trade flows, they haven't derailed Małaszewicze's importance. The town's traffic has rebounded, a testament to its logistical centrality. Dr. Kębłowski discussed the hopes of renewal spurred by the BRI and how local leaders have actively tried to position Małaszewicze on the global map—courting Chinese delegations, lobbying Warsaw, and crafting narratives of international relevance. He shares insights into how these symbolic and practical efforts illustrate both the ambitions and the limitations faced by peripheries striving to assert their place in global politics and connectivity networks. GUEST BIO: Wojciech Kębłowski is an urban researcher, photographer, and Assistant Professor in Urban Studies and Planning at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, with affiliations at the Université libre de Bruxelles. He will begin a new professorship at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in June 2025. His research sits at the intersection of urban, transport, and political geography, and draws on critical social and decolonial theory. It spans three main areas: the political economy and governance of “sustainable” transport, the urban geography of Global China, and alternatives to capitalist urbanism, including circular economy and degrowth practices. Wojciech's research is global in scope, with fieldwork and collaborations in diverse cities in Western Europe (Aubagne, Brussels, Luxembourg, Helsinki, Madrid), Eastern Europe (Sopot, Wrocław, Tallinn), China (Chengdu) and Cuba (Santiago). He uses a range of qualitative methods and is interested in photography as a research tool and a creative practice. Wojciech is involved in several international research projects, including LiFT (on fare-related mobility transitions), CARIN-PT (on flexible and on-demand transport), and previously led PUTSPACE and CIRCITY, focused on public transport and circular economies, respectively. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science
Between 304 and 589 CE, China was divided into rivaling regimes occupying North and South China. While the north was controlled by a series of non-Han Chinese peoples, ultimately culminating in the Xianbei Northern Wei, the south was ruled by ruling houses of Han Chinese descent. In this companion episode to the interview ith Scott Pearce on the Northern Wei, Professor Andrew Chittick joins us to discuss the Southern Dynasties, from their development, to their society and culture, to their relationship with their northern neighbor, and finally to their legacy. Contributors: Andrew Chittick: Andrew Chittick is the E. Leslie Peter Professor of East Asian Humanities and History at Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL. His research focuses on the culture of early south China and maritime trade relations with Southeast Asia. He is the author of numerous articles and two full-length books: Patronage and Community in Medieval China: The Xiangyang Garrison, 400-600 CE (SUNY Press, 2010) and The Jiankang Empire in Chinese and World History (Oxford University Press, 2020). The latter book introduces a ground-breaking new perspective on the history and political identity of what is now south China in the early medieval period (3rd-6th centuries CE), including its evolving ethnic identity, innovative military and economic systems, and engagement with broader Sino-Southeast Asian and Buddhist cultures. Yiming Ha: Yiming Ha is the Rand Postdoctoral Fellow in Asian Studies at Pomona College. His current research is on military mobilization and state-building in China between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, focusing on how military institutions changed over time, how the state responded to these changes, the disconnect between the center and localities, and the broader implications that the military had on the state. His project highlights in particular the role of the Mongol Yuan in introducing an alternative form of military mobilization that radically transformed the Chinese state. He is also interested in military history, nomadic history, comparative Eurasian state-building, and the history of maritime interactions in early modern East Asia. He received his BA from UCLA, his MPhil from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and his PhD from UCLA. He is also the book review editor for Ming Studies. Credits: Episode no. 22 Release date: May 9, 2025 Recording date: February 10, 2025 Recording location: St. Petersburg, FL/Los Angeles, CA Images: Stone pixiu 貔貅 (winged lion), from the tomb of Xiao Hui, a prince of Southern Liang (502-557), in Nanjing. (Image Source) Greatest extent of the Liang Dynasty, one of the southern dynasties. (Image Source) Liang Emperor Wu, who reigned the longest out of all the Southern Dynasty emperors, from 502 to 549. His reign saw the growing importance of Buddhism. (Image Source) A scroll of tributary emperors paying homage to the Liang emperor. The Southern Dynasties oversaw a prosperous commercial economy, with trading networks spanning East and Southeast Asia. Song copy of the original Liang painting. (Image Source) A Tang dynasty copy of Wang Xizhi's (303–361), Lantingji xu, one of the most famous pieces of calligraphy in Chinese history. The Southern Dynasties are known for their cultural production. (Image Source) Selected References: Chittick, Andrew. The Jiankang Empire in Chinese and World History. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020. Dien, Albert E. Six Dynasties Civilization. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2009. Dien, Albert E. and Keith N. Knapp, eds. The Cambridge History of China: Volume 2, The Six Dynasties, 220–589. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020. Graff, David A. Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300–900. London and New York: Routledge, 2002. Lewis, Mark Edward. China between Empires: The Northern and Southern Dynasties. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2009.
By subjugating Ukraine, he hopes to reassert Russia's status as a great power, discourage other neighbours from pivoting west, and distract from domestic issues through nationalist fervour. Ultimately, Putin fears the erosion of Russia's imperial legacy and the contagion of democratic aspirations among his own people—making Ukraine not just a strategic interest, but an existential concern for his rule and survival. In other words, he will not stop, unless stopped. ----------Keir Giles has spent his career watching, studying, and explaining Russia. Keir's work has appeared in a wide range of academic and military publications across Europe and in North America, and he is a regular contributor and commentator on Russian affairs for international print and broadcast media. He is a Senior Consulting Fellow at the UK's Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), and also works with the Conflict Studies Research Centre (CSRC), a group of deep subject matter experts on Eurasian security formerly attached to the British Ministry of Defence. He is a regular contributor to research projects on Russian security issues in the U.S., UK, and Europe.----------BOOKS:Who Will Defend Europe? An Awakened Russia and a Sleeping Continent (2024)Order Keir's new book: https://amzn.to/4cFI1b6Russia's War on Everybody: And What it Means for You (2022)Moscow Rules: What Drives Russia to Confront the West (2019)The Turning Point for Russian Foreign Policy (2017)The State of the NATO-Russia Reset (2011)Potential Challenges to Public Order and Social Stability in the Russian Federation (2011)----------LINKS:Order Keir's new book: https://amzn.to/4cFI1b6https://www.chathamhouse.org/about-us/our-people/keir-gileshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keir_Gileshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/keir-giles-499a489/----------Your support is massively appreciated! SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon CurtainNEXT EVENTS - LVIV, KYIV AND ODESA THIS MAY.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur first live events this year in Lviv and Kyiv were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. We may add more venues to the program, depending on the success of the fundraising campaign. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasWe need to scale up our support for Ukraine, and these events are designed to have a major impact. Your support in making it happen is greatly appreciated. All events will be recorded professionally and published for free on the Silicon Curtain channel. Where possible, we will also live-stream events.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------SILICON CURTAIN FILM FUNDRAISER - A project to make a documentary film in Ukraine, to raise awareness of Ukraine's struggle and in supporting a team running aid convoys to Ukraine's frontline towns.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------
Thanks to Jayson for suggesting this week's topic, the new "dire wolf"! Also, possibly the same but maybe a different Jayson is the youngest member of the Cedar Springs Homeschool Science Olympiad Team, who are on their way to the Science Olympiad Nationals! They're almost to their funding goal if you can help out. Further reading: Dire wolves and woolly mammoths: Why scientists are worried about de-extinction The story of dire wolves goes beyond de-extinction These fluffy white wolves explain everything wrong with bringing back extinct animals Dire Wolves Split from Living Canids 5.7 Million Years Ago: Study This prehistoric monster is the largest dog that ever lived and was able to crush bone with its deadly teeth – but was wiped out by cats "Dire wolf" puppies: An artist's interpretation of the dire wolf (red coats) and grey wolves (grey coats) [taken from fourth link above]: The "mammoth fur" mice: Show transcript: Welcome to Strange Animals Podcast. I'm your host, Kate Shaw. This week we have a suggestion from Jayson, who wants to learn about the so-called “new” dire wolf. Before we get started, a big shout-out to another Jayson, or maybe the same one I'm honestly not sure, who is the youngest member of the Cedar Springs Homeschool Science Olympiad Team. They've advanced to the nationals! There's a link in the show notes if you want to donate a little to help them with their travel expenses. This is a local team to me so I'm especially proud of them, and not to brag, but I've actually met Jayson and his sister and they're both smart, awesome kids. Now, let's find out about this new dire wolf that was announced last month. In early April 2025, a biotech company called Colossal Biosciences made the extraordinary claim that they had produced three dire wolf puppies. Since dire wolves went extinct around 13,000 years ago, this is a really big deal. Before we get into the details of Colossal's claim, let's refresh our memory about the dire wolf. We talked about it in episode 207, so I've taken a lot of my information from that episode. According to a 2021 study published in Nature, 5.7 million years ago, the shared ancestor of dire wolves and many other canids lived in Eurasia. Sea levels were low enough that the Bering land bridge, also called Beringia, connected the very eastern part of Asia to the very western part of North America. One population of this canid migrated into North America while the rest of the population stayed in Asia. The two populations evolved separately until the North American population developed into what we now call dire wolves. Meanwhile, the Eurasian population developed into many of the modern species we know today, and some of those eventually migrated into North America too. By the time the gray wolf and coyote populated North America, a little over one million years ago, the dire wolf was so distantly related to it that even when their territories overlapped, the species avoided each other and didn't interbreed. We've talked about canids in many previous episodes, including how readily they interbreed with each other, so for the dire wolf to remain genetically isolated, it was obviously not closely related at all to other canids at that point. The dire wolf looked a lot like a grey wolf, but researchers now think that was due more to convergent evolution than to its relationship with wolves. Both lived in the same habitats: plains, grasslands, and forests. The dire wolf was slightly taller on average than the modern grey wolf, which can grow a little over three feet tall at the shoulder, or 97 cm, but it was much heavier and more solidly built. It wouldn't have been able to run nearly as fast, but it could attack and kill larger animals. The dire wolf went extinct around 13,000 years ago, but Colossal now claims that they're no longer extinct. There are now exactly three dire wolves in the world, two males and a female,
In this episode, we focus on the often-overlooked geographies of Eurasian connectivity with Dr. Wojciech Kębłowski, whose research brings attention to the Polish border towns of Małaszewicze and Narevka, key yet rarely discussed nodes in global infrastructure networks. As Eurasia undergoes a dramatic reconfiguration—with initiatives like China's Belt and Road Initiative, the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor, and numerous regional projects vying for influence—we discuss what happens at the edges. How are logistics nodes developed? Who lives in these nodes of connection, and how do they navigate the shifting tides of global ambition? Our conversation spans local politics, logistics, labor, railway connectivity, and geopolitics, offering a multidimensional view of border hubs where the global meets the local. These sites are not only shaped by supply chain logics but also by mounting geopolitical rivalries, as powers compete for infrastructural influence across continents. Dr. Kębłowski paints a vivid picture of Małaszewicze, once a booming railway town employing over 10,000 people, now economically depressed but still strategically vital. While geopolitical tensions—like the war in Ukraine—have disrupted trade flows, they haven't derailed Małaszewicze's importance. The town's traffic has rebounded, a testament to its logistical centrality. Dr. Kębłowski discussed the hopes of renewal spurred by the BRI and how local leaders have actively tried to position Małaszewicze on the global map—courting Chinese delegations, lobbying Warsaw, and crafting narratives of international relevance. He shares insights into how these symbolic and practical efforts illustrate both the ambitions and the limitations faced by peripheries striving to assert their place in global politics and connectivity networks. GUEST BIO: Wojciech Kębłowski is an urban researcher, photographer, and Assistant Professor in Urban Studies and Planning at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, with affiliations at the Université libre de Bruxelles. He will begin a new professorship at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in June 2025. His research sits at the intersection of urban, transport, and political geography, and draws on critical social and decolonial theory. It spans three main areas: the political economy and governance of “sustainable” transport, the urban geography of Global China, and alternatives to capitalist urbanism, including circular economy and degrowth practices. Wojciech's research is global in scope, with fieldwork and collaborations in diverse cities in Western Europe (Aubagne, Brussels, Luxembourg, Helsinki, Madrid), Eastern Europe (Sopot, Wrocław, Tallinn), China (Chengdu) and Cuba (Santiago). He uses a range of qualitative methods and is interested in photography as a research tool and a creative practice. Wojciech is involved in several international research projects, including LiFT (on fare-related mobility transitions), CARIN-PT (on flexible and on-demand transport), and previously led PUTSPACE and CIRCITY, focused on public transport and circular economies, respectively. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/world-affairs
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN. 1/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1941 CANADA, ATKANTIC CHARTER
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN. 2/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1942 HARIMAN AND STALIN
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN. 3/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1942 WC NORTH AMERICA
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN. 4/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1943 CASABLANCA
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN. 5/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1943 QEBEC
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN 6/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1944 WC AND ALEXANDER
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN. 7/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1944 QQEBEC
SAME 1939 GAME PLAN TODAY: SET ALL AGAINST ALL AND GRAB WHAT WE CAN. 8/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. 1963 HARRIMAN & ACHESON
In this episode, we focus on the often-overlooked geographies of Eurasian connectivity with Dr. Wojciech Kębłowski, whose research brings attention to the Polish border towns of Małaszewicze and Narevka, key yet rarely discussed nodes in global infrastructure networks. As Eurasia undergoes a dramatic reconfiguration—with initiatives like China's Belt and Road Initiative, the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor, and numerous regional projects vying for influence—we discuss what happens at the edges. How are logistics nodes developed? Who lives in these nodes of connection, and how do they navigate the shifting tides of global ambition? Our conversation spans local politics, logistics, labor, railway connectivity, and geopolitics, offering a multidimensional view of border hubs where the global meets the local. These sites are not only shaped by supply chain logics but also by mounting geopolitical rivalries, as powers compete for infrastructural influence across continents. Dr. Kębłowski paints a vivid picture of Małaszewicze, once a booming railway town employing over 10,000 people, now economically depressed but still strategically vital. While geopolitical tensions—like the war in Ukraine—have disrupted trade flows, they haven't derailed Małaszewicze's importance. The town's traffic has rebounded, a testament to its logistical centrality. Dr. Kębłowski discussed the hopes of renewal spurred by the BRI and how local leaders have actively tried to position Małaszewicze on the global map—courting Chinese delegations, lobbying Warsaw, and crafting narratives of international relevance. He shares insights into how these symbolic and practical efforts illustrate both the ambitions and the limitations faced by peripheries striving to assert their place in global politics and connectivity networks. GUEST BIO: Wojciech Kębłowski is an urban researcher, photographer, and Assistant Professor in Urban Studies and Planning at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, with affiliations at the Université libre de Bruxelles. He will begin a new professorship at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in June 2025. His research sits at the intersection of urban, transport, and political geography, and draws on critical social and decolonial theory. It spans three main areas: the political economy and governance of “sustainable” transport, the urban geography of Global China, and alternatives to capitalist urbanism, including circular economy and degrowth practices. Wojciech's research is global in scope, with fieldwork and collaborations in diverse cities in Western Europe (Aubagne, Brussels, Luxembourg, Helsinki, Madrid), Eastern Europe (Sopot, Wrocław, Tallinn), China (Chengdu) and Cuba (Santiago). He uses a range of qualitative methods and is interested in photography as a research tool and a creative practice. Wojciech is involved in several international research projects, including LiFT (on fare-related mobility transitions), CARIN-PT (on flexible and on-demand transport), and previously led PUTSPACE and CIRCITY, focused on public transport and circular economies, respectively. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network
In this episode, we focus on the often-overlooked geographies of Eurasian connectivity with Dr. Wojciech Kębłowski, whose research brings attention to the Polish border towns of Małaszewicze and Narevka, key yet rarely discussed nodes in global infrastructure networks. As Eurasia undergoes a dramatic reconfiguration—with initiatives like China's Belt and Road Initiative, the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor, and numerous regional projects vying for influence—we discuss what happens at the edges. How are logistics nodes developed? Who lives in these nodes of connection, and how do they navigate the shifting tides of global ambition? Our conversation spans local politics, logistics, labor, railway connectivity, and geopolitics, offering a multidimensional view of border hubs where the global meets the local. These sites are not only shaped by supply chain logics but also by mounting geopolitical rivalries, as powers compete for infrastructural influence across continents. Dr. Kębłowski paints a vivid picture of Małaszewicze, once a booming railway town employing over 10,000 people, now economically depressed but still strategically vital. While geopolitical tensions—like the war in Ukraine—have disrupted trade flows, they haven't derailed Małaszewicze's importance. The town's traffic has rebounded, a testament to its logistical centrality. Dr. Kębłowski discussed the hopes of renewal spurred by the BRI and how local leaders have actively tried to position Małaszewicze on the global map—courting Chinese delegations, lobbying Warsaw, and crafting narratives of international relevance. He shares insights into how these symbolic and practical efforts illustrate both the ambitions and the limitations faced by peripheries striving to assert their place in global politics and connectivity networks. GUEST BIO: Wojciech Kębłowski is an urban researcher, photographer, and Assistant Professor in Urban Studies and Planning at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, with affiliations at the Université libre de Bruxelles. He will begin a new professorship at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in June 2025. His research sits at the intersection of urban, transport, and political geography, and draws on critical social and decolonial theory. It spans three main areas: the political economy and governance of “sustainable” transport, the urban geography of Global China, and alternatives to capitalist urbanism, including circular economy and degrowth practices. Wojciech's research is global in scope, with fieldwork and collaborations in diverse cities in Western Europe (Aubagne, Brussels, Luxembourg, Helsinki, Madrid), Eastern Europe (Sopot, Wrocław, Tallinn), China (Chengdu) and Cuba (Santiago). He uses a range of qualitative methods and is interested in photography as a research tool and a creative practice. Wojciech is involved in several international research projects, including LiFT (on fare-related mobility transitions), CARIN-PT (on flexible and on-demand transport), and previously led PUTSPACE and CIRCITY, focused on public transport and circular economies, respectively. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/eastern-european-studies
Are you enjoying this? Are you not? Tell us what to do more of, and what you'd like to hear less of. The Reykjavík Grapevine's Iceland Roundup brings you the top news with a healthy dash of local views. In this episode, Grapevine publisher Jón Trausti Sigurðarson is joined by Heimildin journalist Aðalsteinn Kjartansson, and Grapevine friend and contributor Sindri Eldon to roundup the stories making headlines in recent weeks. On the docket this week are: ✨ Does it make sense to wear shorts in Iceland - or take cold baths, or hike naked- given the weather and everything?✨ We mention but hardly discuss “Operation Mongoose”, a naval exercise taking place in Iceland + what types join the Icelandic Coast Guard✨The population of Iceland's two most loved spring birds, Lóa (Eurasian golden plover) and Spói (Eurasian whimbrel) are in stark decline in Iceland. 30% of all whimbrels in the world lay eggs in Iceland and so do 50-60% of all golden plovers. We discuss why.✨ Fisheries Iceland, the organisation that lobbies on the behalf of the Icelandic fishing companies, has been critiqued for being somewhat tone def in the advertising they've commissioned to oppose plans to raise taxes on the industry. We discuss.✨In 2024, 5546 people got married in Iceland. Which is a new record. Also, 2023 marked the first year when more people were married in Iceland by a state magistrate than the state church. We discuss.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------SHOW SUPPORTSupport the Grapevine's reporting by becoming a member of our High Five Club: https://steadyhq.com/en/rvkgrapevine/You can also support the Grapevine by shopping in our online store: https://shop.grapevine.is------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This is a Reykjavík Grapevine podcast.The Reykjavík Grapevine is a free alternative magazine in English published 18 times per year, biweekly during the spring and summer, and monthly during the autumn and winter. The magazine covers everything Iceland-related, with a special focus culture, music, food and travel. The Reykjavík Grapevine's goal is to serve as a trustworthy and reliable source of information for those living in Iceland, visiting Iceland or interested in Iceland. Thanks to our dedicated readership and excellent distribution network, the Reykjavík Grapevine is Iceland's most read English-language publication. You may not agree with what we write or publish, but at least it's not sponsored content.www.grapevine.is
In February 2023, Flaco—a majestic Eurasian eagle-owl—made headlines after escaping the Central Park Zoo when vandals damaged his enclosure. Born in captivity and confined for more than 13 years, few expected him to survive in the wild. But Flaco defied the odds, becoming a symbol of resilience and freedom as he soared over Manhattan, hunting rats and perching on high-rises—even doing some peeping-tom-ing along the way. His deep hoots echoed through the city, drawing nightly crowds and sparking a social media frenzy. Flaco's remarkable year in the wild made him a local legend and New York's first true "celebrity owl." But his story ended in heartbreak in February 2024, when he died after striking a building—a tragedy compounded by his exposure to rat poison and avian disease. His death triggered public mourning, renewed calls for wildlife-safe urban policies, and a citywide reflection on the human impact on nature. In this episode, we talk to Christine Mott. She is the author of the children's book Free Bird: Flaco the Owl's Dreams Take Flight, which was illustrated by Ofra Layla Isler and will be released on May 6, 2025. The book is aimed at readers ages 4-8, who will learn the importance of following their dreams and showing compassion for wild animals. Half of the proceeds will be donated to The Wild Bird Fund, a 501c3 that rehabilitates sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife and releases the animals back into the wilds of New York City. We also visit with a 7-year-old who read the book and get his opinion on this inspiring and thought-provoking tale of animal liberty and independence. The book is available for purchase here. And to learn more about the campaign of Animal Wellness Action to spare barred owls from a government-sponsored plant to massacre them, go here. The Animal Wellness podcast is produced by Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. It focuses on improving the lives of animals in the United States and abroad through legislation and by influencing businesses to create a more humane economy. The show is hosted by veteran journalist and animal-advocate Joseph Grove. www.animalwellnessaction.org www.centerforahumaneeconomy.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnimalWellnessAction Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AWAction_News Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHumaneCenter Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animalwellnessaction/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/animal-wellness-action/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCI_6FxM4hD6oS5VSUwsCnNQ
