Iran: The Long Road to War

CONFLICTED

Message Heard

Religion & Spirituality, History

4.7 • 1.5K Ratings

🗓️ 12 March 2026

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this Conflicted Conversation, Thomas speaks with Ali Ansari, Professor of Modern Middle East History at the University of St Andrews. Prof. Ansari discusses: The depth and antiquity of Iranian culture His childhood experiences inside the Shah's inner circle The Shah's biggest mistake How the revolution could have better built upon what it inherited The huge incompetence and corruption that has undermined Iran's political economy How the new Supreme Leader is the IRGC's man The clarity of America's military aims alongside the opacity of its political aims The real weaknesses of the Iran Nuclear Deal How Iranians inside Iran feel about the regime and the war Follow Prof. Ansari on X: ⁠https://x.com/aa51_ansari Join the Conflicted Community here: ⁠https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm ⁠ Find Conflicted on X: ⁠https://x.com/MHconflicted⁠ And Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted⁠ And Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod⁠ And YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdlF1mY5t4⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠ Conflicted is a Message Heard production. Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren. This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	All right, we've got Simon on the line. Simon, young people, they're just all a bit, a bit lazy, aren't they?
0:09.0	What are you for?
0:10.0	Good night.
0:11.0	Welcome to McDonald's.
0:12.0	Have you to get the six minutes, please?
0:13.0	Some say young people are work shy, but at McDonald's, we hired 47,000 of them last year.
0:19.0	How's your night?
0:20.0	Like George here, who keeps things running during a Friday rush.
0:23.6	Resilience, making it happen at McDonald's.
0:28.6	Now are all the traitors present?
0:32.6	Let's get started, shall we?
0:34.6	From rags to riches.
0:35.6	I'm so sick of this.
0:36.6	Working like a dog and being treated worse.
0:39.2	Yorkshire to New York.
0:40.8	Or climbers, you and me.
0:42.5	A life dedicated to revenge.
0:44.5	Let's make this an occasion to remember.
0:47.0	A woman of substance on Channel 4.
0:49.1	Stream now.
0:58.3	Iran is currently being pummeled by its enemies, so it's tempting to think its problems come from outside.
1:04.4	But the truth is more complicated.
	...

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