The John Batchelor Show

1,589 episodes — Page 19 of 32

The John Batchelor Show

S8 Ep891: STREAMING MAKING JBS, FEATURING ROGGIO, HAQQANI, BEN-UR, 5-18-26.

S8 Ep890: Sophie McDowall explores the complex difficulty of balancing free speech rights with moderating radicalist audio content. She identifies Islamic art bands with ties to Hamas that use music to oppose coexistence. (16/16)

S8 Ep890: Sophie McDowall explains how terrorist groups use music on platforms like SoundCloud to radicalize new listeners. She details how artists bypass content moderation using coded language and nasheeds featuring battlefield audio. (15/16)

S8 Ep890: Joe Truzman details how Iran and its proxy, Kata'ib Hezbollah, outsource low-tech attacks against Jewish targets in Europe. He also discusses Israel's ongoing pursuit of justice for October 7th victims. Bill Roggio joins the conversation. (14/16)

S8 Ep890: John Hardie examines the escalation of drone strikes between Ukraine and Russia, including attacks on Moscow's infrastructure. He notes the pressure on Russian air defenses and the stalemate in the Donbas region. Bill Roggio joins the conversation. (13/16

S8 Ep890: Edmund Fitton-Brown critiques a New York Times report on Israeli violence as poorly sourced and timed to distract from Hamas's sexual violence. He warns about shifts in American media coverage. Bill Roggio joins the conversation. (12/16)

S8 Ep890: Edmund Fitton-Brown discusses the Strait of Hormuz closure and the potential for military escalation if negotiations fail. He critiques European passivity and notes China's interest in reopening the vital waterway. Bill Roggio joins the conversation. (11/

S8 Ep890: Alejandro Peña Esclusa attributes Bolivia's turmoil to Cuban influence and Evo Morales's ties to drug trafficking. Ernesto Araújo views Bolivia as a critical "bellwether" for the criminal socialist project in Latin America. (10/16)

S8 Ep890: Alejandro Peña Esclusa and Ernesto Araújo discuss Raul Castro's potential indictment and regional shifts toward the right. They highlight the extradition of Alex Saab as a significant blow to Maduro. (9/16)

S8 Ep890: Alan Tonelson argues the Beijing summit achieved little, noting no shifts in Taiwan policy or tariffs. Tonelson and Gordon Chang emphasize China's economic distress, manufacturing overcapacity, and strategic reliance on rare earth minerals. (8/16)

S8 Ep890: Gordon Chang and Charles Burton describe the Trump-Xi summit as political theater where China projected strength despite economic weaknesses. Concerns exist that support for Taiwan may become a transactional bargaining chip in future trade deals. (7/16)

S8 Ep890: Malcolm Hoenlein reports that Iran launched a digital insurance platform to bypass maritime sanctions and generate revenue in the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, Hezbollah refuses to disarm in Lebanon despite ongoing diplomatic negotiations held in Washingto

S8 Ep890: Malcolm Hoenlein criticizes The New York Times for publishing an opinion piece echoing propaganda against Israel alongside a report on Hamas atrocities. Critics suggest this timing was intended to undermine Israeli investigative findings. (5/16)

S8 Ep890: Bill Roggio and Bridget Toomey report that Iraq's new government remains incomplete with nine ministries vacant due to sectarian disputes. Washington refuses to cooperate if these posts are filled by members of Iran-backed, US-designated terrorist militia

S8 Ep890: Bill Roggio and Samuel Ben-Ur report that Israeli strikes killed Izz al-Din al-Haddad, the last original planner of the October 7 massacre remaining in Gaza. His elimination signals a pressure campaign against Hamas as they refuse to disarm during the cea

S8 Ep890: Husain Haqqani and Bill Roggio observe that Washington is currently distracted by domestic politics and upcoming midterms, pushing the Iran war to secondary headlines. Global leadership has eroded due to partisan squabbling over issues like high gas price

S8 Ep890: Pakistan deployed 8,000 troops and fighter jets to Saudi Arabia to reassure its ally. Husain Haqqani and Bill Roggio note that while mediating the Iran war, Islamabad leverages this military presence to avoid direct involvement in the regional conflict. (

