Are We the World’s Peacekeepers?

Civics on the Rocks

Mack and Steve wade into the role the United States plays in the world’s conflicts. This includes talking about several examples like the current war between Israel and Palestine. Fair warning: this episode covers some heavier topics than our previous ones have.

References

Just because they both like to say it a lot:

Merriam-Webster. “Hegemony.” https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hegemony

Everything that’s going on in Ukraine:

AP News. “Russia-Ukraine War.” https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

If you don’t live in Mauritania:

Gerteiny, Alfred G., Stewart, Charles C., Toupet, Charles Henri, and Deschamps, Hubert Jules. “Mauritania.” November 7, 2023. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/place/Mauritania

New to NATO?

NATO. “What is NATO?” https://www.nato.int/nato-welcome/

Foreign Affairs archive articles are behind a paywall, but if you would like some context about Mack’s reference to Germany and nuclear weapons, here’s a nice overview:

Mendhelsohn, Jack. “NATO’s Nuclear Weapons: The Rationale for ‘No First Use’.” Arms Control Association. https://www.armscontrol.org/act/1999-07/features/natos-nuclear-weapons-rationale-first-use

Don’t remember when Samuel Huntington was all the rage?

Betts, Richard K. “Samuel P. Huntington: American political scientist.” Britannica. Last updated April 14, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Samuel-P-Huntington

Brush up on your Warsaw Pact:

NATO. “What Was The Warsaw Pact?” https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/declassified_138294.htm#:~:text=The%20Warsaw%20Pact%20was%20a,(Albania%20withdrew%20in%201968).

We couldn’t find a solid academic source that concisely describes the political theory of a “Concert of Nations” that wasn’t behind a paywall, but it is derived from the Concert of Europe which you can read about here:

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Concert of Europe.” Last updated February 22, 2016. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/event/Concert-of-Europe

Want to get to know the United Nations:

United Nations. “Welcome to the United Nations.” https://www.un.org/

A detailed account about the U.S. role in Lebanon:

Office of the Historian. “The Regan Administration and Lebanon, 1981–1984.” https://history.state.gov/milestones/1981-1988/lebanon

A brief overview of what happened in Bosnia:

Holocaust Museum Houston. “Genocide in Bosnia.” https://hmh.org/library/research/genocide-in-bosnia-guide/

The town hall meeting featuring Secretary of State Madeline Albright where Ohio State students protested was actually about the Iraq war. You can watch it here:

https://youtu.be/fcLaKGNDtzo?si=ysZTDCE0Rcguh0Hw

What we’re doing in Ukraine:

U.S. Department of Defense. “Russian War in Ukraine Timeline.” https://www.defense.gov/Spotlights/Support-for-Ukraine/Timeline/#:~:text=In%20total%2C%20the%20United%20States,and%20brutal%20invasion%20on%20Feb.

U.S. role that may not have been that helpful in Central and South America:

Isacson, Adam. “The United States’ Influence on Latin America’s New Militarism.” November 22, 2021. WOLA. https://www.wola.org/analysis/the-united-states-influence-on-latin-americas-new-militarism/

Do Americans support Israel’s attack on Palestine?

Santhanam, Laura. “Poll: Majority of Americans sympathize with Israel but growing number say military response in Gaza ‘too much’.” November 12, 2023. PBS News Hour. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/poll-majority-of-americans-sympathize-with-israel-but-growing-number-say-military-response-in-gaza-too-much

An article about Israeli claims of finding a Hamas headquarters in a hospital:

Al-Mughrabi, Nidal. “Hamas command centre, weapons found at Gaza hospital, Israeli military says.” November 15, 2023. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-raids-gazas-al-shifa-hospital-2023-11-15/

An article about the recent escalation of hostilities in the West Bank:

Goldenberg, Tia and Mohammed, Majdi. “Israeli forces kill at least 8 Palestinians in surging West Bank violence, health officials say.” November 26, 2023. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/west-bank-palestinians-israel-military-raid-3deed25c4c14a5e3048778cbc79523c5

There is an extensive political history behind whether Israelis support Benjamin Netanyahu or not. This article focuses on the time period after the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

Frayer, Lauren. “After Hamas attack, most Israelis want Netanyahu to resign, according to poll.” November 11, 2023. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2023/11/11/1211767117/israel-netanyahu-growing-opposition-hamas-war-gaza

A tactical analysis (with very little description of violence) of the October 7 attack:

Ragad, Abdelali, Irvine-Brown, Richard, Garman, Benedict, and Seddon, Sean. “How Hamas built a force to attack Israel on 7 October.” November 27, 2023. BBC Arabic and BBC Verify. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67480680

If you need help understanding the size of Gaza and the population living there:

Moriarty, Dylan, Berkowitz, Bonnie. “Visualizing the size of Gaza City compared with U.S. cities.” October 17, 2023. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/17/gaza-size-population-comparison/

Several sources agree that as of the first week of November 2023, over 10,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel began bombing Gaza in response to the October 7th attack by Hamas. The exact number has been called into question and this article discusses the complexity of creating an accurate death toll:

BBC Verify team. “How the dead are counted in Gaza.” November 15, 2023. BBC Verify. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67347201

