Henry Kissinger

[00:00:00] Welcome to Historical Quarrels. Today we delve into the controversial legacy of Henry Kissinger,

[00:00:06] a key architect of DESTRUCTION!

[00:00:10] End of American foreign policy during the Cold War.

[00:00:13] As National Security Advisor and Secretary of State, Kissinger's strategies influence global events from the Vietnam War to covert operations in Latin America and beyond.

[00:00:23] While he is credited with a significant amount of diplomatic achievements, such as opening relations with China, his tenure is also marked by allegations of war crimes and support for repressive regimes.

[00:00:35] So join us as we explore the complex and very contentious impact of Henry Kissinger on world history.

[00:00:51] Welcome back, I am your host Tyler Eckhardt and I have a special widow Tweet for all you lovely westernos out there today.

[00:01:01] Sorry, that's a dumb voice.

[00:01:03] We are going to be rocking out while listening to some of the most heinous war crimes that America has ever committed.

[00:01:10] So that will be fun, but before that I do have one announcement.

[00:01:15] We will be getting official new logos, intros, atros and so much more pretty goddamn soon here for both shows that we are currently doing.

[00:01:25] So being on the lookout for that. The main logo for this show, Historical Quarrels, isn't changing.

[00:01:31] It's still going to be like that microphone, just kind of like all hand papered up, how it looks currently.

[00:01:39] That's still going to be the official logo, like the brand logo for it.

[00:01:43] Just the cover art for the show, so the things that you'll see on Apple Podcasts and I guess whenever you look up the show, like the channel art and stuff too.

[00:01:52] That will be changing. This is due to the fact that I want to up the production quality.

[00:01:58] So I will have an official intro for the start of the show and an outro for when we get out and after the outro if there's any bits that I'm wanting to do, like fun jokes, I'll do that.

[00:02:11] But that's all though. Just wanted to warn you all before we started doing that, so you can be on the lookout for it in about a month or two.

[00:02:19] But with that out of the way let's go ahead and dive into what has to be one of the most controversial figures to ever escape from Nazi Germany.

[00:02:28] Henry motherfucking Kissinger.

[00:02:30] You are listening to Historical Quarrels.

[00:02:37] For those of you that don't know, Henry Kissinger is a prominent and controversial figure in American foreign policy.

[00:02:43] Known for his roles as National Security Advisor and Secretary of State under Presidents Richard Nixon and General Gerald Ford.

[00:02:51] He was born in Germany in 1923. Kissinger fled Nazi persecution with his family in 1938.

[00:02:57] Eventually settling in the United States.

[00:03:00] He rose to prominence as an academic at Harvard University where he developed a reputation for his expertise in international relations and strategic diplomacy.

[00:03:12] His intellectual contributions and pragmatic approach to foreign policy garnered the attention of political leaders, leading to his influential positions within the US government during a critical period of the Cold War.

[00:03:25] Kissinger's tenure in public office was marked by significant and often contentious decisions that had profound impacts on global geopolitics.

[00:03:34] Profound is probably not even the best word for that.

[00:03:38] Devastating. Probably a little better.

[00:03:42] He played a key role in shaping US foreign policy including the opening of diplomatic relations with China.

[00:03:47] The negotiation of the Paris Peace Accords that led to the end of US involvement in the Vietnam War.

[00:03:53] And the orchestration of various covert operations around the world.

[00:03:56] Despite these achievements, some of the allegations and war crimes and some of the evidence for those allegations are pretty god damning if I'm going to be very honest.

[00:04:10] And his open support essentially for authoritarian regimes was not cool.

[00:04:17] Not cool is probably not the best way to describe it.

[00:04:21] It's fucked up man. Critics argue that Kissinger's real, real politic approach often prioritized strategic interests over human rights, leading to widespread suffering and ethical controversies.

[00:04:34] His involvement in events such as the secret bombing of Cambodia to support for military dictatorships in Latin America and the backing of repressive regimes in Africa and Asia continues to be the subject of intense debate and scrutiny.

[00:04:46] And today that's kind of what we're going to focus on.

[00:04:49] And since I already know that I am not going to be able to cover all the war crimes that this giant piece of shit has committed.

[00:04:58] So to cover for that, I went ahead and made a quick parody of a song that covers a list of most of the war crimes that I may miss during today's episode.

[00:05:10] Sorry, I just make it.

[00:05:13] I am the very model of a modern major general. I have information, vegetable, animal and mineral.

[00:05:34] I've known the rules of warfare and I quell the crimes historical from Nuremberg to Geneva in orders categorical.

[00:05:40] I'm burst in heinous actions and policies quite cynical from willful killing, torture to deportation clinical.

[00:05:46] And crimes like forced transfers and starvation has a strategy with many grievous acts of which there's plenty of reality.

[00:05:51] Plenty of reality.

[00:06:09] I'm very well acquainted too with genocide intentional and all the laws that govern crimes of sexual will conventional.

[00:06:14] In short it matters more like it in crimes quite reprehensible. I am the very model of a modern major general.

[00:06:19] I know our mythic history, I orchestrated Vietnam War, I played a key role in Chile's coups and then some more.

[00:06:24] From Cambodia's bombings to East Timor's misery, the list of actions sanctioned by me reads like a litany.

[00:06:29] I can tell you all the methods used for covert operations and justify each tactic in geopolitical relations.

[00:06:35] I've overseen the massacres in Cuspo, Spain and Massif with policies that critics often label quite aggressive.

[00:06:40] Quite aggressive.

[00:06:42] Hmm.

[00:06:46] Ahem!

[00:06:48] Then I can write all the washing bill in Babylonic uniform.

[00:06:51] And tell you every detail of unlawful uniform.

[00:06:59] In short it matters more like it in crimes quite reprehensible. I am the very model of a modern major general.

[00:07:11] In fact when I know what is meant by command responsibility, when I can tell its site a breach of peace and its facility.

[00:07:16] When such affairs are sorties and attacks on civilians I'm more wary at.

[00:07:25] And when I know precisely what is meant by commissariat.

[00:07:29] When I have learnt what progress has been made in modern gunnery.

[00:07:32] When I know more tactics than a novice in a nunnery.

[00:07:35] In short, when I've a smattering of all crimes international you'll say a better major general has never been so rational.

[00:07:43] For my diplomatic knowledge, though it's tainted with complicity, has only been brought down to the latest in publicity.

[00:07:52] But still.

[00:07:56] It matters more like in crimes quite reprehensible. I am the very model of a modern major general.

[00:08:01] I've ordered whiffle killing and torture most inhumane. Directed countless bombings and the sufferings of the civilian plane.

[00:08:06] I've overseen the forced deportations and the cruelest hostilities.

[00:08:09] And covered up the war crimes with the skill of cold facilities.

[00:08:12] I leap onto starvation every cool tool within my grasp.

[00:08:15] And yet I talk as piece of piece as though it's freedom that I class.

[00:08:18] And truth my legacies a mix of power and hypocrisy.

[00:08:21] But my history will judge my acts as facts or mere apostasy.

[00:08:24] In short, it matters more like in crimes quite reprehensible.

[00:08:27] I am the very model of a modern major general.

[00:08:35] I know that wasn't amazing.

[00:08:37] But fuck I tried.

[00:08:40] Oh, man, that song is really hard to sing.

[00:08:43] Definitely a good thing. I never got cast as the major in any of my high school musicals.

[00:08:48] So oh, God, I that must have been like the sixth take and I still couldn't like get the tempo, the beat right at all.

[00:08:57] So I just was like, you know what? Fuck it. Just try to say it as well as you can.

[00:09:03] I do better with heavy metal anyways. You guys will hear that later on.

[00:09:06] It'll sound cool.

[00:09:08] But yeah, there you go. So if I miss some, well, I'm sorry.

[00:09:11] But it's time to move on to our timeline for this sleazy son of a bitch.

[00:09:17] So Henry Kissinger was born May 27th, 1923 in Bavaria, Germany.

[00:09:25] His parents were Louis Kissinger, who was a schoolteacher and Paula Stern Kissinger.

[00:09:30] His family background and escape from Nazi Germany definitely provide a very poignant context for his later achievements in worldview.

[00:09:38] Henry Kissinger was born in Heinz, was born Heinz Alfred Kissinger on May 27th of 1923 to a Jewish family.

[00:09:48] His parents, Louis and Paula Stern Kissinger, played crucial roles in shaping his early life

[00:09:52] and facilitating their escape from the impending horrors of the Holocaust.

[00:09:56] Louis Kissinger, Henry's father, was a schoolteacher who valued education and instilled strong intellectual curiosity in his children.

[00:10:05] Paula Stern Kissinger, his mother, came from a family that ran a successful business.

[00:10:09] The couple met in Firth, a town known for its vibrant Jewish community and cultural life.

[00:10:14] Their marriage was grounded in shared values and a deep commitment to their family and community.

[00:10:19] As the Nazi regime rose to power in the 1930s, the Kissingers, like many Jewish families, faced increasing persecution.

[00:10:26] The enachmic of the Nuremberg Laws in 1935 marked a shit point.

[00:10:32] It stripped Jews of their rights and subjected them to systemic discrimination and violence.

[00:10:38] The Kissingers realized that their future in Germany was perilous and, quite frankly, if they stayed there, they were going to fucking die.

[00:10:45] In 1938, the situation for the Jewish community in Germany became even more dire with the events of Kristallnacht,

[00:10:54] a state-sponsored program that resulted in widespread violence against Jewish people,

[00:10:58] the destruction of Jewish properties, and the rest of thousands of Jewish men.

[00:11:02] Recognizing the imminent danger, Lewis and Paula decided to get the fuck out to ensure the safety of their family.

[00:11:10] Through a combination of resourcefulness and sheer determination, the Kissingers managed to secure passage to the United States.

[00:11:17] They were fortunate to obtain visas through the support of relatives already living in America, along with sponsorship from Jewish aid organizations.

[00:11:25] In August 1938, they left Germany and settled in New York City, where they began rebuilding their lives from scratch.

[00:11:31] The Kissinger family settled in Washington Heights, a neighborhood in Manhattan with a significant German-Jewish immigrant population.

[00:11:39] This community provided a supportive environment for the family, and they adjusted to their new life in America.

