logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2025
26m 44s

How the myth of democracy fuels the US f...

Al Jazeera
About this episode

From Vietnam to Iraq and Afghanistan, US wars left not freedom but ruin. In a recent book, co-authors Noam Chomsky and Nathan Robinson expose how American elites sell violence as virtue, using the myth of democracy to justify endless war.

In this episode:

  • Nathan Robinson (@NathanJRobinson), Co-Author of The Myth of American Idealism

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Marcos Bartolomé, Haleema Shah, and Sonia Bhagat, with Manny Panaretos, Mariana Navarrete, Remas Alhawari, Kisaa Zehra, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Kylene Kiang. 

Joe Plourde mixed this episode. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad Al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

Connect with us:

@AJEPodcasts on Instagram, X, FacebookThreads and YouTube

Up next
Aug 9
Brief: Israel escalates in Lebanon after soldiers killed, mass funeral in Gaza
This week: 312 days into a ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 1,254 Palestinians in Gaza. A mass funeral was held in Gaza. Israel raided Qalandiya refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. Israel escalated strikes in Lebanon. Israel has killed at least 73,305 Palestinians in Gaz ... Show More
5m 45s
Aug 2
Brief: As Israel continues striking Gaza, will Hamas disarm?
This week: 305 days into a ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 1,222 Palestinians in Gaza. The US announced a deal for Hamas to disarm in Gaza as Israel continued its strikes there. Israel has killed at least 73,305 Palestinians in Gaza since October 7, 2023. In this episode: N ... Show More
4m 28s
Jul 26
Brief: US pauses Iran strikes, Israel continues attacking Gaza
This week: 298 days into a ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 1,191 Palestinians in Gaza. The US announced a deal for Hamas to disarm in Gaza as Israel continued its strikes there. Israel has killed at least 73,305 in Gaza since October 7, 2023. In this episode: Nida Ibrahim ( ... Show More
5m 36s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2024
Season 3, Episode 5: Norman Solomon, War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine
Send us Fan MailJoin Professor Jeffrey Sachs and political and media analyst Norman Solomon as they discuss Solomon’s important new book, War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine. Listen in as Solomon and Sachs explore the intricate interplay b ... Show More
51m 56s
Aug 2025
EP:8 - The Hidden Price of Empire: Endless War is Changing Who We Are
What happens to a country that fights war after war, year after year? The price goes far beyond the money spent and the lives lost overseas. In this candid and unflinching conversation, Scott Horton and Daryl Cooper dig into the less visible ways America’s global military machine ... Show More
1h 34m
Jul 2025
EP:2 - Murder by Policy: Empire of Violence: The Complicity of American Power
What happens when a society built on "never again" becomes the very force it once condemned? In this unflinching examination of America's role in global violence, Scott Horton and Daryl Cooper peel back the comfortable narratives we tell ourselves about being the world's moral le ... Show More
1h 7m
Oct 2018
John Mearsheimer on 'The Great Delusion'
<p>In recent decades, both democratic and republican administrations have tried to guide other countries toward liberal democracy. But international relations theorist John Mearsheimer’s latest book, “The Great Delusion: Liberal Dreams and International Realties,” says that strat ... Show More
39m 1s
Oct 2021
Weekends: Power, Profit, and the American War Machine w/ Andrew Cockburn
<p>Journalist Andrew Cockburn, author of the new book <em>The Spoils of War</em>, explains why the United States’ astronomical Pentagon budget hasn’t led to better national defense and what’s driving the growth of the military industrial complex today.</p><br><p>Weekends with Ana ... Show More
2h 4m
Mar 2021
The Real Story: Iraq War Veteran: "War Crimes Fueled Iraqi & GI Resistance"
<p>March 19 marks the 18th anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. The catastrophic warfare that followed claimed the lives of over a million Iraqis, led to the death or life-altering injury of tens thousands of U.S. service members, and sowed chaos throughout the Middle Ea ... Show More
1h 2m
Mar 2025
Trump Reignites the Forever Wars
<p>Tommy and Ben discuss Bibi Netanyahu restarting the war in Gaza as he creates a new domestic political crisis, why Trump's airstrikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen are likely to fail, and the gutting of Voice of America. They also cover the latest in Trump's efforts to ha ... Show More
1h 39m