And so it ends! In the final episode of The Origins of Humankind, we explore the aftermath of the story so far—the story of how one peculiar species, Homo sapiens, evolved, spread, and outlived its relatives.Guiding us through this final chapter is Johannes Krause once again. Together, we uncover the emerging picture of the global spread of farming, pastoralism, and other key ingredients of modernity. Along the way, we explore some of the central questions of history—from the origins of inequality to the surprisingly pivotal role played by the peoples of the Eurasian steppe. (Yes, Mongols will make an appearance! But the story of the steppe goes much deeper...)As always, we end with my guest's reflections on humanity.Enjoy!LINKSMore material: OnHumans.Substack.com/OriginsSupport the show: Patreon.com/OnHumansFree lectures on human origins: CARTAKrause's books: A Short History of Humanity; Hubris: The Rise and Fall of HumanityABOUT THE SERIESThe Origins of Humankind is produced by On Humans and UC San Diego's Centre for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny (CARTA). Other guests include Chris Stringer, Dean Falk, and Tim Coulson. KEYWORDSAnthropology | Biology | Human evolution | Human origins | Homo sapiens | Agriculture | Ancient DNA | Climate changes | Pleistocene | Holocene | Archaeology | Neolithic | Yamnaya | Bell Beakers | Proto Indo-Europeans | Ötzi Ice Man | Gunpowder Empires | Bantu-expansion | Austranesian expansion | Sami poeple | Y-chromosome bottleneck |
Peace Matters - A Podcast on Contemporary Geopolitics and International Relations
What is BRICS, really — a loose coalition of emerging economies, or a growing challenge to Western-led global governance? In this episode, we take a deep dive into the origins, goals, and internal dynamics of BRICS, the group that brings together Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa — and now a new wave of members. Why do such diverse countries come together under one banner? What does BRICS actually do, and how effective is it in turning ambition into action? We explore China's and Russia's strategic interests, the Global South's discontent with the current international system, and whether BRICS could offer a real alternative to institutions like the UN, G7, IMF, or World Bank. We also discuss recent developments — from the war in Ukraine to U.S. trade policy — and ask: Is BRICS moving toward a shared ideology? Can economic cooperation within the bloc grow? And how realistic is the idea of a BRICS currency — or the broader push toward de-dollarizing global trade? To unpack all this and more, we're joined by Ingrid D'Hooghe and Ksenia Radchenkova, offering insights on geopolitics, economics, and the shifting architecture of international power.Guests:Dr. Ingrid d'Hooghe is Senior Research Associate at the China Centre of the Clingendael Institute and Senior Research Fellow at the LeidenAsiaCentre, The Netherlands. Her areas of expertise include China's strategic thinking and policy making in areas such as international relations and diplomacy, global governance, and science and technology.D'Hooghe holds a Master's degree in Sinology from Leiden University, The Netherlands, and a PhD in political science from Antwerp University, Belgium. She started her career as a policy officer at the Dutch Embassy in Beijing in the period 1989 – 1991 and has since worked as a China researcher and lecturer at various universities and think tanks, and as an advisor to Dutch government organizations, the European Commission, and European research institutions. She also presents at top universities and think tanks around the globe, and at institutions such as the European External Action Service and NATO. She publishes in academic and popular journals and appears regularly in the media. Recent publications address European universities' S&T collaboration with China, and China's maritime activities in disputed areas in the South China Sea.Ksenia Radchenkova, BA. spec. M.Sc. Ph.D is a Post-Doctoral Researcher and Coordinator for Eastern European, Eurasian and Asian research and cooperation projects at the Section Global Governance at the Institute for the Foundations of Law of the University of Graz. She was awarded her Bachelor's and Specialist's degrees in Sinology and Chinese Economy from the Far Eastern State University in Vladivostok, Russia. She subsequently obtained her Master of Science degree in Technology Economy Management from Xiamen University, People's Republic of China. Following several years of professional experience in the field of international trade as an operations manager, Radchenkova returned to academic pursuits in Austria, where she successfully defended her PhD in Law and Politics, entitled "The Concept of Sovereignty in Political and Legal Discourse in Russia and China", at the University of Graz, Austria. Radchenkova's current position entails the integration of her business experience with her academic background, with the objective of enhancing the international connections of the University of Graz. She is also committed to the promotion of excellence in research within the domain of international relations and politics. Moderation:Marylia Hushcha, Researcher and Project Manager at the IIP.The episode was recorded on 17 April 2025 with the support of The Austria Future Fund and the Conflict Peace Democracy Cluster of the Federal Ministry of the Republic of Austria - Education, Science and Research.
What if a single ancient language lay at the root of nearly half of the world's spoken tongues? In today's episode, acclaimed science writer and journalist Laura Spinney joins us to discuss her new book Proto: How One Ancient Language Went Global. In Proto, Spinney takes us deep into the mystery of Proto-Indo-European (PIE) - a prehistoric language that no one alive has heard, yet whose echoes can still be found in words spoken from Ireland to India. From the English word star, to Icelandic stjarna, to the Iranic stare - Spinney reveals how echoes of a prehistoric language still ripple across continents and centuries. Along the way, she meets the archaeologists, linguists, and geneticists working to uncover the origins of this linguistic Big Bang - and what it tells us about human history, identity, and movement. Joining Spinney in discussion is global historian Caroline Dodds Pennock, to retrace the paths of nomads, monks, warriors, and kings across the Eurasian steppe, the Caucasus, the Silk Roads, and beyond. If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all our full conversations, plus all of our Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. For £4.99 per month you'll also receive: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events ... Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99: - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series … Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content and early access. … Subscribe to our newsletter here to hear about our latest events, discounts and much more. https://www.intelligencesquared.com/newsletter-signup/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Eurasian Griffon vulture was rescued by locals in Satna after collapsing from dehydration. He was nursed back to health at vulture conservation centre in Bhopal's Vanvihar National Park & Zoo.
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/25/4/12/n14481259.htm
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/25/4/12/n14481259.htm
“There absolutely is no substitute for just seeing it but also smelling it, feeling it, hearing it. You can read all the books and watch all the films you like but there is absolutely no substitute for seeing it in the flesh.”The mysterious appearance of seemingly tame lynx in the Highlands of Scotland raised questions about who released them and why. Scotland's native Eurasian lynx are believed to have suffered extinction more than 500 years ago. In this episode Ben Goldsmith is joined by Pete Cairns of Scotland: The Big Picture, one of three charities involved in plans to legitimately return lynx to the Highlands. He explains why people might have released the four animals illegally. Ben Goldsmith is a British financier and rewilding enthusiast. Join him as he speaks to people from all over the world who champion nature and are helping to restore habitats and wildlife to some of the most nature depleted parts of our planet.This podcast is produced by The Podcast Coach.Text Rewilding the World here. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if there are any rewilding projects you would love Ben to feature in future episodes. The Conservation Collective support locally-led environmental Foundations around the world. Together we'll protect and restore the wild places we know and love.
It's been a bumper season for sightings of the Eurasian Hoopoe on Ireland's south coast, an exotic bird with a pink mohawk.Joining Seán to discuss the sightings is Paul Connaughton, an Ornithologist who sits on the Irish Rare Birds Committee…
The Light Gate welcomes guest: Paul Stonehill, Russian UFO researcher/author Date: March 31, 2025. Time: 5-7pm pacific / 8-10pm eastern Episode: 101 Discussion: UFO/USO encounters in Russia Tonight, the Light Gate welcomes Paul Stonehill. Paul is an international researcher and author, whose areas of research and published works include: UFOs and USOs (Unidentified Flying Objects, Unidentified Submersible Objects), Soviet space exploration, and Eurasian paranormal phenomena. He was born in Kiev, USSR (now independent Ukraine), and traveled through various parts of the Soviet Union in his youth. Paul is fluent in Russian, and knows Ukrainian. His articles on UFO and anomalous phenomena have been published in a number of languages throughout the world in newspapers and magazines. After the demise of the USSR, his articles were also published in Russia, Ukraine, and Central Asian republics. In October of 1993, OMNI Magazine featured a story about Paul's work, and the research center he had created back in 1991 (Russian Ufology Research Center). Paul has lectured in the U.S., Brazil, and China, and appeared on such TV shows as Ancient Aliens, The Unexplained Files, The Secret KGB Files and more. He has appeared on many of the major UFO podcasts, including Coast-to-Coast, Fade-to-Black, Podcast UFO and many others. He has also spoken at many UFO conventions, such as The International UFO Congress, UFO Megacon, and others. His areas of expertise are: Russian history; Soviet covert operations; warfare in the former USSR; cross-cultural training; paranormal phenomena in the Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia, and China (PRC). He has published a number of books, most co-authored by Philip Mantle (U.K.). His books include “Mysterious Sky: Soviet UFO Phenomenon,” “Soviet UFO Files,” “UFO Case Files of Russia,” “Paranormal Mysteries of Eurasia,” “Russia's USO Secrets” and Russia's Roswell Incident.” He also has a popular YouTube channel where he presents much of his research. LINKS: WEBSITE: https://openminds.tv/author/paul/ YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTzjRCRST1H65rC-dzCh18g
179. Linda Minor, Dan Luzadder, and Peter Grant. Corruption Oh My! In this episode, Kris Millegan and Adam Finnegan speak with Linda Minor, Dan Luzadder, and Peter Grant about Corruption in American politics, the mob and the mafia, drug trafficking, and beyond, we discuss it all! Peter Grant is a writer and independent researcher specializing in open source intelligence with a special focus on history and politics in Russia and the former Soviet Union, global kleptocracy and corruption, Eurasian organized crime and the activities of Russia's intelligence services. In particular, I focus on the interplay between these issues and American politics.Dan Luzadder is an American journalist and author whose lengthy newspaper career began as a teenaged police reporter in the last days of linotypes. He came of age amid hagiographic newsroom characters who believed shoe leather reporting, tight deadlines and well-placed sources were journalism's divinity. He has written for the New York Daily News and the New York Times, shared a Pulitzer Prize (1983) for general local reporting, won a national public service award from the American Bar Association for exposing corruption in federal courts, and is a member of the Scripps Howard Journalism Hall of Fame. He resides with his wife, Nancy, in the Pacific Northwest. He is the author of The Manchurian Journalist: Lawrence Wright, the CIA and the Corruption of American Journalism. (Trine Day). He is currently at work on a book and investigative documentary series on a cold-case crime spree in Speedway, Indiana in 1978, and is completing a book exploring the American myth of Al Capone.Linda Minor is a retired attorney, formerly licensed in Texas, whose legal specialty was real property law and land titles. She has a second career as a Blogger and researcher for Daniel Hopsicker and other published authors. She lives near Austin TX with her British born husband and two cats.