[00:11:45] Lewis Kissinger found work as a teacher, and young Henry quickly adapted to his new surroundings,

[00:11:49] excelling in his studies and demonstrating a keen interest in history and international affairs.

[00:11:54] The family's escape from Nazi Germany and their subsequent experiences as immigrants in the United States would definitely leave a profound impact on little young Henry.

[00:12:02] Or Heinz, shaping his perspectives on diplomacy, international relations, and the importance of strategic decision-making in the face of global threats.

[00:12:11] You know, like killing a bunch of people when you need to, apparently.

[00:12:16] So for high school, he'd end up going to George Washington High School in New York.

[00:12:20] Then he was admitted to the City College of New York, where he briefly studied accounting.

[00:12:25] He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1943, served in the 84th Infantry Division, saw action during the Battle of the Bulge, and later worked in the Counterintelligence Corps.

[00:12:34] Which is where I'm certain he got a ton of dirt on a ton of people.

[00:12:40] And then after the war, he went to Harvard University, earning his B.A. in 1950 and Ph.D. in 1954.

[00:12:49] The dude is smart. He was smart as shit.

[00:12:52] His doctoral dissertation was titled Peace, Legitimacy, and Equilibrium.

[00:12:57] Or a study of Metternich Casore and the Problems of Peace.

[00:13:07] So with this dissertation and with getting his doctorate, here we can see that this guy was brilliant.

[00:13:16] He was set on a path for success from post-war on and from honestly getting into the intelligence corps as well.

[00:13:27] So he graduated summa cum laude, a laude in 1950.

[00:13:32] It was a testament to his academic prowess and dedication.

[00:13:35] Kissinger's time at Harvard was not just about academic excellence.

[00:13:38] It also marked the beginning of his network building.

[00:13:40] He became associated with influential figures such as William Yandle Eliot, his mentor who played a significant role in shaping his political ideology.

[00:13:48] Eliot was a well-known political theorist.

[00:13:50] He introduced Kissinger to the complexities of international politics and the importance of realpolitik, a perspective that would dominate Kissinger's later career.

[00:14:00] The mentorship provided Kissinger with both intellectual guidance and important connections within the academic and political spheres.

[00:14:07] And for those of you who don't know what realpolitik is, let me give you a brief description.

[00:14:14] Realpolitik is the approach of conducting diplomatic or political policies based primarily on considerations of given circumstances and factors rather than strictly following ideological, moral, or ethical premises.

[00:14:26] In this respect, it shares aspects of its philosophical approach with those of realism and pragmatism.

[00:14:33] It is often simply referred to as pragmatism in politics, for example, pursuing pragmatic policies or realistic policies.

[00:14:43] While generally used as a positive or neutral term, realpolitik has been also used pejoratively to imply political policies that are perceived as being coercive, amoral, or Machiavellian.

[00:15:00] Prominent proponents of realpolitik include Otto von Bismarck, Henry Kissinger, George F. Kennan, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Hans Dietrich Genscher, Deng Jiao Ping, Charles de Gaulle, Lee Kuan Yu as well.

[00:15:19] It was coined by Ludwig von Rochow, a German writer and politician in the 19th century.

[00:15:27] His 1853 book Grundsatz der Realpolitik angewend auf die Staatskliken zustandeslands, Deutschlands, Principles of Realpolitik Applied to National State Affairs of Germany, describes the meaning of the term.

[00:15:45] He says,

[00:16:15] So essentially, this is just like an ideology that pertains to like, hey, no matter what, this is just how the world works and you can't be hopeful.

[00:16:42] It's kind of, it seems like a bit of a debit downer. It's like, you can't be hopeful that people are going to change. You have to be realistic and you have to be practical when it comes to a lot of these things.

[00:16:52] You can't just like put emotions into your policies, which I kind of agree with, but at the same time also disagree with.

[00:16:59] I feel like there are certain things that need to be emotional and there are certain things that need to be practical.

[00:17:04] And I think a good government just needs to have a balance of those mindsets, essentially between an emotional place and a practical place.

[00:17:13] And once you have a good balance, I think you'll have the majority of people happy and you won't have to worry too much about your government being overthrown by a bunch of extremists.

[00:17:23] So anyways, pursuing a PhD at Harvard.

[00:17:26] This allowed Kissinger to delve deeper into his interests.

[00:17:29] His dissertation, Peace, Legitimacy and the Equilibrium, explored the diplomatic strategies of European statesmen like Metternich and Kasora in the 19th century.

[00:17:38] This work was not just an academic exercise, but a foundation for his future diplomatic strategies and his analysis of balance of power politics and the importance of strategic alliances foreshadowed his own approach to international relations.

[00:17:51] This scholarly work earned him a PhD in 1954, solidifying his reputation as a formidable intellectual and political science.

[00:17:57] So I mean, for all of its faults, the guy, the guy was, yeah, he knew his shit, but he also just knew how to get his way, which is part of the problem.

[00:18:07] And most of most of his covert operations that he ends up doing upon completing his doctorate, Kissinger joined the Harvard faculty where he taught government and international affairs.

[00:18:18] His teaching style was rigorous and he quickly became known for his demanding courses and insightful lectures.

[00:18:23] Students and colleagues alike noted his ability to blend historical analysis with contemporary political issues, making his classes both challenging and relevant.

[00:18:31] Kissinger's academic career at Harvard provided him with a platform to influence the next generation of political leaders and thinkers, which is true.

[00:18:38] That's where most of them were going.

[00:18:40] And during this period, Kissinger also began to build a network of a ton of connections outside of the academia.

[00:18:47] His role at Harvard afforded him opportunities to interact with government officials, military leaders and business executives.

[00:18:52] These interactions were not just casual acquaintances, but he strategically would make relationships that would later prove invaluable in his career.

[00:19:00] Get him out of a lot of shit and get him up into the ears of the most powerful man in the world at the time, which was the president.

[00:19:11] So Kissinger's contributions to academic literature was substantial.

[00:19:16] His book, Nuclear Weapons and Foreign Policy, published in 1957, was a very popular work that examined the role of nuclear weapons in global politics.

[00:19:27] It was very influential in shaping U.S. nuclear strategy during the Cold War.

[00:19:31] Kissinger argued for a flexible response strategy advocating for a range of options rather than an all or nothing approach to nuclear deterrence.

[00:19:39] His insights were well received in both academic and policymaking circles, enhancing his reputation as a leading expert on international relations.

[00:19:48] So a lot of people respected him and they're like, yeah, this guy actually has a good idea on how to keep everyone afraid of us but at the same time, you know, still friendly in a way.

[00:20:01] So throughout the 50s and 60s, he continued to write extensively.

[00:20:06] His articles and books covered various aspects of foreign policy, including alliance systems, balance of power and crisis management.

[00:20:12] The works were characterized by their analytical rigor and practical relevance.

[00:20:17] His ability to translate complex theoretical concepts into actionable policy recommendations made him a sought after advisor for government officials.

[00:20:25] They respected it.

[00:20:26] The guy, again, he knew his shit. He was super smart. He knew what he was doing.

[00:20:31] Which makes some of the shit that he does later.

[00:20:34] He actually knows what he's doing. Like, you know, he planned it.

[00:20:37] So, um, but he didn't he didn't really care for the morality of it.

[00:20:42] He just saw he saw the gains and what, you know, what could be gained out of it mostly, which I disagree with.

[00:20:50] There has to be some morals when it comes to war and when it comes to.

[00:20:54] I don't know, like you want to say that, but then when you actually get to war and it is wartime, I don't know.

[00:21:02] I don't know how I really would be though.

[00:21:05] I have a whenever a very difficult time judging Kissinger today based off of the fact that I've never been in his shoes or situations like that where I've had to essentially determine the lives of thousands or billions of people.

[00:21:20] So, but in summary, his postwar education and early academic career would be what leads him.

[00:21:28] And essentially he laid his groundwork for his later roles as prominent advisors and policymakers,

[00:21:34] demonstrating the powerful intersection of academia and practical politics.

[00:21:41] So.

[00:21:42] I then here in the 60s, he began advising political campaigns and US government officials, including Nelson Rockefeller and later Richard Nixon during his presidential campaign campaign.

[00:21:54] But in addition to Rockefeller and Nixon, it is also said in some unnamed sources that Kissinger was also involved with another shadier figure from history.

[00:22:06] And even helped him write a hit song to dissuade some of some people off of his trail.

[00:22:11] Right.

[00:22:12] Henry Kissinger aided none other than William Bradford, intergalactic space vampire and helped him write a song that was going to be originally played during the first ever Super Bowl to enthrall America into his evil whims.

[00:22:26] There's a recording of him singing it out there.

[00:22:29] Not Kissinger, but William Bradford singing the song.

[00:22:34] And so I wanted to go ahead and share this with you guys.

[00:22:37] It was supposed to be sent as it from the first ever Super Bowl in 1967, but they ended up just going with the university students instead.

[00:22:44] But here you go.

[00:23:07] Fire.

[00:23:09] With a vengeance soaring high.

[00:23:13] He is William Bradford.

[00:23:18] He's a space vampire.

[00:23:23] Let us devastated mankind's on its knees.

[00:23:27] A savior comes from out the skies and answer to their pleas through the boiling clouds of thunder.

[00:23:34] Lasting bolts of steel.

[00:23:36] Soon I'll show.

[00:23:40] Uh, um, yeah, I know an amazing segment, right?

[00:23:51] Like that probably been super cool.

[00:23:53] Judas Priest definitely ripped off William Bradford space vampire.

[00:23:58] They all hail him.

[00:24:00] Praise be to the dark lord.

[00:24:05] For those of you new here and are wondering what the fuck I am talking about and are really worried that I just had a brain aneurysm mid show.

[00:24:14] Don't worry about it.

[00:24:16] Anyways, um, Kissinger began advising political campaigns and US government officials, including Nelson Rockfler and Richard Nixon.

[00:24:27] So his expertise in international relations and innovative ideas and nuclear strategy caught the attention of many political leaders.

[00:24:34] And one of his earliest significant roles was an advisor to Nelson Rockfeller, the governor of New York Kissinger advised Rockfeller and foreign policy matters during his bids for the Republican presidential nomination in 1960 1964 1968.

[00:24:49] And his relationship with Rocker Rockefeller would be incredibly important in shaping his political career.

