What Iran teaches us about why wars start
Summary
Hosts Waylon Wong and Darian Woods interview economist Chris Blattman to explore why countries go to war despite the high costs. Blattman identifies five drivers of conflict: leader incentives, intangible values, uncertainty, commitment problems, and misperceptions. He contrasts short skirmishes, like the recent U.S.-Iran clashes, with prolonged wars in Ukraine and Gaza, noting that most historical conflicts are brief.
Topics discussed
Intro: US-Iran conflict and historical war lengths
Sponsors: Sattva mattresses and Olly supplements
Chris Blattman's background and the high costs of war
Why countries fight: Skirmishes vs. all-out war
Reasons for war: Leader incentives and ideology
Reasons for war: Uncertainty and misjudgment
Reasons for war: Commitment problems and the Thucydides Trap
Reasons for war: Misperceptions and optimistic outlook
Outro: The Indicator newsletter launch
Sponsors: Charles Schwab and Capella University
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