Send us a textLike and subscribe to Crossword on YouTube at Crossword Author Interviews. You can also find us at bookclues.com and follow Michele McAloon on X, BlueSky and TrueSocial, all @MicheleMcAloon1.Professor Margaret MacMillan joins us to explore how the 1919 Paris Peace Conference shaped our modern world and why understanding this pivotal moment is essential for making sense of today's European conflicts.• World War I as the war that made World War II possible and ended the relatively peaceful 19th century• The challenge of self-determination in ethnically mixed regions where borders created inevitable tensions• How personalities of leaders like Wilson, Lloyd George, and Clemenceau influenced critical decisions at Paris• The lasting impact of borders drawn in 1919 on conflicts in Yugoslavia, Ukraine, and beyond• Russia's historical position on the edge of Europe, torn between European identity and Eurasian exceptionalism• The dangerous precedent set by violating the principle that borders shouldn't be changed by force• How historical grievances from 1919 continue to fuel nationalist rhetoric in Hungary and elsewhere• Europe's current moment of reflection about defense and identity after decades of relative peace
“The Nose” may be Nikolai Gogol’s most famous short story. It’s a surrealist — and self-consciously, self-awarely surrealist — story about a man whose nose disappears from his face and reappears in another man’s biscuits. And other places. There’s a moment toward the end of Susanne Fusso’s translation when the narrator says, “The strangest and most incomprehensible thing of all — is that writers can choose such plots.” Well, yes. Nikolai Gogol was a 19th-century Russian/Ukrainian novelist and playwright. One of his best-known plays, The Inspector, opens this week at the Yale Repertory Theatre in New Haven. And that short story, “The Nose,” might well be intertwined with the mythology of our little public radio show. This hour, a look at the writer Nikolai Gogol. GUESTS: Susanne Fusso: Professor of Russian, East European, and Eurasian studies at Wesleyan University and the author of a number of books, including Designing Dead Souls: An Anatomy of Disorder in Gogol and a recent translation, The Nose and Other Stories by Nikolai Gogol Yura Kordonsky: The adaptor and director of the Yale Repertory Theatre’s production of The Inspector Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Whoooo did whooo moved around the chairs - Bird watching for BJs - Test driving a bidet - RAWR Bathroom surprise - Granny was honking cheeks at Disney - If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life... What song would It be? - Favorite Birds - Granny is teaching the kids about turtles - Want to say or have something for the show... Listen on iHeartRadio click the little mic and send us a talkback messageSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
This week, Anthony talks with Hal Brands, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, about his book 'The Eurasian Century: Hot Wars, Cold Wars, and the Making of the Modern World.' They discuss the historical significance of Eurasia, the dynamics of US-Russia-China relations, and the challenges facing global leaders today. Hal emphasizes the strategic importance of Eurasia in global affairs and the need for the US to engage effectively in this region to maintain stability and counteract the influence of autocratic powers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
This episode we continue to follow the monk Xuanzang on his path along the silk road. From Gaochang, he traveled through the Tarim Basin, up over the Tianshan Mountains, to the heart of the Western Gokturk Qaghanate. From there, he traveled south, through the region of Transoxania to Bactria and the land of Tukhara. He pushed on into the Hindu Kush, witnessing the stone Buddha statues of Bamiyan, and eventually made his way to the land of Kapisa, near modern Kabul, Afghanistan. From there he would prepare to enter the Indian subcontinent: the home of the historical Buddha. For more discussion and some photos of the areas along this journey, check out our podcast blog at https://sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/episode-121 Rough Transcript Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan. My name is Joshua, and this is Episode 121: Journey to the West, Part 2 The cold winds blew through the travelers' doubled up clothing and thick furs. Cold, wet ground meant that even two sets of boots were not necessarily enough after several days. The frozen mist would often obscure everything except for the path immediately in front, hiding the peaks and making the sky a uniform white. In many places, the path would be blocked by rock, ice, or snow—the remnants of an avalanche, which could easily take an unsuspecting traveler. And there was the elevation. Hiking through the mountains, it was easy enough to reach heights of a mile or higher, and for those not accustomed to that elevation the thin air could take a surprising toll, especially if you were pushing yourself. And the road was no less kind to the animals that would be hauling said travelers and their gear. And yet, this was the path that Xuanzang had agreed to. He would continue to push through, despite the various deprivations that he would be subjected to. No doubt he often wondered if it was worth it. Then again, returning was just as dangerous a trip, so why not push on? Last episode we introduced the monk Xuanzang, who traveled the Silk Road to India in the 7th century and returned to China. He brought back numerous sutras to translate, and ended up founding a new school, known as the Faxian school—or the Hossou school in Japan. As we mentioned last time, Xuanzang during his lifetime met with students from the archipelago when they visited the continent. The records of his travels—including his biography and travelogue—are some of the best information we have on what life was like on the silk road around this time. In the last episode, we talked about Xuanzang: how he set out on his travels, his illegal departure from the Tang empire, and his perilous journey across the desert, ending up in Gaochang. There, King Qu Wentai had tried to get him to stay, but he was determined to head out. This episode we are going to cover his trip to Agni, Kucha, and Baluka—modern Aksu—and up to the Western Gokturk Qaghanate's capital of Suyab. From there, we'll follow his footsteps through the Turkic controlled regions of Transoxania and into Tukhara, in modern Afghanistan. Finally, we'll cover the last parts of his journey before he reached the start of his goal: India. From Gaochang, Xuanzang continued on, through the towns he names as Wuban and Dujin, and into the country of Agni—known today as the area of Yanqi—which may also have been known as Wuqi. The route was well-enough known, but it wasn't necessarily safe. At one point, Xuanzang's caravan met with bandits, whom they were fortunately able to pay off. The following night they encamped on a river bank with some merchants who also happened to be traveling the road. The merchants, though, got up at midnight and headed out, hoping to get to the city early so that they could be the first ones to the market. They only made it a few miles down the road, however, before they encountered more bandits, who slaughtered them and took their goods. The following day, Xuanzang and his retinue came upon the merchants' remains lying in the road and saw the aftermath of the massacre. This was an unforgiving land, and the road was truly dangerous, even for those who traveled it regularly. And yet Xuanzang was planning to travel its entire length until he reached India. So with little alternative, they carried on to the royal city of Agni. Agni, or Yanqi, sits on the southwestern edge of the basin, west of Bositeng lake, on the border between the Turfan basin and the larger Tarim Basin. The name is thought to be a Tocharian—or Turfanian—name for the city, which is also known as Karashr. According to the biography by Huili, Xuanzang and his party didn't stay long in Agni. Apparently Agni and Gaochang were not exactly on friendly terms, and even though the King of Agni and his ministers reportedly came out to greet Xuanzang and welcome him to their city, they refused to provide any horses. They spent a single night and moved on. That said, Agni still made an impression on Xuanzang. He noted how the capital was surrounded by hills on four sides, making it naturally defensible. As for the people, he praises them as honest and straightforward. They wore clothing of felt and hemp cloth, and cut their hair short, without hats or any kind of headwear. Even the climate was pleasant, at least for the short time he was there. He also notes that they used a script based on India—likely referring to the Brahmic script, which we find in the Tarim basin. However, as for the local lord, the King of Agni, he is a little less charitable. Xuanzang claimed he was brave but “lacked resourcefulness” and he was a bit of a braggart. Furthermore, the country had “no guiding principles or discipline and government orders are imperfect and not seriously implemented.” He also mentioned the state of Buddhism in the country, noting that they were followers of Sarvastivada school, a Theravada sect popular along the Silk Road at the time. Xuanzang was apparently not too pleased with the fact that they were not strict vegetarians, including the “three kinds of pure meat”. From Agni, Xuanzang continued southwest, heading for the kingdom of Kucha. He seems to have bypassed the nearby kingdom of Korla, south of Agni, and headed some 60 or 70 miles, climbing over a ridge and crossing two large rivers, and then proceeding another 200 miles or so to the land of Kucha. Kucha was a kingdom with over one hundred monasteries and five thousand monks following a form of Theravada Buddhism. Here, Xuanzang was welcomed in by the king, Suvarnadeva, described as having red hair and blue eyes. While Xuanzang was staying in Kucha, it is suspected that he probably visited the nearby Kizil grotto and the Buddhist caves, there, which include a painting of King Suvarnadeva's father, King Suvarnapuspa, and his three sons. You can still visit Kucha and the Kizil grottos today, although getting there is quite a trek, to be sure. The ancient Kuchean capital is mostly ruins, but in the Kizil caves, protected from the outside elements, you can find vivid paintings ranging from roughly the 4th to the 8th century, when the site was abandoned. Hundreds of caves were painted, and many still demonstrate vibrant colors. The arid conditions protect them from mold and mildew, while the cave itself reduces the natural bleaching effect of sunlight. The paintings are in numerous styles, and were commissioned by various individuals and groups over the years. They also give us some inkling of how vibrant the city and similar structures must have been, back when the Kuchean kingdom was in its heyday. The people of Kucha are still something of a mystery. We know that at least some of them spoke an Indo-European language, related to a language found in Agni, and both of these languages are often called Tocharian, which we discussed last episode. Xuanzang himself noted that they used Indian writing, possibly referring to the Brahmi script, or perhaps the fact that they seem to have used Sanskrit for official purposes, such as the inscription on the cave painting at Kizil giving the name of King Suvarnapuspa. The Kucheans also were clothed in ornamental garments of silk and embroidery. They kept their hair cut, wearing a flowing covering over their heads—and we see some of that in the paintings. Xuanzang also notes that though we may think of this area as a desert, it was a place where rice and grains, as well as fruit like grapes, pomegranates, plums, pears, peaches, and almonds were grown. Even today, modern Xinjiang grows some absolutely fantastic fruit, including grapes, which are often dried into raisins. Another point of interest for Xuanzang may have been that Kucha is known as the hometown of none other than Kumarajiva. We first mentioned Kumarajiva back in episode 84. Kumarajiva was one of the first people we know of who translated many of the sutras from India that were then more widely disseminated throughout the Yellow River and Yangzi river basins. His father was from India and his mother was a Kuchean princess. In the middle of the 4th century, when he was still quite young, he traveled to India and back with his mother on a Buddhist pilgrimage. Later he would start a massive translation project in Chang'an. His translations are credited with revolutionizing Chinese Buddhism. Xuanzang was initially welcomed by the king, his ministers, and the revered monk, Moksagupta. They were accompanied by several thousand monks who set up tents outside the eastern gate, with portable Buddha images, which they worshipped, and then Xuanzang was taken to monastery after monastery until sunset. At one of the monasteries, in the southeast of the city, there were several tens of monks who originally came from Gaochang, and since Xuanzang had come from there, they invited him to stay with them. The next day he met and feasted with the King, politely declining any meat, and then went to the monastery in the northwest to meet with the famous monk: Moksagupta. Moksagupta himself had made the journey to India, and had spent 20 years there himself. It seems like this would have been the perfect person for Xuanzang to talk to about his plans, but instead, the two butted heads. Moksagupta seems to have seen Xuanzang's Mahayana faith as heretical. He saw no reason for Xuanzang to travel all the way to India when he had all the sutras that anyone needed there in Kucha, along with Moksagupta himself. Xuanzang's response seems to have been the Tang dynasty Buddhist version of “Okay, Boomer”, and then he went ahead and tore apart Moksagupta's understanding of his own sutras—or so Xuanzang relayed to his biographers. We don't exactly have Moksagupta's side, and, let's face it, Xuanzang and his biographers are not necessarily reliable narrators. After all, they followed Mahayana teachings, which they considered the “Greater Vehicle”, and they referred to the