Podcasts about Soviet Central Asia

In 1932, along with a group of African American activists and writers including novelist Dorothy West, Langston Hughes journeyed to the Soviet Union. Veering off from the “official” trip, Hughes met Arthur Koestler before venturing on to an extended journey through the newly formed republics of Central Asia. While Hughes' readers may be familiar with his A Negro Looks at Soviet Central Asia, this chapbook makes available previously unpublished material drawn from Hughes' notebooks, photographs, and collaborative translation projects with Uzbek poets. Just as his own work is being translated into Uzbek, Hughes—ever the participant—collaborates with his peer poets in the region to produce texts published in this collection for the first time.  Cholpon Ramizova is a London-based creator and researcher. She holds a Master's in Migration, Mobility and Development from SOAS, University of London. Her thematic interests are in migration, displacement, identity, gender, and nationalism - and more specifically on how and which ways these intersect within the Central Asia context. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/central-asian-studies

Few Americans have been as explicit in their warnings about Donald Trump than the St. Louis based writer Sarah Kendzior. Her latest book, The Last American Road Trip, is a memoir chronicling Kendzior's journey down Route 66 to show her children America before it is destroyed. Borrowing from her research of post Soviet Central Asia, Kendzior argues that Trump is establishing a kleptocratic “mafia state” designed to fleece the country of its valuables. This is the third time that Kendzior has been on the show and I have to admit I've always been slightly skeptical of her apocalyptic take on Trump. But given the damage that the new administration is inflicting on America, I have to admit that many of Kendzior's warnings now appear to be uncannily prescient. As she warns, it's Springtime in America. And things are about to get much much hotter. FIVE TAKEAWAYS* Kendzior views Trump's administration as a "mafia state" or kleptocracy focused on stripping America for parts rather than traditional fascism, comparing it to post-Soviet oligarchic systems she studied as an academic.* She believes American institutions have failed to prevent authoritarianism, criticizing both the Biden administration and other institutional leaders for not taking sufficient preventative action during Trump's first term.* Despite her bleak analysis, Kendzior finds hope in ordinary Americans and their capacity for mutual care and resistance, even as she sees formal leadership failing.* Kendzior's new book The Last American Road Trip follows her journey to show her children America before potential collapse, using Route 66 as a lens to examine American decay and resilience.* As an independent voice, she describes being targeted through both publishing obstacles and personal threats, yet remains committed to staying in her community and documenting what's happening. FULL TRANSCRIPTAndrew Keen: Hello everybody, it is April the 18th, 2025, a Friday. I'm thrilled today that we have one of my favorite guests back on the show. I call her the Cassandra of St. Louis, Sarah Kendzior. Many of you know her from her first book, which was a huge success. All her books have done very well. The View from Flyover Country. She was warning us about Trump and Trumpism and MAGA. She was first on our show in 2020. Talking about media in the age of Trump. She had another book out then, Hiding in Plain Sight, The Invention of Donald Trump and the Erosion of America. Then in 2022, she came back on the show to talk about how a culture of conspiracy is keeping America simultaneously complacent and paranoid that the book was called or is called, They Knew. Another big success. And now Sarah has a new book out. It's called The Last American Road Trip. It's a beautifully written book, a kind of memoir, but a political one, of course, which one would expect from Sarah Kendzior. And I'm thrilled, as I said, that the Cassandra of St. Louis is joining us from St. Louis. Sarah, congratulations on the new book.Sarah Kendzior: Oh, thank you. And thank you for having me back on.Andrew Keen: Well, it's an honor. So these four books, how does the last American road trip in terms of the narrative of your previous three hits, how does it fit in? Why did you write it?Sarah Kendzior: Well, this book kind of pivots off the epilog of hiding in plain sight. And that was a book about political corruption in the United States and the rise of Trump. But in the epilogue, I describe how I was trying as a mom to show my kids America in the case that it ended due to both political turmoil and corruption and also climate change. I wanted them to see things themselves. So I was driving them around the country to national parks, historic sites, et cetera. And so many people responded so passionately to that little section, especially parents really struggling on how to raise children in this America that I ended up writing a book that covers 2016 to 2024 and my attempts to show my children everything I could in the time that we had. And as this happens, my children went from relatively young kids to teenagers, my daughter's almost an adult. And so it kind of captures America during this time period. It's also just a travelog, a road trip book, a memoir. It's a lot of things at once.Andrew Keen: Yeah, got great review from Ms. magazine comparing you with the great road writers, Kerouac, of course, and Steinbeck, but Kerouak and Steinback, certainly Kerouack was very much of a solitary male. Is there a female quality to this book? As you say, it's a book as much about your kids and the promise of America as it is about yourself.Sarah Kendzior: Yeah, I think there is in that, you know, I have a section actually about the doomed female road trip where it's, you know, Thelma and Louise or Janet Bates and Psycho or even songs about, you know, being on the road and on the run that are written by women, you know, like Merle Haggard's I'm a Lonesome Fugitive, had to be sung by men to convey that quality. And there aren't a lot of, you know, mom on the Road with her husband and kids kind of books. That said, I think of it as a family book, a parenting book. I certainly think men would like it just as much as women would, and people without kids would like just as people with kids, although it does seem to strike a special resonance with families struggling with a lot of the same issues that I do.Andrew Keen: It's all about the allure of historic Route 66. I've been on that. Anyone who's driven across the country has you. You explain that it's a compilation of four long trips across Route 66 in 1998, 2007, 2017, and 2023. That's almost 40 years, Sarah. Sorry, 30. Getting away my age there, Andrew. My math isn't very good. I mean, how has Route 66 and of course, America changed in that period? I know that's a rather leading question.Sarah Kendzior: No, I mean, I devote quite a lot of the book to Route 66 in part because I live on it, you know, goes right through St. Louis. So, I see it just every day. I'll be casually grocery shopping and then be informed I'm on historic Route 66 all of a sudden. But you know it's a road that is, you once was the great kind of romanticized road of escape and travel. It was decommissioned notably by Ronald Reagan after the creation of the interstate. And now it's just a series of rural roads, frontage roads, roads that end abruptly, roads that have gone into ruin, roads that are in some really beautiful places in terms of the landscape. So it really is this conglomeration of all of America, you know of the decay and the destruction and the abandonment in particular, but also people's, their own memories, their own artistic works, you know roadside shrines and creations that are often, you know pretty off beat. That they've put to show this is what I think of our country. These are my values. This is what, I think, is important. So it's a very interesting journey to take. It's often one I'm kind of inadvertently on just because of where I live and the direction I go. We'll mirror it. So I kept passing these sites again and again. I didn't set out to write this book. Obviously, when I first drove it when I was 19, I didn't know that this was our future. But looking back, especially at technological change, at how we travel, at how trust each other, at all of these things that have happened to this country since this time, it's really something. And that road will bring back all of those memories of what was lost and what remains to be lost. And of course it's hitting its 100th anniversary next year, so I'm guessing there'll be a lot of reminiscing about Route 66.Andrew Keen: Book about memories, you write about that, eventually even your memory will just or this experience of this trip will just be a memory. What does that suggest about contextualizing the current moment in American history? It's too easy to overdramatize it or perhaps it's hard not to over dramatize it given what's happening. I want to talk about a little bit about that your take on America on April the 18th, 2025. But how does that make sense of a memorial when you know that even your memories will become memories?Sarah Kendzior: Yeah, I mean it's hard to talk frankly about what's happening in America now without it sounding over dramatic or hyperbolic, which I think is why so many people were reluctant to believe me over my last decade of warnings that the current crises and catastrophes that we're experiencing are coming, are possible, and need to be actively stopped. I don't think they were inevitable, but they needed to be stopped by people in charge who refused to do it. And so, my reaction to this as a writer, but just as a human being is to write everything down, is to keep an ongoing record, not only of what I witness now, but of what know of our history, of what my own values are, of what place in the world is. And back in 2016, I encouraged everyone to do this because I knew that over the next decade, people would be told to accept things that they would normally never accept, to believe things that they would normally, never believe. And if you write down where you stand, you always have that point of reference to look back towards. It doesn't have to be for publication. It doesn't have to for the outside world. It can just be for yourself. And so I think that that's important. But right now, I think everyone has a role to play in battling what is an authoritarian kleptocracy and preventing it from hurting people. And I think people should lean into what they do best. And what I do best is write and research and document. So that's what I meant. Continue to do, particularly as history itself is under assault by this government.Andrew Keen: One of the things that strikes me about you, Sarah, is that you have an unusual background. You got a PhD in Soviet studies, late Soviet studies.Sarah Kendzior: Anthropology, yeah, but that was nice.Andrew Keen: But your dissertation was on the Uzbek opposition in exile. I wonder whether that experience of studying the late Soviet Union and its disintegration equipped you in some ways better than a lot of domestic American political analysts and writers for what's happening in America today. We've done a number of shows with people like Pete Weiner, who I'm sure you know his work from the Atlantic of New York Times. About learning from East European resistance writers, brave people like Milan Kundra, of course, Vaclav Havel, Solzhenitsyn. Do you think your earlier history of studying the Soviet Union helped you prepare, at least mentally, intellectually, for what's happening in the United States?Sarah Kendzior: Oh, absolutely. I think it was essential, because there are all sorts of different types of authoritarianism. And the type that Trump and his backers have always pursued was that of a mafia state, you know, of a kleptocracy. And Uzbekistan is the country that I knew the most. And actually, you what I wrote my dissertation about, this is between 2006, and 2012, was the fact that after a massacre of civilians... A lot of Uzbekistan's journalists, activists, political figures, opposition figures, et cetera, went into exile and then they immediately started writing blogs. And so for the very first time, they had freedom of speech. They had never had it in Uzbekistan. And they start revealing the whole secret history of Uzbekistan and everything going on and trying to work with each other, try to sort of have some impact on the political process in Uzbekistan. And they lost. What happened was the dictator died, Islam Karimov died, in 2016, and was replaced by another dictator who's not quite as severe. But watching the losing side and also watching people persevere and hold on to themselves and continue working despite that loss, I think, was very influential. Because you could look at Václav Havel or Lech Walesa or, you know, other sort of. People who won, you know, from Eastern Europe, from the revolutions of 1989 and so forth. And it's inspiring that sometimes I think it's really important to look at the people who did not succeed, but kept going anyway. You know, they didn't surrender themselves. They didn't their morality and they didn't abandon their fellow man. And I think that that's important. And also just to sort of get at the heart of your question, yes, you the structure of it, oligarchs who shake down countries, strip them and sell them for parts. Mine them for resources. That model, especially of what happened to Russia, actually, in particular in the 1990s of these oligarch wars, is what I see as the future of the United States right now. That is what they're trying to emulate.Andrew Keen: That we did a show with Steve Hansen and Jeff Kopstein, both political scientists, on what they see. They co-wrote a book on patrimonialism. This is the model they see there. They're both Max Weber scholars, so they borrow from that historic sociological analysis. And Kopstein was on the show with John Rausch as well, talking about this patrimonials. And so you, do you share the Kopstein-Hansen-Rausch analysis. Roush wrote a piece in the Atlantic about this too, which did very well. But this isn't conventional fascism or communism. It's a kind of 21st century version of patrimonialism.Sarah Kendzior: It's definitely not traditional fascism and one of the main reasons for that is a fascist has loyalty to the state. They seek to embody the state, they seek to expand the state recently Trump has been doing this more traditional route somewhat things like wanting to buy Greenland. But I think a lot of what he's doing is in reaction to climate change and also by the way I don't think Trump is the mastermind or originator. Of any of these geopolitical designs. You know, he has a team, we know about some of them with the Heritage Foundation Project 2025. We know he has foreign advisors. And again, you know, Trump is a corporate raider. That is how he led his business life. He's a mafia associate who wants to strip things down and sell them for parts. And that's what they wanna do with the United States. And that, yes, there are fascist tactics. There are fascists rhetoric. You know there are a lot of things that this country will, unfortunately, and has. In common, you know, with, say, Nazi Germany, although it's also notable that of course Nazi Germany borrowed from a lot of the tactics of Jim Crow, slavery, genocide of Native Americans. You know, this has always been a back and forth and America always has had some form of selective autocracy. But yeah, I think the folks who try to make this direct line and make it seem like the 20th century is just simply being revived, I've always felt like they were off because. There's no interest for these plutocrats in the United States even existing as a sovereign body. Like it truly doesn't matter to them if all of our institutions, even something as benign as the Postal Service, collapse. That's actually beneficial for them because then they can privatize, they can mine resources, they can make money for themselves. And I really worry that their goal is partition, you know, is to take this country. And to split it into smaller pieces that are easier to control. And that's one of the reasons I wrote this book, that I wrote The Last American Road Trip because I don't want people to fall for traps about generalizations or stereotypes about different regions of this country. I want them to see it as a whole and that our struggles are interconnected and we have a better chance of winning if we stand by each other.Andrew Keen: Yeah, and your book, in particular, The View from Flyover Country was so important because it wasn't written from San Francisco or Los Angeles or D.C. Or New York. It was written from St. Louis. So in a way, Sarah, you're presenting Trump as the ultimate Hayekian b*****d. There's a new book out by Quinn Slobodian called Hayek's B******s, which connects. Trumpianism and mago with Neoliberalism you don't see a break. We've done a lot of shows on the rise and fall of neoliberalism. You don't say a break between Hayek and TrumpSarah Kendzior: I think that in terms of neoliberalism, I think it's a continuation of it. And people who think that our crises began with Trump becoming the president in 2017, entering office, are deluded because the pathway to Trump even being able to run for president given that he was first investigated by the Department of Justice in 1973 and then was linked to a number of criminal enterprises for decades after. You know, that he was able to get in that position, you know that already showed that we had collapsed in certain respects. And so I think that these are tied together. You know, this has a lot to do with greed, with a, you know a disregard for sovereignty, a disregard human rights. For all of this Trump has always served much better as a demagogue, a front man, a figurehead. I do think, you he's a lot smarter. Than many of his opponents give him credit for. He is very good at doing what he needs to do and knowing what he need to know and nothing more. The rest he gives to the bureaucrats, to the lawyers, et cetera. But he fills this persona, and I do wonder what will happen when he is gone because they've tried very hard to find a successor and it's always failed, like DeSantis or Nikki Haley or whoever. And I kind of wonder if one of the reasons things are moving so, so fast now is they're trying to get a lot of things in under the wire while he's still alive, because I don't think that there's any individual who people have the loyalty to. His cult is not that big. It's a relatively small segment of the country, but it is very intense and very loyal to him. I don't think that loyalty is transferable.Andrew Keen: Is there anything, you know, I presented you as the Cassandra from St. Louis, you've seen the future probably clearer than most other people. Certainly when I first came across your work, I wasn't particularly convinced. I'm much more convinced now. You were right. I was wrong. Is there, anything about Trump too, that surprised you? I mean, any of the, the cruelty? Open corruption, the anger, the hostility, the attempt to destroy anything of any value in America, the fact that they seem to take such great pleasure in destroying this country's most valuable thing.Sarah Kendzior: Yeah, it's extremely sad and no, he doesn't surprise me at all. He's been the same guy since I was a little kid. You know, he was a plot line on children's television shows in the 1980s where as a child, I was supposed to know that the name Trump was synonymous with corruption, with being a tax cheat, with being a liar, you know, these were just sort of cultural codes that I was expected to know. What surprised me more is that no one stopped him because this threat was incredibly obvious. And that so many people in power have joined in, and I'm assuming they're joining in because they would rather be on the side with all that power than be a target of that power, but that they feel apparently no sense of loss, no sense grief for things like the loss of national parks, public education, the postal service, things that most folks like, social security for your elderly parents. Most Americans... Want these things. And most Americans, regardless of political party, don't want to see our country torn apart in this fashion. And so I'm not surprised by Trump. I'm surprised at the extent of his enablers at the complicity of the press and of the FBI and other institutions. And, you know, it's also been very jarring to watch how open they are this time around, you know, things like Elon Musk and his operation taking out. Classified information. The thing is, is I'm pretty sure Trump did all that. I mean, we know Trump did this in his first term, you know, and they would emphasize things like this box of physical written documents in Mar-a-Lago illegally taken. But, you know my mind always just went to, well, what did they do digitally? Because that seems much easier and much more obvious. What did they with all of these state secrets that they had access to for four years? What kind of leverage would that give them? And I think now they're just kind of, they're not bothering to hide anything anymore. I think they set the stage and now, you know, we're in the midst of the most horrible play, the most terrible performance ever. And it's, you can be still crushing at times.Andrew Keen: And of course, the real question is whether we're in the last act. Your book, The Last American Road Trip, was written, mostly written, what, in 2024 from?Sarah Kendzior: 2023.Andrew Keen: 2023. So, I mean, here's, I don't know if you can answer this, Sarah, but you know as much about middle America and middle Americans as anyone. You're on the road, you talk to everyone, you have a huge following, both on the left and the right in some ways. Some of your books now, you told me before we went live, some of your previous books, like Hiding in Plain Sight, suddenly become a big hit amongst conservative Americans. What does Trump or the MAGA people around him, what do they have to do to lose the support of ordinary Americans? As you say, they're destroying the essential infrastructure, medical, educational, the roads, the railways, everything is being destroyed, carted off almost like Stalin carted of half of the Soviet Union back into Asia during the Second World War. What does he have to do to lose the support of Middle America?Sarah Kendzior: I mean, I don't think middle America, you know, by which like a giant swath of the country that's, that's just ideological, diverse, demographically diverse supports him. I mean some do certainly. He's got some hardcore acolytes. I think most people are disillusioned with the entire political system. They are deeply frustrated by Trump. They were deeply frustrated. By Biden, they're struggling to pay bills. They're struggling. To hold on to basic human rights. And they're mad that their leverage is gone. People voted in record numbers in 2020. They protested in record number throughout Trump's first term. They've made their concerns known for a very long time and there are just very few officials really listening or responding. And I think that initially when Trump reentered the picture, it caused folks to just check out mentally because it was too overwhelming. I think it's why voter turnout was lower because the Democrats, when they won, didn't make good on their promises. It's a very simple thing. If you follow through with your campaign platform that was popular, then you're going to retain those voters. If you don't, you may lose them, especially when you're up against a very effective demagogue who has a way with rhetoric. And so we're just in such a bad place, such a painful place. I don't think people will look to politicians to solve their problems and with very good reason. I'm hoping that there are more of a sense of community support, more of sense that we're all in this together, especially as financially things begin to fall apart. Trump said openly in 2014 that he intended to crash the American economy. He said this on a Fox News clip that I found in 2016. Because it was being reprinted all over Russian-language media. They loved this clip because it also praised Putin and so forth. And I was astounded by it. I was like, why in the world isn't this all over every TV station, every radio station? He's laying out the whole plan, and now he's following that plan. And so I'm very concerned about that. And I just hope people in times like this, traditionally, this opens the door to fascism. People become extremely afraid. And in their fear they want a scapegoat, they are full of rage, they take it out on each other. That is the worst possible move right now from both a moral or a strategic view. People need to protect each other, to respect each other as fully human, to recognize almost everyone here, except for a little tiny group of corrupt billionaires, is a victim in this scenario, and so I don't see a big difference between, you know, myself and... Wherever I go. I was in Tulsa yesterday, I was in San Francisco last week. We're all in this together and I see a lot of heartache wherever I go. And so if people can lend each other support, that is the best way to get through this.Andrew Keen: Are you suggesting then that he is the Manchurian candidate? Why did he say that in 2014?Sarah Kendzior: Well, it was interesting. He was on Fox during the Sochi Olympics, and he was talking about how he speaks with Putin every day, their pals, and that Putin is going to produce a really big win for us, and we're all going to be very happy about it. And then he went on to say that the crashing of the economy and riots throughout America is what will make America great again. And this is in February 2014. Fox has deleted the clip, You know, other people have copies. So it is, it's also in my book hiding in plain sight, the transcript of that. I'm not sure, like a Manchurian candidate almost feels, you know like the person would have to be blackmailed or coerced or brainwashed somehow to participate. I think Trump is a true volunteer and his loyalty isn't to Russia per se. You know, his loyalty is to his bank accounts, like his loyalty is to power. And one thing he's been after his whole life was immunity from prosecution because he has been involved or adjacent to such an enormous number of crimes. And then when the Supreme Court granted him that, he got what he wanted and he's not afraid of breaking the law in any way. He's doing what all autocrats do, which is rewrite the law so that he is no longer breaking it. And he has a team of lawyers who help him in that agenda. So I feel like on one sense, he's very. All-American. It's kind of a sad thing that as he destroys America, he's doing it in a very American way. He plays a lot of great American music at his rallies. He has a vernacular that I can relate to that and understand it while detesting everything he's doing and all of his horrific policies. But what they want to turn us into though, I think is something that all Americans just won't. Recognized. And we've had the slipping away of a kind of unified American culture for a while, I think because we've lost our pop culture, which is really where a lot of people would bond, you know, movies, music, all of it became split into streaming services, you know. All of it became bifurcated. People stopped seeing each other as much face to face, you know, during COVID and then that became kind of a permanent thing. We're very fragmented and that hurts us badly. And all we've kind of got left is I guess sports and then politics. So people take all the effort that they used to put into devouring American pop culture or American civic life and they put it into this kind of politics that the media presents as if it's a game, like initially a horse race during the election and now like, ooh, will the evil dictator win? It's like, this is our lives. Like we have a lot on the line. So I wish they would do, they would take their job more seriously too. Of course, they're up paywalled and on streaming sites, so who's watching anyway, but still it is a problem.Andrew Keen: Yeah, it's interesting you talk about this death wish, you mentioned Thelma and Louise earlier, one of the great movies, American road movies, maybe in an odd way, the final scene of the Trump movie will be similar to the, you seem to be suggesting to, I'm not gonna give away the end of Thelmer and Louise to anyone who's watching who hasn't seen it, you do need to see it, similar ending to that movie. What about, you've talked about resistance, Sarah, a one of. The most influential, I guess, resistors to Trump and Trumpism. You put up an X earlier this month about the duty of journalism to resist, the duty to thinkers to resist. Some people are leaving, guys like Tim Snyder, his wife, Marcy Shaw, Jason Stanley, another expert on fascism. You've made it clear that you're staying. What's your take on people like Snyder who are leaving this country?Sarah Kendzior: Well, from what I know, he made a statement saying he had decided to move to Canada before Trump was put in office. Jason Stanley, on the other hand, explicitly said he's moving there because Trump is in office, and my first thought when I heard about all of them was, well, what about their students? Like, what about all these students who are being targeted by ICE, who are being deported? What about their TAs? What about everyone who's in a more vulnerable position. You know, when you have a position of power and influence, you could potentially do a lot of good in helping people. You know I respect everyone's decision to live wherever they want. Like it's not my business. But I do think that if you have that kind of chance to do something powerful for the community around you, especially the most vulnerable people in it who at this time are green card holders, people here on visas, we're watching this horrific crackdown at all these universities. My natural inclination would be to stay and take a stand and not abandon them. And I guess, you know, people, they do things in different ways or they may have their own personal concerns and, you know that's fine. I just know, you know I'm not leaving, you know, like I've got elderly parents and in-laws. I've got relatives who need me. I have a lot of people who depend on me and they depend on me in St. Louis and in Missouri. Because there aren't that many journalists in St. Louis. I think there could be, there are a lot of great writers in St Louis, you know, who have given a chance, given a platform, you could really show you what it's actually like here instead of all these stereotypes. But we're always, always marginalized. Like even I'm marginalized and I think I'm, you know, probably the most well-known in terms of being a political commentator. And so I feel like it's important to stand my ground but also You know, I love this, this state in the city and I love my community and I can't fathom, you know, leaving people in the lurch at a time like this. When I'm doing better, I'm on more solid ground despite being a target of various, you know organizations and individuals. I'm at a more solid down than somebody who's a, you know a black American or an immigrant or impoverished. Like I feel like it is my job to stand up for you know, folks here and let everyone know, you know what's going on and be somebody who they can come to and feel like that's safe.Andrew Keen: You describe yourself, Sarah, as a target. Your books have done very well. Most of them have been bestsellers. I'm sure the last American road trip will do very well, you're just off.Sarah Kendzior: It is the bestseller as of yesterday. It is your bestseller, congratulations. Yeah, our USA Today bestsellers, so yeah.Andrew Keen: Excellent. So that's good news. You've been on the road, you've had hundreds of people show up. I know you wrote about signing 600 books at Left Bank Books, which is remarkable. Most writers would cut off both hands for that. How are you being targeted? You noted that some of your books are being taken off the shelves. Are they being banned or discouraged?Sarah Kendzior: I mean, basically, what's been happening is kind of akin to what you see with universities. I just think it's not as well publicized or publicized at all, where there's not some sort of, you know, like the places will give in to what they think this administration wants before they are outright told to do it. So yes, there is an attempt to remove hiding in plain sight from circulation in 2024 to, you know, make the paperback, which at the time was ranked on Amazon. At number 2,000. It was extremely popular because this is the week that the Supreme Court gave Trump immunity. I was on vacation when I found out it was being pulled out of circulation. And I was in rural New Mexico and I had to get to a place with Wi-Fi to try to fight back for my book, which was a bestseller, a recent publication. It was very strange to me and I won that fight. They put it back, but a lot of people had tried to order it at that time and didn't get it. And a lot of people try to get my other books and they just can't get them. You know, so the publisher always has a warehouse issue or a shipping problem and you know, this kind of comes up or you know people notice, they've noticed this since 2020, you know I don't get reviewed in the normal kind of place as a person that has best selling books one after another would get reviewed. You know, that kind of thing is more of a pain. I always was able to circumvent it before through social media. But since Musk took over Twitter and because of the way algorithms work, it's more and more difficult for me to manage all of the publicity and PR and whatnot on my own. And so, you know, I'm grateful that you're having me on your show. I'm also grateful that, you Know, Flatiron did give me a book tour. That's helped tremendously. But there's that. And then there's also just the constant. Death threats and threats of you know other things you know things happening to people I love and it's been scary and I get used to it and that I expect it but you know you never could really get used to people constantly telling you that they're gonna kill you you know.Andrew Keen: When you get death threats, do you go to the authorities, have they responded?Sarah Kendzior: No, there's no point. I mean, I have before and it was completely pointless. And, you know, I'll just mostly just go to people I know who I trust to see if they can check in on things. I have to be very vague here who are not in the government or in the police or anything like that. I don't think anyone would protect me. I really just don't think anyone could help. You know, one thing is, you know, yes, I'm a prominent critic of Trump and his administration, but I was also a prominent critic of. The DOJ and Merrick Garland for not doing anything about all of these threats and also a critic of Biden and the Democrats for not impeaching quickly, for not being more proactive, for not acting with greater urgency. So I'm targeted by kind of everyone except for people who don't have any power, which is a strange situation to be in because I love my readers and I think that they're wonderful and I'm incredibly grateful for them because my books largely spread through word of mouth. It is scary for me, just as like a mom in Missouri without a lot of resources to be targeted by all of these kind of high profile, wealthy, powerful people. But all I have is my voice and my writing. And so I just do what I can. And that's just the way the cards have been dealt for me and it is what it is, so.Andrew Keen: Later historians write about this period in 50 or 100 years time. How do you think you mentioned the Biden administration, you were critical of them. We haven't talked about Kamala Harris's failed presidential term, which I wasn't particularly impressed with. How much moral responsibility do you think that Biden and Harris should be accused of for Trump too?Sarah Kendzior: Yeah, I mean, well, first of all, I'd be delighted if we have historians in the future. Well, I will be, even if I don't.Andrew Keen: Well, there will be, even if, I don't know, in America, there'll be somewhere.Sarah Kendzior: I is where it'll be some sort of AI creation that just, you know, belches out, make America great again, like, you know, like in The Shining or something, just over and over and over again. But assuming we have real historians that actually assess the situation, I think they are going to be tremendously critical of the Biden administration. I think it may in fact go down as one of the worst of all time. And he will be seen as a Neville Chamberlain-like figure who had the opportunity to stop or slow A number of autocratic practices and either chose to look the other way or to enable them. Because the thing is, in 2016, people were very doubtful that America could become an autocratic state. They hadn't seen this before. A lot of this was new to them. From 2016 through 2021, we saw all that Trump was capable of, and he committed a large multitude of crimes,RetryClaude hit the max length for a message and has paused its response. You can write Continue to keep the chat going.AKplease continueEditHere's the continuation of the transcript:Sarah Kendzior: ...and those crimes, not just him, but his cohort were never held accountable. And what they did during the Biden years was plan all of their next moves. Like you don't suddenly have a gulag for Americans in El Salvador, like just off the top of your head. You know, all of this takes planning. We knew about a lot of the plans, you know, the Democrats campaigned about combating Project 2025. And my question to them was, well, what what if you lose? How are you going to combat it then? You know what, if he gets back, what are you gonna do? They would be so offended. They're like, how dare you, you question us. How dare you question, you know, our plans? They're, like, well, I don't, you don't have a plan. Like, that's my question is what is the plan? And they didn't. And they could have spent those four years creating a bulwark against a lot of the most horrific policies that we're seeing now. Instead, they're kind of reacting on the fly if they're even reacting at all. And meanwhile, people are being targeted, deported, detained. They're suffering tremendously. And they're very, very scared. I think it's very scary to have a total dearth of leadership from where the, not just the opposition, but just people with basic respect for the constitution, our civil rights, etc., are supposed to be.Andrew Keen: You mentioned Project 2025, we've got David Graham on the show next week, who's written a book about Project 2025. Is there anything positive to report, Sarah? I mean, some people are encouraged by the behavior, at least on Friday, the 18th of April, who knows what will happen over the weekend or next week. Behavior of Harvard, some law firms are aggressively defending their rights. Should we be encouraged by the universities, law firms, even some corporate leaders are beginning to mutter under their breath about Trump and Trumpism?Sarah Kendzior: And it depends whether they actually have that power in wielded or whether they're just sort of trying to tamper down public dissent. I'm skeptical of these universities and law firms because I think they should have had a plan long ago because I was very obvious that all of this was going to happen and I feel so terribly for all of the students there that were abandoned by these administrations, especially places like Columbia. That gave in right away. What does hearten me though, you know, and I, as you said, I'd been on this tour, like I was all over the West coast. I've been all over, the Midwest and the South is, Americans, Americans do understand what's happening. There's always this like this culture in media of like, how do we break it to Americans? Like, yeah, well, we know, we know out here in Missouri that this is very bad. And I think that people have genuine concern for each other. I think they still have compassion for each other. I think there's a culture of cruelty that's promoted online and it's incentivized. You know, you can make money that way. You could get clicks that that way, whatever, but in real life, I think people feel vulnerable. They feel afraid, but I've seen so much kindness. I've been so much concern and determination from people who don't have very much, and maybe that's, you know, why people don't know about it. These are just ordinary folks. And so I have great faith in American people to combat this. And what I don't have faith in is our institutions. And I hope that these sort of in between places, places like universities who do a lot of good on one hand, but also can kind of act as like hedge funds. On the other hand, I hope they move fully to the side of good and that they purge themselves of these corrupt elements that have been within them for a long time, the more greedy. Aspects of their existence. I hope they see themselves as places that uphold civic life and history and provide intellectual resistance and shelter for students in the storm. They could be a really powerful force if they choose to be. It's never too late to change. I guess that's the message I want to bring home. Even if I'm very critical of these places, it's never to late for them to change and to do the right thing.Andrew Keen: Well, finally, Sarah, a lot of people are going to be watching this on my Substack page. Your Substack Page, your newsletter, They Knew, I think has last count, 52,000 subscribers. Is this the new model for independent writers, journalist thinkers like yourself? I'm not sure of those 52,00, how many of them are paid. You noted that your book has disappeared co-isindecially sometimes. So maybe some publishers are being intimidated. Is the future for independent thinkers, platforms like Substack, where independent authors like yourself can establish direct intellectual and commercial relations with their readers and followers?Sarah Kendzior: It's certainly the present. I mean, this is the only place or other newsletter outlets, I suppose, that I could go. And I purposefully divorced myself from all institutions except for my publisher because I knew that this kind of corruption would inhibit me from being able to say the truth. This is why I dropped out of academia, I dropped out of regular journalism. I have isolated myself to some degree on purpose. And I also just like being in control of this and having direct access to my readers. However, what does concern me is, you know, Twitter used to also be a place where I had direct access to people I could get my message out. I could circumvent a lot of the traditional modes of communication. Now I'm essentially shadow banned on there, along with a lot of people. And you know Musk has basically banned substack links because of his feud with Matt Taibbi. You know, that led to, if you drop a substack link in there, it just gets kind of submerged and people don't see it. So, you know, I think about Twitter and how positive I was about that, maybe like 12, 13 years ago, and I wonder how I feel about Substack and what will happen to it going forward, because clearly, you Know, Trump's camp realizes the utility of these platforms, like they know that a lot of people who are prominent anti authoritarian voices are using them to get the word out when they are when they lose their own platform at, like, say, the Washington Post or MSNBC or... Whatever network is corrupted or bullied. And so eventually, I think they'll come for it. And, you know, so stack has problems on its own anyway. So I am worried. I make up backups of everything. I encourage people to consume analog content and to print things out if they like them in this time. So get my book on that note, brand new analog content for you. A nice digital.Andrew Keen: Yeah, don't buy it digitally. I assume it's available on Kindle, but you're probably not too keen or even on Amazon and Bezos. Finally, Sarah, this is Friday. Fridays are supposed to be cheerful days, the days before the weekend. Is there anything to be cheerful about on April The 18th 2025 in America?Sarah Kendzior: I mean, yeah, there's things to be cheerful about, you know, pre spring, nice weather. I'm worried about this weekend. I'll just get this out real quick. You know, this is basically militia Christmas. You know, This is the anniversary of Waco, the Oklahoma City bombings, Columbine. It's Hitler's birthday. This is a time when traditionally American militia groups become in other words,Andrew Keen: Springtime in America.Sarah Kendzior: Yeah, springtime for Hitler. You know, and so I'm worried about this weekend. I'm worry that if there are anti-Trump protests that they'll be infiltrated by people trying to stoke the very riots that Trump said he wanted in order to, quote, make America great again and have everything collapse. So everyone, please be very, very careful this weekend heading out and just be aware of the. Of these dates and the importance of these days far predates Trump to, you know, militia groups and other violent extremist groups.Andrew Keen: Well, on that cheerful note, I asked you for a positive note. You've ruined everyone's weekend, probably in a healthy way. You are the Cassandra from St. Louis. Appreciate your bravery and honesty in standing up to Trump and Trumpism, MAGA America. Congratulations on the new book. As you say, it's available in analog form. You can buy it. Take it home, protect it, dig a hole in your garden and protect it from the secret police. Congratulations on the new book. As I said to you before we went live, it's a beautifully written book. I mean, you're noted as a polemicist, but I thought this book is your best written book, the other books were well written, but this is particularly well written. Very personal. So congratulations on that. And Sarah will have to get you back on the show. I'm not sure how much worse things can get in America, but no doubt they will and no doubt you will write about it. So keep well, keep safe and keep doing your brave work. Thank you so much.Sarah Kendzior: Yeah, you too. Thank you so much for your kind words and for having me on again. 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

