Episode 55 - What’s the Matter with Europe?

The Rational Policy Podcast has returned with Episode 55! After a week off due to illness, your hosts Mike Coté and Art Vandelay are back to cover all the important news of the past fortnight. Instead of focusing on the domestic political situation (boring!), we’re taking a trip overseas and hitting a wide variety of international topics (interesting!). We start off discussing some of the endemic problems in Europe, as demonstrated by two recent events: the removal of US strategic bombers from British bases and the ongoing riots in France. The first story reveals serious rot within the UK’s security and political establishment, with the country being either unwilling or unable to protect its own domestic military installations against foreign (in this case, Iranian) threat. For a long-time partner, this is disturbing. Even more disturbing is that they are choosing not to rectify the issue. Things aren’t much better across the Channel, though, as France is consumed with yet another round of violent rioting (must be a day ending in -y). This time, the chaos ostensibly revolves around poor school conditions, but it is actually driven by a far more complex stew of factors, ranging from leftist politics and Islamism to youth culture and a looming fiscal crisis. These riots, as well as the background forces driving them, are empowering radical political movements in the country that will cause even more chaos in the future. Next, we shift east to talk about Ukraine and the latest developments in the righteous defensive war against Russia. We discuss the status of the conflict, how it has fundamentally altered how militaries must fight (and defend their own assets) going forward, and why Kyiv might be better off today than it was a few years ago, despite the lack of direct US aid. We also talk about Ukraine’s recent strikes on Russian economic targets, including energy infrastructure and large data centers, as well as the Trump administration’s cowardly and counterproductive ‘deal’ to buy diesel from Moscow. Finally, we travel south to hit the Middle East. We discuss the 3rd anniversary of the October 7 pogrom, explaining how, in spite of the PR war against it, Israel is winning the actual conflict with its enemies and has come out far stronger than it was before. We also touch on new developments in the long-running Yemeni civil war, why the Saudis are so bad at warfighting, and whether the US can or should get involved. Check it out, follow us on Twitter/X (Mike / Art), and share the podcast with anyone you think might appreciate it. Thanks for listening. We’ll be back next week with another episode. Until then, enjoy some classic fall activities and warm apple cider! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.rationalpolicy.com