Episode · Behind the Bastards · 2024-01-01
Books mentioned on CZM Rewind: Kissinger Parts 1-3 | BEHIND THE BASTARDS
Robert Evans discussed Kissinger by Niall Ferguson, Kissinger's shadow by Greg Grandin, The Decline of the West by Oswald Spengler and others, Nuclear weapons and foreign policy by Henry Kissinger, and The Necessity for Choice by Henry A. Kissinger, and criticized The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Kissinger
Kissinger by Niall Ferguson is a comprehensive historical biography examining the early life and political rise of the influential American statesman Henry Kissinger.
Discussed“so his real prowess early on was in strategy as this quote from nyall Ferguson's Kissinger it's a book named Kissinger like the guy makes clear though no great athlete heines”
Where to get it
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Kissinger's shadow
Why people recommend it: Detailing the toxic reach of American foreign policy and the complex intellectual origins of state power, Kissinger's Shadow by Greg Grandin offers a sweeping critical examination of Henry Kissinger.
Discussed“um I I want to quote now from the book Kissinger's Shadow by Greg grandon from these thinkers Kissinger cobbled together his own view of how history operated”
Where to get it
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The Decline of the West
The Decline of the West by Oswald Spengler, Arthur Helps, and Charles Francis Atkinson is a sweeping historical and philosophical work that explores the cyclical rise and fall of civilizations.
Discussed“as the US increased its commitments to a growing series of wars in Southeast Asia kiss grew more dedicated to the work of a guy named Oswald Spangler spangler's book the decline of the West is not something I am well equipped to describe or explain in detail but Greg grandon is so I'm going to quote from him again”
Where to get it
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Nuclear weapons and foreign policy
Nuclear Weapons and Foreign Policy by Henry Kissinger is a influential study that explores military strategy, international relations, and the doctrine of limited nuclear war during the Cold War.
Discussed“he also starts working privately on a book of his own titled nuclear weapons and foreign policy and this book is a version of the stuff he wants to write”
Where to get it
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The Necessity for Choice
The Necessity for Choice by Henry A.
Discussed“so in 1961 he publishes a book titled the necessity of choice which is his Manifesto on how the United States should approach foreign policy in the 1960s”
Where to get it
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The Bomber Mafia
The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell is a work of narrative nonfiction examining the strategic bombing campaigns of World War II and the eccentric technologists who championed them.
Critiqued“in order to be able to talk about how dumb we still are today um part of what made Kissinger remarkable though was his ability to rope conservatives in line for mass murder while also Charming the entire liberal establishment of the East Coast”
Where to get it