Today we take a break from the serious and often depressing international news beat to bring you the sound's of Soviet Central Asia in the 1970's and 80's. Our Moscow correspondent introduces us to an anthology of songs that came out of a record factory in Tashkent documenting a wide variety of music from the silk road in that time period.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Last time we spoke about the beginning of the Kumul Rebellion. In 1931, tensions in Kumul escalated after a Muslim girl spurned Han tax collector Chang Mu, leading to his violent death at a family dinner. Enraged, Uyghurs retaliated against Chinese officials, igniting a rebellion. Chaos ensued as rebels targeted Han settlers, ultimately capturing Kumul with little resistance. Amidst the unrest, Yulbars Khan sought support from military leader Ma Chongying, who planned to mobilize his forces to help the Uyghurs. What began as a local incident spiraled into an all-out revolt against oppressive rule. In 1931, young warlord Ma Chongying sought to establish a Muslim empire in Central Asia, leading a small force of Tungan cavalry. As his army attempted to besiege Kumul Old City, they faced fierce resistance from Chinese troops. Despite several assaults, the lack of heavy artillery hampered Ma's progress. Eventually, Ma faced defeat due to a serious injury. After his recuperation, his forces joined with Uyghur insurgents, sparking a guerrilla war against oppressive provincial troops, leading to increasing unrest and rebellion.   #133 Kumul Rebellion part 2: Uprisings in southern Xinjiang Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. So in the last episode we spoke about the beginning of the Kumul Rebellion. Now the Kumul Rebellion is actually a series of other rebellions all interlaced into this larger blanket known as the Xinjiang Wars. To be blunt, Xinjiang was the wild west from the 1930s until basically the formation of the PRC. We briefly went over the various groups that inhabit northwestern China, they all had their own interests. I want to start off by looking at the situation of southern Xinjiang. Back in June of 1924, Ma Fuxing, the T'ai of Kashgar was executed. His executioner was Ma Shaowu who had just received the post of Taoyin over the oasis city of Khotan. There was of course always tension, but southern Xinjiang was relatively peaceful in the 1920s. Then Governor Yang Zengxin was assassinated in July of 1928. During the last years of his rule, southern Xinjiang often referred to as Kashgaria, remained entrenched in the British sphere of influence after the collapse of Tsarist Russia and the subsequent closure of the Imperial Russian consulate-General at Kashgar.  Going further back in time, in August of 1918, Sir Geoerge Macartney, the long standing British Consul General to Kashar had retired. His successor was Colonel P. T Etherton, a hardcore anti-communist who actively was cooperating with anti-Soviet Basmachi guerillas in the western portion of Turkestan. One of his missions was to curb Soviet influence in southern Xinjiang. Yang Zengxin understood the British policy towards Xinjiang was to push the Soviets out via enabling the survival of his independent Han led regime. Thus Yang Zengxin was very friendly to the British and allowed them to exercise considerable political influence in Tien Shan. Despite this Soviet influence spread in Ili and Zungharia. This prompted Yang Zengxin to secretly cooperate with the British in Kashgar to counter the looming red growth north of his province. Now by 1924, through a combination of military necessities and the re-emergence of Soviet Russia as Xinjiang's largest trading partner, this forced Yang Zengxin to push away the British. Following the Sino-Soviet agreement of 1924 which effectively saw the establishment of diplomatic relations between Moscow and Beijing, the Soviet government at Omsk dispatched an envoy to Xinjiang to discuss mutual consular representation. Both sides reached an agreement on October 6th, providing for an exchange of consulate-generals between Tashkent and Urumqi and for Soviet consulates in Chuguchak, Kulja, Shara Sume and Kashgar. The new Soviet presence in Kashgar was quite upsetting for the British. It also allowed the Soviets direct access to the densely populated oases of Tarim Basin, the source of nearly all Xinjiang's revenue.  Shortly after the Soviet Consulate in Kashgar officially opened on October 10, 1925, a local power struggle emerged involving Max Doumpiss, the Soviet Consul, of Latvian origin, Major Gillan, the British Consul-General at that time, and the Taoyin of Kashgar. Sino-Soviet relations in southern Xinjiang took a troubled turn in November 1925 when large quantities of silver bullion were discovered hidden in thirty-four boxes labeled as Soviet 'diplomatic bags,' intended for the Kashgar consulate. The Kashgar Taoyin, who was reportedly offended by the 'subtle spread of Soviet propaganda' in the southern oases, retaliated by expelling several suspected Russian agents. In March 1926, significant riots erupted in Kashgar, which the Chinese authorities attributed to an interpreter at the Soviet Consulate named Akbar 'Ali. The unrest was quelled by a force of 400 local Tungan troops, and Akbar 'Ali was imprisoned; the Taoyin ignored subsequent Soviet demands for his release. The rapid increase in the number of European consular staff from around fifteen in 1925 to between thirty and forty by 1927 also alarmed Chinese officials. All these developments were likely reported to Governor Yang Tseng-hsin in Urumchi, who was likely dealing with similar situations at the newly established Soviet Consulates in Kulja, Chuguchak, and Shara Sume. It appears that, with discreet British support, Yang decided to take actions to curb the expansion of Soviet influence in Kashgar. The Kashgar Taoyin then took up a strong anti-soviet stance. Alongside this Yang Zengxin's nephew, the officer in command of Chinese troops along the Kashgar northern frontier, suddenly became a frequent visitor to the British consulate General at Chini Bagh. After the death of the old Taoyin in 1927, Ma Shaowu came over from Khotan to replace him and with this came heightened anti-soviet policies in southern Xinjiang. Ma Shaowu first began by imprisoning 60 alleged local communists and tightened Chinese control over Kashgars northern frontier. The freedom of the Soviet Consul team to travel within southern Xinjiang was tightened to the extreme and all Kashgar citizens suspected of pro-soviet sympathies became targets for confiscation of their property or deportation to other oases. Yang Zengxin backed Ma Shaowu's attempts to limit Soviet influence in Tarim Basin by imposing severe tax on Muslims leaving southern Xinjiang to go on Hajj via the USSR. Similarly, new legislative was unleashed requiring merchants going into the USSR to deposit large sums of money to the Chinese authorities in Kashgar who would forfeit if the depositor failed to return to Xinjiang within 60 days.  These policies did not completely insulate southern Xinjiang from Soviet influence; however, they did ensure that at the time of Yang Zengxin's assassination in 1928, the southern region of the province—especially Ma Shao-wu's domain around Kashgar, Yarkand, and Khotan—maintained a significant degree of independence from the Soviet Union. This stood in stark contrast to areas like the Ili Valley, Chuguchak, and Shara Sume, where Soviet influence became dominant shortly after 1925, and even to the provincial capital of Urumqi, where, by the spring of 1928, the Soviet Consul-General had considerable sway. It was likely due to Ma Shaowu's anti-Soviet position and the persistent dominance of British influence in southern Xinjiang during the final years of Yang Zengxin's administration that Kashgar emerged as a hub of conservative Muslim opposition to Chinese governance in the 1930s. Yang Zengxins intentional efforts to sever southern Xinjiang from Soviet influence resulted in the Uighurs and, to a lesser extent, the Kirghiz of the Tarim Basin being less influenced by the 'progressive' nationalist propaganda from Soviet-controlled Western Turkestan compared to the Turkic-speaking Muslims of the Ili Valley and Zungharia. This is not to imply that the socialist nationalism promoted by the Jadidists after 1917 was entirely ineffective south of the Tien Shan; however, Kashgar, situated outside the Soviet zone in northwestern Sinkiang, became a natural refuge for right-wing Turkic nationalists and Islamic traditionalists who opposed Chinese authority yet were even more fiercely against the encroachment of 'atheistic communism' and its Soviet supporters in Central Asia. Many of these right-wing Turkic-speaking nationalists were former Basmachi guerrillas, primarily of Uzbek, Kazakh, and Kirghiz descent, but also included several Ottoman Turks and, according to Caroe, "old men who had fought against the Chinese at Kashgar." Among the most notable Basmachi leaders who sought refuge in Kashgar was Janib Beg, a Kirghiz who would play a significant role in the politics of southern xinjiang during the early 1930s. Following Yang Zengxin's assassination in July 1928, Soviet influence in southern Xinjiang began to grow rapidly; nevertheless, at the onset of the Kumul Rebellion in 1931, reports of forced collectivization and the suppression of nomadic lifestyles in Western Turkestan led many Turkic Muslims in southern Xinjiang to be wary of Soviet intentions. If, during the late 1920s and early 1930's, the Turkic Muslims of southern Xinjiang were divided in their approach towards the Soviets and the newly formed Turkic-Tajik SSR's in western Turkestan, they all were united in their attitude towards their Tungan brethren to the east. Unlike the Turkic Muslim rebels of Kumul, the Uyghurs and Kirghiz of southern Xinjiang were far too distant from Gansu to appeal for assistance from the Tungan warlords, such as the 5 Ma Clique. Besides the Han Chinese officials, rule over the oases of Tarim Basin had long been held by Tungans. Ma Fuxing, the Titai of Kashgar had ruthlessly exploited his Turkic Muslim subjects between 1916-1924. He himself was a Hui Muslim from Yunnan, as was Ma Shaowu. The Turkic Muslims of southern Xinjiang therefore had zero illusions of any “muslim brotherhood” with their Tungan brethren. It was Tungan troops who intervened to suppress any demonstration against Chinese rule. The Tungans of Tarim Basin were allies to the Han Chinese administration and thus enemies to the Turkic Muslim peoples. The western rim of Tarim Basin was in a unique political situation during the later half of Yang Zengxins rule as a large part of its Turkic Muslim population looked neither to the progressive Muslim leadership of western Turkestan nor the Tungan warlords of Gansu. Instead they looked at the regimes in Turkey and Afghanistans, both quite conservative. Contacts in these places were sparse ever since the Qing reconquest of Xinjiang. After the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in WW1, contact ceased to exist at all. Emotional links to what once was however lingerd, and the nationalist revolution of Ataturk sprang something of a Turkish renaissance inspiring Turkic peoples from Crimea to Kumul.  As for Afghanistan, there existed more concrete religious and political contacts with southern Xinjiang. In 1919, Amir Aman Allah, the last Muhammadzay ruler of Afghanistan had taken the throne after the death of his father. He became an impetuous ruler who brought forth his own downfall through a series of radical reforms that caused a revolution by 1928. Yet in his first years of rule he had widespread support of Muslim peoples in central asia, especially after he began the Third Afghan war against Britain, combined with a Jihad for Afghan independence. Because of this the British were forced to recognize Afghanistan's right to independent foreign policy. During this period, it is rumored Amir Aman Allah had toyed with the idea of forming an Islamic Confederacy which would have included Afghanistan, Bukhara, Khiva and Khokand. He would have also been interested in influence over Xinjiang where numerous Afghan merchants resided under British protection. Following Britains recognition of Afghanistan's right to independent foreign policy, with the 1919 treaty of Peshawar, British diplomatic protection for Afghan citizens in Xinjiang was lifted. Amir Aman Allah then established independent diplomatic links between Kabul and Urumqi, sending a delegation in 1922 led by Muhammad Sharif Khan. The Chinese officials regarded the Afghan mission as a trade delegation, but Muhammad Sharif Khan carried with him printed visiting cards styling himself as Afghanistan's Consul-General in Xinjiang. Alongside this he brought draft agreements demanding full extraterritorial rights and other privileges for Afghan subjects in Xinjiang and the right to import opium freely into the province. It is to no surprise Yang Zengxin refused to recognize the mission causing a dispute that would drag on for years. It became a long standing issue for th Turkic speaking Muslims of southern Xinjiang. There were many who looked to Afghanistan to help them against Chinese oppression. Now getting back to our timeline, with the initial outbreak of the Kumul Rebellion and the Tungan invasion, Jin Shujen had made every effort to prevent news of these events occurring mostly in the northeast from getting into the south. But of course one cannot stop the flow of information completely. Rumors and reports of the rebellious activities northeast flooded into the oases of Tarim Basin, invigorating anti-Chinese zeal, from peoples already suffering from increased taxation and inflation caused by unbacked paper currency paying for Jin's war efforts. Jin was well aware of the discontent south in his province, but he was emboldened by his victory of Ma Chongying as well as the recent delivery of 4000 rifles and 4 million rounds of ammunition from British held India. Thus he determined to maintain his current stance. It would prove to be a very fateful decision. The Kumul Rebellion was not crushed by any means. In fact the brutality following the relief of Kumul Old City caused outrage amongst the Turkic speaking peoples and sent refugees westwards towards Turfan. By May of 1932, Ma Chongying had dispatched a young Tungan Lt, Ma Shihming to take command over his Tungan forces remaining in Xinjiang. Ma Shihming quickly established his HQ in Turfan and began to cooperate with the Turkic speaking Muslim insurgents who owed their allegiance to Yulbars Khan and Khoja Niyas Haiji. It's also believed he made contact with Ma Fuming, a Tungan officer in command of the Xinjiang provincial forces at Turfan.  By mere coincidence, in May of 1932, Jin had also elected to seek revenge against Tsetsen Puntsag Gegeen, the Torgut Mongol regent inhabiting Tien Shan. That same guy he had asked for military aid from who simply took his army away. Tsetsen Puntsag Gegeen was invited to come back to Urumqi where he was to attend an investigation into the assassination plot laid against him. On May 21st, shortly after his arrival, he alongside two Torgut officers and the young Torgut Prince were all invited to an official banquet at Jin Shujens yamen. Now you might be thinking, who in their right mind would fall for that shit? Especially given the Yang Zengxin banquet story. Well according to R.P Watts, the British Vice Consul General at Kashgar who happened to be in Urumqi at the time. “While drinking the usual preliminary cup of tea the regent and the two military officers were led out into a courtyard and executed. According to Chinese custom in such matters proper observance was accorded to the high rank of regent even at the moment of execution. A red carpet was spread on the ground on which he was invited to seat himself. He was then killed by being shot through the head from behind by one of the governor's special executioners. His two companions being men of inferior rank were not given the privilege of a red carpet to sit on whilst being executed.”  The young Torgut prince was allowed to return to Kara Shahr, man that must have been an awkward desert. So Jin hoped the harsh action would terrify the young prince into submission. As you may have guessed, Jin actions were quite toxic for the Torgut Mongols. Might I add the Torgut Mongols were probably the only non Chinese group in Xinjiang that may have sided with Jin against the Turkic peoples? So to tally up things a bit here. Jin pissed off the Uyghurs and Tungans of Turfan, the Kirghiz of Tian Shan and now the Torguts.  In early 1932, Turkic Muslim opposition to forced collectivization and suppression of nomadism by Stalin in the Kazakh and Kirghiz regions of Soviet Central Asia, saw many spill over into Xinjiang. By March of 1932, large numbers of Kirghiz fled the border and were pursued by Soviet forces. A series of skirmishes and raids broke out in the border region. The Soviet Kirghiz naturally received aid from the Xinjiang Kirghiz and in June a Chinese official was killed by Kirghiz insurgents in Tien Shan. The Chinese were outraged, prompting Ma Shaowu to unleash 300 troops from Kashgar New City and 200 troops from Kashgar Old City to defend the frontier area. These units were soon joined by another 100 troops from Opal and 200 from Uch Turfan all under the leadership of Brigadier Yang, the nephew to the late Yang Zengxin. In July Yang's men began joint operations with the Soviets against the Kirghiz insurgents who were led by Id Mirab. The Chinese forces were said to quote “The Chinese forces had been suffering badly from want of opium', and reportedly behaved very badly towards Kirghiz, a number of whom were driven to take refuge in Russian territory”. To try a force the submission of the Kirghiz, Yang's forces took 70 hostages from Kirghiz families and brought them to imprisoned them the oases of Khotan, Keriya and Charchan. Thus Jin and Ma Shaowu had succeeded within a few months of Ma Chongyings withdrawal back into Gansu in both alienating the Turkic speaking and Mongol nomads of Tien Shan. The Sino-Soviet cooperation against the Kirghiz had also not gone unnoticed by other Muslim groups.  Meanwhile the Kumul Rebellion had spread westwards. By Autumn of 1932, months after the arrival of Ma Shihming to Turfan, Ma Fuming joined the rebels cause. Wu Aichen wrote it was his belief that Ma Fuming's decision was based on the continuing flow of Muslim refugees from Kumul to Turfan combined with reports of mass executions being carried out by Xing Fayu. But like I had mentioned, there is also strong evidence Ma Shihming probably negotiated an alliance with Ma Fuming. Wu Aichen wrote Ma Fumings first rebellious action was to send a telegram to Jin requesting he dispatch reinforcements while he also sent a letter to Xing Fayu over in Kumul to come quickly to Turfan. The reinforcements arrived at the oasis without suspecting a thing and were “shot down to the last man” by Ma Fumings forces as they passed the city gates. A few days later another detachment of 100 men led by Xing Fayu reached Turfan only to suffer the same fate. Xing Fayu was taken captive and “tortured to death in public with every refinement of cruelty and vileness of method”. Following Ma Fumings official defection, the Turfan Depression quickly emerged as the main center of Muslim rebellion in northeastern Xinjiang. Kumul which had been laid to ruin by Jin was abandoned to the Turkic Muslim insurgents and a handful of Tungan troops. A large portion of Tungan forces consisting of those following Ma Fuming and Ma Sushiming massed at Turfan preparing to march upon Urumqi, lying 100 miles northwest. The storm brewing in Turfan was followed up by a series of uncoordinated uprisings amongst the Turkic speaking Muslims of southern Xinjiang. The Uyghurs of Tarim Basin and Kirghiz of Tien Shan realized Jin's grip over the province was weakening and the presence of Tungan forces in Turfan effectively cut off the oases of the south from Urumqi and Jin's White Russian troops, whom otherwise may have scared them into submission. The White Russians and other provincial forces were hard pressed by Ma Fuming and Ma Shihming. Reports also spread that Ma Chongying would soon re-enter the fray in person and that Chang Peiyuan, the Military commander over at Ili had fallen out with Jin. Thus the Turkic speaking Muslims of southern Xinjiang knew the time was ripe to rebel against Chinese rule. In the winter uprising began at Pichan, just east of Turfan and at Kara Shahr about 175 miles southwest. Lack of Torgut support at Kara Shahr following the murder of Tsetsen Puntsag Gegeen basically sealed the fate of the Chinese forces within the city. The new Tungan leader, Ma Chanzeng emerged the commander of rebel forces in the region. Disregarding the increasingly intense conflict between Ma Shih-ming and the provincial forces along the Turfan-Urumqi road, Ma Chan-ts'ang moved westward, seizing Bugur in early February and progressing to Kucha. There, he formed a strategic alliance with Temiir, the local Uyghur leader, who was noted by Wu Aichen as "a capable individual who had managed the mule wagon service." After occupying Kucha without any resistance, the combined forces of Ma Chanzeng and Temiir continued their advance toward Aksu, capturing the small town of Bai along the way. Ma Shaowu was the Taoyin of Kashgar and second most powerful official in the provincial administration after Jin, thus found himself cut off from Urumqi by two separate armies of Muslim rebels each composed of Tungan and Turkic factions. One of these armies held a small but militarily competent Tungan force led by Ma Chanzeng with a large contingent of poorly armed Uyghur peasants owing their allegiance to Temur. This force advanced southwest towards Aksu, while the other army consisting of a loose coalition of competent Tungan troops under Ma Shihming and Ma Fuming with Turkic speaking Muslim peasants owing allegiance to Khoja Niyas Haiji and Yulbars Khan pressed their attack directly upon Urumqi. In February of 1933 to add further confusion in the south, the rebellion against the Chinese spread southwards across the Tarim Basin to its southern rim. Uprising against the Chinese administration broke out simultaneously amongst the gold miners of the southern oases who had long resented the provincial governments fixed rate for the purchase of gold in Xinjiang alongside brutal working conditions. The spiraling inflation from Jin's worthless currency which was used to pay for the gold only made things worse. By spring their patience had run out, the Uyghurs led by Ismail Khan Khoja seized control of Kara Kash killing a large number of Han Chinese. Meanwhile the Uyghurs at Keriya seized control over the Surghak mines and threatened to take control over the whole oasis. Prominent rebel demands included a fair price for gold and silver and prohibition of the purchase of precious metals with paper currency. More urgent demands were lowering taxes, ending government tyranny, introducing Shari a law and stationing Muslim troops in every city. Now these demands were very real, they were willing to stand down if they were met. One anonymous writer of the demand notices placed at Karakash was as follows “A friend for the sake of friendship will make known a friend's defects and save him from the consequences of his defects. You, who are supposed to rule, cannot even realize this, but try to seek out the supporter of Islam to kill him. Foolish infidels like you are not fit to rule ... How can an infidel, who cannot distinguish between a friend and a foe, be fit to rule? You infidels think that because you have rifles, guns ... and money, you can depend on them; but we depend upon God in whose hands are our lives. You infidels think that you will take our lives. If you do not send a reply to this notice we are ready. If we die we are martyrs. If we survive we are conquerors. We are living but long for death”. Ma Shaowu elected to first move against the Muslim insurgents threatening Aksu, most likely reasoning that if Ma Chanzeng and Temur were defeated the weaker rebel forces at KaraKash and Surghak would just crumble. There also was the fact Ma Shihmings men at Turfan had severed the telegraph line between Urumqi and Kashgar, and that line had been re-routed via Aksu, but if Aksu fell to the rebels, communications with the capital would only be possible via the USSR. At this point its estimated Brigadier Yang had a mixed army of 280 cavalry and 150 infantry as he set out for Aksu on February 6th. Ma Shaowu's position was not good. On February 9th, Jin Shujen's younger brother, Jin Shuqi the commander in chief at Kashgar New City suddenly died of illness. He was replaced with a Chinese officer called Liu who took command of his three detachments of cavalry, about 480 men and a single detachment of artillery, about 160 men. Ma Shaowu held control over two regiments of cavalry, 700 men and 3 detachments of infantry, around 300 men all stationed at Kashgar Old City. In mid february reports reached Kashgar that Brigadier Yang was heavily outnumbered by the rebels under Ma Chanzeng and Temur and had fallen back from Aksu to a defensive line at Maral Bashi. On the 23rd celebrations were held at Kashgar to mark Jin handing Ma Shadowu the new title of Special Commissioner for the Suppression of Bandits. During the celebration, salutes were fired at the yamen and KMT flags were flown from buildings throughout the city. Afterwards all of Liu's forces were sent to Maral Bashi to bolster Yang.  Now in a bid to suppress the uprisings at Surghak and KaraKash before a full scale uprising could develop on the southern road, 200 men led by Colonel Li were dispatched to Khotan, while another force under Colonel Chin was dispatched to Yarkland. Because of these movements of troops to Khotan and Maral Bashi, there was a serious depletion of defenders for Kashgar. Thus Ma Shaowu ordered a raising of Kirghiz levies and recalled some Chinese troops from the frontier districts west of Kashgar. Thus the Chinese garrison at Sarikol pulled out to Kashgar, leaving the region's Tajik population to their own devices. At Kashgar, troops posted on the walls of both cities had strict orders to close all gates at 7pm, with major curfew laws set into place.Despite all of this the provincial troops proved very inept at stemming the rebel advance along both the north and south roads into Kashgar. On the 25th, the rebels entered Aksu Old City, shooting up all its Chinese residents, seized their property, stormed the arsenal and looted the treasury. Later on Ma Changzeng and Temur led an estimated 4700 ill armed Uyghur irregular army to advance on Maral Bashi and Kashgar.  In the Keriya, the Chinese officials consented to convert to Islam and to surrender their possessions; however, on March 3, thirty-five Chinese individuals, including top officials, were executed, with their heads displayed in the marketplace. On February 28, the Old City of Khotan fell into the hands of rebels with little resistance, while the New City of Khotan was besieged before capitulating to the insurgents on March 16th. Following the rebel successes in Khotan, it was reported that 266 Han Chinese converted to Islam, and both the treasury and arsenal of the New City—containing "thousands of weapons and nearly a ton of gold"—were seized by the insurgents. Additionally, uprisings led by a Uighur named ‘Abd ai-Qadir took place in Chira, and in Shamba Bazaar, several Han Chinese and two Hindu moneylenders were killed. Further afield from Keriya, the town of Niya succumbed to the rebel forces from Khotan, while even farther east, at the isolated oases of Charchan and Charkhlik, reports indicate that peaceful insurrections occurred after a small Tungan contingent loyal to Ma Shih-ming entered the region via a little-used desert route connecting Kara Shahr and Lop. Meanwhile, to the west of Khotan, Uighur forces under Isma'il Khan Khoja obstructed the main route to Yarkand at the Tokhta Langar caravanserai, repelling all but two delegates sent from Kashgar by Ma Shao-wu, who aimed to negotiate with the rebel leaders in Khotan. No further news was received from the two Begs allowed to continue to Khotan, and with their diplomatic mission's failure, the entire southern route from the eastern outskirts of the Guma oasis to the distant Lop Nor fell out of Chinese control. To fortify their position against potential counterattacks from Kashgar, the rebel leaders in Khotan destroyed roadside wells in the desert east of Guma and began establishing a clearly Islamic governance in the areas they had liberated. By mid March, Ma Shaowu's control over southern Xinjiang was limited to just a wedge of territory around Kashgar, Maral Bashi and Yarkland. Moral was so low, Ma Shaowu asked the British Indian government for military assistance as it seemed apparent no help would come from Urumqi. Ma Shaowu had received 3 telegrams from Jin via the USSR lines; the first confirmed his position as Commander in Chief; the second relayed Jin's brothers death and the third directed Jin Kashgar representatives to remit a large sum of money to his personal bank account in Tientsin. That last signal must have been a banger to read. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Kumul Rebellion quicked off a storm of different groups' grievances and Jin Shujen did a banger job of pissing off…pretty much every single group. In the southern portions of Xinjiang massive uprisings began and it seemed a tidal wave would hit the entire province.  