Theravada teachings as the “Hinayana” or “Lesser Vehicle”. Meanwhile, Theravada Buddhists likely saw many of the Mahayana texts as extraneous, even heretical, not believing them to actually be the teachings of the Buddha. It must have been winter time, as the passes through the mountains on the road ahead were still closed, and so Xuanzang stayed in Kucha, spending his time sightseeing and meeting with various people. He even went back to see Moksagupta, but the older monk shunned him, and would get up and exit the room rather than engaging with him, so they had no more conversations. Eventually, Xuanzang continued on his way west, following along the northern rim of the Tarim basin. Two days out from Kucha, disaster struck. Some two thousand or so Turkish bandits suddenly appeared—I doubt Xuanzang was counting, so it may have been more or less. I imagine that memories of what had happened to the merchants near Agni must have gone through Xuanzang's mind. Fortunately, for him, they were fighting over loot that they had pillaged from various travelers, and since they couldn't share it equally, they fell to fighting each other and eventually dispersed. He travelled for almost 200 miles after that, stopping only for a night at the Kingdom of Baluka, aka Gumo—the modern city of Aksu. This was another Theravada Buddhist kingdom. Xuanzang noted tens of Buddhist temples, and over 1000 Buddhist monks. The country was not large—about 200 miles east to west and 100 miles north to south. For reference that means it was probably comparable in size with Kyushu, in terms of overall area, or maybe the size of Denmark—excluding Greenland—or maybe the US state of Maryland. Xuanzang described the country as similar to Kucha in just about every way, including the written language and law, but the spoken language was different, though we don't get many more details. From Baluka, he crossed northward through the Tianshan mountains, which are classified as an extension of the Pamirs known as the Ice Mountains. Had he continued southwest, he would have hit Kashgar and crossed over between the Pamir and Tian Shan ranges into the Ferghana valley, but instead he turned north. We don't know exactly why he took this perilous option, but the route that may have been popular at the time as it was one of the most direct routes to the seat of the Western Gokturk Empire, which he was currently traveling through. The Tian Shan mountains were a dangerous journey. Avalanches could block the road—or worse. Xuanzang describes the permanent ice fields—indeed, it is the ice fields and glaciers of the Tian Shan that melt in the summer and provide the oasis towns of the Tarim Basin with water, even to this day. In Xuanzang's day, those glaciers were likely even more prevalent than today, especially as they have been recorded as rapidly disappearing since 1961. And where you weren't on snow and ice, the ground was probably wet and damp from the melt. To keep warm, you would wear shoes over your shoes, along with heavy fur coats, all designed to reduce exposure. Xuanzang claims that 3 or 4 of every 10 people didn't survive the crossing—and that horses and oxen fared even worse. Even if these numbers are an exaggeration, the message is clear: This was a dangerous journey. After about seven days, Xuanzang came out of the mountains to the “Great Pure Lake”, the “Da Qing Hai”, also known as the Hot Sea or the Salt Sea, which likely refers to Issyk Kul. The salt content, along with the great volume of water it possesses, means that the lake rarely freezes over, which is likely why it is seen as “hot” since it doesn't freeze when the fresh water nearby does. This lake is the second largest mountain lake in the world, and the second deepest saltwater lake. Traveling past the lake, he continued to Suyab, near modern Tokmok, in Kyrgyzstan, just west of the modern capital of Bishkek. This was an old Sogdian settlement, and had since become the capital of the Western Gokturks. Sogdians—like Xuanzang's guide, Vandak—were integral to the Gokturk kingdom. Their language was the lingua franca of the Silk Road, and at the time of the Gokturk Khaganate, it was also the official court language, and so when Xuanzang appeared at the court of the Great Khagan of the Western Gokturks, it was likely the language of diplomacy. When we think of Turkic people, many in the English speaking world think of Turkiye, and perhaps of the mighty Ottoman empire. Some may think of Turkmenistan, Kazhakstan, Kyrgyzstan, or Uzbekistan, among others. And of course, there are the Uyghur people in Xinjiang. All of these people claim roots in the ancestral Turkic homeland in the Altai mountains, which sit largely in western Mongolia, north of China's Xinjiang region. Much like the Xiongnu and the Mongols, they were pastoral nomads, moving their herds across the steppes, often covering great distances. They would regularly move through different regions, perhaps returning each season, though sometimes not returning for years at a time. They were often seen as barbarians by settled people living in cities, and yet their goods and horses were highly prized. Nomad and sedentary lifestyles would often collide. Farmers would turn pastureland into fields, and when the nomadic people returned on their circuits, they would find walls and fences where there was once open land, and the people there would claim to “own” the land, a concept often foreign to people who were always on the move. Nomadic people, such as the Gokturks, were not necessarily keeping vast libraries of records about themselves and their histories, and so much of what we get comes from external sources, which do not always have incredibly reliable narrators. To many of the settled agriculturalists, groups like the Turks were marauders who raided their villages and farms. They were a great bogeyman of the steppes, which required the firm hand of strong defenses to keep out—or so their opponents would want people to think. While they were known for their warfare, which incorporated their mobility, but they were keenly interested in trade, as well. They understood the value of the trade routes and the various cities and states that they included in their empire. Thus, the Sogdians and the Gokturks seem a natural fit: the Sogdians were more settled, but not entirely so, as demonstrated by their vast trade networks. And the Sogdians also were part of the greater central Eurasian steppe culture, so the two cultures understood each other, to a degree. They are even depicted similarly in art, with slight differences, such as long hair that was often associated with Turks over the Sogdians. In some areas of the Gokturk empire, Sogdians would run the cities, while the Gokturks provided military aid and protection. Xuanzang's description of the people of Suyab, or the “City of Suye River”, doesn't pick out anyone in particular, and he even says that it was a place where traders of the Hu, or foreign, tribes from different countries mingle their abodes. He mentions the people here as being called Suli, which is also the name given to the language—this may refer to “Sogdian” in general. They write with an alphabet that is written vertically rather than horizontally—this may refer to a few scripts that were written this way, possibly based off Syriac or Aramaic alphabets that were adapted to Sogdian and other Iranian languages, but it isn't clear. We are told that the people dressed in felt and hemp clothing, with fur and “cotton” garments. Their clothes fit tightly, and they kept their hair cut short, exposing the top of their heads—though sometimes they shaved it completely, tying a colored silk band around the forehead. He goes on to describe these people as greedy liars, possibly a reference to the mercantile nature of many of the people at the time. Something to note: The Turks of this time had not yet encountered Islam, which was just now starting to rise up in the Middle East. The Prophet Muhammad is said to have been born around the end of the 6th century CE and was preaching in the early 7th century, though his teachings would begin to spread outward soon enough. But that means that the Gokturks were not an Islamic empire. Rather, their own traditions seem to have focused on the worship of Tengri, an Altaic personification of the universe, often simplified as a “sky god”. Tengrism can be found amongst the Xiongnu, Mongols, and others, and it was the national religion of the Gokturks themselves, but there were many who also adopted other religions that they encountered, including Zoroastrianism, Christianity, Manichaeism, and Buddhism. In fact, Xuanzang notes that the Turks he met in Suyab would not sleep or sit on beds made of wood because wood was thought to contain the spirit of fire, which he says they worshipped. That sounds similar to Zoroastrian beliefs, where fire is associated with Ahura Mazda, who is also worshipped as a sky god. These may have been beliefs inherited from their Eastern Iranian Sogdian partners. In Xuanzang's biography, we are given more details about his visit to Suyab. Apparently, as he was headed to the city, he met a hunting party, which we are told was the retinue of Yehu Khan. Hunting was an important part of life on the steppes, and it continued to be a favorite sport of the Gokturk nobility. Yehu Khan—possibly Yagbhu Khan, though that is up for some debate—is described as being dressed in a green silk robe, with his hair exposed, and wearing a turban of white silk about ten feet long that wrapped his forehead and hung behind his back. His “hunting” expedition wasn't just a couple of the guys. It included about 200 officials, all with plaited hair and dressed in brocade robes—they weren't exactly out there roughing it. He also had his soldiers, dressed in furs, felt, or fine woolen clothes, and there were so many cavalry that they stretched out of sight. The Khan seemed pleased to meet Xuanzang, but his hunt was expected to last another couple of days, at least, so he sent an attendant named Dharmaja to take Xuanzang back to wait for the Khan to return. Three days later, Xuanzang was given an audience. The khan was seated in a large yurt. Xuanzang noted the seeming incongruity between the khan, sitting there in the tent, decorated with golden flowers, with the officials dressed in magnificent brocade garments sitting in two long rows in front of him and the armed guards behind him, compared to the simple felt walls of the tent. A ”yurt” is a common feature of nomadic life on the steppes. It wasn't exactly a single person operation to haul them around, but they can be taken down and put up with relative ease. And while yurts could be relatively simple, there are examples of much more elaborate structures. There is little reason they couldn't be made larger, perhaps with some extra support. In later centuries, there are examples of giant yurts that seem like real construction projects. Use of tents, even in a city, where they had permanent palace buildings, was likely a means of retaining the nomadic steppe traditions, even while enjoying the benefits of city life. Whom exactly Xuanzang met with is a matter of debate. His records seem to indicate that it was Tong Yabghu Qaghan of the Western Gokturk Khaganate, but other sources say that Tong Yabghu Qaghan died in 628, and the earliest Xuanzang could have been meeting with him was 630, two years later, so if that is the case, he must have met with Tong Yabghu's son, Si Yabghu Qaghan. It is likely that Xuanzang, who was dictating his accounts years after, mentioned the Qaghan and then, when they looked up who it was, they simply made a mistake. Remember, Xuanzang would have had everything translated through one or two languages. He did know what he saw, however, and he recounted what he remembered. Tong Yabghu Qaghan oversaw the height of the Gokturk Qaghanate, and appears to have favored the Buddhist religion, though there were many different religions active in their territories at the time. They oversaw an extremely cosmopolitan empire covering huge swaths of central Eurasia, including the lucrative silk road. Xuanzang notes that at the court there were individuals from Gaochang and even a messenger from the Han—which is to say the Tang Empire. One wonders if Xuanzang—or anyone at that time—realized just how tenuous the Khan'sposition was. After Tong Yabghu's death, the Qaghanate would decline, and less than a decade later it would fall to the Tang dynasty, who took Suyab and made it their western outpost. In fact, Suyab is thought to have been the birthplace, over a century later, of a young boy who would find a love of poetry. That boy's name was Li Bai, or Ri Haku, in Japanese. He would become one of the most famous poets in Chinese history, and his poems were even known and studied in Japan. And it was largely through Japanese study of Li Bai's poems that his works came to the English speaking world: first through Ernest Fenollosa, who had studied in Japan, and then by the celebrated Ezra Pound, who had used Ernest's notes to help with his own translations of the poems. This was, though, as I said, over a century after Xuanzang's journey. At the time of our story, the Qaghan was throwing a feast, including Xuanzang and all of the foreign envoys. Xuanzang comments on the food and drink—his hosts provided grape juice in lieu of wine, and cooked a special vegetarian feast just for him, while the other guests ate a feast of meat, such as veal, lamb, fish, and the like. There was also the music of various regions along the Silk Road, which Xuanzang found to be catchy, but of course not as refined as the music he was used to, of course. After dinner Xuanzang was asked to expound upon the Darma, largely about the basic principle that you should be kind to one another—I doubt he was getting into the deep mysteries of Buddhist philosophy. Xuanzang stuck around the court for three more days, during which time the Qaghan tried to get him to stay, but Xuanzang insisted that he had to make it to India. And so the Qaghan relented. He found men in his army who could translate for Xuanzang along his journey, and had letters of introduction written to at least as far as the state of Kapisa, in modern Afghanistan. And so, armed with the Qaghan's blessing and a