Empire, Republic and Shadow Wars
Empire, Republic & Shadow Wars connects the battles you know to the battles you’re not supposed to notice. I’m Shawn—teacher and historian (B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. coursework in U.S. military history & empire). You’ll still get cinematic arcs on the Pacific War and Vietnam—and we’ll dive into the shadow wars: the war on terror, the war on drugs, covert finance, BCCI, and alleged/Documented intersections of intelligence services and the drug trade. We follow the paper trails, declassified files, and institutional incentives that move power.
Empire, Republic and Shadow Wars
5.03 Fiery But Mostly Forgotten
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Over the past two episodes, we've traced how American political discourse became weaponized decades before Trump, and how both parties learned to delegitimize elections they don't win. Today we're examining something even more fundamental: how Americans think about political violence.
The story we tell ourselves about political violence in America goes something like this: We're a peaceful democracy where political disagreements are settled through debate and voting, not riots and bloodshed. When violence does occur, it's an aberration—a breakdown of our democratic norms that shocks the conscience and brings the country together in condemnation. This is another fairy tale.