Monocle's Fernando Augusto Pacheco speaks with the founder of Ostinato Records Vik Sohonie, who just released a new compilation entitled ‘Synthesizing the Silk Roads: Uzbek Disco, Tajik Folktronica, Uyghur Rock & Crimean Tatar Jazz from 1980s Soviet Central Asia'See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join Mike Taber, David McNally, Anne McShane, & Tom Alter for a discussion about the Second International's strengths, weaknesses, & legacy. This event took place on October 26, 2023. At its height, the Second (Socialist) International (1889-1914) represented the majority of organized workers in the world, with the stated revolutionary aim of overthrowing capitalism. Several of Its major campaigns and initiatives—such as the eight-hour day, May Day, and International Women's Day—remain today as testaments to its lasting influence. To mark the release of Reform, Revolution, and Opportunism—a collection of debates at congresses of the Second International—join editor Mike Taber, along with David McNally, Anne McShane, and Tom Alter, for a discussion about the Second International's strengths, weaknesses, contradictions, and legacy. The speakers will draw out the relevance of socialist debates from more than a century ago on topics that remain deeply contested: militarism and war, immigration, colonialism and imperialism, women's rights, and socialist participation in government. ———————————— Get a copy of Reform, Revolution, Opportunism: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/... ———————————— Speakers: Mike Taber has edited and prepared a number of books related to the history of revolutionary and working-class movements—from collections of documents of the Communist International under Lenin to works by James P. Cannon, Leon Trotsky, Malcolm X, Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, Maurice Bishop, and Nelson Mandela. David McNally is the Cullen Distinguished Professor of History and Business at the University of Houston and director of the Center for the Study of Capitalism. McNally is the author of seven books and has won a number of awards, including the Paul Sweezy Award from the American Sociological Associaton for his book Global Slump and the Deutscher Memorial Award for Monsters of the Market. Anne McShane is a Marxist, a historian of the early Soviet women's movement and a human rights lawyer, specialising in representing asylum seekers. She has a long history of involvement in both the British and the Irish working class and leftwing movements. She contributes regular articles to the Weekly Worker, the journal of the British based CPGB and occasional pieces for Jacobin. She writes on Irish politics and the historical struggle to connect women's liberation with the socialist project. She is currently writing on the work of the Women's Department of the CPSU (Zhenotdel) in Soviet Central Asia, having completed a PhD on this subject in 2019 at Glasgow University. She is based in Cork, Ireland. Tom Alter is an assistant professor of history at Texas State University, where he specializes in labor and working-class history. He is the author of Toward a Cooperative Commonwealth: The Transplanted Roots of Farmer-Labor Radicalism in Texas and has been involved in labor and social justice movement activism for nearly 30 years. Watch the live event recording: https://youtube.com/live/4uhw8mFmKNk Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks

You think you know the full story of the devastating Hawaii wildfires? Think again. This isn't just another tale of nature gone wild. It's a wild time to be alive, and it's time to wake up from the mainstream slumber. In this eye-opening episode of the Adams Archive, We dive headfirst into the blaze of confusion and conspiracy surrounding the Hawaii fires. Including documents that prove the government has been working on directed energy weapons capable of causing a terrible wild fire since before 1975. We then go deeper into the modern applications of this technology and who is behind them... could it be the same organizations looking to take over the sacred Maui land? Join me as we unearth the hidden secrets and questionable narratives that the 'powers-that-be' would prefer you to ignore.  What were those government-funded experiments all about? Why are so many conspiracies suddenly becoming realities? And most importantly, how long can we remain oblivious to the shadows that lurk behind these tragedies? All the Links: Https://linktr.ee/theaustinjadams Substack: https://austinadams.substack.com   Full Transcription:   Adams Archive. Hello, you beautiful people and welcome to the Adams Archive. My name is Austin Adams, and thank you so much for listening today on today's episode, we are going deep into a recent topic that has come up as a result of the devastating fires in LA High. Hawaii. Now, if you don't know anything about this, you've probably been sleeping under a rock for the last week, but that's okay. I'll catch you up to speed. Uh, so basically what's been going on is there's been horrific, horrific wildfires that have been spreading across a specific island in Hawaii, and not just any island, but one of the most affluent areas that there is. Now, as a result of this, you know, there was, uh, a lot of conversations being had about a specific topic, but. The first conversation to have is, it's terrible. It's horrific. All of these people are losing their livelihood, uh, potentially hundreds if not thousands of people have lost their lives. I've seen video after video of, of men, women, and children escaping from their cars and running into the water on the side of the road to escape from these horrific fires. So my heart goes out to all of them. My heart goes out to the island. My heart goes out to the people of Hawaii. Uh, what a terrible tragedy that this is, but something has come up as a result of this that has directed the conversation into something that makes people believe that maybe this wasn't the organic fire I. That were being sold, that it was, a lot of people in Hawaii itself are coming out and saying that they, they don't believe that narrative. And we've seen this happen in California. We've seen this happen now in Canada with, with smoke going all over the United States to where, you know, I, I woke up here and look outside on certain days and you can barely see the sun. It's, it's, it's a wild time to be alive. And so now another time. In Hawaii. So one only has to wonder how much of an anomaly is this? We, we, I cannot recall this many devastating wildfires at any given time. Now, what the mainstream narrative will tell us is that it's climate change, right? It's because you drive your vehicle to work every day and you fill it up with gas instead of our electric vehicles, which, you know, we create the batteries from, you know, coal and, and other fossil fuels. But, um, I digress. That's what we're talking about today. What this led into a conversation about was now being called a conspiracy, which is the idea of directed energy weapons, which I will dive into you with you. I didn't believe, I didn't understand this. I didn't know this was a thing. There's very few conspiracies that we go into, conspiracies that we go into that I don't have a clue going into it. And I took a deep dive into this over the last 24 hours and have been really, uh, Learned a lot about how longstanding these military operations and government funded science, uh, scientific experiments have been happening for, and I'm blown away. I I had no idea that this was going on. So I'm gonna take you through my findings. We're gonna walk through what's happening in Hawaii, uh, and we're gonna read it from the accounts of some, some people that were there, some accounts of people who have broken this stuff down. But the longer you stick around, the deeper. We get, all right. As always, leave a five star review. Hit that subscribe button. If you're here with me for the first time, I appreciate you. If you're here with me for the second time or however many times after that, go ahead and leave a five star review. Um, uh, it's literally the only way that you can give back to what I'm doing here today at this time, and that's all I want from you is if you know I'm putting a lot of work into this, if you can. Show that you appreciate that by just going in there, leaving a five star review. I hope that you enjoyed our silent weapons for quiet wars deep dive that we did last week, that we tied up with a bow. Uh, if you go to my Instagram, the Austin J. Adams, and you go to the most recent video on there about silent weapons for quiet wars, you can actually comment silent weapons onto that and I will automatically send you the documents and both of the deep dives. Alright. Before we get into all of that, I am going to dive into, or, or just jump into a, a video that has gone viral across the entire United States, because so many people are hungry, hungry to hear the, the narrative of the people and not the narrative of the propaganda that we're being sold. So stick around for that. But first, let's jump. Into it, the Adams archive. All right. The very first thing that we're gonna jump into today is going to be a musician by the name of Oliver Anthony. And if you have not heard this song yet, you have been living under a rock. Alright. In the last six days from this video being posted from a no-name artist, Oliver Anthony is now a one of the biggest country stars that there is. Okay? Six days, 10 million views. Wild to see how something in, in a time where, you know, we hear about the, the Renaissance time and, and, and the, you know, cultural movements of art and how art truly speaks to the times that people were living in and, and what, what the soul needs to be quenched when it's thirsty during those time periods. And I think that this song is one of those times I think that, that the American people are so thirsty, so, so, Fed up with the mainstream narratives, with the mainstream news corporations, with the, with the mainstream politicians. They're so fed up with it that it was just absolutely perfect timing for a song like this to come out. So, I'm gonna start your day off right? Let's go ahead and listen to this song that's been stuck in my head for five straight days. Joe Rogan posted this song about 36 hours ago, and I'm actually the number one comment on that post, giving a quote from this song that I love of has over 12,000 likes. Just my comment on this Joe Rogan post. But, um, Uh, there's some really amazing parts to this, so I'll, I'll give you a few of my favorite parts, but let's go ahead and, and listen to this because Oliver, Anthony just crushes this and I'll set the scene for you. I'll actually go ahead and, and show this on my screen for you as well. Uh, What I'm gonna pull up for you is actually the music video that he did in a, just a, a surrounded by trees in the woods. A deer stand in the background, three dogs at his feet, and what this like, awesome looking guitar in his hands. Um, so here we go. This is Oliver Anthony, rich Men north of Richmond.  I've been selling my soul working all day overtime, hours for bullshit pay so I can sit out here and waste my life away, drag back home and drown my troubles away. It's a damn shame. What the world's gotten to for people like me, people like you wish I could just wake up and it not be true, but it's, oh, it's living world with and so. These richmen. Know through Richman, Lord knows all wanna have total control. Wanna know what you think, wanna know what you do and they don't think you know, but know that you do because your dollar ain't shit. And it's tax to know him calls a I wish politicians. Look out for miners and not just miners on an island somewhere. Lord, we got folks in the street. Ain't got enough in the heat and the whole beast. Milk and welfare. But God, if you're five foot three and you 300 pounds, taxes don't. Not to pay for your bags of fudge round, putting themselves six feet in the damn country. Does. Is keep on kicking them down, Lord. Hits a damn shame what the world's gotten to for people like me, people like you wish I could just wake up and it not be true, but it is. Oh it is living in the new. These rich men know the rich men. Lord knows they all just wanna have total control. Wanna know what you think, wanna know what you do, and then don't think you know, but I know that you do. 'cause your dollar ain't shit and it's taxing. No hand calls. I've been selling my soul working all day overtime, hours for bullshit pay. Ooh. And if that doesn't speak to your soul, son, you have not been paying attention. God, that's amazing. All right, so Oliver, Anthony, as I just said, has had some incredible, incredible songs come out, but none other than that one right there that has just spread like wildfire across the entire psyche of the American public. And there's a few lines in there now. You know, I'll give you some, some context here. The rich men north of Richmond are the politicians, right? That's Washington dc. Some of the other parts that I found to be, you know, the comment that I made, That was the number one comment on Joe Rogan's Instagram of this post was that I wish politicians would look out for minors, not just minors on an island somewhere, calling out a number of politicians who were seen on Epstein's Island's flight logs, including our very own president. Bill Clinton, I believe it was some 17 times, bill Clinton was on the flight logs and 21 times or 21 times he was on the flight logs 17 times that he was logged into the White House. Epstein was, while Bill Clinton was in office, right? And, and, and so he talks about inflation, right? Your dollar ain't shit. It's taxed to no end. We talked about that in our last episode. The salesman that comes up to you and tries to sell you this idea of the government, and it just doesn't make sense today with all these frustrations that we have and all, all of the, all of the totalitarian control that he's referencing. They just, they just want total control. And he perfectly articulates this in the song and captures the, the essence of the American frustration in, in, in three minutes and 10 seconds perfectly. And as a result, this man now gets his due. He will be one of go down as, as one of the most famous country artists. Ever, I believe with a, you know, the, the, the songs that he's singing right now just resonating across state lines, county lines. Right. And, and there was some, you know, I posted that on, on Joe Rogan's. Video of this and, and some people were arguing about whether it was minors with M I N O R S or m I n E R S, right. I wish politicians would look out for minors, not just minors on an island somewhere. And what I believe that he was referencing and, and you know, we won't know for a little bit until the actual. Lyrics of this come out, but, and what a lot of people seem to think is that he, he's talking about m i n e r s. I wish politicians would look out for minors. I wish politicians would look out for the, the blue collared workers, the people doing overtime, hours, just trying to make ends meet. And, and again, I think this just perfectly encapsulates what we've been missing in the public. And, and speaks to the frustration, speaks to the, the angst of the American people. And, and the, the, the, the. Wanting to rid ourselves of the grossness. That is the, the hands of the politicians on everything that we do. Right? So I just wanted to play that for you. Start this thing off. Right. We'll move into the next topic. Right now, but I hope you enjoyed that song. I hope you go follow Oliver Anthony, uh, on YouTube, on Instagram, anywhere that you can find him. Um, go, go look it out or go, go listen to him. Go follow him. Pretty incredible stuff. Alright, let's move on to our very first topic of the day. But man, that song just hits home. Alright, uh, here we go. So this is the video. Of a news anchor who is showing the Maui wildfires, which is now the deadliest wildfire in American history. Let's watch this video. Maui where we have just learned that this is now the deadliest wildfire in modern US history and just behind us, this is the remnants of a house burned in another blaze as the entire island is battling ideal conditions right now for wildfires. What we know about this tragedy is already unbearable. Nearly 100 dead, more than 2000 homes and buildings destroyed. We are still so far from understanding the full toll, and we'll explain why tonight. This is the overhead view of the sweeping devastation in La Hana. We now know that only 3%, 3% of those homes have been checked for bodies. Just next to where we're broadcasting tonight, we have two cars incinerated by the wildfires. That right there was a Tesla. You can see what's left of the front row seats in the distance. That was a lush green hill. Now scorched to its core. It shows the power of these wildfires. The governor has been warning that the death toll will go up, and there are still so many residents who escape the flames but are now searching for their loved ones. And tonight, angry at officials and a warning system, they say failed them. MG Room, third room. Third MGM Tonight. This is what it looked and felt like. Escaping the LA wildfire. Oh, no guys. No, we, we. This new video showing the sheerer panic as a family stuck in a line of cars, had minutes to escape before the flames engulfed the road out. This is a disaster. That drive through hell is how Rafa Ochoa and his family made it out alive. I knew it was bad and it was moving fast, and it was moving fast, really fast. It got it got to our homes within seconds. With the fast moving fire, closing in on his home, Ochoa heroically grabbed both his kids and his friend's children. Their parents were at work and scrambled everyone out. Did you hear any alarms? Did you get any kind of warning? No alarms, no warning. Nothing. No. That's something that will come up in a little bit about the To police. Police rolling by telling us to evacuate or anything. Warning the desperation of those chilling moments. Now turning to anger. Where were you guys too? To try and get us out. Evacuate us. You know, we're mad. We're mad. No, we didn't just lose our homes. We lost our town. Lost history. You know, our kids are traumatized. You guys messed up real bad. Hawaii emergency officials have said sirens on the island weren't activated during the fire. Wow. The other alerts by phone crazy and broadcast were having seen that storm. Uh, we have, we have doubts. That much could have been done with a, a fiery, um, fast moving fire like that. The scale of the devastating loss now unprecedented in modern times, the deadliest wildfire in the US in more than 100 years, claiming at least 93 lives, just so you know, 3%. That's what's been searched with the dogs 3%. When we pick up the remains and they fall apart. And so when you have 200 people running through the scene yesterday, I don't know how much more you want me to describe it, that's what you're stepping on as FEMA and the governor survey, the damage search teams with cadaver dogs that just arrived to Maui yesterday. Now scouring the ruins of historic Lana again today. Are you saying we're just at the beginning of this disaster? So for the first few days we had done searches in the streets. Now the guy that you hear talking is the police chief. Uh, let me see if I can get his title up here. But he's the police chief of Laina of Hawaii, um, in Maui. Now, this man. If I'm not mistaken, I, I believe it is this man right here. There's some questions around this man, because apparently, and let's, let's double check first from some of these articles that I have up here, but apparently Yep. That's the same guy. The guy running the show in Maui right now during these wildfires is the, this, the police chief in Maui is the same guy who ran the show during the Vegas massacre. Something even crazier about this police chief is that he is a federal agent with a top secret clearance according to LinkedIn. Hmm. Now what would a man with a top secret clearance, a federal agent finding himself in the midst of two of the biggest crises in American history? One being the largest massacre, I believe, the largest mass shooting of any ever. And now the largest death toll, the deadliest wildfire of any in US history. What are the odds of that? What are the odds of that? How many police chiefs are there out there, and how did he find himself moving from Vegas to now Maui as the police chief? The same guy who ran the show during the Vegas massacre. Interesting. So let's go ahead and let's look a little deeper into that because the police chief, the one answering all the calls, the one talking to all the news media, coordinating every single part of the narrative here is the same exact guy. The same guy that did it during the Vegas shooting. And if there's a, you know, Hamm's razor. Would tell us if I'm, if I'm using that correctly, right. The least, the, the most likely scenario is the likeliest, right? It's like the, the one that involves the least moving parts. Sometimes that can be used in a different way. It's like, what? What is the likelihood that the same man. Right. Well, the, the, the most likely scenario here seems to be telling us that it's not a coincidence that this man was there in both instances, because statistically speaking, that just shouldn't be the case. Right. So let's go ahead and read more about this individual.  So let's start back at the Vegas investigation. If you recall. What ended up happening with that is they spent years of investigations tearing the guy's history apart. This says and spent millions of dollars, and they still had no idea what his motive was, why he was there with the guns, or that anyone anywhere was aware of it. Somebody else said the, that a reminder of the Vegas coverup, a high ranking Saudi aristocracy. Aristocrat got drunk and drugged and started shooting from their, her hotel window into a crowd. The United States helps cover up, but asks for the punishment of the guy, which the Saudis agree upon, and do it. Hmm. So they point to the Wikipedia, ar, or Wikipedia pages of the Las Vegas shooting. And if you recall, let's go ahead and just read this real quick. A 64 year old man from Nevada Open Fire on the crowd attending the 91 Harvest Music Festival on the Vegas Strip from the 30 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel. He fireboard a thousand bullets, killing 60 people, and wounded at least 413. Wow. The ensuing panic brought the total number of injured to approximately 867. About an hour later, he was found dead in his room from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. How convenient The incident is, the deadliest mass shooting by a single gunman in American history. It focused attention on firearm laws in the us, particularly with regard to bump stocks. Ooh. Hmm. Says the 64 year old former auditor in real estate businessman who had been living 80 miles of northeast of, uh, northeast of Las Vegas in a retirement community in Mesquite, Nevada. Yeah, that sounds like who's gonna shoot 400 people. Had a long-term girlfriend and had no known children. He was son of Benjamin Paddock, a bank robber who was on the FBI's most wanted list between 1979 and or 1969 and 77 Pex only inter uh, interactions with law enforcement were traffic citations. Hmm. Yeah. Interesting. So same guy who was the police chief during this time. Right. Let listen what the governor of Hawaii had. Oh, alright. Jumping ahead of ourselves first about preserving. So let's go ahead and read a little bit about what people are saying about the Hawaii situation because some people are pointing to what the mayor. Uh, in, or I'm sorry, the governor is saying about the land already, right? They're saying that a lot of people seem to think that this is some type of land grab. So let's see what we have here. It says the governor of Hawaii already having ideas for the land being Laina moving forward. I'm already thinking about ways for the state to acquire that land so that we can put it into workforce housing to put it back into families or to make it open spaces in perpetuity as a memorial to people who were lost. We want this to be something that we remember, uh, after the pain path. Okay? I gotta tell you guys, I am so frustrated with investors and realtors calling the families who lost their home offering to buy their land. How? Dare you do that to our community right now. Frustrated hearing since yesterday that multiple families that I know personally were reached out and offered money from investors and realtors. Shame on you. Shame on you. If you are a Maui realtor contributing to that, karma's gonna come and get you. Hmm. Here is another video had to say about the fires of the destruction of Laina. It does appear like a bomb and fire went on. It does appear like a bomb and fire went on. All of those buildings virtually are gonna have to be rebuilt. It will be a new Lana in its own image, its own values. It's gonna be billions of dollars. We are so coordinated with state, county, and federal support that it took less than a quarter of a day, six hours to get the approval from the president to bring those resources in. This was, of course, a shock to see a hurricane and its winds. I think that we're seeing this for the first time in many different parts of the world. I've been contacted by several governors across the country to share their experiences in a time where global warming is combined with strengthening students. So let's just go over a few of the red flags there. It is the very first time that anything like this has ever happened. Hmm. Very interesting. They want to acquire the land as quickly as possible and turn it into government subsidized housing. And also there's been discussions around turning Le Hana into some sort of smart, connected city, right? You recall some episodes that we did on the 15 minute cities where basically it's just completely under totalitarian control exit. He said, very coordinated bomb and fire went off. All right. There's the other one. A bomb and fire went off according to the governor of Hawaii, why would you use the word bomb in a wildfire? I, I wonder how many, how many other wildfires you could go find where the governor of the state mentions bombs? Hmm. All we will need to rebuild is billions of dollars in its own likeness and own image with its own values. What does that even mean? And it's so coordinated with state, county, and federal support that within less than six hours, they got six hours, got approval from the president to bring resources, hurricane type wind that just happened to be the same time as the bomb, like fire governors calling to share their experience. So we start the press conference out with bombs and explosions, then set up how we're gonna get some smart cities in Hawaii and then we end it with 2030 propaganda of global warming. Right? Yep, exactly right. So we see all of these things coming together and, and we're gonna get into eventually how people are thinking that this actually happened. I wanna set the stage for you, right? The governor is saying bomb like fires. He's saying the immediate resourcefulness of the federal, state communities coming together to fund this operation, to buy out this land. Now, this land wasn't just, isn't just a piece of Hawaii. This land was originally a, a piece of land that is one of the most sought after pieces of land in Hawaii, in Maui. Um, the, these waterfront properties are worth tremend, like billions of dollars combined, and they would not sell the property to the government no matter how many times they came to them. Right. Now there's certain amendments within the Constitution that would allow them to, under certain circumstances, to basically take over this land by purchasing it at a fair price, uh, without the consent of the owners. And so let's watch one more video, maybe a couple more on this, and then we'll move into the actual directed weapons. It looks like there's a fair amount of videos actually on this, but I don't want to go too, too deep into other people's stuff. We'll do our own deep dive here, but I do wanna set the stage for you now. There's a guy named Matt Kim, who does a pretty good video on this that we'll go ahead and watch, and then we'll go from there. Several wildfires have broken out on the island of Mau. What's going on in Maui? There is a lot to unpack, so try to keep up. Several wildfires have broken out on the island of Maui, creating mass devastation and destruction, most notably, the town of Laina. This is not the people's fault, and our hearts go out to those affected. Why is Laina significant? It was once the capital of the kingdom of Hawaii. Prior to the forced US annexation and the eventual move to Honolulu, Lena is filled with native property and business owners that have dug their heels in and have refused to sell their properties to conglomerates such as BlackRock, Vanguard, and Oprah Glob Prime oceanfront property, still owned and managed by the natives. So what caused this destruction? Short answer, no one knows. All government agencies, local and federal have vehemently stated that it is unknown. However, there are two competing theories online. One environmental, the perfect combination of a major hurricane, 200 miles off the southern shore of Maui, combined with northern pressure to create massive dryness and winds were too diabolical. Something the conspiracy theorists call A D E W Direct Energy Weapon. And you will find that that's not just the conspiracy theories. That's articles from back from 1979 that we're gonna read that talk about directed energy weapons, so not just the conspiracy theorists. These are articles from like the Washington Post in the seventies talking about the Soviet directed energy weapons. What? I had the same response. So I started Googling the first article that pops up when you Google Maui. D e w is from Newsweek. It starts like this. The devastating wildfires in Hawaii have brought a new conspiracy theory from climate change deniers who suggest that the destruction was orchestrated by the federal government's direct energy weapons. Ugh. Anytime a propaganda media article starts with conspiracy theory by climate change deniers makes me wanna believe it more. Mm-hmm. Next article, fact checked. False. Wait, what? I thought the facts were unknown. How can we rule out trending theories as impossible already? Joe Biden just announced that the federal government will provide aid to those that lost their homes. That means homeowners who lost their houses and properties can now loan money from the federal government at a low interest rate. Your super valuable property that is skyrocketing value. You can now get a new mortgage courtesy of Uncle Sam. There are also countless efforts by the people to send aid and support to devastated areas. This would be great, except local residents are now saying that they're having difficulty delivering such aid and only FEMA and Red Cross aid is being allowed in roadblocks everywhere. No one allowed in or out. Hmm. And Maui is an island surrounded by water next to one of the largest US military bases. Local residents are saying that they received no advanced warning and that they only evacuated once. They saw the thick black smoke at their doors. Now that's an interesting concept that a lot of people are starting to talk about in some of these videos is that, that the, they said that, uh, some of the residents in this area said that every single Saturday at the first of each month, they do their emergency warnings every Saturday without fail, and all of the sudden there's a huge wildfire, wildfire that is creeping up to their doorsteps. And they don't, they aren't notified at all until the smoke is seeping through their doors. And if you recall, there was a false, like nuclear text message claiming that there was a nuclear bomb headed towards Hawaii at one point where they falsely stated that from a military individual who pressed the wrong button, now all of a sudden they don't know how to find the right button when there's a, a cata catastrophic fire coming and creeping up to the people's doors all around an entire island killing. Tens and hundreds of people, right? As they said in that article, there's only 3% of houses that have been searched so far, and there's 93 deaths. Let's do some math, right? 