Ep 159 Military Ambitions vs Pandemics in 1918 and 2020 feat Gareth Porter

Guest: Gareth Porter. Both in 1918 and 2020 pandemics forced the US military to make changes in their operations but the Pentagon has also revealed a resistance to stand down even when it's necessary to protect troops. We talk about the similarities and differences between the situations in 1918 during the Spanish Flu pandemic and World War I and today's Coronavirus pandemic during never ending imperial wars. We also talk about the kinds of movements, changes and consequences that might be catalyzed by this latest crisis.

Gareth Porter is an independent Investigative historian and journalist on the national security state. He is the author of numerous books including Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam (2005) and Manufactured Crisis: the Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare (2014).and the co-author with John Kiriakou of his latest book The CIA Insider's Guide to the Iran Crisis: From CIA Coup to the Brink of War. Gareth is the winner of the 2012 Gellhorn Prize for Journalism

 FOLLOW Gareth on Twitter at @GarethPorter. Find his work at The American Conservative, Truthdig, Antiwar.com, Middle East Eye and other media outlets. He's also now at The Grayzone. Read his new book: The CIA Insider's Guide to the Iran Crisis: From CIA Coup to the Brink of War. 

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Recorded on April 10, 2020. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

1. How Generals Fueled 1918 Flu Pandemic To Win Their World War, Gareth Porter, The American Conservative
2. 1918 Influenza Epidemic Records, Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC)
3. Philadelphia, Nurses, and the Spanish Influenza Pandemic of 1918, US Navy
4. Book (2020): The CIA Insider's Guide to the Iran Crisis: From CIA Coup to the Brink of War. 
5. Book (2005): Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam
6. Book (2014): Manufactured Crisis: the Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare