Richard Wolff & Michael Hudson: Backfire: How US Pressure Built a Stronger Iran
Summary
The episode analyzes the escalating conflict in Yemen, where Houthi advances threaten Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea access and expose the US military’s inability to protect regional allies. Hosts discuss how the US is maintaining an unstable status quo to avoid admitting defeat, while Trump’s rhetoric masks a lack of strategic options. The conversation connects these events to the broader collapse of Western hegemony, arguing that the US is reverting to colonial rent-extraction models, exemplified by its recent deal with Venezuela.
Topics discussed
Sponsors: Perk and Serval
Introduction and guest welcome
Houthi control of Bab el-Mandeb and Red Sea
US security failures and Trump's Iran strategy
Iran-China trade and US military exhaustion
US as 'paper dinosaur' and post-Arab Spring chaos
Ukraine ceasefire parallels and missile depletion
Iran's attrition strategy and nuclear myth
Maintaining status quo and voter bribery
Houthi expansion and regional reactions
Oil prices and Saudi military limitations
Yemeni agency and colonial legacy
US as agent of chaos and media control
Sponsors: Perk and Medafynil
Western control vs. Global South unity
Historical context of European colonialism
WWII casualties and US imperial inheritance
European decline and US mismanagement
Sponsor: Liquid IV
German elections and empire disintegration
Venezuela oil deal and rent extraction
Tribute systems and Saudi awareness
Sponsors: Perk and Serval
Listen ad-free on Castria