93. Let's multiply that times three. That's, uh, two hundred and seventy nine, two hundred eighty. Multiply that by 10, that's 2,800 deaths, potentially based off of the 3% rate at 93 deaths. That's just the math, right? And maybe there's more people, and maybe there's less people, but the off of the 3% math that we can do right there, that's what what we're probably looking at around a thousand people, more than that, right? That are dead as a result of this. And some people are asking why. Even the people that are on the the island are very, very skeptical of who and what caused this. And they, they don't seem to be convinced that it was a hurricane or a random fire. Right. It's like less than 3% of fires are caused by non manmade ways, and we're seeing this in every single wildfire instance. We're seeing that there's multiple locations being targeted that like a singular time that causes this massive, massive fire right around the time that there's extremely high winds, right? You cannot tell me that that's a coincidence. You cannot, I don't believe you. All of these wildfires happening simultaneously in all these weird areas coming together perfectly at the right time when there's a massive amount of winds. I don't believe you. So a lot of people seem to be very skeptical as well, especially when you have back to back, to back to back. You see California on fire. We see Canada on fire now. Maui on fire. Completely unrelated circumstances, and all of them seem to have to do with climate change according to, like he said, the most frustrating part about this, one of the most frustrating parts about this is that these fact checkers come out and say that, oh, it's absolutely can't be directed energy. Weapons fact check. False, not true. You don't know. You have no idea. Why are we ruling out the idea? Nobody's saying no. You know, it's, it almost shows the blame, right? It, it almost shows that, that they're so scared of this narrative when it could be Russia, it could be China, it could be any number of different countries that are targeting us with these weapons that they've been developing for over 50 years. But you want to immediately write it off, and that makes you look more guilty than anything. Alright? Um, Here we go. Let's go ahead and watch this. Let's go ahead and read this article here. Let's exit out of that video. Alright. There's another portion of this, and again, this comes from a video on Twitter from Paul's corner 21, and it says, many are speculating that the fires could have been intentionally set to disenfranchise The natives who owned the historic ocean from properties that were devastated in the blaze. Others believed the fires were started to level the area to make way for 15 minute cities promoted by the likes of the World Economic Forum. Hmm. Interesting. Even more people are curious why there are brick and mortar buildings burnt into rubble while surrounded by trees. That's kind of weird. So let's look at this video. Uh, mentioning some of the, the ideas around this and didn't flood them, didn't give them, you know, crazy, you know, other things. But it caused fires. It caused fires, and not only on Maui. But it caused fires in the most precious parts of real estate in Maui. Laina Front Street is worth billions. The Hawaiians that have been holding out and the Kanaka have been holding out for years not wanting to sell their property in Laa due to these big million dollar companies. It is not a coincidence, I don't believe how in the most precious parts of Maui, Kula, Laina, and that the locals that are standing strong and do not want to give up Oprah Winfrey's fucking view up in Kula that the Hawaiians are holding out on that the fire was going to the ho, the Hawaiians and the Kanaka that was holding right there on Front Street. Hmm. Interesting. So specifically targeted areas that seem to be worth lots of money where people were digging their heels in. Right now, when we get to what these directed energy weapons are and who is developing them, one of the largest names is Lockheed Martin, and when you look into who's the largest shareholders of Lockheed Martin, the list goes like this. State Street, 14% State Street, 14% of Lockheed Martin, Vanguard 9%, and BlackRock 7%. The very same companies that this man is claiming are going and after these properties and have been trying to buy them out. He didn't name them by name, but he's talking about those companies going to buy them out and take over this property, right. Now another conversation that comes up is around 15 minute cities. So the idea here is that Hawaii and the different islands of Hawaii have been used for test experiments, right? You wanna go back into shock testing and economic, uh, data mining and all of those things that we talked about in silent weapons for quiet wars. These are perfect areas. Each of these islands is its own economic institution, which can be leveraged and utilized in ways that you cannot imagine for data mining, right? You can release viruses, you can release, uh, uh, you know, you can make toilet paper scarce. You can do whatever that you want within these individual islands and use it as a way to leverage the data that you are, that you are getting because there's no other outside factors coming into these areas, right? And each one of them is their own control group. So that's why they're looking at Hawaii. And Maui specifically being a big part of the 15 minute city rollouts, right? The one that the World Economic Forum has been bragging about for so long, you'll own nothing and you'll be happy. Oh, and to get you there, we just have to burn down your current city with directed energy weapons. Maybe here's a video, maybe not, not a video. It's a picture of a video. It says, new mind-numbing conspiracy theory about this is from politics and Ed on Twitter around 15 minute cities is Maui fires in Hawaii, where supposedly set so they rebuild into 15 minute cities. Disgusting. It says, Hmm. Well, and you go back to what the governor was saying and the governor was saying that, you know, it will be a new. City it will be a, it will have its own culture. It will have a new feel to it, right? Hmm, hmm. Lemme go ahead and read this to you. This article that he's referencing, this is the, the Federal Agency concerned with weather modification activities are the departments of Agriculture, commerce, defense, and Interior. Plus the Environmental Protection Agency, the national, uh, aeronautics and Space Administration, and the National Science Foundation. The Department of State is also interested in the effects on other countries of weather modification efforts. Uh, And some states also conduct weather modification programs in 1977. The federal government will spend about $20 million compared to 3 million in 1963 for such activities as fog, cloud and precipitation modification, ball and lightning suppression, uh, amite amyl, lation of severe storms and hurricanes, and other related activities. Most of the information gathering and analysis asked for the study required by the SS 1383 has already been performed recently by the federal government. During the past year. The domestic council through the Environmental Resources Committee, subcommittee of Climate Change, has completed an extensive study of the role of the federal government in weather modification. Hmm, maybe I don't know, causing such type of hurricanes so that you can then spark these types of fires with that much wind. That's interesting. Hmm. Yep. And we'll go into that in just a minute, right? It says that, uh, and yet others have put forward the theory that wildfires could have been started by environmentalist arsonists to justify climate change. Talking points already put out by the likes of the New York Times, which the New York Times claimed the n Maui fires are already one of the deadliest wildfires in modern US history. How did it happen? In a state defined by its lush vegetation, the explanation is straightforward as the planet heats up. No place is protected from disasters, says the New York Times. And yet no fact checkers coming here to say, well, actually nobody knows what happened here. Right. We don't know if this is from climate change. We have no reason to believe that. Yet you're jumping to conclusions while calling other people conspiracy theorists. Hmm. Sounds like you're directing the narrative. And there's some, there's some really horrific videos of people, uh, trying to get out of these, uh, uh, these fires. Right. The wildfires started Tuesday. Have, starting Tuesday, have scorched over 2000 acres of land, including most of the town of Lahaina, a rich cultural and historical area of the Hawaiian Island. Though the cause of the fires have yet to be officially determined, when the establishment makes a decision to quash conspiracy theories and questions, before all the facts are in, there's reason to be suspicious. And now you might say space lasers. Directed energy weapons. That sounds like something from Star Wars and you might be correct, but also this is something that we as a culture, as a species, have been studying since the sixties and have been implementing since very close to that. So let's go ahead and figure out what are directed energy weapons. What are these space lasers that people are referring to that could have started this fire? That's a good question. I'm glad you asked. Let's jump into it. So to to reference a few other things that mention this. This isn't the first time that this has come up. There's a Reuters article that says, Russia uses new laser weapons in Ukraine. Zelensky mocks wonder weapon. Now this was May 18th, 2022. And it says Russia dips into its secret laser arsenal. Russia on Wednesday said it was using a new generation of powerful lasers in Ukraine to burn up drones, deploying some of Moscow's secret weapons to counter a flood of western arms. Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2018 unveiled an intercontinental ballistic missile, underwater nuclear drones, a supersonic weapon, and a laser weapon. Lulu is known about the specifics of the new laser. Putin mentioned one called Pervet per per pervet. I don't dunno. I don't speak Russian. Named after a Midieval Orthodox Warrior monk, Alexander Pervet, who perished. Im Mortal Kombat. Yuri Borisov, the Deputy Prime Minister in, in charge of military development told a conference in Moscow that Pervet was already being widely deployed and they could blind satellites up to 1500 kilometers above Earth. He said there was already more powerful systems than Pervet that could burn up drones and other equipment. Bov cited a test on Tuesday, which he said had burned up a drone five kilometers away within five seconds. Great, and, and I want you to notice that keyword burned up. It is thermal. This action of this laser is just heating this up to the point where it burns it, right? That that is written by Reuters. Right? We are not talking about conspiracy theories. We are talking about a technology that is here today, right now that most of you are not aware of, that you should be horrified of. Because if this type of technology exists, imagine the implications of this when there's riots in the street for, I don't know, authoritarianism. Hmm. So just wanted to start this off with, this isn't all that crazy? Right? And if you still don't believe me, let's go back in time to Nikolai Tesla. Nikolai Tesla had created what he had as a theory of technology, which he called a death Ray. Let's go ahead and watch this short clip about it. An Israeli arms company known as Raphael Advanced Defense Systems reveals details of a laser defense system capable of shooting missiles from the sky with a pulse of energy, the futuristic military hardware. Is called iron beam. The concept of iron beam is that it's essentially a high energy laser that is designed to rapidly heat up the target that it's aimed at. We're talking about aircraft, drones, missiles. Anything that could launch an attack on a city could be literally destroyed in the sky by I and D. This sounds very much like Tesla's death, Ray. This is exactly the kind of technology that Tesla was talking about in the 1920s and thirties of using these beam weapons to shoot down missiles and projectiles. The war department sided with Einstein and Oppenheimer's atomic bomb, not with Tesla. But now what we're seeing is that Israel is developing this. Iron beam technology because they realized that atomic weapons were far too destructive. Is it possible that Tesla developed a time viewing or time travel technology and that he became aware of these developments? Tesla was once quoted as saying, the present is theirs, but the future for which I have really worked is mine. Did Tesla in fact see into the future might Iron Bean be proof that plans for the death Ray not only existed, but also may have even been confiscated and carried out by the United States government? There are those who believe that Nicola Tesla was not only in contact with extraterrestrials. But was sent here to earth by them to fulfill a mission and usher in a new age for mankind. One of the big questions is who is Tesla? Is he, in a sense, an avatar, an enlightened being that comes to the earth to help humans? No one really knows exactly what's going on, but I think all great artists and Tesla saw himself as artists, feel that they're instruments of a higher purpose, and Tesla certainly felt that he was working. Along those lines, there is an agenda for humanity. There is a plan, and in every generation, whatever power it is that's behind the plan sends to earth certain specific souls who are by birth more inclined and able to be receptors to the higher knowledge. Interesting. But that just starts the conversation right now. There's a whole deep dive that we could do into Tesla, which is super interesting in all of the technologies that he built and some of the things that they actually referenced there, which I seem to be, that's pretty interesting, right? The idea that there's these enlightened, uh, individuals who are these, you know, uh, satellite or, uh, re satellite, uh, boxes or, you know, that take in the, the, the technology ideas and, and implement them in, in the world, right? What percentage of people, there's like a handful of people who have really changed the dynamic of the technology of our world as we know it today, for literally everybody. And this could be one of those instances only, maybe it was put under wraps for quite a long time, because I have articles here from the sixties, okay? One of these articles. Let's go to this one first, which is dated 20 May, 1979. Death Ray weapons bid to outlink salt arm efforts. This conversation about direct energy weapons is not new. Nikolai Tesla had this idea way back in the thirties. It was discussed as a death ray weapon in 1979 in the literal, what was it? The Washington Times. Try and see who, uh, who actually published this article. Um, but no, here it is. This was the one that I was thinking of. Um, There's, there's article after article after article, and this is a sanitized version, and I, I pulled all of these articles from the ccia that discuss these direct energy weapons, so you can go to cia.gov, the reading room there and search direct energy weapons. I sifted through some of the articles there. This is what I found to be some of the most interesting. Alright, so the very first page of this one, right, released in 2013 about direct energy weapons from the C I A released again 2013. The very first page is denied, right? Still under wraps. They still will not release some of this information, right? So if you don't believe that these things are real, you need to wake up because the c i A has has had this on their website since 2013, right? Soviet's push for Beam Weapon is the name of the article. It says, U S S R developing charged particle device aimed at missile defense, exploring high energy lasers as satellite killer. It says, Soviet Union is developing a charged particle beam designed to destroy US intercontinental. In submarine, uh, ballistic missile, nuclear warheads development tests are being conducted at a facility at Soviet Central Asia. So all the way back in during the Cold War, they had these, these types of weapons that they were developing, right? This is nothing new, but yet they want to call you a conspiracy theorist for even discussing them, right? This article is named Soviet's Push for Beam Weapon. Another article is named Death Ray. Weapons Bid to Outlink Salt, warm, uh, salt Arms Efforts. Another one is, A literal letters back and forth between Soviet, uh, Soviet Union, um, discussions that were being had within people that were recently declassified. Another one of these articles is Soviets are developing their own star war system, right? But yet you are a conspiracy theory for even talking about directed energy weapons. And that one, that's the one I was referencing that was from the Washington Times. C i a Soviets are developing their own Star War system. So let's go in chronological order here, starting with the one from 19, let's see, 1960. Where was it? The one that was released in 2013. This is the very earliest one. A charged particle beam, uh, in projects, atomic part or. Sorry, this some, some of this is like typewriters type stuff, so it's not fully copied over. Um, a charged particle beam weapon focuses and projects atomic particles at the speed of light, which could be directed from ground-based sites into spaces to intercept and neutralize reentry vehicles. According to u s officials, both the U S S R and the US are investigating the concept of placing charged particle beams devices on spacecraft to intercept missile warheads in space. This method would avoid problems with propagating the beam through the earth's atmosphere. Because of a controversy within the US intelligence community, the details of Soviet directed energy weapons have not been made available to the president or the National Security Council. Recent events have persuaded a number of US analysis to that directed energy. Weapons are nearing prototype testing in the Soviet Union. They include detection of large amounts of gaseous hydrogen with trace of tritium in the. Upper atmosphere. The United States Air Force Block 6 47 Defense support system early warning satellite with scanning radiation detectors and infrared sensors have been used to determine that on seven occasions since November, 1975, tests that may have been related to development of a charge particle D beam device have been carried out in a facility in Semial tins, some Russian area ground testing of a small hydrogen fluoride high energy laser, and detection of preparations to launch the device on board of spacecraft. Some US officials believe the test of the anti-satellite laser may be related to recent Soviet activities on the demand. SST Space Station tested a new far more PO powerful fusion post magneta hydrodynamic generator to provide power for a charged particle beam system At. ASR in Kazakhstan near the Caspian Sea. The experiment took place late last year in an underground chamber in an area of natural salt formations in the desert near asr. Interesting. And now there's even some, uh, actual images that were on this, not copied over super well. Um, but it says, debate scene on charged particle work. So even back in the seventies, this was being discussed, right? It talks about the energy levels required, it talks about, uh, could be perfected. Project was abandoned at some 0.3 or theoretical blocks to this in-house research. Just reading you some of the headlines here and some of the underlying parts. It says through open sources, they learned that the Soviets had long since solved some of the problems that they ran into in tours Stinging. Hmm. And they give some diagrams, like this is, this goes pretty deep into this for, you know, it's like 8, 9, 10 pages long. Some of it redacted, the first and the last pages. Um, but again, I'll include all of this in the sub stack as well as, uh, the Instagram posts on this for you. So that was the very first one. The next article pops up and says, now this one is 26 pages, some of which are redacted. This was the National Intelligence Council in 1985. It was a letter from David Abshire, the Ambassador to Mission nato. It says, dear David, following up on a recent conversation in London, I have checked into where Washington stood in the preparation of unclassified fact she'd done Soviet efforts in the s t I field. You'll be glad to know that state, uh, that state is putting the finishing touches on such a paper, and I'm told you should have it fairly soon. In the meantime, I thought it would be, uh, you'd be interested in two unclassified articles done by agency analysts. Although these papers do not have any official STA status, they contain much excellent information that should prove valuable for use on background information. I very much enjoyed your presentation and was glad that we had a few minutes to chat. I had to stop in Brussels sometime this fall, and we look forward to seeing you at that time. And this goes into, the Soviet directed energy weapons. And it's 24 pages. 24 pages about this, about these lasers.   The key judgment says the Soviet Union is believed to have inter uh, to be interested in the development of directed energy weapons. For ballistic missile defense and anti-satellite applications, the Soviet Union has been engaged in research on the directed energy weapons technologies for as long as the United States, Soviet efforts are under the leadership of some of the finest scientific minds in the U s Ss r in directed energy technologies, the Soviets are in a, in a comparable or highly competitive position with respect to the United States, uh, the Soviets are believed to have progressed beyond the stage of pure or basic laboratory research, hostile Soviet reactions to the US Strategic Defense initiatives in lobbying against the S d I by high level support Soviet scientists. Hmm. Now just give you the outline. It says number two. Uh, page two is about laser weapons management resources, technology, advanced developments, particle beam weapons, which is differentiation, microwave weapons, Soviet responses to the s d I and bibliography. So one of the things that we've discussed before about this is the Havana Syndrome. Havana Syndrome was something that people believed was being targeted by the Soviet Union onto certain politicians of these types of weapons from the microwave weapons that are potentially being discussed within this document on page 13. See if we can pull that up for you here. But this is, this is nothing new. It's just the application that people are now waking up to, how this can be leveraged. So multiple articles. Since the seventies have been talking about this, and there's one, so one, one question I have was like, okay, can yes, these are real, can they be used to create fires? So I, I did a little bit of research on that. It's like, okay, of course it makes sense that if all they're doing is heating something up and they're, they're being utilized to, uh, further thermal uses and that's how they're d destroying these types of missiles and, and everything at a very, uh, very tactile or tactical and, uh, very accurate way. Could they be used in, in the same way that we're talking about here, right? Could, could they be used to start fires? I couldn't find much on that because it just seems so obvious. But I did find this from the US Department of Agriculture and it says laser ignition device in its application to forestry, fire and land management. It has a laser ignition device for controlled burning of forest logging slash have been developed and successfully tested the devo. The device which uses a kilowatt class carbon dioxide laser, operates at the distance from 50 to a 1500 meters, right? We're not talking about these directive wet energy weapons, but this is an example of how this has been used in the past to create controlled burnings. Acquisition and focus control are achieved by the use of a laser range fire finder and acquisition telescope. Additional uses of the device include back burning, selective undergrowth removal, safe ignition of oil spills. A truck mounted version will be operational by fall of 1987 and an airborne version by the summer of 1988. All right, so there's that to further discuss that. Now let's get into what the actual conspiracy theory is here. It's the same thing happened to us in Paradise, California. November 8th, 2018. Somebody said our homes were le uh, leveled to ash, but most of the trees were still standing. Houses, steel buildings turned to ash. Cars, trucks flipped inside or flipped upside down, but still the gas tanks were still intact. We were hit back in Paradise 11 eight of 2018 by directed energy weapons. Looks the same as paradise did. Maui looks to be the same cars burned out even the glass windows. Some of the cars in Maui had large holes in the hood of the cars and trucks. Looked like a direct energy attack to me, but trees next to the cars still had leaves on them. This, in my humble opinion, is another attack on their towns. Agenda 21, burn the people off the land and take everything away from them. The winds came up as soon as the fire started, just like in paradise and many mountain communities in Northern California. Prove me, I'm wrong. Learn what's happening. Our towns are under attack. None other than the new world order, taking everything away from us, burning our towns down. No early warning system in place tells me they wanted lots of casualties. Deaths, just like in paradise. We had no warning at all. They aren't playing. They're dead serious. Hmm. Right. And says the first day of every month somebody commented, they test the emergency sirens to make sure that they work. It's crazy that they didn't work in an actual emergency. And then somebody commented back from the C N N article that they said they didn't even try to activate the sirens. Hmm. So somebody says here that less than 1%, 1% of Hawaii wildfires are natural. They had four burnings all at once. It says they still have no official cause of the fire. The fear of a land grab amongst the locals is real. Most of the homes and lots were not properly documented, like most of La Haena, which was part of its charm. But we fear that land will not go back to locals, but instead, LA Hana will become w Kiki 2.0 and be developed like nowhere else on Maui. The way Lana was built could have never supported the government's idea of smart city, which they desperately want. Every official from the mayor, governor General, fema, red Cross, et cetera, has said the same thing. It looks like a bomb went off. It looks like a war. I conclude this. The lack of warning and the incompetence is alarming all on its own, but there is a bigger agenda here for Laina, Maui, Hawaii, and states, everywhere. Hmm. Very interesting. We live in buildings made with and full of accelerants. Well, that's pretty true. Very interesting. Uh, here we go on, it says, do direct energy weapons exist that can cause wildfires? Right. That's the question I've been asking myself. The question I've been asking myself through all of these wildfires is, can this be done in this way? Can it be a weapon? Do directed energy weapons exist that can cause wildfires? The answer is yes. Does the US government have the ability to use these resources? The answer is yes. Does the government have reasons to cause such events to create the appropriate circumstances for their narratives and to justify their policy changes? They say most certainly, yes. Can we prove that this event was caused by the government? No, we cannot. We do not have the tools or the knowledge to prove this. Now, we need to wait till there's more information, a whistleblower or some other thing. At the moment, all that we can do is ask questions. The media and the mainstream thinking will tell you that doing so is bad, but don't think there's anything wrong with that. We should always question authority, right? And that's, that's some of the most concerning parts about this, is like, this doesn't even, this doesn't even have to be like, if you wanna, let's, let's make this a more, let's make it a more palatable conversation. Maybe it is in the government. Maybe you look at Vanguard, maybe you look at State Street, maybe you look at BlackRock. Maybe it's them, right? Maybe the same people who were willing to release a virus into our country and to the world killing hundreds of thousands of people for profitability by enforcing mandatory vaccination, would also be willing to, I don't know, kill a thousand people and start a few fires to take over an entire island. Maybe they would do that for profitability. Maybe we should just be asking ourselves that question. Right. Is there, is there one of these corporations that you trust enough to know that they would not do this thing? I don't think that I trust them enough to, to believe that there's no way possible that they would do this. This seems very feasible to me from what we've learned about these companies and corporations and, and even our own government over the last I. Three, four years. Right. It seems very plausible that this was a possibility either by our government or by these corporations, which is, you know, truly in the oligarchy that we live in the same thing, right? Those corporations that I just mentioned own the politicians. So whatever they wanna do, they'll do through funding. That's just the way that our pay to play government works. Hmm. Alright, so let's get into the next conversation. Let's, let's lis, let's listen into the own words of our Secretary of Defense in 2020, where Mark Esper confirms that these weapons exist, confirmed that they will be weaponized to create fires just like this one. Here we go. Cyberspace conference. Thank you to the Air Force Association for hosting an important event that brings together the world's finest aerospace leaders and professionals. I. First and foremost, I'd like to wish a happy birthday to the United States Air Force for 73 years and counting you have provided. Our nation with force in particular has maintained uncontested air superiority for decades with persistent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and precision airstrikes. Anytime, anywhere. However, our near peer rivals China and Russia seek to erode our longstanding dominance and air power through long range fires, anti axis, aerial denial systems, and other asymmetric capabilities designed to counter our strengths. Meanwhile, in space, Moscow and Beijing have turned a once peaceful arena into a war fighting domain. They have weaponized space through killer satellites, directed energy, weapons, and more in an effort to exploit our systems and chip away at our military advantage. Furthermore, our competitors and adversaries exploit cyberspace to undermine our security without confronting. Okay. If you didn't hear that, let me play it again for you, where he says that these companies could weaponize long range fires and killer satellites. Yet were conspiracy theories for bringing this up in a time where, I don't know, it appears that there was long range fires seek to erode our longstanding dominance in air power through long range fires, anti axis, aerial denial systems, and other asymmetric capabilities designed to counter our strengths. Meanwhile, in space, Moscow and Beijing have turned a once peaceful arena into a war fighting domain. They have weaponized space through killer satellites, directed energy, weapons, and more in an effort to exploit our systems and chip away at our military advantage. So these things have been happening for quite. Some time, right? Directed energy weapons, these killer satellites as he calls them this. Why do you think Trump implemented a space force? It wasn't for the, the comedic relief. It was because there is a real threat of countries and companies weaponizing satellites to create fires, to create, uh, explosions, to accurately target infrastructure, to accurately target, I don't know, real estate on an island that they want to take over by force in order to implement totalitarian smart cities. Maybe it's that maybe. Now what, when we look into the logistics of this and, and some of the, the things that might come up when we discuss the idea of those satellites is that in order for it to cause such a thermal, uh, reaction as we would see to start these fires simultaneously would be that the problem would be the atmosphere, the amount of, of energy that it would require to overcome the atmosphere when going from a satellite into the area that it's going to, to, to cause this fire. But why not extremely high altitude aircraft? Right? Maybe we can prove this through, uh, the, um, radar, uh, where it shows the, the aircraft that was flying over, right? Something like that may, I don't know. I don't know what it is, but it, it satellites seem unlikely. High altitude aircraft seems much more likely. 'cause then you don't have to deal with the atmosphere causing an eruption with the, the amount of energy that's being relayed. Uh, but here's. Now let's go into some other sources of this, talking about these directed energy weapons that a allegedly, according to the fact-checkers at Snopes do not exist of defense, spends about $1 billion annually developing directed energy weapons, such as high energy lasers and high powered microwaves. These weapons can disrupt or destroy their targets at the speed of light. For example, d o D has developed high energy lasers that have successfully shot down drones, but speed isn't their only advantage. They're also less expensive for use than traditional weapons like guns and missiles. Despite those potential advantages, d o D has had trouble getting these technologies out of the lab and into service. The Army has developed a detailed transition plan to support moving these weapons into the next stages of development. We recommended that the Navy and the Air Force develop similar plans that comes from the government accountability organization or office giving information on these very things that allegedly don't exist. Here's another video coming from Lockheed Martin. Lockheed Martin produces systems that do everything from detect the threats to identify the threats, determine whether it's a threat to the aircraft, and then employs the appropriate weapon, in this case, a laser weapon system. What we're hearing from our customers is that they need a layered, multi-domain defensive approach that can be integrated across platforms to neutralize these threats across all those domains. Imagine an aircraft equipped with a laser system with the capability to be able to neutralize a threat at the speed of a lightning strike. The precision of a surgical scalpel with the magazine to deal with a swarm and with the scalable effect. To be able to address that threat, providing an effect all the way the one end from simply deterring it for a short period of time, all the way up to completely neutralizing and defeating that threat. Now this video looks literally like something outta Star Wars. We were able to integrate our laser weapon system Athena into the classified C two network, and receive cues from the radar on the range in order to execute the full kill chain. I love how these people are just like Helios laser weapon system builds on 40 years of combat system, do lasers that, you know, maybe it could cause the takeover of the planet for everybody that I know and love and I'm really excited about it. And these lasers make things really hot and uh, it could. Kill everybody. So me and Stan at the office have been really working hard on this project for quite some time now, and we're really excited to roll it out. That's what's weird to me about all these things is like, what would it take from a societal humanistic perspective for people to just like throw up their hands and be like, you know what, maybe I shouldn't work at Lockheed Martin. Maybe I shouldn't work for the, you know, the, the, the literal military i

