The This. This is hell.

Your eyewitness to grief, this is hell and nothing provides the world with more grief,

more agony, more despair, pain, misery, sadness, and deep unrelenting sorrow

than war.

As today's guest explained the last time they were on the show,

that trauma never goes away, either for the

combatants fighting in the war or the civilians who far outnumber the wounded and the dead in any war since the mechanization and

industrialization of war. War fuels war and as we will learn today or be

reminded of yet again. War is a threat to democracy in ways

we often cannot imagine. And far too often wars are waged for geopolitical reasons that rarely consider the needs of the people.

These wars only seem to satiate the desires of those who are the most privileged and powerful, those who benefit

from the killing while never putting themselves on the front lines of any conflagration.

Often the effect of war leading to war goes unseen, unrecognized by the public.

For instance, as our upcoming guest, quotes Middle East Institute and specialist on Pakistan Arif Rafique, quote,

Pakistani democracy may ultimately be a casualty of Ukraine's

counter-offensive. In a few minutes we will speak with reporter at the

intercept. Mertaza Hussein, whose writing focuses on national security and

foreign policy. His most recent writing includes articles

he co-wrote with the Intercepts Ryan Grimm, headline Secret Pakistan Cable documents,

the U.S. pressure to remove Imran Khan, the Prime Minister of

former Prime Minister of Pakistan. Pakistan confirmed secret diplomatic cable

showing U.S. pressure to remove Imran Khan.

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