Couverture de Explaining History

Explaining History

Explaining History

De : Nick Shepley
Écouter gratuitement

À propos de ce contenu audio

How do we make sense of the modern world? We find the answers in the history of the 20th Century.


For over a decade, The Explaining History Podcast has been the guide for curious minds. Host Nick Shepley and expert guests break down the world wars, the Cold War, and the rise and fall of ideologies into concise, 25-minute episodes.


This isn't a dry lecture. It's a critical, narrative-driven conversation that connects the past to your present.

Perfect for students, history buffs, and anyone who wants to understand how we got here. Hit subscribe and start exploring.


Join us at Explaining History for daily modern history articles and news.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nick Shepley Sciences sociales
Épisodes
  • The Transnational Far Right – Hate, Vigilantism, and the Mainstreaming of Extremism

    The Transnational Far Right – Hate, Vigilantism, and the Mainstreaming of Extremism
    Apr 16 2026


    **In this episode of the Explaining History Podcast, we are joined by Wendy Via of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism – a former Southern Poverty Law Center staffer – to discuss a new report on the transnational activities of far-right and anti-migrant groups around the world.**


    We often think of hate and xenophobia as local phenomena, but just like organised violence, the far‑right has become increasingly internationalised. The internet, political crises, and economic uncertainty have allowed extremist groups to learn from one another, share strategies, and normalise ideas that were once relegated to the fringes.


    Wendy explains how the movement has become more sophisticated in its branding. Neo‑Nazis still exist, but they no longer openly quote *Mein Kampf*. Instead, they speak of "protecting our culture" and "saving our families". The "great replacement" conspiracy theory – once confined to obscure writers – is now pushed by politicians and mainstream commentators, giving cover to unspoken reactionary ideas.


    We explore the alarming mainstreaming of far‑right politics. In Britain, the Conservative Party has moved from ostracising Enoch Powell to rehabilitating his ideas. In the United States, Trump’s open demonisation of Mexican immigrants – "they’re rapists" – did not end his campaign; it became a template for others. Across Europe, Latin America, and beyond, leaders have taken cues from Trump, turning immigration into an existential threat.


    The report also examines the rise of vigilante groups – self‑appointed militias patrolling borders and neighbourhoods. While there is no single centralised command, these groups communicate constantly, learning from each other’s tactics. Political leaders who call immigrants "the enemy" provide implicit encouragement, and wealthy figures like Elon Musk amplify hateful rhetoric, attracting young men – the demographic most vulnerable to far‑right extremism.


    Yet there is hope. Hungary’s recent election showed that people can push back against autocracy, even if the new leader remains conservative. A UK by‑election expected to be won by the far‑right Reform Party was instead won by the Green Party on an explicitly anti‑racist, economic populist platform. Across the world, countries are standing up to Trump and his allies, defending their sovereignty. By and large, people are decent – and the far‑right’s gains are not inevitable.


    **Topics covered:**

    - The transnational nature of far‑right extremism

    - The mainstreaming of the "great replacement" conspiracy theory

    - From Enoch Powell to the modern Conservative Party

    - Trump’s role in normalising hate

    - Vigilante groups and their cross‑border communication

    - Elon Musk’s influence on young men

    - Hungary’s rejection of Orbán’s corruption

    - The UK Green Party’s anti‑racist by‑election victory

    - Where to find hope in a dark political landscape


    ---


    *Wendy Via is co‑founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism. Visit globalextremism.org for resources and to support their vital work.*


    *If you enjoy the podcast, please consider supporting us – we are migrating from Patreon to Substack. More details soon.*

    Explaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through critical conversations and expert interviews. We connect the past to the present. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and share.

    ▸ Support the Show & Get Exclusive Content

    Become a Patron: patreon.com/explaininghistory

    ▸ Join the Community & Continue the Conversation

    Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/ExplainingHistoryPodcast

    Substack: theexplaininghistorypodcast.substack.com

    ▸ Read Articles & Go Deeper

    Website: explaininghistory.org


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    40 min
  • The Gulf Crisis – Two Theories of American Decline

    The Gulf Crisis – Two Theories of American Decline
    Apr 13 2026

    There are roughly two camps. One argues that there is an overarching grand plan behind America's actions in Venezuela, Iran, Greenland, and against Russia's shadow fleet – a coherent strategy to choke off China's industries and make Europe energy-dependent on the United States. The other, more plausible camp sees imperial decline and the chaos that decline inevitably brings.


    I explore both.


    John Mearsheimer argues that America has suffered a catastrophic defeat. The evidence is stark: Iran has published a ten-point plan that includes the removal of American bases from the Gulf, continued uranium enrichment, and reparations – and Trump accepted it as the basis for negotiations. America is running out of Tomahawk missiles, having burned through eight to ten years of stockpiles in weeks. Its capital ships have been withdrawn out of Iranian missile range. The world's key strategic waterway is no longer under US control.


    But journalist Richard Medhurst makes a compelling case that this is all about China – a brutal attempt to cut off Chinese industry from Persian Gulf oil and force Beijing to negotiate from weakness.


    The problem is Trump. According to the New York Times, he went into this war on a whim – a "yeah, sounds good" after Netanyahu's sales pitch – overruling his own generals. The White House has been systematically de‑professionalised. Institutional memory is gone. Decision‑making is chaos.