A Political and Economic History of the Jews of Afghanistan (Brill, 2015) by Sara Koplik describes the situation of Jews in that country during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, particularly 1839-1952. It examines the political, economic and social conditions they faced as religious minorities. The work focuses upon harsh governmental economic policies of the 1930s and 1940s spearheaded by 'Abd al-Majid Khan Zabuli which caused the impoverishment and suffering of both the local community and refugees from Soviet Central Asia. The question of Nazi influence in Afghanistan is addressed, with the author arguing that it was mainly limited to the economic sphere. An examination of the appeal of Zionism and the community's immigration to Israel is included. 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

A Political and Economic History of the Jews of Afghanistan (Brill, 2015) by Sara Koplik describes the situation of Jews in that country during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, particularly 1839-1952. It examines the political, economic and social conditions they faced as religious minorities. The work focuses upon harsh governmental economic policies of the 1930s and 1940s spearheaded by 'Abd al-Majid Khan Zabuli which caused the impoverishment and suffering of both the local community and refugees from Soviet Central Asia. The question of Nazi influence in Afghanistan is addressed, with the author arguing that it was mainly limited to the economic sphere. An examination of the appeal of Zionism and the community's immigration to Israel is included. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

A Political and Economic History of the Jews of Afghanistan (Brill, 2015) by Sara Koplik describes the situation of Jews in that country during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, particularly 1839-1952. It examines the political, economic and social conditions they faced as religious minorities. The work focuses upon harsh governmental economic policies of the 1930s and 1940s spearheaded by 'Abd al-Majid Khan Zabuli which caused the impoverishment and suffering of both the local community and refugees from Soviet Central Asia. The question of Nazi influence in Afghanistan is addressed, with the author arguing that it was mainly limited to the economic sphere. An examination of the appeal of Zionism and the community's immigration to Israel is included. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/jewish-studies

A Political and Economic History of the Jews of Afghanistan (Brill, 2015) by Sara Koplik describes the situation of Jews in that country during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, particularly 1839-1952. It examines the political, economic and social conditions they faced as religious minorities. The work focuses upon harsh governmental economic policies of the 1930s and 1940s spearheaded by 'Abd al-Majid Khan Zabuli which caused the impoverishment and suffering of both the local community and refugees from Soviet Central Asia. The question of Nazi influence in Afghanistan is addressed, with the author arguing that it was mainly limited to the economic sphere. An examination of the appeal of Zionism and the community's immigration to Israel is included. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/middle-eastern-studies

A Political and Economic History of the Jews of Afghanistan (Brill, 2015) by Sara Koplik describes the situation of Jews in that country during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, particularly 1839-1952. It examines the political, economic and social conditions they faced as religious minorities. The work focuses upon harsh governmental economic policies of the 1930s and 1940s spearheaded by 'Abd al-Majid Khan Zabuli which caused the impoverishment and suffering of both the local community and refugees from Soviet Central Asia. The question of Nazi influence in Afghanistan is addressed, with the author arguing that it was mainly limited to the economic sphere. An examination of the appeal of Zionism and the community's immigration to Israel is included.

During World War II, approximately 1.6 million Soviet, Polish and Romanian Jews survived the Holocaust by escaping to Soviet Central Asia and Siberia, avoiding imminent death in ghettos, firing squads and killing centres. Many of them wrote music about these horrors as the Holocaust was unfolding before their eyes. A miraculous discovery in the Vernadsky National Library in Kyiv revealed a collection of Yiddish music created during the 1940s that documented their numerous traumas: dangerous train journeys, often in cattle cars; prison sentences, disease, and deep anxieties about family members left behind in Europe. During World War II, these songs were collected by amateur and professional poets, and then organised by the Ukrainian folklorist Moisei Beregovsky. However, the archive was confiscated by the KGB soon after the end of the war. The songs were never performed since, in public or in private. Singer Alice Zawadzki, whose own family found themselves on a similar journey to Central Asia, and historian Anna Shternshis (University of Toronto), who led the project to bring these songs back to life, travel to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to retrace the journeys of those Jewish refugees who became music composers. From Tashkent and Samarkand to Bukhara and Almaty, they found abandoned factories where refugees worked, saw huts where they slept, met with the descendants of families who welcomed them and children of those survivors themselves who stayed in Central Asia. For the first time in 80 years, the songs created by Jewish refugees during the war were performed in these lands, by local musicians and composers, by children of refugees themselves, and by Alice Zawadzki. Producer: Michael Rossi.

During World War Two, approximately 1.6 million Soviet, Polish and Romanian Jews survived by escaping to Soviet Central Asia and Siberia, avoiding imminent death in ghettos, firing squads and killing centres. Many of them wrote music about these horrors as the Holocaust unfolded. Singer Alice Zawadzski, whose own family found themselves on a similar journey to Central Asia, and historian Anna Shternshis of the University of Toronto, who led the project to bring these songs back to life, travel to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to retrace the journeys of those Jewish refugees who became music composers.

For access to full-length premium episodes and the SJ Grotto of Truth Discord, subscribe to the Al-Wara' Frequency at patreon.com/subliminaljihad. Dimitri and Khalid reconvene with Jay the Neuroscientist (@The_Hague_ICC) to finish their exploration of cybernetics, including: suslord anthropologist Gregory Bateson's “double bind” theory, Cathy O'Brien, from schismogenesis to schizophrenia, the coloniality of anthropology, Bateson's psychological work for the OSS, the American family as a “weaning machine”, Bateson's interpretation of the state-sponsored “native revivals” of Soviet Central Asia, Bateson's curious “break” with the OSS after WW2, his pivotal role in conceiving the CIA with Will Bill Donovan, Harold Abramson dosing Frank Fremont Smith, LSD in Palo Alto, Dr. Leo Hollister, NLP and NXIVM's biofeedback experiments, Keith Raniere's patent for rehabilitating a Luciferian, RD Laing's schizophrenia research, Aldous Huxley, schizophrenia-as-enlightenment, Freud's early seduction theory, and Victorian fainting rooms as cybernetic stabilization mechanism.

Guest: Adrienne Edgar on Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples:  Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia published by Cornell University Press. The post Mixed Marriages in the USSR appeared first on The Eurasian Knot.

