Well, welcome to Michael and us. I'm Will Sloan, here as always with. Luke Savage, welcome back,

everyone. A lot has happened since we last recorded. We're recording this episode on the afternoon

of Wednesday, October 18th. I mentioned that because, as you know, the news is moving very fast,

so anything can have happened by the evening by tomorrow or whenever this comes out.

I think I might just start by saying, I don't know how you feel, Luke, the last two weeks have

been one of the most politically clarifying times of my life, maybe the most politically

clarifying. Obviously, don't need to tell people the abject horror that we've seen. But in addition

to what's happening in Gaza, the response from the Western leaders, from our leaders,

you know, if you're an American listener or a British listener from your leaders, I'm hesitant to be

hyperbolic, but I can't think of anything I've seen in my

lifetime that's been quite as clarifying about, you know, what the true priorities, the true

commitments of the liberal leaders. The rules-based international order that we're so constantly

told exists. The liberal leaders. And that is the basis for, you know, the moral credibility

of Western liberal

democracies when they orient themselves throughout the world. Culminating with yesterday,

the bombing of the Al-Ali hospital, which the campaign of obfuscation around that, up to and including

Joe Biden and Israel today, saying, God, what did he

say? Like, oh, from everything I've seen, it looks like it was the other team. I mean, they can't even,

it's so cynical. It's just right in front of us. It's a true maskoff moment. Yeah, I mean, of course, you know,

we don't know 100% what happened here, but suffice it to say, I mean, it does seem very

unlikely given the details surrounding what happened at the hospital that the, you know,

official story offered of, you know, a rocket that misfired is true. In fact, of all places, there was some very good

...