fresh translator, Xuanzang struck out again. They headed westward for over one hundred miles, eventually reaching Bingyul, aka the Thousand Springs. This is the area where the Qaghan and his court would spend his summers, and the deer in the area were protected under his orders, so that they were not afraid of humans—which sounds similar to the situation with the deer in Nara. Continuing on another fifty miles or so—the distances are approximate as Xuanzang's primary duty was not exactly to map all of this out—Xuanzang arrived at the city of Taras, in modern Kazakhstan, another place where the cultures of the Silk Road mixed and mingled. Xuanzang didn't have much to say about Taraz, apparently, though it is one of the oldest cities in Transoxania, founded near the beginning of the Common Era. A few miles south of there, Xuanzang reportedly found a village of re-settled ethnic Han that had been captured by the Gokturks and settled here. They had adopted the dress and customs of the Turkic people, but continued to speak a version of Chinese. Southwest of that he reached the City of White Water, likely referring to Aksukent. This is the same “Aksu” as the city in Xinjiang, both of which mean “White Water” in Turkic, but this one is in the south of Kazakhstan. Xuanzang found the climate and products an improvement over what he had experienced in Taras. Beyond that, he next arrived at the city of Gongyu, and then south again to Nujkend, and then traveling westward to the country of Chach, aka Tashkent. Both Nujkend and Chach were large cities in nations of smaller, mostly autonomous city-states, which made up a lot of the political geography of Transoxania. I would note that Xuanzang's notes here are much more sparse than previously. This may be because these were outside of the Tarim basin and therefore of less interest to individuals in the Tang empire. Or perhaps he was just making his way more quickly and not stopping at every kingdom along the way. From Tashkent, he continued southeast to the Ferghana valley—the country of Feihan. Oddly, this country doesn't appear in Xuanzang's biography, even though the Ferghana Valley seems to have been fairly well known back in the Tang Empire—it was known as the home of some of the best horses, which were one of its first major exports. In fact, the Han dynasty even mounted a military expedition to travel to Ferghana just to obtain horses. Xuanzang is oddly silent on this; however, he does talk about the fertile nature of the land. He mentions that their language here is different from the lands he had been traveling through up to this point, and also points out that the people of the Ferghana valley were also visibly different from others in the area. From the Ferghana valley, Xuanzang headed west for about 300 miles or more to the land of Sutrushana—perhaps referring to the area of Ushrusana, with its capital of Bunjikat. This country was also largely Sogdian, and described as similar to Tashkent. From there, he traveled west through a great desert, passing skeletons, which were the only marker of the trail other than a view of the far off mountains. Finally, they reached Samarkand, known as the country of “Kang” in Chinese, which was also the term used to mark Sogdians who claimed descent from the people of Samarkand. Samarkand is another of the ancient cities of Central Asia, and even today is the third largest city in modern Uzbekistan. Human activity in the region goes back to the paleolithic era, and the city was probably founded between the 8th and 7th centuries BCE. Samarkand was conquered by Alexander the Great, and during the Achaemenid Empire it was the capital of Sogdiana. During Xuanzang's visit, Samarkand was described as an impenetrable fortress with a large population. For all of his travel, Samarkand was the first place Xuanzang notes as specifically not a Buddhist land. In fact, there were two monasteries, suggesting that there had been Buddhists, but if any monks tried to stay there then the locals would chase them out with fire. Instead, they worshipped fire—likely meaning Ahura Mazda and Zoroastrianism. This leads to a story that I have to wonder about, given the reliability of our narrators. It is said that Xuanzang was met by the King with arrogance, but after staying the night Xuanzang was able to tell the King about Buddhism and its merits. The king was intrigued, and asked to observe the Precepts, and treated Xuanzang with hospitality and respect. So when two of Xuanzang's attendants went to the monasteries to worship, they were chased out with fire. When the king heard about this, he had the people arrested and ordered their hands to be cut off. Xuanzang could not bear to witness such suffering, however, and he intervened to have them spared. So instead the king had them flogged and banished from the city. Ever since then, all the people believed in Buddhism. Some parts of this strike true. It was likely that the king would entertain this strange wanderer who had arrived with letters from the great Qaghan—that may have even explained why Xuanzang had been encouraged to make the dangerous journey to Suyab in the first place, so that he could obtain such permission. And it would not be strange for the king to listen to his teachings. If Xuanzang's attendants were attacked, that would have been a huge breach of hospitality, and however the King felt about it, he no doubt had to do something about it. And so all of that sounds somewhat believable. Does that mean everyone suddenly converted to Buddhism? I don't know that I'm quite willing to go that far. It is also likely that there were Buddhists there already, even if the majority religion was Zoroastrianism. From Samarkand, Xuanzang traveled farther southwest, to the country of Kasanna, which seems to have been the edge of what we might call Sogdiana. According to his biographers, however, there was a little more to all of this. Rather, he headed west to Kusanika. Then he traveled to Khargan, and further on to the country of Bukhara, and then to Vadi. All of these were “An” in Chinese, which was the name element used for Sogdians from this region. He then continued west to the country of Horismika, on the other side of the Amu Darya, aka the Oxus River of Transoxanian fame. From there he traveled further southwest, entering into the mountains. The path here was often such that they had to travel single-file, and there was no food or water other than what you brought with you. Eventually they came to a set of doors, known as the Iron Gate. This was a Turkic fortress. It was no doubt fortuitous that he had come from his meeting with the Qaghan, and likely had permission to pass through. From there, they entered the country of Tukhara. As we noted in Episode 119, Tukhara was in the region of Bactria. It was bordered by the Pamir range in the east, and the Persian empire in the west. There were also the Great Snow Mountains in the south, likely referencing the Hindu Kush. Tukhara had been conquered by the Gokturks just within the past couple of decades, and Xuanzang notes that the country had been split into largely autonomous city-states as the local royalty had died without an heir many years before. With the Gokturk conquest, it was now administered by Tardu Shad, the son of Tong Yabghu Qaghan. “Shad” in this case was a local title. Here, Xuanzang's narrative gets a little dicey, especially between his biography and his records. The records of the Western Regions denotes various countries in this area. It is unclear if he traveled to all of them or is just recounting them from records he obtained. He does give us at least an overview of the people and the region. I would also note that this is one of the regions he visited, again, on his return trip, and so may have been more familiar with the region than those areas he had passed through from Suyab on down. For one thing, he notes that the language of the region was different from that of the “Suli”, which appears to refer to the Sogdians. This was the old territory of the Kushan empire, and they largely spoke Bactrian. Like Sogdian, it was another Eastern Iranian language, and they used an alphabet based largely on Greek, and written horizontally rather than vertically. They also had their own coins. This region had plenty of Buddhist communities, and Xuanzang describes the cities and how many monasteries they had, though, again, it isn't clear if he actually visited all of them or not. These are countries that Li Rongji translates as “Tirmidh”, “Sahaaniyan”, “Kharuun”, “Shuumaan”, etc. It does seem that Xuanzang made it to the capital city, the modern city Kunduz, Afghanistan. Xuanzang actually had something specific for the local Gokturk ruler, Tardu Shad. Tardu Shad's wife was the younger sister of King Qu Wentai of Gaochang, whom we met last episode. Qu Wentai had provided Xuanzang a letter for his younger sister and her husband. Unfortunately, Xuanzang arrived to learn that the princess of Gaochang had passed away, and Tardu Shad's health was failing. It does seem that Tardu Shad was aware of Xuanzang, however—a letter had already come from Qu Wentai to let them know that Xuanzang was on his way. As I mentioned last episode, letters were an important part of how communities stayed tied together. Of course, given the perils of the road, one assumes that multiple letters likely had to be sent just in case they didn't make it. The US Postal Service this was not. Tardu Shad, though not feeling well, granted an interview with Xuanzang. He suggested that Xuanzang should stick around. Then, once the Shad had recovered from his illness, he would accompany Xuanzang personally on his trip to India. Unfortunately, that was not to be. While Xuanzang was staying there, he was witness to deadly drama. Tardu Shad was recovering, which was attributed to the recitations by an Indian monk who was also there. This outcome was not exactly what some in the court had wanted. One of the Shad's own sons, known as the Tagin prince, plotted with the Shad's current wife, the young Khatun, and she poisoned her husband. With the Shad dead, the throne might have gone to the son of the Gaochang princess, but he was still too young. As such, the Tagin Prince was able to usurp the throne himself, and he married his stepmother, the young Khatun. The funeral services for the late Tardu Shad meant that Xuanzang was obliged to stay at Ghor for over a month. During that time, Xuanzang had a seemingly pleasant interaction with an Indian monk. And when he finally got ready to go, he asked the new Shad for a guide and horses. He agreed, but also made the suggestion that Xuanzang should then head to Balkh. This may have meant a bit of backtracking, but the Shad suggested that it would be worth it, as Balkh had a flourishing Buddhist community. Fortunately, there was a group of Buddhist monks from Balkh who happened to be in Kunduz to express their condolences at the passing of Tardu Shad, and they agreed to accompany Xuanzang back to their hometown, lest he end up getting lost and taking the long way there. The city of Balkh is also known as “Baktra”, as in “Bactria”, another name of this region. A settlement has been there since at least 500 BCE , and it was already an important city when it was captured by Alexander the Great. It sits at the confluence of several major trade routes, which no doubt were a big part of its success. Xuanzang's biography notes that it was a massive city, though it was relatively sparsely populated—probably due to the relatively recent conquest by the Gokturks, which had occurred in the last couple of decades. That said, there were still thousands of monks residing at a hundred monasteries in and around the city. They are all characterized as monks of Theravada schools. Southwest of the city was a monastery known as Navasamgharama, aka Nava Vihara, or “New Monastery”. Despite its name, the monastery may have actually been much older, going back to the Kushan emperor Kaniska, in the 2nd century CE. Ruins identified as this “New Monastery” are still visible south of Balkh, today. The monastery is described as being beautifully decorated, and it seems that it had a relic—one of the Buddha's teeth. There are also various utensils that the Buddha is said to have used, as well. The objects would be displayed on festival days. North of the monastery there was a stupa more than 200 feet in height. South of the monastery was a hermitage. Each monk who studied there and passed away would have a stupa erected for them, as well. Xuanzang notes that there were at around 700 memorial stupas, such that they had to be crammed together, base to base. It was here that Xuanzang met a young monk named Prajnaakara, who was already somewhat famous in India, and well-studied. When questioned about certain aspects of Buddhism, Xuanzang was impressed by the monk's answers, and so stayed there a month studying with the young monk. Eventually, Xuanzang was ready to continue on his journey. He departed Balkh towards the south, accompanying the teacher Prajnakara, and together they entered the Great Snow Mountains, aka the Hindu Kush. This path was even more dangerous than the trip through the Tian Shan mountains to Suyab. They eventually left the territory of Tukhara and arrived at Bamiyan. Bamiyan was a kingdom in the Hindu Kush, themselves an extension of the Himalayan Mountain range. It Is largely based around valley, home to the modern city of Bamyan, Afghanistan, which sits along the divide between Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Today it is a major center for individuals of the Hazara ethnic group, one of the main ethnic groups in Afghanistan, which is a multi-ethnic state that includes, today, the Pashtun, Hazara, Tajik, and Uzbek people, along with a number of smaller ethnic groups. Today they largely reside in the mountainous areas of the Hindu Kush. Bamiyan made an impact on our protagonist. Their language was slightly different from that in Tukhara, but using the same—or similar enough—writing system. Buddhism was thriving in the capital, and we are told of a rock statue of the standing Buddha, over a hundred feet in height, along with a copper statue of the standing Buddha nearby. There was also another reclining Buddha a mile or two down