Thursday Screening: February 8, 2024

The despot of the Mashriq and the epicenter of the border crisis

I would wish you a happy Thursday, but as I write this news just broke that Senate Republicans have spiked the bill (co-authored by Republican Senator James Lankford) that would have packaged together supplemental aid for Ukraine and Israel while also providing resources for the untenable situation at the southern border. I can’t say I’m stunned by the congressional Republican own-goal but it’s still disheartening to see this level of political cynicism while Ukrainians are being overwhelmed and killed defending places like Avdiivka. Keep an eye out for Shield of the Republic to drop later today with General Breedlove joining the show to discuss more on that.

On to this week’s screening which includes a short biography of Saddam Hussein’s rise to power and a ground-level look at how migrants are crossing the southern border with two young coyotes.

How History Works: The Life Story of Saddam Hussein

Popular discourse regarding the invasion of Iraq typically presupposes Iraqi history started on March 19, 2003. But one of history’s biggest monsters had been brutalizing his subjects, developing a chemical weapons program, and invading neighboring countries in the preceding twenty-four years. I know I’m in the minority when it comes to the Iraq War, but there is no denying life in Baghdad today is better than when Uday was cruising the streets and abducting women left and right. Saddam’s rise to power is an interesting tale of what evil men can do through sheer force of will:

Channel 5 News: Texas Border Crisis

Andrew Callaghan is a young gonzo journalist whose Channel 5 News is extremely popular on YouTube. Recently Callaghan filmed a series exploring the aforementioned overwhelmed southern border and has been releasing iterative installments of what he found. Last week’s episode included a stunning interview and “ride along” with two extremely young smugglers who took Callaghan along their route to the border at Eagle Pass:

Thanks as always for checking out Thursday Screening. I’ll be back on Monday with SoaD as usual.