[00:24:55] Rockefeller's campaigns provided Kissinger with a platform to showcase his ideas on a national stage.

[00:25:01] And although Rockefeller's bids for presidency were unsuccessful, the campaigns helped Kissinger establish a reputation as a formidable thinker in foreign policy circles.

[00:25:09] Everybody was wanting him on their side after after Rockefeller's because he kicked ass.

[00:25:13] He kicked ass helping him out and his association with Rockefeller also introduced him to a ton of other people within the Republican Party, which would be very, very beneficial for him in years to come.

[00:25:25] So during the 1968 presidential campaign, Kissinger transitioned from advising Rockefeller to advising Richard Nixon.

[00:25:33] And this would be the main turning point in his career.

[00:25:38] Nixon recognized Kissinger's expertise and potential value to his campaign, particularly regarding foreign policy.

[00:25:45] His strategic thinking and detailed knowledge of international affairs were critical assets to Nixon, who was keen on developing a robust foreign policy platform to distinguish himself from his opponents.

[00:25:57] And this advisory role during Nixon's campaign was characterized by his behind the scenes influence.

[00:26:03] This is where he starts being like a shadow puppet master basically.

[00:26:07] He provided Nixon with critical insights into the global political landscape, helping to shape Nixon's foreign policy positions.

[00:26:15] And this collaboration would be the main groundwork for Kissinger's future appointment to a key position within Nixon's administration.

[00:26:25] So this would this would be this.

[00:26:29] This is how he breaks into the world government stage, right?

[00:26:32] This is this is main little breakthrough here.

[00:26:35] So in 1969, following Nixon's election victory, Kissinger was appointed as the national security advisor.

[00:26:41] And this appointment marked the beginning of one of the most influential and controversial tenures in US foreign policy history.

[00:26:49] As national security advisor, Kissinger wielded significant power, often overshadowing other key figures in the administration.

[00:26:59] His appointment was a testament to Nixon's trust in him due to, you know, helping him get to get the presidency partially.

[00:27:09] And there's there's some allegations there that I couldn't find a bunch of substantial proof for like essentially Kissinger helped him get some like dirt on opponents or helped him like set a few people up so that way to make sure that Nixon would get elected.

[00:27:26] I couldn't find a whole lot of like truth in there, but there's some people say that.

[00:27:30] So I just want to point that out.

[00:27:33] So his approach to the role Kissinger's approach to the role as national security advisor was mostly just strategic.

[00:27:42] He established tightly controlled system for managing national security decisions, centralizing authority within the National Security Council.

[00:27:48] This system often referred to as the NSC system allowed Kissinger to effectively coordinate and oversee US foreign policy like just almost completely.

[00:27:58] And his method methodical approach ensured that decisions were made based on comprehensive analysis and strategic considerations and mainly his considerations.

[00:28:10] One of Kissinger's first and most pressing challenges as the national security advisor was the Vietnam War.

[00:28:17] The conflict had already been dragging on for years with significant casualties and mounting public opposition Kissinger immediately began working on strategies to manage and ultimately resolve the war.

[00:28:27] His approach was involved a combination of negotiations and military actions designed to achieve a favorable outcome for the United States favorable meaning no one else gets anything but us.

[00:28:39] Yeah, anyone that like complains about some shit too bad too bad for you.

[00:28:46] So the strategy for Vietnam was encapsulated in his policy of quote Viet Vietnamization which aimed to gradually withdraw US troops while simultaneously building up South Vietnamese forces to take over the combat role.

[00:29:00] This policy was intended to reduce American casualties and shift the burden of the war to the South Vietnamese thereby addressing domestic opposition to the war.

[00:29:08] Additionally Kissinger was engaged in secret negotiations with the North with North Vietnamese officials seek and these were in secret.

[00:29:17] And if you guys want to look that up, there's a citation here on independent code UK News World.

[00:29:25] You can look it up. I have the link link to where I got some a lot of this information in my show notes.

[00:29:32] So check it out.

[00:29:35] Significant aspect of the strategy was also the expansion of the war and said neighboring Cambodia and Laos.

[00:29:40] He believed that cutting off the North Vietnamese supply lines through these countries was essential to weakening the enemy's capabilities.

[00:29:48] And this would lead eventually to the controversial covert bombing campaigns in Cambodia and Laos, which were covered up.

[00:29:55] We'll get over we'll go over that here in a little bit.

[00:29:58] But for now let's let's talk about the first peace talks.

[00:30:02] The Paris peace talks were a essential effort to ending the Vietnam War.

[00:30:08] These involve negotiations between the US South Vietnam and North Vietnam and the Viet Cong.

[00:30:14] And as these talks progressed, Henry Kissinger, then relatively unknown academic and consultant found himself at the center of a deeply controversial allegation.

[00:30:21] It was claimed that he had been covertly passing passing information to Richard Nixon's campaign, undermining the negotiations for political gain like on purpose.

[00:30:33] One of the most compelling accounts comes from Clark Clifford, then Secretary of Defense, who expressed profound frustration and disbelief over the alleged interference.

[00:30:41] Clifford, a key figure in the Johnson administration, believed that the peace talks had a genuine chance of success until the sudden and unexpected stalling of negotiations.

[00:30:50] He later remarked, quote, We had come so close and yet it was like watching a mirage vanish.

[00:30:57] The sudden resistance from the South Vietnamese delegation didn't make sense until the full picture emerged, end quote.

[00:31:03] Anna Chennault, a prominent Republican activist and Nixon supporter, played a pivotal role in this episode.

[00:31:08] According to FBI surveillance and later reports, Chennault acted as an intermediary between Nixon's campaign and the South Vietnamese officials.

[00:31:17] In her conversation, she reportedly urged the South Vietnamese to resist any agreements until after the US elections, promising them a better deal under a Nixon administration.

[00:31:29] Which is so fucked up, man.

[00:31:33] The amount of people that died while this shit was being installed, like hundreds of thousands, and they did it for political gain.

[00:31:42] They did it on purpose so they could get more political power and stay in power.

[00:31:49] And in a later interview, Chennault ambiguously admitted, quote, I was only trying to help ensure the best possible outcome for our country, end quote.

[00:32:01] This alleged sabotage had profound implications for both American soldiers and Vietnamese soldiers.

[00:32:08] John Kerry, who later became a prominent anti-war advocate and US Senator, was serving in Vietnam at the time.

[00:32:14] Reflecting on the prolonged conflict, he said, quote, every day that the war continued, more lives were needlessly lost.

[00:32:21] If there was a chance to end it earlier, it should have been seized, not sabotaged for political gain.

[00:32:27] Which is so true.

[00:32:29] I imagine that dude lays every single one of his friends that died during the peace talks while they stalled it and fucked it up on Nixon and on Kissinger and on everybody that was involved.

[00:32:42] And just all of Nixon's cabinet, basically.

[00:32:45] And I don't blame them.

[00:32:47] Vietnamese civilians bore the brunt of the war's continuation.

[00:32:51] Nguyen Thi Binh, who was part of the Viet Cong delegation later expressed her deep disappointment and anger over the alleged interference saying, quote, we were prepared for peace, but the seat and delay meant more suffering for our people.

[00:33:06] It was betrayal of the highest order, end quote.

[00:33:08] She stated in a memoir.

[00:33:10] So, and the full extent of the alleged sabotage remained hidden for years.

[00:33:16] And this was largely due to the covert nature of the communications and high stakes involved.

[00:33:21] The Nixon campaign's meticulous cover-ups, efforts included maintaining plausible deniability and discrediting any leaks.

[00:33:28] So any leaks that came out, they'd just be like, ah, this person is a traitor to the country.

[00:33:32] You know, like they're just doing this to make money.

[00:33:35] They're doing this like, you know, just to ruin our nation.

[00:33:40] How dare they?

[00:33:41] And Nixon's subsequent actions as president, including the very controversial expansions of the war into Cambodia and Laos, diverted most attention away from the origins of his campaign's interference.

[00:33:52] And one of the key elements of the cover-up was the dismissal of any accusations as politically motivated fabrications.

[00:33:58] It was all, it was all lies to make sure Nixon couldn't become president.

[00:34:03] It was all, it was all lies.

[00:34:05] So in a conversation recorded in the White House tapes, Nixon and his aides discussed strategies to counter any emerging evidence saying, quote,

[00:34:13] We have to make sure that this doesn't stick discredit anyone who brings it up.

[00:34:17] Nixon reportedly told H.R. Haldeman and his chief of staff.

[00:34:22] So, and this had a ton of consequences.

[00:34:25] So not only did it prolong the Vietnam War, but also casted a very long shadow over American political ethics.

[00:34:33] This was like the start of everybody started to look at America and being like, you guys are fucking monsters.

[00:34:38] You're like, we're monsters basically.

[00:34:41] And the war continued for several more years, resulting in tens of thousands of additional deaths and further societal divisions within the United States.

[00:34:49] For Henry Kissinger, the allegations would become one of many controversies that marked his career.

[00:34:54] And while he would go on to serve as national security advisor and secretary of state and even win a Nobel Peace Prize,

[00:34:59] Fucker, the specter of these talks and the alleged interference would always linger in the background just a little bit.

[00:35:06] Not that much, though, not that much at all, because Kissinger himself has constantly denied any wrongdoings, maintaining that he was a dedicated servant of peace.

[00:35:16] Sure. Sure you were.

[00:35:19] So from 1969 to 1973, Henry Kissinger, while serving as the national security advisor and secretary of state, would orchestrate covert bombing, a covert bombing campaign in Cambodia.

[00:35:35] This operation was known as Operation Menu.

[00:35:38] It was intended to target North Vietnamese forces hiding in Cambodia, Cambodian sanctuaries.

[00:35:43] The bombing campaign was conducted without the knowledge of the U.S. Congress and the American public.

[00:35:48] So, you know, Congress had no idea about this shit that was going on and the public didn't fucking know.

[00:35:55] This makes this is one of the more one of the most controversial aspects of his tenure as the national security advisor.

[00:36:03] So let's go ahead and read some testimonies now from a couple of survivors of the bombing.

[00:36:10] So survivors of the bombings have provided multiple harangue accounts of the destruction and chaos inflicted upon Cambodian villages.

[00:36:17] Maez Lorne, who was a Cambodian villager, recounted the terror of living under constant bombardments, saying, quote,

[00:36:24] One day, American aircraft just started appearing overhead.

[00:36:29] We had no frame of reference for why this was happening.

[00:36:33] But they soon came to fear these machines. For years on end, we were terrorized by them, she said.

[00:36:41] Her brother was killed by a helicopter gunship attack and she lost several other family members to artillery fire.

[00:36:47] For minimal gains to essentially try and take out some North Vietnamese supply lines for war that we honestly had,

[00:36:59] we didn't really need to get all that involved in.

[00:37:02] And I know some people will argue with me on that, but I understand the spread of communism and the fear of, I guess, like more communist countries popping up.

[00:37:11] But that wasn't that wasn't our war to really fight at the time.

[00:37:16] I think there is a bunch of other matters that we need to take care of that were more pressing, a little bit more important.

[00:37:22] And with war and just war in general, the I know civilian casualties are expected to an extent.

[00:37:33] But man, the shit that's like happening over and like like right now with Gaza and with the Palestinians and the Israeli

[00:37:45] military actions I've taken against civilians, there's you don't need to just because a group that you're against is using,

[00:37:56] you know, humans as meat shields does not mean that you have to just shoot through the meat shields all the time.

[00:38:01] You there are other methods and there are other ways, especially in this day and age.

[00:38:05] God damn it. We have fucking drones that can like heat seek people.

[00:38:11] I don't know. I don't know. It's fucked up.

[00:38:13] I am team team people and team humans.

[00:38:20] I think everyone deserves a chance to live a good life.

[00:38:24] And, you know, I I think people that aren't, you know, trying to fight a war that aren't, you know, they're just trying to live their day to day lives should be left alone

[00:38:33] and should not be a casualty as a result of hatred and what feels like hatred over another, you know, group, another, you know,

[00:38:45] another team essentially for a different belief system that they have.

[00:38:51] And it's it's a little fucked up. So that's my stance on it.

[00:38:56] I understand why America has to support Israel because we're allies and everything doesn't mean that I have to like some of the actions that Israel is taking.

[00:39:06] I can disagree with how they are doing things while at the same time understanding why things are, quote unquote, necessary.

[00:39:15] But like for America, but for America to still not condemn the actions and what they've done to innocent civilians, I think it's still fucked up.

[00:39:23] It's a whole that thing is a whole mess. And I don't really want to get that into it right now.

[00:39:28] If you guys want to talk to me about like what I really think personally, you're more than welcome to reach out to historical corals.

[00:39:35] You can leave a comment. I'll reply to the comment on the video or you can email me and I'll respond.

[00:39:41] So it's historical corals at gmail dot com if you want to email me.

[00:39:46] American pilots and military personnel, personnel involved in the operation would also express their dismay at the extent of the bombings.

[00:39:53] In interviews, some pilots described the missions as morally troubling.

[00:39:58] One pilot who wished to remain anonymous recalled, quote, We were told to bomb anything that moved.

[00:40:04] There was no clear target, and it felt like we were just spreading destruction indiscriminately.

[00:40:10] The civilian casualties were staggering.

[00:40:13] Cambodian civilians caught in the relentless airstrikes faced unprecedented devastation.

[00:40:19] The bombings are estimated to have killed between 30,000 and 150,000 Cambodian civilians.

[00:40:24] Sook An, a Cambodian refugee, described the aftermath of a bombing raid saying, quote, I remember seeing bodies everywhere.

[00:40:32] Children, women, old people.

[00:40:35] There was no distinction.

[00:40:37] The bombs didn't care who they killed, which is true.

[00:40:41] I mean, they're not.

[00:40:43] Of course not.

[00:40:44] They were told they were told just to strike everything.

[00:40:47] These bombings inadvertently strengthened the inadvertently strengthened the Khmer rogue, who was a radical communist,

[00:40:56] which was a radical communist faction led by Paul Paut.

[00:41:01] The widespread destruction and displacement caused by the bombings drove many Cambodians into the arms of the Khmer rogue,

[00:41:07] who capitalized on the chaos to recruit new members, a bunch of people who are angry at America doing this

[00:41:13] and found refuge and safety in the arms of communists because the capitalists were bombing the fuck out of them.

[00:41:20] Of course they were going to do that.

[00:41:22] And this ultimately led to one of the most brutal genocides of the 20th century as the Khmer rogue seized control of Cambodia in 1975

[00:41:28] and embarked on a campaign of mass murder and repression.

[00:41:31] So because America fucking bombed the shit of Cambodia, the Cambodian civilians went to who they could for help.

[00:41:41] And then those assholes would kill them.

[00:41:45] So they were they're being killed by both sides there.

[00:41:49] It did not matter.

[00:41:51] We didn't help anyone with that.

[00:41:53] And the covert nature of the Cambodian body required extensive efforts to keep the operation secret.

[00:42:00] The Nixon administration went to great lengths to conceal the extent of the bombings from both Congress and the American public.

[00:42:06] This included falsifying records and creating misleading reports about the operations.

[00:42:11] Nixon and Kissinger used a system of, quote, dual reporting where official records were doctored to hide the true scope of the bombings.

[00:42:20] They labeled many of the missions as occurring in South Vietnam, thereby obfuscating the reality of their actions in Cambodia.

[00:42:27] So stating like, hey, yep, this plane took off in South Vietnam.

[00:42:31] They dropped bombs.

[00:42:33] They didn't say where they dropped bombs, essentially.

[00:42:35] Just like they traveled X amount of times and drop bombs.

[00:42:38] And that was essentially it.

[00:42:40] So they told half truth, which was just to cover up shit.

[00:42:43] In a critical element and maintaining the cover up was the complicity of high ranking military officials.

[00:42:48] General Creighton Abrams, the commander of the US forces in Vietnam, played a pivotal role in coordinating the secret bombings and ensuring that the true nature of the operations remain hidden.

[00:43:01] These actions were part of a broader pattern of deceit and manipulation orchestrated by Nixon and Kissinger to pursue their foreign policy objectives without accountability.

[00:43:08] They don't they wanted to make sure that Nixon's hands look squeaky clean while they're doing this shit.

[00:43:13] When in all reality, he was fully aware what was going on and didn't care, did not fucking care at all.

[00:43:20] And I again, I understand the want to like destroy your enemy and to get rid of them, especially when you are in charge of a military.

[00:43:29] That is your one goal and your one objective.

[00:43:31] And that should be what you're focused on.

[00:43:33] But God damn, man, like bombing civilians just because there's some supply lines.

[00:43:39] There's there would have been there's so many other ways to figure that out.

[00:43:43] Honestly, I think more like Intel infiltration missions would have been better, maybe a little harder.

[00:43:50] But there's so many there's so many other ways you could have done shit.

[00:43:54] I mean, it's maybe it's a little bit more risky.

[00:43:56] But whatever, whatever.

[00:43:59] I don't know if I was in charge of shit at all, just be spies to be spies killing spies the whole time.

[00:44:04] That's that's what I would do much easier, much less casualties and a little bit more fun some ways because you just kind of like essentially pick the best of the best.

[00:44:12] And then you send them on secret missions and then the best of the best kill each other in different countries secretly.

[00:44:18] And that's that's a little easier, I think, in my opinion, than just hundreds of thousands of people dying needlessly.

[00:44:25] Not to say that killing the best of the best is great either.

[00:44:30] You know, preferably you could kill no one and you just get the information that you need to like eventually work through peace talks, figure out like what your opponent is scared of and just like threaten them with it or figure out what they have and just be like, OK, listen, we're willing to come to this concession if you do X thing and then you know, realize they're not aware of like other things that you have.

[00:44:51] There's there's so much that you can do.

[00:44:54] But these these bombings had a ton of consequences that would go very far just beyond the immediate devastation, right?

[00:45:04] It was there's the complete destabilization of Cambodia.

[00:45:08] They created a power vacuum that the Khmer rogue exploited and would lead to the deaths of approximately two million people through execution, forced labor and starvation.

[00:45:18] And Henry Kissinger's role in these bombings is.

[00:45:20] Is a damning aspect to his legacy while he has defended the bombings as a necessary measure to disrupt North Vietnamese supply lines.

[00:45:29] Many people argue that the operation exemplifies the reckless and inhumane aspects of his approach to foreign policy, which is exactly what it was.

[00:45:36] It was incredibly reckless and not that you know.

[00:45:40] Not that far thinking he just I feel like he just didn't think here.

[00:45:44] He didn't like think like, oh, you know, if we kill these civilians, you know, maybe they're going to fucking try to go against the US and more communism is going to pop up in other areas around there.

[00:45:55] And that's going to cause more problems for us.

[00:45:57] That's, you know, besides what we were already trying to fight against.

[00:46:01] And so the secrecy and scale of the bombings have been widely condemned by historians and human rights activists who view them as a stark example of the excesses of American interventionism during the Cold War.

[00:46:13] And we also have the secret bombings of Laos.

[00:46:18] We'll go ahead and get into some of the first person accounts here.

[00:46:21] So the experiences of those who lived through the bombings offer a howling glimpse into the terror inflicted upon the Laotian population.

[00:46:29] And then, Chan Thala Vong, we, we, who was a child in Laos during the bombings later recounted, quote, We lived in constant fear.

[00:46:39] The bombings were relentless and we had no safe place to hide entire villages were obliterated just entire fucking villages just gone.

[00:46:46] And that's just one testimony out of like hundreds and hundreds of testimonies have come to light about the about these bombings.

[00:46:54] And this really highlights the indiscriminate nature and profound psychological impact that it took on civilians here.

[00:47:02] And same thing here, there's a bunch of American pilots.

[00:47:06] There is another pilot who spoke under an amenity anonymity again.

[00:47:13] He said we were off to flying blind, dropping bombs based on coordinates without knowing what was below.

[00:47:18] And the destruction was enormous and it haunted many of us long after the war.

[00:47:21] I'm certain they would see that some kid run out right as they drop a bomb or something on a village and just be like, Oh, why is my government having me kill kids?

[00:47:31] And then, you know, they have to deal with that for the rest of their lives.

[00:47:35] And those fuckers who sit, you know, sit in the White House and don't have to witness and be a part of any of that war.

[00:47:44] Just get a sit back and not think about what happened at all.

[00:47:48] And it's fucked up, man.

[00:47:50] So really the human cause, the cause of the last bombing in a combination with Cambodian bombings was immense.

[00:47:59] There is around two million tons of bombs that were dropped on Laos, making it the most heavily bombed country per capita in history.

[00:48:08] Many Laotian civilians were killed or maimed and the landscape was littered with unexploded ordinance,

[00:48:15] which continues continues to this day to pose a deadly threat.

[00:48:18] Sing Chan, Paul, Paul Marlin, a Laotian survivor, described the long term impacts saying, quote,

[00:48:27] Even after the bombing stopped, the danger remained.

[00:48:29] Children playing in the fields could still be killed by bombs that didn't explode on impact.

[00:48:32] They would be playing and just blow the fuck up.

[00:48:35] I could not imagine my child just evaporating to dust because some country decided, hey, there's there's some bad guys near you.

[00:48:45] We're going to just unleash a ton of bombs here and oh, oh, man.

[00:48:53] And so same deal here.

[00:48:56] The Nixon administration would go to great lengths to conceal the extent of these bombings from Congress doing the dual reporting system.

[00:49:03] And again, just reporting that everything was occurring in South Vietnam.

[00:49:08] And one of the most egregious aspects of this one was the disinformation campaign orchestrated by Kissinger and his associates who,

[00:49:16] again, they would just use this complex system of dual reporting and sanitize reports to Congress.

[00:49:21] And the actual details were hidden classified documents that no one could just access easily.

[00:49:28] So and this was very, very essential in maintaining the facade that they had already started.

[00:49:35] So and then here, 1969 to 1973, we have the Vietnam War prolongation.

[00:49:49] They decided to keep prolonging the war further and further.

[00:49:53] Many American soldiers and Vietnamese civilians experienced the direct consequences of prolonged war.

[00:49:59] John Kerry, who served as a Navy officer in Vietnam and later became a prominent anti-war activist,

[00:50:04] kept voice, he would voice his frustration with the continued aggression.

[00:50:09] In a testimony before the Senate in 1971, he famously asked, how do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?

[00:50:16] And this poignant question encapsulated the growing disillusionment among soldiers and the American public regarding the ongoing conflict.

[00:50:24] And so in here, this is where we get we get to in 1971, we have the Bangladesh Liberation War.

[00:50:36] And this was a brutal conflict that resulted in the independence of Bangladesh from Pakistan.

[00:50:40] And during this period, the Pakistani military dominated Western Pakistanis.

[00:50:44] They carried out a campaign of mass atrocities in East Pakistan targeting Bengali civilians, intellectuals and Hindus.

[00:50:52] And despite numerous reports of these atrocities, Henry Kissinger, then serving as national security advisor,

[00:50:58] supported Pakistan due to strategic geopolitical interests significantly impacting the course of humanitarian cost of the conflict.

[00:51:05] So he's kind of like one of the main reasons why we've been associated with so many goddamn dictators

[00:51:15] and been partnered with people who do awful and horrible things like genocide.

[00:51:20] The horrors of the genocide in East Pakistan have been well documented by survivors and observers.

[00:51:27] Archer Blood, the U.S. Consul General and DACA famously sent a series of cables known as the quote blood telegrams to Washington,

[00:51:36] detailing the systematic killings and human rights abuses perpetuated by the Pakistani military.

[00:51:42] And one of these cables, blood described the situation as quote selective genocide,

[00:51:48] emphasizing the deliberate targeting of the Hindu minority and Bengali intellectuals.

[00:51:54] His reports were stark and uncompromising, uncompromising, painting a vivid picture of the atrocities that occurring on the ground,

[00:52:02] saying quote here in DACA we are mute and horrified and horrified witnesses to a reign of terror by the PAC military.

[00:52:12] End quote. So, you know, that's fucking cool.

[00:52:16] Again, all of this is documented too, by the way.

[00:52:18] So if you guys want to, again, I have all the citations and everything where I'm pulling this all up.

[00:52:22] If you guys are curious.

[00:52:25] Kenneth Keating, the U.S. Ambassador to India also confronted President Nixon and Henry Kissinger directly urging them to take action against the genocide

[00:52:33] in a meeting Keating passionately argued saying quote this is not only a matter of American ideals, it's about our moral standing in the world.

[00:52:40] We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. End quote.

[00:52:42] And despite these urgent pleas, Kissinger and Nixon remain steadfast in support for Pakistan, viewing the country as a crucial ally

[00:52:48] and their efforts to open diplomatic relations with China.

[00:52:51] So it was more important for them to have diplomatic relations with China and getting like a good economic deal.

[00:52:58] So money going than it was to, you know, maintain the peace that America supposedly perpetuates throughout the world.

[00:53:09] The toll on the civilian population in East Pakistan was catastrophic estimates suggest that between 300000 and 3 million people were killed during the conflict.

[00:53:17] The Pakistani military's operations included widespread massacres, rapes and the displacement of millions of Bengalis.

[00:53:24] Anwar Saadid, a survivor of the conflict described the indiscriminate violence saying they came at night burning homes, shooting anyone they saw.

[00:53:32] My village was reduced to ashes. My and my family was torn apart.

[00:53:36] And he is one of many firsthand accounts that really underscore the immense human suffering that characterized the genocide that was enacted upon the Bengali and Hindu population there.

[00:53:48] So not his man. Sorry that this episode's a bit more of a bummer, but this man, this man is involved with a ton of shit, a ton of bullshit.

[00:54:00] And the international community was largely silent with many countries, including the US reluctant to intervene due to Cold War dynamics.

[00:54:09] And this lack of action allowed the Pakistani military to continue its brutal campaign with impunity, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis.

[00:54:17] And his support, Kissinger's support for Pakistan during the genocide was just really it was just for, you know, again, they wanted to establish a strategic alliance with China.

[00:54:29] And Pakistan was a crucial intermediary in this effort.

[00:54:32] They essentially I was like, hey, this guy's cool with us doing this shit. So, you know, China, you should be cool with them.

[00:54:37] And so Kissinger and Nixon believed in maintaining strong relations with Pakistan would be the paramount for success of their broader foreign policy goals that would lead to opening of relations with China in 1972.

[00:54:53] And to maintain the support, the Nixon administration actively downplayed the reports of atrocities.

[00:55:00] Kissinger and Nixon dismissed the urgent warnings from Blood and Keating labeling them as overly emotional and biased.

[00:55:07] In a recorded conversation, Nixon remarked, quote, The Indians are bastards anyways.

[00:55:12] They are starting. That son of a bitch. They're starting the war here.

[00:55:16] While he bleeds, we can't let that son of a bitch fail.

[00:55:22] Meaning Yahya Khan, the Pakistani president, he didn't want him to fail.

[00:55:27] And this dismissive attitude underscored the administration's prioritization of strategic interest over humanitarian concerns.

[00:55:32] And that was basically the entirety of the Nixon administration. That's what they did.

[00:55:38] And then we have the Chilean coup in 1973.

[00:55:42] In the early 1970s, Chile was a focal point in the Cold War struggle for influence in Latin America.

[00:55:48] President Salvador Allende, who was a Marxist, was elected in 1970 and began implementing socialist policies that included nationalizing industries and collectivizing agriculture.

[00:55:58] The U.S. government under the Nixon administration with Henry Kissinger as national security advisor and later secretary of state, viewed Allende's government as a significant threat to its interests in the region.

[00:56:10] And so Kissinger would get involved to destabilize Allende's government and ultimately contributed to the military coup on September 11th of 1973.

[00:56:19] A ton of shit happens on September 11th, like a ton of shit militarily happens on September 11th.

[00:56:26] I've noticed it's just like a day for awful things to happen. It seems like.

[00:56:33] So there's a bunch of first-hand accounts from the Chileans who lived through the coup and its aftermath that would provide a very dark picture of the impact of U.S. intervention.

[00:56:45] Isabel Letelier, the widow of Orlando Letelier, a former Chilean diplomat who was assassinated by Pinochet's agents in Washington, D.C., spoke about the terror of the coup, saying, quote,

[00:56:59] We heard the jets overhead, the explosions my husband and I knew was the end of democracy in Chile.

[00:57:04] She recounted the fear and uncertainty of those initial days of the coup were echoed by many who experienced a sudden violent shift from democracy to dictatorship.

[00:57:13] Peter Kornblah, a historian who has extensively studied U.S. involvement in Chile noted in his book, The Pinochet File, how Kissinger's direct actions contributed to the destabilization.

[00:57:25] Kornblah writes, saying, quote, Kissinger played a central role in orchestrating economic and political pressure to create the conditions for a coup.

[00:57:32] His fingerprints are all over the intelligence operations and economic warfare that's at the stage for Pinochet's rise.

[00:57:40] So the aftermath of the coup saw widespread human rights abuses, including the torture, execution and disappearance of thousands of Chileans.

[00:57:49] One of the most poignant victim statements comes from Adriana Rivas, whose brother was among the disappeared, saying, quote, They took him away in the night.

[00:57:58] We never saw him again. We were left with nothing but fear and unanswered questions, she said, end quote.

[00:58:06] Such accounts underscore the personal tragedies that unfolded as a result of the coup and the brutal regime that followed.

[00:58:13] The National Commission for Truth and Reconciliation in Chile estimated that more than 3000 people were killed or disappeared, and tens of thousands were imprisoned and tortured.

[00:58:22] And the legacy of these atrocities continued to haunt Chilean society as families still searched for the remains of their loved ones and seek justice for the crimes committed under Pinochet's leadership.

[00:58:34] The next administration with Kissinger as key player engaged in covert operations to destabilize the government from the outset of his presidency.

[00:58:42] Through a combination of economic sanctions, covert funding to opposition groups and support for military conspirators, the US sought to create a climate ripe for a coup.

[00:58:53] The CIA's involvement in these efforts is well documented with declassified documents revealing the extent of US meddling in Chilean politics.

[00:59:02] Kissinger's involvement in the coup was part of a broader strategy to prevent the spread of communism in Latin America.

[00:59:07] His infamous quote, I don't see why we need to stand by and watch country go communist due to the irresponsibility of its own people, end quote, reflects the cold calculus that underpinned the US foreign policy at the time, which was stop communism at all fucking costs.

[00:59:25] And the moral and ethical implications for this approach have been the subject of intense criticism and debate.

[00:59:31] Lots of people are like, well, I mean, you needed to stop communism.

[00:59:34] But it's like, did we? Did we? And really, it was just more the guy was doing some socialist policies.

[00:59:41] I don't know how well it would have ended up, but I don't think it was completely communism.

[00:59:46] He just had some Marxist ideologies, which a lot of people agree with Marx, Karl Marx, Marx on a few things.

[00:59:55] It doesn't have to agree with him on everything, though.

[00:59:58] But this is what would lead to the eventual Watergate scandal as well.

[01:00:05] So this is from 1972, 1974.

[01:00:08] Many of you know Watergate and already know what that is.

[01:00:12] But Kissinger's involvement in encouraging illegal wire taping and surveillance to uncover leaks about the secret Cambodia bombing is a critical yet often overlooked component of a broader scandal.

[01:00:24] So Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, who were the Washington Post journalists who uncovered much of the Watergate scandal, have detailed how the culture of surveillance and secrecy pervaded the Nixon administration.

[01:00:36] And they broke in their book All the President's Men, they describe how the administration, driven by desire to control leaks and maintain secrecy about operations like the Cambodia bombing, resorted to illegal activities.

[01:00:47] John Erlichmann, a top Nixon aide, noted that Kissinger's intense pressure to clamp down on leaks contributed significantly to the administration's decisions to authorize wire tapping and surveillance.

[01:01:01] Saying, quote, Henry was adamant that these leaks had to stop and he wasn't shy about pushing us to take drastic measures.

[01:01:08] Erlichmann recounted in his memoir.

[01:01:13] So basically saying, yeah, he's like, I'm not telling you to kill him, but kill him.

[01:01:17] At least that's what I would have interpreted from it and I probably would have been right.

[01:01:22] So, and the impact of the illegal surveillance extended beyond political operatives to journalists and government officials who became targets of the administration's paranoia.

[01:01:33] Morton Halperin, one of Kissinger's aides, was one of those targeted.

[01:01:38] He later sued the government, claiming his phone was wire tapped without a warrant and won the case.

[01:01:43] Halperin stated, quote, It was a gross invasion of privacy and clear abuse of power.

[01:01:48] The fact that Kissinger was pushing for these measures shows the lengths that they were willing to go to maintain control and cover up their actions in Cambodia.

[01:01:56] That worried about it because they knew if that got out, they were fucked.

[01:02:03] The broader implication of these actions were profound.

[01:02:05] They contributed to climate fear and suspicion within the government, which I totally agree with.

[01:02:10] I think it's Nixon's cabinet's fault for lack of trust in the government.

[01:02:15] I think it started there and that's where everybody started to be like, well, like who else has lied?

[01:02:19] Right. Which is probably a good and a bad thing.

[01:02:22] I think we do need to be questioning what someone's true agenda could be when they're in charge of our country because not everyone's going to have.

[01:02:32] You know, our health and well-being in mind when they're our leader.

[01:02:36] Sometimes they are doing it just for power.

[01:02:38] So there's a bunch of cover up of the legal wire tapping and surveillance that was orchestrated to the highest levels of the Nixon administration.

[01:02:45] Kissinger's role is pivotal in initiating the push for these measures.

[01:02:48] His insistence on maintaining the secrecy about sensitive operations like the Cambodia bombing led to an environment where legal activities were not only tolerated but actively encouraged.

[01:02:58] The Nixon administration's use of the FBI to conduct wire taps without proper authorization was a direct violation of civil liberties and legal norms.

[01:03:06] So, yeah, that's that's cool and all.

[01:03:09] It's super fucked up.

[01:03:11] But this would lead to a complete distrust in American politics with its own people.

[01:03:17] It was a significant erosion of public trust in the government and prompted widespread calls for reform to increase transparency and accountability.

[01:03:26] And I still think we still need more reforms for transparency and accountability because they still try to push it and try to get away with a bunch of shit today and cover it up through just a bunch of paperwork that you have to read through.

[01:03:40] And then you have to like know the legal for it to understand what they're truly doing.

[01:03:43] It's super fucked up, guys.

[01:03:45] We need to be looking a little more into that.

[01:03:50] On top of that, in 1974, there's also the support for the Greek junta.

[01:03:56] So during the early 1970s, Greece was under the control of a military junta that had seized power in 1967.

[01:04:04] This regime, known for its oppressive tactics and human rights abuses, received tactic support from the United States primarily due to its anti-communist stance during the Cold War.

[01:04:14] They were just happy that they didn't like communism.

[01:04:17] That's an ally right there.

[01:04:19] That's who we want to be with, these child rapists.

[01:04:23] Fucking assholes.

[01:04:24] That's the ally the US wants.

[01:04:27] So Henry Kissinger, Secretary of State, would play a very important role in maintaining US relations with the junta despite widespread international condemnation.

[01:04:37] The junta support culminated in its involvement in the coup against the democratically elected president of Cyprus, Archbishop Makarios, in July of 1974.

[01:04:47] So, yeah, that's pretty shitty.

[01:04:51] Super shitty, US.

[01:04:54] God damn you.

[01:04:59] I don't know what else to say here.

[01:05:01] Again, if you guys still think that he's a good person, just keep listening, I guess, because we're getting into some more bullshit here.

[01:05:11] The coup against Makarios and the subsequent Turkish invasion of Cyprus had devastating effects on the island's population.

[01:05:17] Archbishop Makarios in a radio broadcast from Paphos after escaping the assassination attempt described the events, saying,

[01:05:25] quote, The coup was organized with the Greek junta instigated by the Greek officers manning the National Guard.

[01:05:30] I denounced them before the people of Cyprus and the whole world.

[01:05:35] His escape was narrow and his words highlighted the betrayal of the Greek military officers who were supposed to defend the island.

[01:05:43] In Washington, State Department officials were divided on the US stance towards the Greek junta and its actions in Cyprus.

[01:05:50] Thomas Boyatt, a senior State Department official, later criticized Kisistir's approach, stating, quote, We knew the junta was behind the coup.

[01:05:58] It was a clear violation of Cypriot sovereignty and our response was utterly inadequate.

[01:06:04] Kisistir's policy was driven by Cold War calculations disregarding the human cost, which seems to be a progressive statement of real politic.

[01:06:15] Essentially, this guy was so consumed by just being in numbers and being practical and being pragmatic.

[01:06:23] He forgot that humans were involved, essentially that real humans existed.

[01:06:27] I'm sorry if it was his family and maybe not.

[01:06:30] I don't know, but I think if it was his family that would that was there or you know, if it was like in the US,

[01:06:36] he'd be a lot more careful about how they were doing such things or who they were allying themselves with.

[01:06:43] And so the impact of the Greek junta's actions and the Turkish invasion of other people of Cyprus was profound.

[01:06:53] Thousands were killed and many more were displaced, displaced, quote unquote.

[01:06:58] Kyriakos Papatopoulos, a Cypriot refugee, recounted the chaos and suffering saying, quote,

[01:07:08] Our village was bombed and we had to flee with nothing but the clothes.

[01:07:11] Our city was bombed. Sorry. We had to flee with nothing but the clothes on our backs.

[01:07:14] We lived in refugee camps for years and many of our friends and family were killed or went missing.

[01:07:18] So, you know, just again, lots of lots of things like this.

[01:07:22] And I'm including a lot of these victim statements in here.

[01:07:25] So you know that there's there's actual human cost here.

[01:07:30] I feel like a lot of people forget they just view civilians and the casualties as just numbers.

[01:07:37] You forget that these people had families, that they had lives, they had friends, they had connections.

[01:07:41] You forget that they they lived a life man much same much of the same life that you live currently.

[01:07:48] And I think we just need to be reminded of that.

[01:07:51] And these victim statements are a way to do that.

[01:07:55] It's a way for us to like connect and, you know, understand and empathize with people.

[01:08:01] And when you don't do that and when you just like just give numbers, it makes you kind of it just makes it less important, in my opinion.

[01:08:09] And it makes them it makes their deaths or like what they suffered through almost seem trivial or minimized in a way.

[01:08:19] And one of the critical aspects for the US and Kissinger,

[01:08:24] for their support of the junta involved the downplaying at the severity of its actions and their repercussions.

[01:08:31] Kissinger's diplomatic maneuvers included efforts to deflect international criticism and manage the fallout from the invasion of Cyprus.

[01:08:38] His close ties with key figures in the junta facilitated this policy of engagement, allowing the junta to act with a degree of impunity as well.

[01:08:46] So the for Greece, this was the collapse of the junta shortly after the Cyprus debacle mark the end of a dark chapter in history.

[01:08:56] But the skies left by its actions still would linger and they would they would fall quite quickly.

[01:09:02] So and it would make you a little little upset.

[01:09:07] Then we have the East Timor invasion in 1975.

[01:09:12] In December of 1975, Indonesia launched an invasion of East Timor.

[01:09:16] Shortly after the territory declared independence from Portuguese colonial rule,

[01:09:20] this invasion led to a brutal occupation that resulted in the deaths of approximately 200,000 East Timorese around a third of the population.

[01:09:29] And Henry Kissinger serving as Secretary of State played a controversial role in the tragedy before providing tactic tactic approval to the Indonesian government just before the invasion.

[01:09:38] Again, this guy he just can't can't keep his mouth shut and being like, yeah, no, keep it up guys.

[01:09:45] So, um, Jonah, I'm going to read more impact statements.

[01:09:49] Here's Jonah Gussamu Gussmao, who is a key figure in the East Timorese resistance, described the invasions aftermath saying our people were hunted like animals.

[01:09:58] The villages were bombed. The people were killed indiscriminately. It was a period of unimaginable suffering.

[01:10:03] Yeah, no, I could not imagine that type of suffering going on to be hunted.

[01:10:08] That was the word used to be fucking hunted like you were an animal.

[01:10:14] That's nuts just because just because someone wants to rule and control you for power.

[01:10:21] Oh, gross. We have a good here in the U.S. We aren't hunted like fucking animals, man.

[01:10:28] Insane to think about.

[01:10:31] Kissinger's role became clear through declassified documents and firsthand accounts from the time during a meeting on December 6th, 1975 with Indonesian President Suharto Kissinger and President Gerald Ford reportedly gave their tactic tactic approval for the invasion.

[01:10:47] According to the minutes of the meeting, Kissinger stated, quote, It is important that whatever you do succeeds quickly, end quote.

[01:10:54] So he was like, Listen, if you're going to do it, do it fast. And so this was essentially just U.S. support for Indonesia's actions.

[01:11:01] Just fucked up, man. He's like, Yeah, if you're gonna do it, just do it quick so that way people don't know about it.

[01:11:08] Oh, God, evil, evil, evil. It's practical, but it's evil, man.

[01:11:15] There's a couple more statements here, one from Constancia Vieria, who lost several family members during the initial assault thing.

[01:11:24] The soldiers came and there was nowhere to hide. They killed my father and brothers. I escaped into the mountains, but many did not survive, as she recalled.

[01:11:32] These personal testimonies really, again, they just we need to understand this impact on civilian population.

[01:11:38] Any anybody that listens to the show that really just is all about the numbers and just things like, you know, like we got to think practically.

[01:11:47] You got it. You got to focus on human lives. You can't just focus on like what is objectively better.

[01:11:55] And so we have to understand that these are real people with real tragic impact because of this.

[01:12:03] And in addition to that, doing doing shit like this can cause countries to fucking hate us and slowly erode trust and in our international politics and cause a bunch of problems down the line,

[01:12:18] leading to more countries turning to communism, returning to like whatever regime or whatever to try and feel safe and protected when America is not doing shit that you know, it's trying not doing the shit that it says it does, which is annoying.

[01:12:35] So in the complicity of the US government, the invasion was initially obscured by a deliberate cover up.

[01:12:41] To cover up the Ford administration influenced by Kissinger's strategic calculations chose to downplay the situation publicly.

[01:12:47] Despite clear evidence of the impending invasion, official statements from the US did not condemn Indonesia's actions.

[01:12:53] Instead, the administration focused on maintaining strong bilateral relations with Indonesia, which was seen as a crucial ally in the region against communist expansion.

[01:13:01] Again, more communism and stopping the spread of communism bullshit here.

[01:13:05] God damn. You can condemn your allies when they fuck up, man.

[01:13:10] Like, I don't know. It's it's annoying. Maybe I don't know. Maybe you can't. Maybe you just absolutely can't do that.

[01:13:19] Fuck man. That's the more I read this more. I'm like, oh, oh.

[01:13:26] And we have Operation Condor in 1976.

[01:13:30] So this was a secret campaign of political repression and state terror involving intelligence operations and assassination, assassinations of opponents.

[01:13:39] As coordinated among the right wing dictatorships of South America in the 1970s and 1980s, the countries involved included Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia and Brazil.

[01:13:50] These regimes collaborated to eliminate left-wing activists, trade unionists, academics and perceived political enemies across national borders.

[01:13:58] And Henry Kissinger, the secretary of state, provided support and tasked approval to these regimes, thereby facilitating their campaign of terror.

[01:14:06] The cover up here. So the US support for Operation Condor was driven by Cold War dynamics where the containment of communism took precedence over human rights considerations.

[01:14:17] Henry Kissinger and the Nixon administration viewed the right wing dictatorships in America as vital allies in the fight against communism.

[01:14:25] And so it's just a strategic alignment to them.

[01:14:29] It led to the provision of military aid, intelligence support and political backing to these regimes despite their well-documented human rights abuses.

[01:14:38] Kissinger's involvement included approving CIA support for the regimes participating in Operation Condor.

[01:14:48] Declassified documents have revealed Kissinger's awareness of the campaign's brutal tactics.

[01:14:54] Tactics such as burning people alive, raping people, basically just killing a bunch of civilians indiscriminately as most regimes do.

[01:15:06] I can keep going on the list but you get the idea. When a brutal regime is taking over, you know exactly what the fuck is happening.

[01:15:14] A 1976 State Department cable indicated that Kissinger had been briefed on Condor's objectives and tactics but chose not to intervene.

[01:15:23] The cable stated, quote, Kissinger has given the green light to Condor operations, seeing them as necessary as a necessary measure in the fight against communism.

[01:15:31] Like you had to do anything and everything to stop communism. You had to become a monster to stop it essentially is what he thought.

[01:15:42] And man, many of the victims' families are still searching for the remains of their loved ones throughout because of these regimes.

[01:15:52] They are seeking justice and accountability still. The atrocities committed under Operation Condor have been the subject of numerous truth and reconciliation commissions in South America,

[01:16:02] which have documented the extensive human rights violations and the role of the US in supporting these regimes.

[01:16:08] And the international condemnation of Operation Condor and the gradual uncovering of the truth have led to increased awareness and calls for accountability.

[01:16:20] Average to prosecute those responsible for the atrocities continue, and the historical record has been significantly enriched by the testimonies of survivors and the declassification of critical documents.

[01:16:30] The lessons of Operation Condor serve as a stark reminder to the dangers of unchecked state power and the importance of defending human rights against all forms of political repression.

[01:16:40] So, um, in addition to that, we also have the Angolan Civil War. So that's right. Yeah, we have more.

[01:16:49] We have more as well to keep going over.

[01:16:54] So we have the Angolan Civil War, which began in 1975 following Angola's independence from Portugal.

[01:17:02] And this is where Pedro Teta, an Angolian who was a teenager during the war, sorry, sorry.

[01:17:12] Again, just more, more bullshit going on here. This was, um, we, America would support factions in civil war that exacerbated the conflict.

[01:17:22] Um, and there, there's around, let's see, millions. There are thousands of people killed and millions of people were displaced because of the civil war.

[01:17:32] And the US involvement was shrouded in complete secrecy with covert operations managed primarily by the CIA under directives from Kissinger and the Ford administration.

[01:17:40] The justification for this involvement was framed around preventing the spread of communism in Africa.

[01:17:44] Yet the operations were conducted without the oversight of Congress or the American public.

[01:17:48] And declassified documents later revealed the extent of the US support for UNITA and FNLA, including significant financial aid and military supplies.

[01:17:58] And that's how they're spending tax dollars without people knowing.

[01:18:03] So, you know, it's, oh man, the more I get into this, the more I'm just like, so this guy would spend US money that was, you know, again made by the taxpayers of the US on things that the US had no idea about.

[01:18:16] Just a ton of money too. And his rationale for supporting the anti-communist factions was rooted in just cold, in the Cold War because of the Cold War and his hatred of communism again.

[01:18:28] And just, you know, realizing like, hey, anyone that's communist is not going to work with us because they view capitalism as something that Satan came up with.

[01:18:37] And we view communism as something that Satan came up with. So it's incompatible.

[01:18:41] And so you have to, in order to open up as many relations as possible and to keep as many allies as possible, you have to stop communism from taking over in different countries.

[01:18:51] So, and the involvement in Angola remains a significant case study in the ethics of foreign intervention.

[01:18:59] It underscores the need for transparency, accountability, and a balanced consideration of human impacts when engaging in or supporting conflicts abroad.

[01:19:08] And really just being fucking honest about what you're doing. Maybe don't just fucking, you know, hide a bunch of shit.

[01:19:17] And then we have the Argentine Dirty War from 1976 to 1983.

[01:19:23] This was a period of state terrorism in Argentina where the military junta conducted widespread human rights abuses, including forced experiences, torture, extrajudicial killings against political dissidents and perceived opponents.

[01:19:37] And Henry Kissinger was all for that. He was like, fuck yeah, dude. That's what I like to do here in the US, but we can't.

[01:19:43] The Dirty War led to the disappearance of an estimated 30,000 people.

[01:19:48] Graciela Fernandez Mejide, whose teenage son was abducted, described the pain of not knowing his fate, saying, quote, Every day we lived with the hope and despair of not knowing if our children were alive or dead.

[01:20:03] The insurgency was torturing itself.

[01:20:06] Yeah, yeah, I could not fucking imagine just wondering if my kid is alive and being that worried about them.

[01:20:16] I man. Yeah, sorry.

[01:20:19] It's and that he's not the only one.

[01:20:27] Just 30,000 people that were abducted whole families and partial families and the other families had to live and live with that daily.

[01:20:39] I can't imagine that pain.

[01:20:42] So.

[01:20:45] Kissinger support for the Argentine military junta was driven by Cold War geopolitics where anti communist regimes were seen as crucial allies against the spread of Soviet influence.

[01:20:54] During a visit to Argentina in 1976, Kissinger reportedly met with Admiral Caesar, Augusto Gussetti, Argentina's foreign minister and gave approval for the junta's actions.

[01:21:07] Declassified documents from the US State Department revealed that Kissinger told Gussetti, well, if there are things that have to be done, you should do them quickly again.

[01:21:14] Just tell him like, listen, if you got to do shit, do it quickly.

[01:21:17] Just get it done super fast.

[01:21:19] So it's forgotten about essentially this dude knew exactly what he was doing.

[01:21:24] He knew what he was saying.

[01:21:27] And the government was the US government.

[01:21:30] The Ford administration was also.

[01:21:33] Yeah, they they seem to be approving of this, especially with having Kissinger be the one in charge of all this.

[01:21:40] Oh man.

[01:21:42] Sorry, this episode's honestly kind of getting harder for me to get through as I keep doing this because there's just so much shit.

[01:21:51] Then we have the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December of 1979.

[01:21:56] The Soviet invasion and subsequent war caused immense suffering for the Afghan population.

[01:22:13] Ahmad Shah Massoud, a prominent Afghan resistance leader, recounted the brutal reality of the Soviet occupation, saying, quote,

[01:22:20] I said he's bombed or people killed, destroyed, but we continue to fight for our freedom.

[01:22:25] So in his leadership and account and his accounts of the resistance highlight the resilience and determination of the Afghan people in the face of overwhelming odds.

[01:22:36] Former CIA officers that were involved in these operations, the covert operations that took place out there, have provided detailed accounts of their efforts.

[01:22:44] Milton Bearden, who led the CIA's covert operation in Afghanistan, described the complexities of the mission, saying, quote,

[01:22:50] providing weapons training and support to the Mughal Yideen was a massive effort involving billions of dollars in coordination with our allies.

[01:22:58] Bearden's memoirs and interviews shed light on the scale and scope of the US involvement in Afghanistan.

[01:23:05] There's a ton of uses of landmines and aerial bombings by Soviet forces that caused significant civilian casualties.

[01:23:11] In the early 90s, the war also left a legacy of unexploded ordinance, which continues to pose a threat to Afghan civilians long after the end of the conflict.

[01:23:19] Again, that's the problem with dropping bombs and all of them explode.

[01:23:24] And it just causes issues way down the line.

[01:23:31] In the US's covert operations in Afghanistan that were known as Operation Cyclone, who were initially kept secret from the American public and much of the international community.

[01:23:40] These operations involved extensive funding and support for the Mughal Yideen, the Afghan resistance fighters.

[01:23:46] The support was funneled through Pakistan's Inner Services Intelligence or the ISI, which played a crucial role in coordinating the resistance efforts against the Soviet forces.

[01:23:57] So this is the one where I think our secrecy was justified here.

[01:24:07] Like, you know, we just didn't outright go to war with Russia. Probably a good idea, especially with the Cold War happening.

[01:24:12] You don't want to do that. So by just funding and aiding people like we're doing with Ukraine, it's a little, little easier, a little better to do.

[01:24:21] This one I don't disagree with. I actually think this was a better use and better.

[01:24:29] I'm able to understand the reasons why.

[01:24:35] However, this did set a precedent for future foreign interventions and the support for the Mughal Yideen, which included figures who would later become part of the Taliban in Al-Qaeda.

[01:24:46] Had a bunch of unintended consequences that became apparent in the following decades with the rise of extremist groups in the region that can be traced back in part to the policies and strategies implemented during the Soviet Afghan War.

[01:24:58] So we have 9-11 to thank for because of Kissinger partly.

[01:25:06] Kind of fucked up, but it all kind of connects back here because of us funding the Mughal Yideen who some of these leaders did become part of the Taliban in Al-Qaeda.

[01:25:19] So that's kind of fucked up and there's a couple of reasons for that.

[01:25:27] But moving on, we have the Mozambique and Angola conflicts, the Angola conflicts again.

[01:25:33] So 1975, 1980.

[01:25:37] And then those are still just continuing during this time.

[01:25:40] We also have the Rhodesian Bush War.

[01:25:43] This was known as the Zimbabwean War of Liberation.

[01:25:46] It was a protracted conflict from 1964 to 1979 between the white minority government of Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, and the African nationalist movements.

[01:25:54] Henry Kissinger during his tenure as Secretary of State supported the white minority government led by Ian Smith, contributing to the continuation of the conflict and suffering of the African population.

[01:26:03] So, you know, racist basically.

[01:26:09] It probably wasn't just racism.

[01:26:10] It was like, you know, these people, the white minority government were going to be a little easier to ally with probably than, you know, the Zimbabwean and the African nationalists.

[01:26:26] So in this period saw a significant amount of human suffering with both sides committing atrocities.

[01:26:34] So there's no heroes here.

[01:26:36] This is again another one where it's like both sides sucked.

[01:26:40] African nationalists primarily organized under the Zimbabwe African National Union or ZANU for short.

[01:26:47] And the Zimbabwe African People's Union or ZAPU fought for the majority rule against the Rhodesian government.

[01:26:53] Samuel Nkomo, a freedom fighter with ZAPU described harsh conditions saying, quote, We lived in constant danger, hiding in the bush, facing attacks from the Rhodesian army.

[01:27:02] Many of my comrades were killed and the civilian population suffered greatly.

[01:27:05] On the other side, Rhodesian soldiers and civilians lived under the threat of guerrilla attacks.

[01:27:10] A former Rhodesian soldier who wished to remain anonymous recounted the fear and tension saying, quote, We were always on the edge, never knowing when the next attack would come.

[01:27:18] It was a brutal conflict with heavy losses on both sides.

[01:27:22] And again, the reason for these cover ups and the connections here is just more policy rooted in Cold War geopolitics, prioritizing the containment of communism over the promotion of human rights.

[01:27:37] And like here, though, again, either side would have been bad for the country.

[01:27:43] There was no winners here.

[01:27:46] So it's not the worst thing in my opinion.

[01:27:51] But and then we have the support for the apartheid in South Africa.

[01:27:58] Apartheid, I think I'm saying that right.

[01:28:01] Throughout the 1970s and 80s, South Africa's apartheid regime faced increasing international condemnation for its systemic racial segregation and human rights abuses during this period.

[01:28:15] Henry Kissinger as the U.S. Secretary of State supported the apartheid in government, citing a strategic economic interest as the main reason for that.

[01:28:26] The apartheid system in South Africa enforced strict racial segregation and disenfranchisement of the non-white majority.

[01:28:35] Nelson Mandela and his autobiography Long Walk to Freedom described the daily humiliations and systemic violence faced by black South Africans.

[01:28:43] We were denied the right to vote, the right to own land, the right to remove freely.

[01:28:47] Our lives were controlled by a racist government that saw us as less than human.

[01:28:51] And so this is where it's fucked up.

[01:28:54] But again, the Bush War with some of the people that were fighting.

[01:28:59] But in South Africa, this shit makes sense.

[01:29:02] This is awful.

[01:29:04] This is absolutely awful.

[01:29:06] That's why Nelson Mandela would become so important later.

[01:29:11] Human rights activists and political leaders worldwide condemned the apartheid regime.

[01:29:16] Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a prominent anti-apartheid figure, frequently spoke out against the injustices.

[01:29:23] And his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech in 1984 to Tutu called the apartheid evil, immoral and unchristian.

[01:29:29] He empathized the global community's responsibility to stand up against such oppression and criticize nations that supported the regime.

[01:29:35] Like, you know, the US for doing that fucking assholes.

[01:29:40] But, you know, US was still kind of and still honestly is in a lot of ways racist and just doesn't give a shit about anybody besides white people.

[01:29:48] So and then we had the Philippines martial law in 1972, 1981.

[01:29:54] And this here would again more death tolls.

[01:30:02] So much death.

[01:30:03] And then we have the Iran-Iraq War of 1980 to 1988.

[01:30:08] This was one of the deadliest conflicts of the late 20th century, resulting in over a million casualties and widespread destruction.

[01:30:14] Henry Kissinger, though no longer Secretary of State during the war, was involved in shaping and advising US policies that influence the duration and intensity of the conflict.

[01:30:24] So just to kind of go over how he's involved in this, since he is not directly involved, it's still kind of attributed to him.

[01:30:36] Declassified documents and reports reveal that the US was aware of Iraq's use of chemical weapons, but chose to overlook these violations to maintain strategic relations with Baghdad.

[01:30:46] The Reagan administration, with Kissinger as an influential advisor, prioritized the geopolitical objective of weakening Iran over addressing the humanitarian and ethical implications of supporting regime that engaged in war crimes.

[01:31:00] Yeah, yeah, it would lead to pissing a ton of people off over there in the Middle East as well.

[01:31:05] So the conflict left a legacy of bitterness and trauma with both nations facing the long-term consequences of their wartime experiences.

[01:31:14] The economic toil was enormous with both countries struggling to rebuild their infrastructures and economies in an aftermath.

[01:31:21] For Henry Kissinger, his involvement in shaping US policies supported Iraq during the war, a significant aspect of his legacy.

[01:31:27] Critics argue that his actions contributed to the prolongation of the conflict and the exacerbation of human suffering.

[01:31:33] This support is seen as a part of a broader pattern of Cold War era policies that often prioritize strategic objectives over humanitarian considerations.

[01:31:44] And that brings us to the end of today's episode.

[01:31:48] I know that there's more shit that he's involved in, but I don't feel like this is enough for today's episode just to kind of give you an idea of how fucked up it was.

[01:32:01] Let's go ahead and get to the end of let's go to the final thoughts.

[01:32:07] Well, we did it, boys. We made it to the end.

[01:32:17] It was a lot of victim statements, man.

[01:32:21] She kind of made me sad, made me a little depressed reading through it again.

[01:32:24] Like after I'd done all that research in the first place, I'm still kind of shocked about just like how much was done by the US and how much like how we I think I grew up thinking that the USA was just like this white knight in shining armor,

[01:32:39] like always like fighting for the rights of like of people and like trying to support people.

[01:32:43] And now, now, like post post World War Two, we stopped giving a shit about that basically and started caring more about fucking up Russia essentially and prioritizing that over everything else.

[01:32:55] And Henry Kissinger seems to have been one of the shadow masters puppeteers, shadow master puppeteers of that.

[01:33:02] Well, what are you guys thoughts of today's episode?

[01:33:07] What do you know? What do you think?

[01:33:10] Do you think that what we did was necessary?

[01:33:12] Do you think like the human rights violations and what was gained out of it was ever justifiable?

[01:33:18] I mean, I only think like one of these things that we did honestly would just be the Korean War with our international intervention.

[01:33:27] That was the only thing that ever kind of like paid off in a way.

[01:33:31] Now war still isn't over. Technically, everything else seems to have never really paid off for us.

[01:33:37] So I know I think it's a bit complicated by be curious to hear you guys thoughts.

[01:33:43] You can email me at historicalquarles at gmail.com.

[01:33:47] Let me know what you think.

[01:33:49] You can also leave a comment if you're listening to this on YouTube in the comments section.

[01:33:53] If you like today's episode, leave a like I share with a friend.

[01:33:58] Hopefully my singing didn't disturb too many of you.

[01:34:02] I was just trying to have fun with it.

[01:34:05] Goof off a little bit.

[01:34:08] My my youngest has been getting really into heavy metal.

[01:34:11] So I was like, I mean, I got to do some with heavy metal.

[01:34:14] We've been having so much fun singing that.

[01:34:16] I'm not my youngest and I so.

[01:34:19] But yeah, please, please let me know what you think.

[01:34:21] Super curious about that. I'm excited for this channel to keep going.

[01:34:26] I am excited for this channel to up its production quality.

[01:34:29] I would like to start implementing video and having more or just more stuff for you guys to like look at on screen while you're watching.

[01:34:40] But this is primarily podcasts.

[01:34:42] And so I kind of picture most of you guys are driving or something.

[01:34:46] Hopefully, maybe not hopefully, but like hopefully safely.

[01:34:50] So or you're like working out listening.

[01:34:55] I sometimes listen to podcasts while I work out and then I'll turn on some I know some system of down once I start lifting weights so that way I can lift a little heavier.

[01:35:06] Uh, yeah, no, that's that's all for today, guys.

[01:35:10] You have a good one.

[01:35:12] I'll see you next week. Bye bye.