S8 Ep161: US Space Force Budget Cuts and the "Golden Dome" Missile Defense — Rick Fisher — Fisher analyzes fluctuating U.S. Space Force budget allocations, highlighting Congressional appropriations for the classified "Golden Dome" missile defense system designed to
US Space Force Budget Cuts and the "Golden Dome" Missile Defense — Rick Fisher — Fisher analyzes fluctuating U.S. Space Force budget allocations, highlighting Congressional appropriations for the classified "Golden Dome" missile defense system designed to intercept intercontinental ballistic warheads aimed at the U.S. and allied territories. Fisher criticizes persisting policy prohibitions against American space-based weapons development, arguing these restrictions increasingly represent obsolete Cold War-era constraints preventing necessary technological advancement as China advances anti-satellite capabilities originally developed during the 1990s.
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9:40
S8 Ep161: China and Russia Coordinate Threats Against Japan Over Taiwan — Rebecca Grant — Grant documents coordinated China-Russia diplomatic pressure against Japan, triggered by Prime Minister Takichi Sai's assertion that Chinese invasion of Taiwan would constitut
China and Russia Coordinate Threats Against Japan Over Taiwan — Rebecca Grant — Grant documents coordinated China-Russia diplomatic pressure against Japan, triggered by Prime Minister Takichi Sai's assertion that Chinese invasion of Taiwan would constitute an existential threat necessitating Japanese military mobilization. Grantnotes that despite Chinese nuclear saber-rattling and Cold War-era propaganda campaigns, Japanese leadership is categorically refusing diplomatic capitulation, systematically strengthening defensive military capabilities and alliance relationships, demonstrating unprecedented strategic resolve against intimidation.
1952
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8:49
S8 Ep161: Beijing's Economic Desperation: The Triangular Debt Crisis — Andrew Collier — Collier interprets Beijing'spublic calls for state-owned enterprise and private sector cooperation as unmistakable indicators of governmental financial desperation, as the Chine
Beijing's Economic Desperation: The Triangular Debt Crisis — Andrew Collier — Collier interprets Beijing'spublic calls for state-owned enterprise and private sector cooperation as unmistakable indicators of governmental financial desperation, as the Chinese state systematically fails to compensate private suppliers and contractors. Collier documents that China is experiencing a debt crisis structurally analogous to the "triangular debt" phenomenon of the 1990s, wherein private firms accumulate mounting insolvency as Chinese banking institutions systematically privilege lending to state-backed entities over private sector enterprises, constraining private sector growth essential for technological advancement.
1959
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9:00
S8 Ep161: Space Safety Crisis: China's Space Station Lacked Emergency Lifeboat — Rick Fisher — Fisher analyzes a recent spacecraft accident wherein high-velocity space debris cracked a porthole on the Chinese space station, forcing unmanned return of the Shenzhou 2
 Space Safety Crisis: China's Space Station Lacked Emergency Lifeboat — Rick Fisher — Fisher analyzes a recent spacecraft accident wherein high-velocity space debris cracked a porthole on the Chinese space station, forcing unmanned return of the Shenzhou 20 spacecraft. Fisher criticizes the Chinese space program for failing to maintain a backup "lifeboat" spacecraft attached to the station, leaving the crew vulnerable for approximately ten days without functional exit capability, a critical safety violation contradicting International Space Station protocols requiring permanent emergency evacuation capability.
1959 S
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10:45
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10:45
S8 Ep161: Russia's Financial Desperation: Failed Bond Issues and Discounted Oil — Michael Bernstam — Bernstamdocuments Russia's systematic struggle to finance its expanding budget deficit and war costs through issuance of "Panda bonds" denominated in Chinese renmin
Russia's Financial Desperation: Failed Bond Issues and Discounted Oil — Michael Bernstam — Bernstamdocuments Russia's systematic struggle to finance its expanding budget deficit and war costs through issuance of "Panda bonds" denominated in Chinese renminbi, efforts that have largely failed as Chinese investors regard Russian sovereign debt as excessively risky. Bernstam documents that Russia's oil revenue is severely constrained by Western sanctions enforcement, forcing Moscow to sell crude petroleum at approximately $40 per barrel compared to global market prices exceeding $60, while the European Union remains gridlocked regarding authorization to utilize frozen Russian assets for Ukrainian defense funding.
1906 NORTHSIDE PEKING
The John Batchelor Show is a hard news-analysis radio program on current events, world history, global politics and natural sciences. Based in New York City for two decades, the show has travelled widely to report, from the Middle East to the South Caucasus to the Arabian Peninsula and East Asia.
Ireland