Guest: Adrienne Edgar on Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples:  Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia published by Cornell University Press. The post Mixed Marriages in the USSR appeared first on SRB Podcast.

Adrienne Edgar's Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples—Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia (Cornell University Press, 2021) is an outstanding study of the evolution of intermarriage practices in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan across the Soviet era and beyond. Based on substantive oral history research work, plus extensive engagement with published and unpublished Soviet sources, the book tells an intriguing story, one that delves into the ever intriguing process of ethnic mixing. As a phenomenon that transcended revolution, war, de-Stalinisation, and independence in a remote part of the Soviet Union, intermarriage becomes a vehicle for a wider argument focusing on the racialization of identities. Edgar's engaging prose engage with wider process, including the inexorable involution of Soviet internationalism and the rise of primordialism, top describe how mixed couples and families in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan were painfully affected by the growth of ethnic primordialism and by the tensions between the national and supranational projects in the Soviet Union. Adrienne Edgar is Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she works on the history of the Soviet Union, especially the history of Central Asia in the Soviet period. She is the author of Tribal Nation: The Making of Soviet Turkmenistan (Princeton University Press, 2006). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he is also the editor of Europe-Asia Studies. Follow him on Twitter @anceschistan 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

Adrienne Edgar's Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples—Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia (Cornell University Press, 2021) is an outstanding study of the evolution of intermarriage practices in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan across the Soviet era and beyond. Based on substantive oral history research work, plus extensive engagement with published and unpublished Soviet sources, the book tells an intriguing story, one that delves into the ever intriguing process of ethnic mixing. As a phenomenon that transcended revolution, war, de-Stalinisation, and independence in a remote part of the Soviet Union, intermarriage becomes a vehicle for a wider argument focusing on the racialization of identities. Edgar's engaging prose engage with wider process, including the inexorable involution of Soviet internationalism and the rise of primordialism, top describe how mixed couples and families in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan were painfully affected by the growth of ethnic primordialism and by the tensions between the national and supranational projects in the Soviet Union. Adrienne Edgar is Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she works on the history of the Soviet Union, especially the history of Central Asia in the Soviet period. She is the author of Tribal Nation: The Making of Soviet Turkmenistan (Princeton University Press, 2006). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he is also the editor of Europe-Asia Studies. Follow him on Twitter @anceschistan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

Adrienne Edgar's Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples—Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia (Cornell University Press, 2021) is an outstanding study of the evolution of intermarriage practices in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan across the Soviet era and beyond. Based on substantive oral history research work, plus extensive engagement with published and unpublished Soviet sources, the book tells an intriguing story, one that delves into the ever intriguing process of ethnic mixing. As a phenomenon that transcended revolution, war, de-Stalinisation, and independence in a remote part of the Soviet Union, intermarriage becomes a vehicle for a wider argument focusing on the racialization of identities. Edgar's engaging prose engage with wider process, including the inexorable involution of Soviet internationalism and the rise of primordialism, top describe how mixed couples and families in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan were painfully affected by the growth of ethnic primordialism and by the tensions between the national and supranational projects in the Soviet Union. Adrienne Edgar is Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she works on the history of the Soviet Union, especially the history of Central Asia in the Soviet period. She is the author of Tribal Nation: The Making of Soviet Turkmenistan (Princeton University Press, 2006). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he is also the editor of Europe-Asia Studies. Follow him on Twitter @anceschistan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/central-asian-studies

Adrienne Edgar's Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples—Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia (Cornell University Press, 2021) is an outstanding study of the evolution of intermarriage practices in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan across the Soviet era and beyond. Based on substantive oral history research work, plus extensive engagement with published and unpublished Soviet sources, the book tells an intriguing story, one that delves into the ever intriguing process of ethnic mixing. As a phenomenon that transcended revolution, war, de-Stalinisation, and independence in a remote part of the Soviet Union, intermarriage becomes a vehicle for a wider argument focusing on the racialization of identities. Edgar's engaging prose engage with wider process, including the inexorable involution of Soviet internationalism and the rise of primordialism, top describe how mixed couples and families in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan were painfully affected by the growth of ethnic primordialism and by the tensions between the national and supranational projects in the Soviet Union. Adrienne Edgar is Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she works on the history of the Soviet Union, especially the history of Central Asia in the Soviet period. She is the author of Tribal Nation: The Making of Soviet Turkmenistan (Princeton University Press, 2006). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he is also the editor of Europe-Asia Studies. Follow him on Twitter @anceschistan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/russian-studies

Adrienne Edgar's Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples—Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia (Cornell University Press, 2021) is an outstanding study of the evolution of intermarriage practices in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan across the Soviet era and beyond. Based on substantive oral history research work, plus extensive engagement with published and unpublished Soviet sources, the book tells an intriguing story, one that delves into the ever intriguing process of ethnic mixing. As a phenomenon that transcended revolution, war, de-Stalinisation, and independence in a remote part of the Soviet Union, intermarriage becomes a vehicle for a wider argument focusing on the racialization of identities. Edgar's engaging prose engage with wider process, including the inexorable involution of Soviet internationalism and the rise of primordialism, top describe how mixed couples and families in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan were painfully affected by the growth of ethnic primordialism and by the tensions between the national and supranational projects in the Soviet Union. Adrienne Edgar is Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she works on the history of the Soviet Union, especially the history of Central Asia in the Soviet period. She is the author of Tribal Nation: The Making of Soviet Turkmenistan (Princeton University Press, 2006). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he is also the editor of Europe-Asia Studies. Follow him on Twitter @anceschistan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/anthropology

Adrienne Edgar's Intermarriage and the Friendship of Peoples—Ethnic Mixing in Soviet Central Asia (Cornell University Press, 2021) is an outstanding study of the evolution of intermarriage practices in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan across the Soviet era and beyond. Based on substantive oral history research work, plus extensive engagement with published and unpublished Soviet sources, the book tells an intriguing story, one that delves into the ever intriguing process of ethnic mixing. As a phenomenon that transcended revolution, war, de-Stalinisation, and independence in a remote part of the Soviet Union, intermarriage becomes a vehicle for a wider argument focusing on the racialization of identities. Edgar's engaging prose engage with wider process, including the inexorable involution of Soviet internationalism and the rise of primordialism, top describe how mixed couples and families in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan were painfully affected by the growth of ethnic primordialism and by the tensions between the national and supranational projects in the Soviet Union. Adrienne Edgar is Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she works on the history of the Soviet Union, especially the history of Central Asia in the Soviet period. She is the author of Tribal Nation: The Making of Soviet Turkmenistan (Princeton University Press, 2006). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he is also the editor of Europe-Asia Studies. Follow him on Twitter @anceschistan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/sociology

How did African American visitors and residents of Soviet Central Asia imagine their Central Asian counterparts? Through an exploration of their writings, we can see how African Americans envisioned a shared historical and racial bond between themselves and Central Asians. About the Speaker: Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon is a Ph.D. student in history at the University of Pennsylvania and a Penn Presidential Ph.D. Fellow. Her work examines how the presence of people of color shaped ideas and understandings of race, ethnicity, and nationality policy in the Soviet Union, East Germany, and post-Soviet space. She is a regular commentator on Russian, Ukrainian and American affairs in national media outlets.

An online discussion with the author Marlene Laruelle, Director of the Central Asia Program at the George Washington University. For more information, please visit: https://www.centralasiaprogram.org/vi... Central Peripheries explores post-Soviet Central Asia through the prism of nation-building. It looks at how states in the region have been navigating the construction of a nation in a post-imperial context where Russia remains the dominant power and cultural reference. Exploring state discourses, academic narratives and different forms of popular nationalist storytelling, the book depicts the complex construction of the national pantheon in the three decades since independence. The second half of the book focuses on Kazakhstan as the most hybrid national construction and a unique case study of nationhood in Eurasia. Speakers Author, Marlene Laruelle, Ph.D., is Director, Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies; Director, Central Asia Program; Co-Director, PONARS-Eurasia; and Research Professor of International Affairs at George Washington University. She works on political, social and cultural changes in the post-Soviet space. Marlene's research explores the transformations of nationalist and conservative ideologies in Russia, nationhood construction in Central Asia, as well as the development of Russia's Arctic regions. Diana T. Kudaibergenova is a Lecturer at the Department of Sociology at the University of Cambridge. Prior to that, she was a Postdoctoral Research Associate with the GRCF COMPASS project at the Centre of Development Studies (Department of Politics and International Studies) also at the University of Cambridge. She studies different intersections of power, regimes, state-building and nationalism. Sabina Insebayeva is an assistant professor of Central Eurasian Studies at the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, the University of Tsukuba (Japan). She is concurrently a research associate at the Asia Research Institute at the National University of Singapore (NUS), where she also was a post-doctoral research fellow. Prior positions include research fellowships with the IERES at the George Washington University (GW) and Fudan University. Berikbol Dukeyev is a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science and International Relations at the Center for Arab and Islamic Studies (the Middle East and Central Asia) at the Australian National University. Berikbol's research explores the politics of memory, history production, and media studies in Central Asia.

I could not think of a better way to start my tenure as host of New Books in Central Asian Studies than discussing Slow Anti-Americanism: Social Movements & Symbolic Politics in Central Asia (Stanford University Press 2021) with its author, Prof Edward Schatz from the University of Toronto. The book offers a privileged vantage point to assess the political relevance that symbols--in this case those emanated by the United States--continue to hold vis-à-vis attitudes, agendas, and strategies of social movements. The book is rich in details, showcases the results of an exciting long-term research agenda, and does a fantastic job in tracing the long, slow trajectory of anti-American sentiments in post-Soviet Central Asia, focusing on how the many shifts in the US regional image have been observed, digested, and acted upon by three audiences as diverse as Islamic activists, social mobilisers, and labour activists. This is a timely book, one that will have even more resonance now that Central Asia has entered the post-US era.  Edward Schatz is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. His previous books include Paradox of Power: The Logics of State Weakness in Eurasia (2017) and Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power (2009). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he also edits Europe-Asia Studies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/central-asian-studies

I could not think of a better way to start my tenure as host of New Books in Central Asian Studies than discussing Slow Anti-Americanism: Social Movements & Symbolic Politics in Central Asia (Stanford University Press 2021) with its author, Prof Edward Schatz from the University of Toronto. The book offers a privileged vantage point to assess the political relevance that symbols--in this case those emanated by the United States--continue to hold vis-à-vis attitudes, agendas, and strategies of social movements. The book is rich in details, showcases the results of an exciting long-term research agenda, and does a fantastic job in tracing the long, slow trajectory of anti-American sentiments in post-Soviet Central Asia, focusing on how the many shifts in the US regional image have been observed, digested, and acted upon by three audiences as diverse as Islamic activists, social mobilisers, and labour activists. This is a timely book, one that will have even more resonance now that Central Asia has entered the post-US era.  Edward Schatz is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. His previous books include Paradox of Power: The Logics of State Weakness in Eurasia (2017) and Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power (2009). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he also edits Europe-Asia Studies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science

I could not think of a better way to start my tenure as host of New Books in Central Asian Studies than discussing Slow Anti-Americanism: Social Movements & Symbolic Politics in Central Asia (Stanford University Press 2021) with its author, Prof Edward Schatz from the University of Toronto. The book offers a privileged vantage point to assess the political relevance that symbols--in this case those emanated by the United States--continue to hold vis-à-vis attitudes, agendas, and strategies of social movements. The book is rich in details, showcases the results of an exciting long-term research agenda, and does a fantastic job in tracing the long, slow trajectory of anti-American sentiments in post-Soviet Central Asia, focusing on how the many shifts in the US regional image have been observed, digested, and acted upon by three audiences as diverse as Islamic activists, social mobilisers, and labour activists. This is a timely book, one that will have even more resonance now that Central Asia has entered the post-US era.  Edward Schatz is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. His previous books include Paradox of Power: The Logics of State Weakness in Eurasia (2017) and Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power (2009). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he also edits Europe-Asia Studies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/russian-studies

I could not think of a better way to start my tenure as host of New Books in Central Asian Studies than discussing Slow Anti-Americanism: Social Movements & Symbolic Politics in Central Asia (Stanford University Press 2021) with its author, Prof Edward Schatz from the University of Toronto. The book offers a privileged vantage point to assess the political relevance that symbols--in this case those emanated by the United States--continue to hold vis-à-vis attitudes, agendas, and strategies of social movements. The book is rich in details, showcases the results of an exciting long-term research agenda, and does a fantastic job in tracing the long, slow trajectory of anti-American sentiments in post-Soviet Central Asia, focusing on how the many shifts in the US regional image have been observed, digested, and acted upon by three audiences as diverse as Islamic activists, social mobilisers, and labour activists. This is a timely book, one that will have even more resonance now that Central Asia has entered the post-US era.  Edward Schatz is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. His previous books include Paradox of Power: The Logics of State Weakness in Eurasia (2017) and Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power (2009). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he also edits Europe-Asia Studies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-studies

I could not think of a better way to start my tenure as host of New Books in Central Asian Studies than discussing Slow Anti-Americanism: Social Movements & Symbolic Politics in Central Asia (Stanford University Press 2021) with its author, Prof Edward Schatz from the University of Toronto. The book offers a privileged vantage point to assess the political relevance that symbols--in this case those emanated by the United States--continue to hold vis-à-vis attitudes, agendas, and strategies of social movements. The book is rich in details, showcases the results of an exciting long-term research agenda, and does a fantastic job in tracing the long, slow trajectory of anti-American sentiments in post-Soviet Central Asia, focusing on how the many shifts in the US regional image have been observed, digested, and acted upon by three audiences as diverse as Islamic activists, social mobilisers, and labour activists. This is a timely book, one that will have even more resonance now that Central Asia has entered the post-US era.  Edward Schatz is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. His previous books include Paradox of Power: The Logics of State Weakness in Eurasia (2017) and Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power (2009). Luca Anceschi is Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow, where he also edits Europe-Asia Studies. 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

Langston Hughes, the American poet, and leader of the ‘black renaissance' visited newly emerged Soviet Uzbekistan in the early thirties but not much of his written work has been left public for the international audience. Zohra Saed, an American researcher with a complex family history from Turkestan talks about her dissertation based on Langstone Hughes' archival notebooks, poems, and photos from that trip. The episode highlights the personal story of Zohra as an inside-out researcher and her positioned investigation of Hughes' legacy.Recommended literature:Hughes, Langston. 1934. A Negro looks at Soviet Central Asia. Moscow: Co-operative Pub. Society of Foreign Workers in the U.S.S.R.Langston Hughes: Poems, Photos & Notebooks from Turkestanhttps://www.centerforthehumanities.org/lost-and-found/publications/langston-hughes-poems-photos-notebooks-from-turkestan?fbclid=IwAR0ebaXSmPZW4aYaFU8hAFSLrQ8S-jTFZnHhUQv6T1Ef-E4AV4iCWZL4sLo

Join Mike Taber, Eric Blanc, Lars Lih, and Anne McShane for a book launch celebrating the release of Under the Socialist Banner: Resolutions of the Second International, 1889–1912, edited by Taber. Recent years have seen a massive growth of interest in socialism, particularly among young people. But few are fully aware of socialism's revolutionary history. For this reason, an appreciation of the Second International—often called the “Socialist International”—during its Marxist years is particularly relevant. What is the record of the Second International in its Marxist years? What is its legacy, and what lessons does it offer for today? These and other questions will be discussed. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Order a Copy of Under the Socialist Banner: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/1649-under-the-socialist-banner --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Eric Blanc is the author of Red State Revolt: The Teachers' Strike Wave and Working-Class Politics and Revolutionary Social Democracy: Working-Class Politics Across the Russian Empire, 1882-1917. Lars T. Lih is an independent scholar who lives in Montreal. He is the author of Bread and Authority in Russia, 1914-1921, co-author of Stalin's Letters to Molotov , author of Lenin Rediscovered: What Is to Be Done? In Context , and co-editor, with Ben Lewis, of Zinoviev and Martov: Head to Head in Halle . He has also authored a short biography entitled Lenin . At present, he is working on a study of the 1917 revolution that brings out the overlooked role of consensus and continuity in the Bolshevik outlook. Mike Taber is the editor of Under the Socialist Banner: Resolutions of the Second International, 1889–1912. He has edited and prepared a number of other books related to the history of revolutionary and working-class movements—from collections of documents of the Communist International under Lenin to works by figures such as Leon Trotsky, Malcolm X, and Che Guevara. Anne McShane has been involved in Marxist politics for over 30 years. She has a particular interest in the struggle for women's emancipation within socialist projects and has completed a PhD on the role of the Zhenotdel (Women's Department of the CPSU) in Soviet Central Asia. She works as a human rights lawyer in Ireland. This event is co-sponsored by Haymarket Books and Verso Books. Watch the live event recording: https://youtu.be/wcdUfdo2C_w Buy books from Haymarket: www.haymarketbooks.org Follow us on Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/haymarketbooks

Dildora Muzafari  was born in the 1950s in Soviet Central Asia and grew up in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.In this episode, she provides an unusual perspective about dislocation and immigration, as well as racism and women's issues.Her book Sunshine girl, is also the personal story of a girl who grew up in a society where two very different cultures collided - the more modern, secular Soviet one and an ancient, traditional Muslim one - and who simultaneously fit into both and neither. Sunshine Girl follows Ms. Muzafari's struggle to free herself from the social, historical, gender, and racial constraints imposed on her by her society, find her own voice, and reach a place she could truly call home. Her bold, unique, and passionate voice carries the reader through her odyssey which stretches from Uzbekistan to Ukraine, Russia, East Germany, Hungary, West Germany, and ultimately, Michigan. It also chronicles her great love affair with an East German and the overwhelming political and cultural obstacles the couple overcame to be together.Sunshine Girl is available on Amazon.Dildora now lives in Michigan and has multiple businesses including  Multilingual Detroit Motown Tour

China has used a very small terrorist threat emanating from a handful of Uyghur Islamist extremists to launch an enormous crackdown in what it calls Xinjiang - the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). It has incarcerated up to 1 million Uyghurs in euphemistically termed 'vocational centres' and is trying very hard to erase all signs of Uyghur language and culture - all as part of the 'Global war on terrorism'. Borealis is joined by GWU's Sean Roberts to discuss his new book on this humanitarian outrage.About my guest Sean Roberts:Having conducted ethnographic fieldwork among the Uyghur people of Central Asia and China during the 1990s, Sean has published extensively on this community in scholarly journals and collected volumes. In addition, he produced a documentary film on the community entitled Waiting for Uighurstan (1996).His present research is focused on China's development of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region as well as on democracy development in former Soviet Central Asia. Roberts continues his applied work on the design and evaluation of democracy and governance projects in the former Soviet Union, most recently in Ukraine where he worked on a USAID project to support decentralization and anti-corruption.►Check Sean's book The War on the Uyghurs: China's Internal Campaign against a Muslim MinorityAbout the host Phil Gurski:Phil is the President and CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting Ltd. and Programme Director for the Security, Economics and Technology (SET) hub at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute (PDI). He worked as a senior strategic analyst at CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) from 2001-2015, specializing in violent Islamist-inspired homegrown terrorism and radicalisation.►Website - https://borealisthreatandrisk.com/►Twitter - https://twitter.com/borealissaves►LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-gurski-8942468/►Email - borealisrisk@gmail.com►Check Phil Gurski's latest books - https://amzn.to/2ALdpoG

We are joined by Anne McShane. Anne is a Human Rights lawyer based in Ireland, who recently completed her PhD on the role of the Zhenotdel, the section of the Russian Communist party devoted to women's affairs in the 1920s, in Soviet Central Asia. We talk about why figures like Alexandra Kollontai and Inessa Armand didn’t consider themselves feminists, and what this implies for our emancipatory politics.

