#1785 Iran and the Chain Reaction: The War Nobody Thought Through (Or, Bomb First, Think Never)
Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy
Jay Tomlinson
4.5 • 3.4K Ratings
🗓️ 18 April 2026
⏱️ 213 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Air Date: 4/17/2026
Today we examine how the U.S. war with Iran has exposed the deep structural rot at the heart of American power, the global economic catastrophe quietly building beneath the surface, and the cuts felt at home in order to pay for it all.
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TOP TAKES
KP 1: Excerpt, "Cross of Iron" Speech, 1956 - Dwight D. Eisenhower
KP 3: Lets Talk About Fertilizer - Paul Krugman - Air Date 3-21-26
KP 5: Will There Even Be a "Ceasefire"? - Drop Site News - Air Date 4-9-26
KP 6: The TV War That Backfired - Brendan Miller - Air Date 3-20-26
KP 7: Why the US Couldnt Force a Deal with Iran - LBC - Air Date 4-12-26
(00:52:25) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
Eisenhower Warned Us: Trump's $1.5T Military Budget Is Gutting America
DEEPER DIVES
(01:03:57) SECTION A: LEBANON UNDER ATTACK
(01:29:29) SECTION B: THE WORLD DEDOLLARISES
(01:49:40) SECTION C: WORLD ECONOMY IN PERIL
(02:21:45) SECTION D: THE MORAL ROT OF WAR PROFITEERING
(02:46:42) SECTION E: THE DAMAGE OUR MILITARY DOES
(03:06:15) SECTION F: MAKING CHINA GREAT AGAIN
SHOW IMAGE CREDITS
Description: A composite image showing a satellite image of the Straight of Hormuz behind a screenshot of Trump's post that says "A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again…."
Credit: Internal composite design. Image: "Satellite image of the Strait of Hormuz." by Jacques Descloitres, NASA | Public Domain
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to this episode of the award-winning Best of the Left podcast. Today we examine how the U.S. War with Iran has exposed the deep structural rot at the heart of American power, the global economic catastrophe quietly building beneath the surface, and the cuts felt at home in order to pay for it all. For those looking for a quick |
| 0:22.5 | overview, the sources providing our top takes in about 45 minutes today include Dwight |
| 0:27.5 | the Eisenhower, the briefing, Paul Krugman, the Independent, Dropsite News, Democracy Now, |
| 0:33.6 | Brendan Miller, and LBC. Then, in the additional deeper dives half of the show, there will be more in six sections. |
| 0:40.1 | Section A, Lebanon under attack. |
| 0:42.4 | Section B, the world de-dollarizes. |
| 0:45.5 | Section C, world economy in peril. |
| 0:48.4 | Section D, the moral rot of war profiteering. |
| 0:52.0 | Section E, the damage our military does, and section F, making China |
| 0:57.1 | great again. But first, a reminder to check out our new show solved on the best of the left |
| 1:01.7 | YouTube channel. We're really proud of the show we're making and think you'll get real value out of it. |
| 1:05.7 | Plus, you checking it out will help us find new viewers on YouTube. So thanks in advance for all |
| 1:10.1 | of your views, |
| 1:12.6 | likes, subscribes, and comments. |
| 1:14.9 | That's all on the Best of Left YouTube channel, |
| 1:16.0 | linked in the show notes. |
| 1:40.6 | And now, draining the wealth and labor of all people. |
| 1:46.6 | A wasting of strength that defies the American system or the Soviet system or any system to achieve true abundance and happiness for the peoples of this earth. Every gun that is |
| 1:55.6 | made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, |
| 2:06.6 | those who are cold and are not closed. |
| 2:11.6 | This world in arms is not spending money alone. |
| 2:15.6 | It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its |
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