the road. There were multiple monasteries with thousands of monks, and the ruler of that kingdom received Xuanzang well. Xuanzang wasn't the first monk to travel to Bamiyan from the Middle Kingdom—in this he was, perhaps unwittingly, on the trail of the monk Faxian. Faxian likely did not see these statues, though, as we believe they were built in the 6th and early 7th century—at least the stone Buddha statues. They were a famous worship site until February 2001, when the Taliban gave an order to destroy all of the statues in Afghanistan. Despite this, they were inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003. Fortunately, we have images from before their destruction. These statues were a blend of Greco-Buddhist and Gandharan art styles—appropriate as it stands between the Hellenistic area of Tukhara and the ancient region of Gandhara—including the modern city of Kandahar and into the Indus Valley region of Pakistan. Continuing east through the mountains, Xuanzang eventually came out at the kingdom of Kapisa. This may have had its capital around modern-day Bagram, north of modern Kabul, but the country seems to have been quite large. Kapisa over saw some tens of other countries, and it is thought that at one time its influence extended from Bamyan and Kandahar to the area of modern Jalalabad. Their language was even more different than that of Tukhara, but they were still using the same writing system. The king of Kapisa is said to have been of Suli ethnicity—which would seem to indicate that he was Sogdian, or at least descended from people of the Transoxanian region. Xuanzang notes that the ruler, as rough and fiery as he is described—as a true warlord or similar—he nonetheless made a silver image of the Buddha, eighteen feet in height, every year. He also gave charity to the poor and needy in an assembly that was called every five years. There were over one hundred monasteries and some 6000 monks, per Xuanzang's recollection, and notably, they were largely following Mahayana teachings. For the most part the monks that Xuanzang had encountered on this journey were Theravada—Xuanzang refers to them as “Hinayana”, referring to the “Lesser Vehicle” in contrast to Xuanzang's own “Mahayana”, or “Greater Vehicle”. “Theravada” refers to the “way of the elders” and while Mahayana Buddhism largely accepts the sutras of Theravada Buddhism, there are many Mahayana texts that Theravada Buddhists do not believe are canonical. We discussed this back in Episode 84. There was apparently a story of another individual from the Yellow River being sent as a hostage to Kapisa when it was part of the Kushan Empire, under Kanishka or similar. Xuanzang recounts various places that the hostage, described as a prince, lived or visited while in the region. Xuanzang's arrival likely stirred the imagination of people who likely knew that the Tang were out there, but it was such a seemingly impossible distance for most people. And yet here was someone who had traveled across all of that distance. One of the monasteries that claimed to have been founded because of that ancient Han prince invited Xuanzang to stay with them. Although it was a Theravada monastery, Xuanzang took them up on the offer, both because of the connection to someone who may have been his countryman, but also because of his traveling companion, Prajnakara, who was also a Theravada monk, and may not be comfortable staying at a Mahayana monastery. Xuanzang spends a good deal of ink on the stories of how various monasteries and other sites were founded in Kapisa and the surrounding areas. He must have spent some time there to accumulate all of this information. It is also one of the places where he seems to have hit at least twice—once on the way to India, and once during his return journey. The King of Kapisa is said to have been a devotee of Mahayana Buddhism. He invited Xuanzang and Prajnakara to come to a Mahayana monastery to hold a Dharma gathering. There they met with several leading figures in the monastery, and they discussed different theories. This gathering lasted five days, and at the end, the king offered Xuanzang and the other monks five bolts of pure brocade and various other gifts. Soon thereafter, the monk Prajnakara was invited back to Tukhara, and so he and Xuanzang parted ways. And it was about time for Xuanzang to continue onwards as well. From Kapisa, he would travel across the “Black Range” and into Lampaka. This may refer to the area of Laghman or Jalalabad. Today, this is in modern Afghanistan, but for Xuanzang, this would have been the northwestern edge of India. He was almost there. And so are we, but we'll save his trip into India for next episode. Until then thank you for listening and for all of your support. If you like what we are doing, please tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts. If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website, SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to reach out to our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page. You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com. Thank you, also, to Ellen for their work editing the podcast. And that's all for now. Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.
This week we talk about arabica, robusta, and profit margins.We also discuss colonialism, coffee houses, and religious uppers.Recommended Book: On Writing and Worldbuilding by Timothy HicksonTranscriptLike many foods and beverages that contain body- or mind-altering substances, coffee was originally used, on scale at least, by people of faith, leveraging it as an aid for religious rituals. Sufis in what is today Yemen, back in the early 15th century, consumed it as a stimulant which allowed them to more thoroughly commit themselves to their worship, and it was being used by the Muslim faithful in Mecca around the same time.By the following century, it spread to the Levant, and from there it was funneled into larger trade routes and adopted by civilizations throughout the Mediterranean world, including the Ottomans, the Mamluks, groups in Italy and Northern Africa, and a few hundred years later, all the way over to India and the East Indies.Western Europeans got their hands on this beverage by the late 1600s, and it really took off in Germany and Holland, where coffee houses, which replicated an establishment type that was popularized across the Muslim world the previous century, started to pop up all over the place; folks would visit these hubs in lieu of alehouses, subbing in stimulants for depressants, and they were spaces in which it was appropriate for people across the social and economic strata to interact with each other, playing board games like chess and backgammon, and cross-pollinating their knowledge and beliefs.According to some scholars, this is part of why coffee houses were banned in many countries, including England, where they also became popular, because those up top, including but not limited to royalty, considered them to be hotbeds of reformatory thought, political instability, and potentially even revolution. Let the people hang out with each other and allow them to discuss whatever they like, and you end up with a bunch of potential enemies, and potential threats to the existing power structures.It's also been claimed, and this of course would be difficult to definitively prove, though the timing does seem to line up, that the introduction of coffee to Europe is what led to the Enlightenment, the Age of Reason, and eventually, the Industrial Revolution. The theory being that swapping out alcohol, at least during the day, and creating these spaces in which ideas and understandings and experiences could be swapped, without as much concern about social strata as in other popular third places, spots beyond the home and work, that allowed all sorts of political ideas to flourish, it helped inventions become realized—in part because there were coffee houses that catered to investors, one of which eventually became the London Stock Exchange—but also because it helped people organize, and do so in a context in which they were hyper-alert and aware, and more likely to engage in serious conversation; which is a stark contrast to the sorts of conversations you might have when half- or fully-drunk at an alehouse, exclusively amongst a bunch of your social and economic peers.If it did play a role in those movements, coffee was almost certainly just one ingredient in a larger recipe; lots of variables were swirling in these areas that seem to have contributed to those cultural, technological, economic, and government shifts.The impact of such beverages on the human body and mind, and human society aside, though, coffee has become globally popular and thus, economically vital. And that's what I'd like to talk about today; coffee's role in the global economy, and recent numbers that show coffee prices are ballooning, and are expected to balloon still further, perhaps substantially, in the coming years.—For a long while, coffee was a bit of a novelty outside of the Muslim world, even in European locales that had decently well-established coffeehouses.That changed when the Dutch East India Company started importing the beans to the Netherlands in the early 17th century. By the mid-1600s they were bringing commercial-scale shipments of the stuff to Amsterdam, which led to the expansion of the beverage's trade-range throughout Europe.The Dutch then started cultivating their own coffee crops in colonial territories, including Ceylon, which today is called Sri Lanka, and the island of Java. The British East India Company took a similar approach around the same time, and that eventually led to coffee bean cultivation in North America; though it didn't do terribly well there, initially, as tea and alcoholic beverages were more popular with the locals. In the late 18th century, though, North Americans were boycotting British tea and that led to an uptick in coffee consumption thereabouts, though this paralleled a resurgence in tea-drinking back in Britain, in part because they weren't shipping as much tea to their North American colonies, and in part because they conquered India, and were thus able to import a whole lot more tea from the thriving Indian tea industry.The Americas became more important to the burgeoning coffee trade in the mid-1700s after a French naval officer brought a coffee plant to Martinique, in the Caribbean, and that plant flourished, serving as the source of almost all of today's arabica coffee beans, as it was soon spread to what is today Haiti, and by 1788, Haiti's coffee plantations provided half the world's coffee.It's worth remembering that this whole industry, the portion of it run by the Europeans, at least, was built on the back of slaves. These Caribbean plantations, in particular, were famously abusive, and that abuse eventually resulted in the Haitian revolution of 1791, which five years later led to the territory's independence.That said, coffee plantations elsewhere, like in Brazil and across other parts of South and Central America, continued to flourish throughout this period, colonialists basically popping into an area, conquering it, and then enslaving the locals, putting them to work on whatever plantations made the most sense for the local climate.Many of these conquered areas and their enslaved locals were eventually able to free themselves, though in some cases it took a long time—about a century, in Brazil's case.Some plantations ended up being maintained even after the locals gained their freedom from their European conquerers, though. Brazil's coffee industry, for instance, began with some small amount of cultivation in the 1720s, but really started to flourish after independence was won in 1822, and the new, non-colonialist government decided to start clearing large expanses of rainforest to make room for more, and more intensive plantations. By the early 1900s, Brazil was producing about 70% of the world's coffee exports, with their neighbors—Colombia and Guatemala, in particular—making up most of the rest. Eurasian producers, formerly the only places where coffee was grown, remember, only made up about 5% of global exports by that time.The global market changed dramatically in the lead-up to WWII, as Europe was a primary consumer of these beans, and about 40% of the market disappeared, basically overnight, because the continent was spending all their resources on other things; mostly war-related things.An agreement between South and Central American coffee producing countries and the US helped shore-up production during this period, and those agreements allowed other Latin American nations to develop their own production infrastructure, as well, giving Brazil more hemispheric competition.And in the wake of WWII, when colonies were gaining their independence left and right, Ivory Coast and Ethiopia also became major players in this space. Some burgeoning Southeast Asian countries, most especially Vietnam, entered the global coffee market in the post-war years, and as of the 2020s, Brazil is still the top producer, followed by Vietnam, Indonesia, Colombia, and Ethiopia—though a few newer entrants, like India, are also gaining market share pretty quickly.As of 2023, the global coffee market has a value of around $224 billion; that figure can vary quite a lot based on who's numbers you use, but it's in the hundreds of billions range, whether you're looking just at beans, or including the ready-to-drink market, as well, and the growth rate numbers are fairly consistent, even if what's measured and the value placed on it differs depending on the stats aggregator you use.Some estimates suggest the market will grow to around $324 billion, an increase of around $100 billion, by 2030, which would give the coffee industry a compound annual growth rate that's larger than that of the total global caffeinated beverage market; and as of 2023, coffee accounts for something like 87% of the global caffeinated beverage market, so it's already the dominant player in this space, and is currently, at least, expected to become even more dominant by 2030.There's concern within this industry, however, that a collection of variables might disrupt that positive-seeming trajectory; which wouldn't be great for