#190 April 26th, 2021 [Slow Burn]

In 2003, American President and war-profiteer, George W. Bush ordered the United States to invade Iraq without provocation and under the auspices of liberation. As it turns out, there was more to it than that and it wasn't all just about oil. Also, the story actually starts in the '90s.

Nearly a generation later Slow Burn returns to connect the dots that stretch across 4 Presidencies, the longstanding ethnic conflicts in Iraq, and the life of the ever-adaptable Ahmed Chalabi.

And as the story goes, everything changed when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait: the once-common interests of Iraq and the United States diverged and American foreign policy was free to "evolve".

In the summer of 1990 came Operation Desert Storm and Chalabi's latest opportunity to organize an Iraqi coup attempt designed to reinstate Shia rule through what he had idealized and brokered as democracy. Oh – He was also motivated by the chance at returning to his homeland to become Prime Minister of Iraq.

Despite it all, the lens of history has changed the perception of the Iraq war. Initially, the vast majority of politicians and the public backed the invasion. Now, it is largely considered a complicated failure.

The Iraq War started 18 years ago and it takes an effort to really make sense of it all. This story may be familiar at first glance but the underlying narratives that touch on the people and players involved are why we can't help but be drawn in by Slow Burn.

Have a listen and let us know what you think,

Stephen and EvanYour Podcast Delivery crew

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