Aug 21 - The Sorrows of Empire; As Qaddafi Falls Rebels Split; Manufacturing Hysteria

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We begin with an analysis of how military misadventures, economic downgrading and moral abdication have all combined to diminish America’s role as a world leader. Steve Clemons, the Washington-editor-at-large for the Atlantic joins us. He is just back from Afghanistan, where he witnessed the recent brazen Taliban attack at the heart of our latest Fort Apache Kabul, on the farthest fringe of the American empire.

Then we get an update on Libya, where the western rebels seem poised to take the capitol, Tripoli. Dirk Vandewalle, the author of “A History of Modern Libya” joins us to discuss the fault lines already emerging within the opposition that could spell trouble ahead once Qaddafi is removed, as the fractious rebels vie for power and position.

 

Then finally we look into the on-going battle between civil liberties and state security outlined in the new book by Jay Feldman, “Manufacturing Hysteria; A history of Scapegoating, Surveillance and Secrecy in Modern America”. The author joins us to fill in many shameful black holes in our history, in the hope we can learn from the past rather than repeat it.