the big corporations that sell a lot of these beans, but would also be really bad, beyond shareholder value, for the estimated 25 million people, globally, who produce the beans and thus rely on the industry to feed their families, and the 100-110 million more who process, distribute, and import coffee products, and who thus rely on a stable market for their paychecks.Of those producers, an estimated 12.5 million work on smaller farms of 50 acres or less, and 60% of the world's coffee is made by people working on such smallholdings. About 44% of those people live below the World Bank's poverty metric; so it's already a fairly precarious economic situation for many of the people at the base-level of the production system, and any disruptions to what's going on at any level of the coffee industry could ripple across that system pretty quickly; disrupting a lot of markets and local economies, alongside the human suffering such disruptions could cause.This is why recent upsets to the climate that have messed with coffee crops are causing so much anxiety. Rising average temperatures, bizarre cold snaps, droughts, heavy and unseasonable rainfalls—in some cases all of these things, one after another—combined with outbreaks of plant diseases like coffee rust, have been putting a lot of pressure on this industry, including in Brazil and Vietnam, the world's two largest producers, as of the mid-2020s.In the past year alone, because of these and other externalities, the price of standard-model coffee beans has more than doubled, and the specialty stuff has seen prices grow even more than that.Higher prices can sometimes be a positive for those who make the now-more-expensive goods, if they're able to charge more but keep their expenses stable.In this case, though, the cost of doing business is going up, because coffee makers have to spend more on protecting their crops from diseases, losing crops because of those climate issues, and because of disruptions to global shipping channels. That means profit margins have remained fairly consistent rather than going up: higher cost to make, higher prices for consumers, about the same amount of money being made by those who work in this industry and that own the brands that put coffee goods on shelves.The issue, though, is that the cost of operation is still going up, and a lot of smallholders in particular, which again, produce about 60% of all the coffee made, worldwide, are having trouble staying solvent. Their costs of operation are still going up, and it's not a guarantee that consumers will be willing to continue spending more and more and more money on what's basically a commodity product; there are a lot of caffeinated beverages, and a lot of other types of beverage they could buy instead, if coffee becomes too pricy.And at this point, in the US, for instance, the retail price of ground roast coffee has surpassed an average of $7 per pound, up 15% in the past year. Everyone's expecting that to keep climbing, and at some point these price increases will lose the industry customers, which in turn could create a cascading effect that kills off some of these smaller producers, which then raises prices even more, and that could create a spiral that's difficult to stop or even slow.Already, this increase in prices, even for the traditionally cheaper and less desirable robusta coffee bean, has led some producers to leave coffee behind and shift to more consistently profitable goods; many plantations in Vietnam, for instance, have converted some of their facilities over to durian fruit, instead of robusta, and that's limited the supply of robusta, raising the prices of that bean, which in turn is causing some producers of robusta to shift to arabica, which is typically more expensive, and that's meant more coffee on the market is of the more expensive variety, adding to those existing price increases.The futures markets on which coffee beans are traded are also being upended by these pricing issues, resulting in margin calls on increasingly unprofitable trades that, in short, have necessitated that more coffee traders front money for their bets instead of just relying on short positions that have functioned something like insurance paid with credit based on further earnings, and this has put many of them out of business—and that, you guessed it, has also resulted in higher prices, and more margin calls, which could put even more of them out of business in the coming years.There are ongoing efforts to reorganize how the farms at the base on this industry are set up, both in terms of how they produce their beans, and in terms of who owns what, and who profits, how. This model typically costs more to run, and results in less coffee production: in some cases 25% less. But it also results in more savings because trees last up to twice as long, the folks who work the farms are much better compensated, and less likely to suffer serious negative health impacts from their labor, and the resultant coffee is of a much higher quality; kind of a win win win situation for everyone, though again, it's less efficient, so up till now the model hasn't really worked beyond some limited implementations, mostly in Central America.That could change, though, as these larger disruptions in the market could also make room for this type of segue, and indeed, there has apparently been more interest in it, because if the beans are going to cost more, anyway, and the current way of doing things doesn't seem to work consistently anymore, and might even collapse over the next decade if something doesn't change, it may make sense, even to the soulless accounting books of major global conglomerates, to reset the industry so that it's more resilient, and so that the people holding the whole sprawling industry up with their labor are less likely to disappear some day, due to more favorable conditions offered by other markets, or because they're simply worked to death under the auspices of an uncaring, fairly brutal economic and climatic reality.Show Noteshttps://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/business/coffee-prices-climate-change.htmlhttps://web.archive.org/web/20100905180219/https://www.web-books.com/Classics/ON/B0/B701/12MB701.htmlhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/1246099?origin=crossrefhttps://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/jan/07/coffee-prices-australia-going-up-cafe-flat-white-costhttps://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y37dvlr70ohttps://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/28/business/coffee-prices-climate-change.htmlhttps://markets.businessinsider.com/news/commodities/coffee-prices-food-inflation-climate-change-eggs-bank-of-america-2025-2https://www.statista.com/statistics/675807/average-prices-arabica-and-robusta-coffee-worldwide/https://www.ft.com/content/9934a851-c673-4c16-86eb-86e30bbbaef3https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/01/business/your-coffees-about-to-get-more-expensive-heres-why/index.htmlhttps://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/caffeinated-beverage-market-38053https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/caffeinated-beverage-markethttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffeehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_coffeehouses_in_the_17th_and_18th_centurieshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffeehousehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_coffeehttps://sites.udel.edu/britlitwiki/the-coffeehouse-culture/https://www.openculture.com/2021/08/how-caffeine-fueled-the-enlightenment-industrial-revolution-the-modern-world.html This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe
The story of Flaco, the Eurasian eagle-owl who escaped from Central Park Zoo, captured the hearts and imaginations of millions of followers around the world.In his latest, "The Book of Flaco: The World's Most Famous Bird," Nature writer David Gessner chronicles the year-long odyssey of Flaco and the human drama that followed the owl.
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 7/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR. 1935
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 8/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR.
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 1/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR. 1921
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 2/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR. 1928
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 3/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR. 1929
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 4/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR. 1933
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 5/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR.
PREPARING FOR TALKS WITH THE KREMLIN: 6/8: Stalin's War: A New History of World War II, Sean McMeekin, with Kevin Stillwell as narrator. Published by Basic Books. Audible Audiobook – Unabridged https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/392db86e-7d65-4c5d-b2a9-b781d5ee7250?shareToken=99d9180db57c2304848bc11f23ff97dc 1944-45 MARKET GARDEN https://www.amazon.com/Stalins-War-New-History-World/dp/B08XW52WNY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15RCHF0X357CE&keywords=mcmeekin+stalins+war&qid=1644188471&s=books&sprefix=mcmeekin+stalins+war%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1 World War II: Hitler was not in power when the conflict erupted in Asia—and he was certainly dead before it ended. His armies did not fight in multiple theaters, his empire did not span the Eurasian continent, and he did not inherit any of the spoils of war. That central role belonged to Joseph Stalin. The Second World War was not Hitler's war; it was Stalin's war: Drawing on ambitious new research in Soviet, European, and US archives, Stalin's War revolutionizes our understanding of this global conflict by moving its epicenter to the east. Hitler's genocidal ambition may have helped unleash Armageddon, but as McMeekin shows, the war which emerged in Europe in September 1939 was the one Stalin wanted, not Hitler. So, too, did the Pacific war of 1941–1945 fulfill Stalin's goal of unleashing a devastating war of attrition between Japan and the “Anglo-Saxon” capitalist powers he viewed as his ultimate adversary. McMeekin also reveals the extent to which Soviet Communism was rescued by the US and Britain's self-defeating strategic moves, beginning with Lend-Lease aid, as American and British supply boards agreed almost blindly to every Soviet demand. Stalin's war machine, McMeekin shows, was substantially reliant on American materiél from warplanes, tanks, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles, fuel, ammunition, and explosives, to industrial inputs and technology transfer, to the foodstuffs which fed the Red Army. This unreciprocated American generosity gave Stalin's armies the mobile striking power to conquer most of Eurasia, from Berlin to Beijing, for Communism. A groundbreaking reassessment of the Second World War, Stalin's War is essential reading for anyone looking to understand the current world ordeR. 1934
Welcome back to The Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates series! Today, we're galloping through time to uncover a story that's larger than life, spanning continents, centuries, and civilizations—a story of how one magnificent animal changed the world. That's right—today, we're talking about horses. Imagine the thundering hooves of a herd sweeping across the Eurasian steppes, the clash of chariots in ancient battles, the whispers of trade deals along the Silk Road, and the resilience of Indigenous cultures in the Americas. At the heart of these pivotal moments in human history is the humble yet extraordinary horse. Our guest, Smithsonian Associate William Taylor, is no stranger to this epic tale. Dr. William Taylor will be presenting at Smithsonian Associates in full, coming up. Check out our show notes today for more details about his upcoming presentation titled, “Horses Shaped Human History.” But we have Dr. Willliam Taylor briefly here today to tell us about being an archaeozoologist, assistant professor, and curator of archaeology at the University of Colorado Boulder. Smithsonian Associate Dr. William Taylor has spent his life piecing together the story of horses and humans—how they've partnered to shape history, from the first moments of domestication to the rise of global trade and even social inequality. Dr. Taylor's groundbreaking new book, Hoof Beats: How Horses Shaped Human History, takes readers on a vivid journey through these remarkable intersections of biology, culture, and conquest. But this isn't just a history lesson. Smithsonian Associate Dr. William Taylor's work draws on cutting-edge science—ancient DNA, archaeozoology—and Indigenous perspectives to rewrite what we thought we knew about horses. Dr. William Taylor will share stories of discoveries on the Mongolian steppes, the spread of mounted riders, and how horses remain vital to cultures around the globe. So, whether you've ever ridden a horse or just admired them from afar, today's episode will open your eyes to their deep connection to us. This isn't just history—it's humanity galloping forward, hoofbeats echoing through the ages. I'm Paul Vogelzang, your host. Stay tuned—you won't want to miss a single second of Smithsonian Associate, Dr. William Taylor here on The Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates interview series on radio and podcast. My thanks to Smithsonian Associate archaeozoologist, assistant professor, and curator of archaeology at the University of Colorado Boulder. Check out our show notes today for more details about his upcoming presentation titled, “Horses Shaped Human History.” My thanks to you, our wonderful audience here on radio and podcast. My thanks to the Smithsonian team for all their help in our program, and to Sam Heninger and Miranda Heninger for all they do. Happy New Year, be well, be safe, and Let's Talk About Better. The Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates interview series on radio and podcast. See you next time.
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