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Radio War Nerd EP #359 — Smedley Butler & American Empire, feat. Jonathan M. Katz (Patreon)

Published:
2022-12-23 14:37:20
Edited:
2022-12-24 17:06:06
Imported:
2026-06
Tags:

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Content

Guest: Jonathan Katz, author & journalist 

Recorded: December 15, 2022

We talk to Jonathan Katz about US Marines Gen. Smedley Butler's journey from the US Empire's lead "racketeer" in small wars and coups from China to the Caribbean, to anti-militarist hero and whistleblower who took down the crypto-fascist Business Plot to overthrow FDR.

Buy Jonathan M. Katz's book Gangsters of Capitalism: Smedley Butler, The Marines, and the Making and Breaking of the American Empire. Subscribe to Jonathan's newsletter The Racket.

Total time: 1:33:05

Direct link to this episode's mp3 here 

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Comments

John Teoli

I keep waiting for the part where Smedley Butler goes to Wawa.

Michael Salmon

“The consensus among scholars is that there was no concerted or unified design to seize power and that the leagues lacked the coherence, unity, or leadership to accomplish such an end” about 6 fevrier 1934 Also sounds familiar Wish they would push back against this lib bullshit around “fascism” and the “coup” re trump and Jan 6

Of course

The clownish buffoonery of barely consumerist/social media-"organized" slobs, fronted by a dimwitted tool and mostly friendless coward like Trump... and the cynical depravity of Democrats and never-Trump Republicans... and the obvious Capitol Police et al staging and enabling... makes it difficult to take Jan 6 seriously as a coup attempt. But it's always shocking to learn how big events start out as a little joke passed around among larpers and their deep state operator-handlers and a few other actual powerful people, let go for a while "just to see where it goes, who it attracts," and then, hey look at what we just got away with!

Hans Anders

I’ve listened to a lot of episodes both old and new, but I’ve never discovered why John is alway traveling the globe. Is it a calling? Does he have another job/project he travels for?

etienne

it's a visa/immigration problem, they basically can't land two permanent residency for John and Katherine in a desirable country

Jacob Vardy

Yes, the cynicism with which Yankee liberal democrats have become anti-fascist is disgusting. But the upper middle class buffoonery of the J6 golpista is what the petite- bourgeois stormtroopers of fascism normally looks like. The snazzy Hugo Boss uniforms were an exception. Especially if you include the parties of Order in the 19th. It's usually a bunch of red faced small business owners who want the power to make their employees do what they are told.

THEKILLERWHALE

Immigration official: "Mr. Dolan, it says here that your occupation is 'Writer'. And according to your article, our sixteenth century ancestors were 'ignorant hogs barely capable of being skewered by a halberd'. Care to elaborate?" JD: {tugs collar nervously}

a clash of purple

Inferring from things he's mentioned in episodes of the podcast, I think he would like to live in New Zealand permanently (it's where his wife's family is) but so far he hasn't been able to get residency. I assume it's just a money issue; if he could plop down a bunch of cash for some property, people would take an interest in smoothing his way. I know he's mentioned that he's gotten in trouble for his writing in a few countries, but I don't think that's the main problem. Governments will overlook a lot worse than a few insulting articles from someone whose closest brush with mainstream notoriety was appearing as a guest on a couple episodes of Chapo Trap House if the right people stand to make money off it.

David Andrews

Another great episode. I'll certainly buy the book.

J P 3

I think this understates the degree to which there was significant support for Trump within local police departments, the FBI and secret service. e.g. the degree to which there was organic support for a coup in favor of Trump. The reason that the Jan. 6th coup failed is because a critical mass of major GOP donors weren't willing to sign off, and because Trump, as a relative political new-comer didn't have sufficiently deep ties to the major institutions. Biden was seen as an acceptable short-term alternative to Trump -- and Republican elites weren't going to let Trump permanently capture their party and their political institutions. I doubt that people in the security state were thinking "hey, it would look great for the United States and for our standing globally to have a mob of rabid Trump supporters attack the U.S. Capitol Building". But who knows.

J P 3

Great episode and book. Katz's book serves as a kind of prequel to Vincent Bevin's also excellent "Jakarta Method". There are points of evolution and discontinuity, but both are useful for understanding the evolution of the American empire.

etienne

real heads remember his Pando columns about getting kicked out of various countries

Doug Cartel

yeah rich and poor end up mirroring each other in ways they might not even realize. Poor people drink dirty water from neglected water pipes owned by the slum lord, rich people drink "raw water". Poor people live in shanties, rich people have Tinyhomes. Poor people walk around in sweatpants, mark zuckerberg walks around in sweatpants.

Jason Thompson

US citizens can’t get NZ citizenship through marriage?

Ezra de Leon

Yeah, there's a number of "developed" countries where you can basically buy permanent residency by investing in something big. I think in Canada you have to start a business that employs at least 20 people so it doesn't even have to be that big and a lot of rich people around the world have gotten Canadian residency and citizenship this way. Twenty people is like a hipster coffee shop.