S8 Ep889: PREVIEW for Later Today: Analyzing Xi Jinping's Petty Power Plays During Trump's Visit. Guest: Gordon Chang. Gordon Chang highlights Xi Jinping's "petty" behavior during a Forbidden City summit, including using higher chairs to appear dominant. Despite Xi

S8 Ep889: PREVIEW for Later Today: The Role of Music in Jihadist Radicalization and Recruitment. Guest: Sophie McDowell. Sophie McDowell explains how jihadists utilize music to foster a sense of pride and community among potential recruits. Music creates a subconsc

S8 Ep888: PREVIEW for Later Today: Evo Morales: A Cuban-Linked Threat to Bolivian Stability. Guest: Alejandro Peña Esclusa. Alejandro Peña Esclusa discusses Evo Morales's efforts to regain power in Bolivia through organized turmoil. Morales, a Cuban-educated region

S8 Ep888: PREVIEW for Later Today: Ukrainian Strikes Undermine Russian Public Support for Endless War. Guest: John Hardie. John Hardie analyzes how long-range Ukrainian drone strikes on critical infrastructure, like oil refineries, damage Russian morale. Environmen

S8 Ep888: PREVIEW for Later Today: Overestimating China's Global Influence and Economic Integration. Guest: Alan Tonelson. Alan Tonelson argues that China's global influence is vastly overestimated despite its economic growth. Its primary leverage remains a near-st

S8 Ep888: PREVIEW for Later Today: Iraq's New Oil Ministry Faces Critical Export and Budget Challenges. Guest: Bridget Toomey. Bridget Toomey examines Iraq's urgent need to diversify oil export routes beyond the Strait of Hormuz. The new ministry must repair post-w

S8 Ep887: In their final discourse by the Thames, Gaius and Germanicus explore the inescapable cultural legacy of Rome, noting its presence in modern architecture, law, and even the worship services of the New Testament. Gaius posits that Rome is "everywhere," f

S8 Ep887: As the wine flows in the Spring of 92 AD, Gaius and Germanicus shift their focus to the power of ceremony and the "paper tiger" status of modern empires. They analyze the symbolic "disrespect" shown during a meeting between the American and Chinese empero

S8 Ep887: In a sun-drenched Londinium wine bar overlooking the calm Thames, Gaius and Germanicus engage in a spirited debate before an audience of retired centurions from the Eighth Legion. The discussion centers on the "Roman way of war"—characterized by relentles

S8 Ep886: Stalin strategically delayed Operation Bagration until two weeks after D-Day, ensuring that the Western Allies would exhaust German forces first. Using American steel, fuel, and Studebaker trucks, the Red Army emerged as a massive, mechanized force capa

S8 Ep886: The Soviet Union used Lend-Lease to "plunder" American technology, including entire Ford factories and suitcases of blueprints guarded by NKVD agents. Harry Hopkins personally intervened to facilitate the shipment of specialized chemicals and enriched ura

S8 Ep886: Following the 1943 discovery of the Katyn Forest massacre, where the Soviets executed thousands of Polish officers, FDR and Churchill knowingly supported the Soviet lie blaming the Nazis to preserve the alliance. Stalin used this event as a strategic leve

S8 Ep886: At the 1943 Casablanca Conference, FDR announced the policy of "unconditional surrender" largely as a diplomatic gift to appease Stalin's constant "needling" for a second front. Despite FDR giving Stalin first priority for advanced aircraft and even offer

S8 Ep886: Winston Churchill viewed the Soviet Union as a necessary bulwark against Hitler, leading him to treat Stalin as a "brother-in-arms" despite Soviet crimes. To keep the Russian army fighting as "cannon fodder," Churchill diverted crucial equipment—including

S8 Ep886: FDR faced significant domestic opposition from powerful congressional voices like Harry Truman and Hiram Johnson, who viewed both Hitler and Stalin as "monsters" or "beasts." Internal polls showed that 54% of Americans opposed aiding the Soviet Union, wit

S8 Ep886: Professor Sean McMeekin explains that Joseph Stalin's core strategy was to allow capitalist "monster nations" like France, Germany, and England to exhaust each other before he intervened to expand the Russian Empire. This vision was realized through Harry

