Geopolitics & World
International affairs, defense, and regional topics
378 episodes · Page 8 of 16
#3003: How Texas Became Texas: Empire, Republic, Statehood
From Spanish mission outpost to independent republic to US state — the unique path that shaped Texas governance.
#3002: The Secret Flags You’ll Never See
Most countries have official flags for offices and royals that almost nobody ever sees. Who designs them, and why do they exist?
#3000: The 94%: Canada's Empty North
94% of Canadian territory has zero permanent residents. How does a modern state govern the other 97%?
#2999: Svalbard's Visa-Free Trap: What You Need to Know
No visa needed on Svalbard — but you can't get there without one. Here's how the Arctic's strangest legal loophole actually works.
#2998: The Rat-Free Island: South Georgia's Wild Comeback
From industrial whaling to the largest rat eradication ever attempted — the incredible story of South Georgia's transformation.
#2992: The Three Lives of Za'atar: Plant, Spice, Identity
A wild herb became a global spice blend. Now overharvesting threatens the hillsides where it grew for millennia.
#2991: Italy Ends Israel Defense Pact: What's Lost
Italy let its defense cooperation agreement with Israel expire. Here's what that means for missile systems, intelligence, and European defense stra...
#2986: China and Russia's High-Speed Pipeline to Iran
How China and Russia resupplied Iran in weeks, not months — and what it means for US power.
#2983: The Night-Watchman State: Theory vs Reality
Which democracies come closest to the libertarian minimum state? And which lean hardest into state control?
#2980: Dual-Use Airfields: Civilian Jets and Military Cargo on the Same Runway
How Israel runs civilian and military flights on the same tarmac during an active war with Iran.
#2977: Why Bread Costs Triple in Richer Countries
Why do poorer countries like Portugal have cheaper bread than wealthier Israel? It's not price controls vs. free markets—it's market structure.
#2969: Who Controls Israel's Courts? The Judicial Reform Fight Explained
Why 600,000 Israelis protested a legal doctrine you've never heard of — and why the fight isn't over.
#2968: The Government That Existed Before the State
How the Yishuv built a fully functioning state within a state decades before 1948.
#2957: The Fourth Ring of Jerusalem
How a 1,700-year-old community in Jerusalem is fighting for survival — and what the Cow Garden land dispute reveals.
#2954: The 47 Lubricants of War: Inside Defense Supply Chains
How Israel’s military actually buys bullets, missiles, and tank grease — and why a single factory in Virginia matters.
#2951: Herzl's Unbuilt Utopia: The Man Behind the Dream
The secular dandy who founded modern Zionism — and the state he imagined vs. what got built.
#2946: How a Kahanist Teen Became Israel's Police Chief
The story of Itamar Ben-Gvir's rise from Kach activist to National Security Minister.
#2933: How 400 Yeshiva Students Became 66,000 Exemptions
How a 1947 letter to 400 students grew into the political backbone of Israel's governing coalitions.
#2931: David Ben-Gurion: The Man Behind the Myth
The neurotic insomniac who read Plato at dawn, built a state, and shaped Israel's DNA.
#2930: How the Rabbis Saved the Bible's Most Dangerous Book
The book that says "everything is pointless" was almost cut from the Bible. Here's how the rabbis reinvented it.
#2929: The Radical Economics of the Sabbatical Year
How an ancient biblical debt reset is playing out in real time in Israel today.
#2926: Barley to Wheat: The Original Shavuot Grain Cycle
Before cheesecake and all-night study, Shavuot was a wheat harvest festival built on a barley-counting calendar.
#2921: The Man Behind the Politics: Netanyahu's Personality
What drives Benjamin Netanyahu? Former aides reveal the man behind the political force.
#2907: How Medieval Queens Shaped Jewish Policy Before 1306
How four French queens used dower lands and household budgets to protect—or restrict—Jewish communities before the 1306 expulsion.