Jeffrey Sachs: The Psychotic Iran War | Judaism’s “Chosen People” Problem | This Ends How?

About this episode

Economist Jeffrey Sachs discusses the escalating conflicts in the world, including the war with Iran and the crisis in the Middle East, while exploring the deeper ideological and religious forces at play.

In this wide-ranging conversation, economist and public intellectual Jeffrey Sachs discusses the rapidly escalating conflicts shaping today’s world—from the war with Iran and the crisis in the Middle East to the ongoing confrontation in Ukraine. We explore the deeper forces driving these conflicts, including the role of ideology, religion, and power in shaping modern geopolitics. Sachs also weighs in on controversial questions surrounding Zionism, debates about the idea of “chosenness” in Judaism, and how religious identity and historical narratives influence political decision-making. The discussion also touches on elite power networks, intelligence agencies, and lingering questions surrounding figures like Jeffrey Epstein and the shadowy intersections of influence, politics, and global strategy.Looking back over his extraordinary career advising governments during the economic transitions of Bolivia, Poland, and the former Soviet Union, Sachs reflects on the experiences that shaped his worldview. Once deeply embedded within the global policy establishment, he explains how decades of witnessing power up close—from Washington to Moscow—gradually led him to question the…

People in this episode

Host: Jay Shapiro

Guest: Jeffrey Sachs

Topics covered

• geopolitics
• conflict
• religion
• power dynamics
• Zionism
• foreign policy

Keywords

• Iran
• Ukraine
• Zionism
• Judaism
• foreign policy
• geopolitics
• power
• conflict
• Jeffrey Sachs

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Judaism, Zionism

Places: Iran, Ukraine, Bolivia, Poland, Soviet Union

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