A history of antisemitism in the United States:

Center for Antisemitism Research. “Antisemitic Attitudes in America: Topline Findings.” January 12, 2023. Anti-Defamation League. https://www.adl.org/resources/report/antisemitic-attitudes-america-topline-findings

A brief overview of the long history of the conflict between Israel and Palestine:

Center for Preventive Action. “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.” Updated November 27, 2023. https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/israeli-palestinian-conflict

President Biden’s documented response to the October 7th attack:

The White House. “Remarks by President Biden on the October 7th Terrorist Attacks and the Resilience of the State of Israel and its People: Tel Aviv, Israel.” October 18, 2023. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/10/18/remarks-by-president-biden-on-the-october-7th-terrorist-attacks-and-the-resilience-of-the-state-of-israel-and-its-people-tel-aviv-israel/#:~:text=We're%20working%20with%20partners,return%20of%20all%20these%20hostages.

In case you are not aware of what we meant when we referenced the U.S. response to 9/11:

Council on Foreign Relations. “1999–2021: The U.S. War in Afghanistan.” https://www.cfr.org/timeline/us-war-afghanistan

How the U.K. and the League of Nations are involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict:

GCHQ. “The Palestine Mandate.” https://www.gchq.gov.uk/information/palestine-mandate

And now, for something completely different...bless Secret of the Booze for creating Griswold punch. May it become a tradition for you as it has been for Anne and her family:

https://youtu.be/g96DEG2WTF8?si=cRGd4KLjAsfbqF0o

Christmas movies we referenced:

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)

A Christmas Story (1983)

Die Hard (1988)

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)

If you don’t know why Steve felt the need to tell you that the ice cream was Blue Bell, it’s because it’s very very important in Texas. For example, here is an article explaining how we don’t even let a petty thing like listeria dissuade us from Blue Bell:

Castro, Lauren. “Blue Bell is Still My Ice Cream of Choice.” March 21, 2023. Texas Monthly. https://www.texasmonthly.com/food/blue-bell-is-still-my-ice-cream-of-choice/

If you, too, want to want to impress your family and friends by making amazing eggnog (but for the love of all things holy, don’t substitute Laphroaig):

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/eggnog-recipe2-2013745

In case, like Anne, you didn’t get Mack’s ham sandwich joke:

Levin, Josh. “The Judge Who Coined ‘Indict a Ham Sandwich’ Was Himself Indicted.” November 25, 2014. Slate. https://slate.com/human-interest/2014/11/sol-wachtler-the-judge-who-coined-indict-a-ham-sandwich-was-himself-indicted.html

Podcast that Steve is listening to:

David Priess for Lawfare. “Science Fiction and International Relations with Stephen Dyson.” July 27, 2023. Chatter (podcast). https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-chatter-podcast-science-fiction-and-international-relations-with-stephen-dyson

One way to make a vieux carré:

https://www.liquor.com/recipes/vieux-carre/

But Mack prefers to use the recipe in:

Stanley Clisby Arthur. Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix ‘Em. (Pelican Publishing, 1977).

Old square in Spanish is plaza vieja.

RIP Dianne Feinstein:

Blood, Michael R. and Jalonick, Mary Clare. “Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, trailblazer and champion of liberal priorities, dies at age 90.” October 4, 2023. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/dianne-feinstein-dead-c831f3228ac44faa9653234570bb8ce9

How often do you think about the Roman Senate:

Cartwright, Mark. “Roman Senate.” December 12, 2016. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/Roman_Senate/

What could “better quality voter” be coded language for:

Bella, Timothy. “A GOP lawmaker says the ‘quality’ of a vote matters. Critics say that’s ‘straight out of Jim Crow.’” March 13, 2021. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/03/13/arizona-quality-votes-kavanagh/

You’ve heard Steve and Mack’s opinion. Here’s what the State of Texas says the Texas Enterprise Fund is for:

The State of Texas Governor. “Texas Enterprise Fund.” https://gov.texas.gov/business/page/texas-enterprise-fund

In case you aren’t completely familiar with the Texas constitutional amendments we’re discussing:

Texas Secretary of State. “Constitutional Amendment Election Sample Ballot.” November 7, 2023. https://www.sos.texas.gov/elections/forms/2023-sample-ballot-final.pdf

A little ozone history:

Walker, Kira. “What happened to the world’s ozone hole?” January 9, 2023. BBC. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220321-what-happened-to-the-worlds-ozone-hole

Learn about the Clean Air Act:

EPA. “Clean Air Act Requirements and History.” Last updated on August 8, 2023. https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/clean-air-act-requirements-and-history#:~:text=To%20protect%20public%20health%20and%20welfare%20nationwide%2C%20the%20Clean%20Air,based%20on%20the%20latest%20science.

Learn about acid rain:

EPA. “What is Acid Rain?” Last updated June 1, 2023. https://www.epa.gov/acidrain/what-acid-rain#:~:text=Acid%20rain%2C%20or%20acid%20deposition,even%20dust%20that%20is%20acidic.

And the “Galactic Empire” is a reference to Star Wars. But you already knew that.