    I draw a careful parallel with Hitler's regime: the removal of experts, the promotion of sycophants like Ribbentrop, the deliberate creation of administrative chaos to concentrate power. Trump surrounds himself with the same kind of people – Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff – who tell him what he wants to hear.


    From Tehran, this looks like a once‑in‑a‑generation opportunity: remove the Americans from the Gulf forever, gain permanent leverage over the world, and finally deal with the threat of Israel. And Israel's standing in America has plummeted – not just among Democrats, but among the MAGA base as well.


    What we are witnessing is the end of a world order that began in 1991. Trump is not the cause of American decline – he is an accelerant. But the collapse is coming, and the consequences will be catastrophic.


    Topics covered:

    - Mearsheimer's thesis of strategic defeat

    - America's munitions crisis

    - Medhurst's blockade‑of‑China argument

    - Trump's chaotic, whim‑driven decision‑making

    - The de‑professionalisation of the White House

    - Hitler, Ribbentrop, and the parallel of sycophantic advice

    - Iran's once‑in‑a‑lifetime opportunity

    - Israel's collapsing popularity in the US

    - The end of the post‑Cold War order


    ---


    *If you enjoy the podcast, please consider supporting us. We're migrating from Patreon to Substack – more details soon.*

    Explaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through critical conversations and expert interviews. We connect the past to the present. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and share.

    ▸ Support the Show & Get Exclusive Content

    Become a Patron: patreon.com/explaininghistory

    ▸ Join the Community & Continue the Conversation

    Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/ExplainingHistoryPodcast

    Substack: theexplaininghistorypodcast.substack.com

    ▸ Read Articles & Go Deeper

    Website: explaininghistory.org


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    31 min
  • The New World Order and Its Unravelling – From Bush Snr to Trump

    The New World Order and Its Unravelling – From Bush Snr to Trump
    Apr 10 2026
    On 29th January 1991, President George H.W. Bush addressed a joint session of Congress. America was at war with Iraq, having launched Operation Desert Storm to expel Saddam Hussein's forces from Kuwait. Bush's tone was sombre, measured—a contrast to the triumphalism of his State of the Union a year earlier, when he had spoken of communism crumbling and a new era for the world. Now he spoke of something grander: a "new world order.""What is at stake is more than one small country. It's a big idea: a new world order where diverse nations are drawn together in common cause to achieve the universal aspirations of mankind—peace and security, freedom and the rule of law."Drawing on Kristina Spohr's excellent book Postwall Post Square, we explore the context of that speech. The first Gulf War was a remarkable moment: a coalition of 28 countries from six continents, including traditional allies like Britain and Australia, prickly partners like France, and even Arab nations like Egypt, Syria, and Saudi Arabia. Most strikingly, the United States and the Soviet Union—despite Saddam being a long-time Moscow client—cooperated. Bush and Gorbachev had forged a personal accord, and the Cold War was over.But behind the grand rhetoric, the picture was more complex. Moscow's violent crackdown in Lithuania cast a shadow over the gleaming language of freedom. Bush struggled to balance his principled assertion of democratic values against his pragmatic need for Gorbachev's cooperation in the Gulf. And at home, America was sliding into recession. As Democratic Majority Leader George Mitchell pointedly reminded the president: "We have a crisis abroad, but we also have a crisis here at home."Bush invoked the lessons of history—the long struggle against Nazi totalitarianism—to justify American leadership. "We're the only nation on this earth that could assemble the forces of peace," he declared. "This is the burden of leadership and the strength that has made America the beacon of freedom in a searching world."Yet that liberal internationalist language—always a veneer for American imperialism—has now been eviscerated. Trump has abandoned any pretence of moral leadership. His decision to attack Iran, apparently taken after a chat with Netanyahu and against the advice of his own generals, has produced the greatest strategic disaster in American history, bar none. There is no exit strategy, no route to victory, no achievable objective.What Iran has done is fundamental. Unlike Vietnam or Afghanistan, where empires suffered humiliations but survived, America has been strategically and tactically defeated in the Persian Gulf. The petrodollar—propped up by American military power, bases, and security guarantees—is under threat. And once you show that American power is not all-conquering, it causes fragmentation in unprecedented ways.The distance from George H.W. Bush's "new world order" to Trump's chaotic adventurism is less than 40 years. Trump is not the cause of American decline; he is an accelerant to an ongoing process. The empire's days are numbered—and the world is about to become a much more dangerous place.Topics covered:George H.W. Bush's "new world order" speech (29th January 1991)The first Gulf War coalition and Soviet-American cooperationThe contrast between liberal internationalism and American imperialismDomestic recession and the limits of presidential powerMoscow's crackdown in Lithuania as a challenge to the new orderThe collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of historyTrump's Iran disaster and the absence of strategic thinkingThe petrodollar and the foundations of American hegemonyHow Iran has achieved a strategic defeat of the United StatesTrump as an accelerant, not the cause, of declineIf you enjoy the podcast, please consider supporting us. We're migrating from Patreon to Substack—more details soon.Explaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through critical conversations and expert interviews. We connect the past to the present. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and share.▸ Support the Show & Get Exclusive ContentBecome a Patron: patreon.com/explaininghistory▸ Join the Community & Continue the ConversationFacebook Group: facebook.com/groups/ExplainingHistoryPodcastSubstack: theexplaininghistorypodcast.substack.com▸ Read Articles & Go DeeperWebsite: explaininghistory.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    27 min
Aucun commentaire pour le moment