S8 Ep885: Admiral James Stavridis highlights the heroism of Doris "Dory" Miller and Commander Ernest Evans. Despite the segregated Navy of 1941, Miller displayed immense courage at Pearl Harbor by manning an anti-aircraft gun and rescuing shipmates. His legacy is h

S8 Ep885: Admiral James Stavridis focuses on the leadership trait of emotional detachment. Stavridis criticizes Admiral Bill Halsey for allowing competitive rivalry to cloud his judgment at Leyte Gulf, contrasting him with leaders like Michelle Howard who maintain

S8 Ep885: Admiral James Stavridis examines resource evaluation using David Farragut's victory at Mobile Bay as a model of combined arms and technological adaptation. Farragut successfully managed the transition from wooden sailing ships to ironclad steam vessels. I

S8 Ep885: Guest Author Admiral James Stavridis discusses the necessity of gathering intelligence through the contrasting examples of George Dewey and Bill Halsey. At Manila Bay, Dewey successfully utilized human intelligence from State Department diplomats to const

S8 Ep884: The mission's climax involved the sample capsule's return to Earth in the Utah desert. Dante Lauretta describes the harrowing moments when the drogue parachute failed to deploy as scheduled, threatening a catastrophic crash landing. The successful depl

S8 Ep884: When the spacecraft arrived at Bennu in late 2018, the team was shocked to find a rugged, boulder-strewn surface instead of the expected sandy "beach." Bennu revealed itself as a "trickster" and an "active asteroid," frequently ejecting rock particles int

S8 Ep884: Dante Lauretta details the complex scientific objectives that formed the OSIRIS-REx mission name: Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, and Regolith Explorer. He reflects on the mythological significance of Osiris as both a

S8 Ep884: Professor Dante Lauretta discusses the origins of his journey to explore the dawn of the solar system. The mission began in 2004 when his mentor, Mike Drake, invited him to meet with Lockheed Martin to propose an asteroid sample return mission. Lauretta s

S8 Ep883: CThe ICC suspended funding for Cricket Canada following allegations of corruption, match-fixing, and "Bishnoi mafia" influence. A specific match against New Zealand is currently under investigation. Additionally, England's "Bazball" era appears to be endi

S8 Ep883: John Batchelor and Jeremy Zakis discuss an impending "Super El Niño" causing extreme global weather patterns. Australia prepares for catastrophic bushfire risks due to unprecedented dry conditions and a lack of winter rain. Conversely, the United States a

S8 Ep882: Matthew Shindell explores the history of robotic exploration, starting with political shifts during the Nixon administration that pivoted NASA away from post-Apollo human Mars missions. He emphasizes the extraordinary success of the Mariner and Viking p

S8 Ep882: Matthew Shindell examines the Scientific Revolution, noting how pioneers like Galileo and Newton gradually replaced ancient models with modern physics and natural history. By the 18th century, William Herschel popularized the idea of an inhabited Mars, be

S8 Ep882: Matthew Shindell discusses the Islamic Renaissance, noting that scholars in Baghdad and Damascus conducted rigorous scientific observations while Western Europe possessed only fragmented ancient knowledge. This era's large-scale translation movement and o

S8 Ep882: Matthew Shindell explores how ancient civilizations interpreted Mars to understand their connection to the cosmos. He explains that archaeologists studying the Mayan Dresden Codex identified a "Mars beast" representing the planet's opposition and retrogra

S8 Ep881: Elbridge Colby argues that the U.S. must prioritize Asia as the primary theater, as China stands a plausible chance of regional hegemony unlike Russia. While maintaining NATO, the U.S. should shift conventional obligations to Europeans, as America cannot

S8 Ep881: Elbridge Colby explains that the binding strategy addresses the psychological aspect of war by preparing for the resolve and morale required for a larger conflict. It aims to force China into a dilemma: accept the status quo or take actions that inevita

S8 Ep881: Elbridge Colby explains that if a denial defense succeeds, the burden of escalation falls on China, which may attempt horizontal (geographic) or vertical (intensity) escalation. Colby notes that limited nuclear use is risky for Beijing as it might cataly