Dr. Madina Djuraeva talks about her 8-year long research on multilingualism among Central Asian young adults. She shares her fieldwork experience in both Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan where she collected narrative data from over 60 student participants. Dr. Djuraeva also shares a number of her key research findings around the themes of morality, belonging, and education. Madina Djuraeva defended her Ph.D. in the department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is a Lecturer of Elementary Uzbek and she has previously taught both Tajik and Uzbek languages through CESSI. Originally from Bukhara, Uzbekistan, Madina grew up in a multilingual environment of the city, which eventually contributed to her choice of profession. Her doctoral research examines lived experiences of being and becoming multilingual at the nexus of language, education, policy, and identity in the contexts of post-Soviet Central Asia and transnational migration. She has published on the issues of (non)nativeness, language policy, and morality in multilingual Central Asian communities

In Imperial Desert Dreams: Cotton Growing and Irrigation in Central Asia, 1860-1991 (V & R Unipress, 2017), Julia Obertreis explores the infrastructural, technical, and environmental aspects of the history of cotton agriculture and irrigation in Soviet Central Asia. Based on published sources and archival research conducted in Tashkent, Obertreis’ monograph offers new insights into the nature of Russian Imperial and Soviet statecraft, as well as the technical and ideological motivations behind the transformation of the Central Asian environment. This book is valuable reading for anyone interested in Russia and Central Asia, past or present. Nicholas Seay is a PhD student at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Imperial Desert Dreams: Cotton Growing and Irrigation in Central Asia, 1860-1991 (V & R Unipress, 2017), Julia Obertreis explores the infrastructural, technical, and environmental aspects of the history of cotton agriculture and irrigation in Soviet Central Asia. Based on published sources and archival research conducted in Tashkent, Obertreis’ monograph offers new insights into the nature of Russian Imperial and Soviet statecraft, as well as the technical and ideological motivations behind the transformation of the Central Asian environment. This book is valuable reading for anyone interested in Russia and Central Asia, past or present. Nicholas Seay is a PhD student at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Imperial Desert Dreams: Cotton Growing and Irrigation in Central Asia, 1860-1991 (V & R Unipress, 2017), Julia Obertreis explores the infrastructural, technical, and environmental aspects of the history of cotton agriculture and irrigation in Soviet Central Asia. Based on published sources and archival research conducted in Tashkent, Obertreis’ monograph offers new insights into the nature of Russian Imperial and Soviet statecraft, as well as the technical and ideological motivations behind the transformation of the Central Asian environment. This book is valuable reading for anyone interested in Russia and Central Asia, past or present. Nicholas Seay is a PhD student at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Imperial Desert Dreams: Cotton Growing and Irrigation in Central Asia, 1860-1991 (V & R Unipress, 2017), Julia Obertreis explores the infrastructural, technical, and environmental aspects of the history of cotton agriculture and irrigation in Soviet Central Asia. Based on published sources and archival research conducted in Tashkent, Obertreis’ monograph offers new insights into the nature of Russian Imperial and Soviet statecraft, as well as the technical and ideological motivations behind the transformation of the Central Asian environment. This book is valuable reading for anyone interested in Russia and Central Asia, past or present. Nicholas Seay is a PhD student at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Imperial Desert Dreams: Cotton Growing and Irrigation in Central Asia, 1860-1991 (V & R Unipress, 2017), Julia Obertreis explores the infrastructural, technical, and environmental aspects of the history of cotton agriculture and irrigation in Soviet Central Asia. Based on published sources and archival research conducted in Tashkent, Obertreis’ monograph offers new insights into the nature of Russian Imperial and Soviet statecraft, as well as the technical and ideological motivations behind the transformation of the Central Asian environment. This book is valuable reading for anyone interested in Russia and Central Asia, past or present. Nicholas Seay is a PhD student at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Imperial Desert Dreams: Cotton Growing and Irrigation in Central Asia, 1860-1991 (V & R Unipress, 2017), Julia Obertreis explores the infrastructural, technical, and environmental aspects of the history of cotton agriculture and irrigation in Soviet Central Asia. Based on published sources and archival research conducted in Tashkent, Obertreis’ monograph offers new insights into the nature of Russian Imperial and Soviet statecraft, as well as the technical and ideological motivations behind the transformation of the Central Asian environment. This book is valuable reading for anyone interested in Russia and Central Asia, past or present. Nicholas Seay is a PhD student at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Reese’s recent translation of Abdullah Qodiriy’s 1920s novel O’tkan Kunlar (Bygone Days) brings an exemplary piece of modern Uzbek literature to English-speaking audiences. The story, which simultaneously follows the personal story of a Muslim reformer and trader and the court struggles between the rulers of Central Asia, gives us a glimpse into early Soviet Central Asia, as well as the world of Central Asia on the eve of 19th-century Russian Imperial conquest. Yet, Qodiriy’s Bygone Days is much more than that; it addresses universal themes of cultural and political change, the place of tradition in societies, questions of reform and revolution, to name a few. Reese’s wonderful translation offers an opportunity to learn more about Uzbekistan past and present and offers something for anyone interested in Central Asia, literature, or the triumphs and tragedies of modernizing societies. Nicholas Seay is a PhD candidate at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Reese’s recent translation of Abdullah Qodiriy’s 1920s novel O’tkan Kunlar (Bygone Days) brings an exemplary piece of modern Uzbek literature to English-speaking audiences. The story, which simultaneously follows the personal story of a Muslim reformer and trader and the court struggles between the rulers of Central Asia, gives us a glimpse into early Soviet Central Asia, as well as the world of Central Asia on the eve of 19th-century Russian Imperial conquest. Yet, Qodiriy’s Bygone Days is much more than that; it addresses universal themes of cultural and political change, the place of tradition in societies, questions of reform and revolution, to name a few. Reese’s wonderful translation offers an opportunity to learn more about Uzbekistan past and present and offers something for anyone interested in Central Asia, literature, or the triumphs and tragedies of modernizing societies. Nicholas Seay is a PhD candidate at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Reese’s recent translation of Abdullah Qodiriy’s 1920s novel O’tkan Kunlar (Bygone Days) brings an exemplary piece of modern Uzbek literature to English-speaking audiences. The story, which simultaneously follows the personal story of a Muslim reformer and trader and the court struggles between the rulers of Central Asia, gives us a glimpse into early Soviet Central Asia, as well as the world of Central Asia on the eve of 19th-century Russian Imperial conquest. Yet, Qodiriy’s Bygone Days is much more than that; it addresses universal themes of cultural and political change, the place of tradition in societies, questions of reform and revolution, to name a few. Reese’s wonderful translation offers an opportunity to learn more about Uzbekistan past and present and offers something for anyone interested in Central Asia, literature, or the triumphs and tragedies of modernizing societies. Nicholas Seay is a PhD candidate at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Reese’s recent translation of Abdullah Qodiriy’s 1920s novel O’tkan Kunlar (Bygone Days) brings an exemplary piece of modern Uzbek literature to English-speaking audiences. The story, which simultaneously follows the personal story of a Muslim reformer and trader and the court struggles between the rulers of Central Asia, gives us a glimpse into early Soviet Central Asia, as well as the world of Central Asia on the eve of 19th-century Russian Imperial conquest. Yet, Qodiriy’s Bygone Days is much more than that; it addresses universal themes of cultural and political change, the place of tradition in societies, questions of reform and revolution, to name a few. Reese’s wonderful translation offers an opportunity to learn more about Uzbekistan past and present and offers something for anyone interested in Central Asia, literature, or the triumphs and tragedies of modernizing societies. Nicholas Seay is a PhD candidate at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Reese’s recent translation of Abdullah Qodiriy’s 1920s novel O’tkan Kunlar (Bygone Days) brings an exemplary piece of modern Uzbek literature to English-speaking audiences. The story, which simultaneously follows the personal story of a Muslim reformer and trader and the court struggles between the rulers of Central Asia, gives us a glimpse into early Soviet Central Asia, as well as the world of Central Asia on the eve of 19th-century Russian Imperial conquest. Yet, Qodiriy’s Bygone Days is much more than that; it addresses universal themes of cultural and political change, the place of tradition in societies, questions of reform and revolution, to name a few. Reese’s wonderful translation offers an opportunity to learn more about Uzbekistan past and present and offers something for anyone interested in Central Asia, literature, or the triumphs and tragedies of modernizing societies. Nicholas Seay is a PhD candidate at The Ohio State University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On 7 December 1990 the dissident Cuban novelist and poet Reinaldo Arenas killed himself in New York after years of suffering from AIDS. Before fleeing Cuba, Arenas had been jailed for his homosexuality, sent to re-education camps and prevented from writing. We hear from his friend and fellow writer, Jaime Manrique. Plus the memories of the daughter of the renowned British sculptor, Henry Moore; how the DEA helped track down Pablo Escobar; the ill-fated voyage of Shackleton's ship The Endurance; and inside one of the most notorious prison camps in post Soviet Central Asia. (Photo: Reinaldo Arenas. Credit: Sophie Bassouls/Sygma/Sygma/Getty Images)

    Rebekah Tromble: How to Combat Misinformation (Ep. 154) Leiden University's Rebekah Tromble joined Joe Miller to chat about ways to combat misinformation on social media.   Bio Rebekah Tromble (@RebekahKTromble) is an assistant professor in the Institute of Political Science at Leiden University in the Netherlands, where she teaches and conducts research on media and politics, digital research methods and ethics, and computational social science. Dr. Tromble is deeply committed to understanding and promoting responsible and ethical uses of data and technology and has founded the Data in Democracy Initiative at Leiden University to pursue that commitment through teaching, research, and public outreach. Previously, she conducted extensive fieldwork in former Soviet Central Asia, where she focused on political discourses about Muslims and Islam. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois, Bloomington, and graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Knox College.   Resources Rebekah Tromble Leiden University, Institute of Political Science Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Became Our Identity by Lilliana Mason   News Roundup U.S. sanctions Russian and Chinese firms over North Korea The U.S. has sanctioned tech firms in Russia and China for funneling money to North Korea in violation of U.S. sanctions, by using fake social media profiles to solicit work from North Koreans. The sanctions target Yanbian Silverstar Network Technology Company, whose CEO is North Korean, and a Russian subsidiary called Volasys Silverstar. Arizona is investigating Google’s location data practices Arizona’s Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich has initiated an investigation into Google’s location data practices, according to The Washington Post. Google was accused recently of recording the location data of Android users even when the location setting was turned off. The company denies the allegation saying that it is transparent with users by giving them the option to toggle what gets collected and delete their location history. FCC stops review clock on T-Mobile/Sprint merger review The FCC has stopped the clock on its review of the proposed merger of T-Mobile and Sprint. Traditionally the FCC sets the clock at 180 days. But, citing the transaction’s complexity, the FCC paused the T-Mobile/Sprint review 60 days in. Trump has signed off on election interference sanctions President Trump has signed off on a set of sanctions against foreign actors who engage in election interference. The executive order gives federal law enforcement officials 90 days to review instances of potential interference and act on them if they determine that doing so would be necessary. Google under scrutiny for China plans Reuters reports that Google and its parent company Alphabet are under scrutiny by 16 lawmakers regarding its plans to expand into China. China has banned the company since 2010. In a letter, both liberal and conservative members of Congress asked Google how they would protect its users in light of China’s censorship laws. Google said that its ambitions in China are merely exploratory and not close to launching. Some 1,000 Google employees wrote a letter questioning Google about its ambitions in China. At least one research scientist has resigned in protest. European Union adopts draft copyright bill The European Union has adopted a draft copyright bill that would require tech companies to pay higher royalties to media companies for the right to host their content. Under the new law, publishers would have the right to negotiate payment for content posted on sites like YouTube. Tech giants would also have to pay “proportionate remuneration” to large media companies for hosting their content. Big tech is pushing back saying that keeping track of every piece of content would be unwieldy. CBS sets aside $120 million in severance for Les Moonves Finally, CBS wrote in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it is setting aside $120 million in severance for their departing CEO Les Moonves—but the company has a year to decide whether to let him go for cause. If they do, he’ll get nothing. This $120 million is down from an original severance amount of $238 million. Twelve women have accused Moonves of sexual misconduct, sexual assault, or sexual harassment. CBS will also be contributing $20 million to causes that support the #MeToo movement.

Kimberly speaks with Dr. Christopher J. Lee about his newest book A Soviet Journey: A Critical Annotated Edition (Lexington Books, 2017). A Soviet Journey was a travel memoir written by South African writer and anti-apartheid activist, Alex La Guma. The memoir describes La Guma’s experiences in Soviet Central Asia, Siberia, and Lithuania. La Guma’s notes on his travels in the Soviet Union in the 1970s provide insight on the lasting impact of the Soviet Union on writers and intellectuals from the Third World. Dr. Lee edited, annotated, and provided an analytical introduction to La Guma’s work. Lee’s addition to the book includes critical analysis of La Guma’s travel memoir. He places La Guma and the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) into the context of the Soviet role in anti-imperial struggle in the Third World and provides depth to our understanding of the African National Congress connection to radical groups like the CPSA. Lee also shows, through La Guma’s writing, how anti-apartheid activists saw the Soviet Union, particularly Soviet Central Asia, as a successful example of the Soviet anti-racist and anti-imperialist message. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kimberly speaks with Dr. Christopher J. Lee about his newest book A Soviet Journey: A Critical Annotated Edition (Lexington Books, 2017). A Soviet Journey was a travel memoir written by South African writer and anti-apartheid activist, Alex La Guma. The memoir describes La Guma’s experiences in Soviet Central Asia, Siberia, and Lithuania. La Guma’s notes on his travels in the Soviet Union in the 1970s provide insight on the lasting impact of the Soviet Union on writers and intellectuals from the Third World. Dr. Lee edited, annotated, and provided an analytical introduction to La Guma’s work. Lee’s addition to the book includes critical analysis of La Guma’s travel memoir. He places La Guma and the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) into the context of the Soviet role in anti-imperial struggle in the Third World and provides depth to our understanding of the African National Congress connection to radical groups like the CPSA. Lee also shows, through La Guma’s writing, how anti-apartheid activists saw the Soviet Union, particularly Soviet Central Asia, as a successful example of the Soviet anti-racist and anti-imperialist message. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kimberly speaks with Dr. Christopher J. Lee about his newest book A Soviet Journey: A Critical Annotated Edition (Lexington Books, 2017). A Soviet Journey was a travel memoir written by South African writer and anti-apartheid activist, Alex La Guma. The memoir describes La Guma’s experiences in Soviet Central Asia, Siberia, and Lithuania. La Guma’s notes on his travels in the Soviet Union in the 1970s provide insight on the lasting impact of the Soviet Union on writers and intellectuals from the Third World. Dr. Lee edited, annotated, and provided an analytical introduction to La Guma’s work. Lee’s addition to the book includes critical analysis of La Guma’s travel memoir. He places La Guma and the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) into the context of the Soviet role in anti-imperial struggle in the Third World and provides depth to our understanding of the African National Congress connection to radical groups like the CPSA. Lee also shows, through La Guma’s writing, how anti-apartheid activists saw the Soviet Union, particularly Soviet Central Asia, as a successful example of the Soviet anti-racist and anti-imperialist message. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kimberly speaks with Dr. Christopher J. Lee about his newest book A Soviet Journey: A Critical Annotated Edition (Lexington Books, 2017). A Soviet Journey was a travel memoir written by South African writer and anti-apartheid activist, Alex La Guma. The memoir describes La Guma’s experiences in Soviet Central Asia, Siberia, and Lithuania. La Guma’s notes on his travels in the Soviet Union in the 1970s provide insight on the lasting impact of the Soviet Union on writers and intellectuals from the Third World. Dr. Lee edited, annotated, and provided an analytical introduction to La Guma’s work. Lee’s addition to the book includes critical analysis of La Guma’s travel memoir. He places La Guma and the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) into the context of the Soviet role in anti-imperial struggle in the Third World and provides depth to our understanding of the African National Congress connection to radical groups like the CPSA. Lee also shows, through La Guma’s writing, how anti-apartheid activists saw the Soviet Union, particularly Soviet Central Asia, as a successful example of the Soviet anti-racist and anti-imperialist message. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kimberly speaks with Dr. Christopher J. Lee about his newest book A Soviet Journey: A Critical Annotated Edition (Lexington Books, 2017). A Soviet Journey was a travel memoir written by South African writer and anti-apartheid activist, Alex La Guma. The memoir describes La Guma’s experiences in Soviet Central Asia, Siberia,... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join Bridget Keown, Jackie Gronau, James Robinson, Matt Bowser, and Thanasis Kinias as we join PhD Candidate Feruza Aripova to discuss her research into the suppression of same sex desire in the Soviet Union, either through punishment in the Stalinist era to later pathologizing same sex desire as a disease to be treated. The 1930s saw the rolling back of both legalization of homosexuality and abortion that had been gained by the Revolution. Feruza guides us through what happened, how same sex desire continued in prisons and underground communities, and how her background growing up in Soviet Central Asia shaped her experience. How did same sex desire come to be defined as a threat to the Soviet state and Communist Party? Feruza guides us through her research in the archives in the Baltics, and private archives in Moscow. We round it up with talking about the Women's Section of the Communist Party in exploring Soviet Feminism, specifically on Alexandra Kollontai. Further Reading: Agamben, Giorgio. What Is an Apparatus?: And Other Essays. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 2009. Aldrich, Robert. Gay Life and Culture : A World History. New York, NY: Universe, 2006. Healey, Dan. Homosexual Desire in Revolutionary Russia : The Regulation of Sexual and Gender Dissent. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001. Engelstein, Laura. The Keys to Happiness : Sex and the Search for Modernity in Fin-de-Siècle Russia. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1992. Foucault, Michel, and Jay Miskowiec. “Of Other Spaces.” Diacritics 16, no. 1 (April 1, 1986): 22–27. doi:10.2307/464648. Kollontai, A., and Alix. Holt. Selected Writings of Alexandra Kollontai. Westport, Conn.: L. Hill, 1977. Kon, I.S. The Sexual Revolution in Russia : From the Age of the Czars to Today. New York: The Free Press, 1995. Rudusa, Rita., Forced Underground: Homosexuals in Soviet Latvia, 2014. Credits: Brought to you by the Northeastern Graduate History Association Producers and Sound Editors are: Matt Bowser and Dan Squizzero Music by Kieran Legg Rate, review, and subscribe on iTunes! Feedback/love/hate/comments/concerns/suggestions: breakinghistorypodcast@gmail.com Facebook page: www.facebook.com/breakhist/ breakinghistorypodcast.com/

In 1961, in Kirghizia, in Soviet Central Asia, 21 managers and senior officials were executed for "serious economic crimes", after they introduced capitalist production methods. Dina Newman reports. Photo: Russian shoppers queue at the GUM department store in Moscow, circa 1960; photo by Richard Harrington/Getty Images.

At the start of the Second World War hundreds of thousands of Polish civilians were imprisoned in the Soviet Union following the occupation of their country by the USSR. But in August 1941, after Nazi Germany invaded Russia, many of the Poles were suddenly set free. We hear from one former prisoner who found himself stranded in Soviet Central Asia for the rest of the Second World War. Photo: Nazi troops order Soviet women to leave their homes, summer 1941 (Keystone/Getty Images)

At the start of the Second World War hundreds of thousands of Polish civilians were imprisoned in the Soviet Union following the occupation of their country by the USSR. But in August 1941, after Nazi Germany invaded Russia, many of the Poles were suddenly set free. We hear from one former prisoner who found himself stranded in Soviet Central Asia for the rest of the Second World War. Photo: Nazi troops order Soviet women to leave their homes, summer 1941 (Keystone/Getty Images)

Adeeb Khalid discusses the transformation of culture and identity in Central Asia during the early years of Soviet rule and how the transformations in culture came not from Moscow, but from the Central Asian people themselves and how their new identity fostered a growing modernity that shaped the region as it is today. Speaker Biography: Adeeb Khalid is Jane and Raphael Bernstein Professor of Asian Studies and History at Carleton College. A historian of modern Central Asia, he is the author "The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform: Jadidism in Central Asia" and "Islam after Communism: Religion and Politics in Central Asia." He has lived and studied in Uzbekistan, Russia, Turkey, and Pakistan, and travelled al over Central Asia. For captions, transcript, or more information visit http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=5213.