This Is (Not) Sparta!
Angry Planet9 Helmi 2019

This Is (Not) Sparta!

When you hear the word Sparta, there’s an immediate association with war and the military. Of the Greek City States, it’s the one most associated with battle. Spartan men were expected to be warriors and their society was geared almost entirely toward training for war. For generations, military leaders have drawn inspiration from Sparta.


Much of the romance around Sparta centers Around the battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE, where the Persian Empire crushed a small and ill-equipped collection of elite soldiers. Since then, historians, propagandists, Hollywood, and the American military have turned Sparta’s epic defeat at the gates of fire into a myth of slavery vs freedom, east vs west, and democracy vs despotism. But the thing is … a lot of what hear about the Spartans is bullshit, the truth is more complicated.


Here to help us unpack modern day mythos around Sparta is Pauline Kaurin. Kaurin is the Chair of Military Ethics at the US Naval War College and the author of The Warrior, Military Ethics and Contemporary Warfare: Achilles Goes Asymmetrical.


Disclaimer: Pauline Kaurin's opinions are her own and do not reflect the opinions or policy of the US Naval War College.


You can listen to War College on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play or follow our RSS directly. Our website is warcollegepodcast.com. You can reach us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/warcollegepodcast/; and on Twitter: @War_College.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jaksot(493)

America’s Favorite Gunfighters and the Birth of the Old West

America’s Favorite Gunfighters and the Birth of the Old West

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comAmerica loves the Western. Stories about frontier towns, outlaws and lawmen, and—most of all—killing. How did the myth and legend of...

7 Kesä 202558min

The Horror of AI Generals Making Command Decisions

The Horror of AI Generals Making Command Decisions

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comPalantir, Anduril and a suite of other Tolkien-inspired tech nightmares want to integrate artificial intelligence into every aspect ...

28 Touko 202556min

America’s Pivot to the Pacific

America’s Pivot to the Pacific

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comThe Pentagon has been trying to pivot to the Pacific for years now. Under President Donald Trump 2.0, who is focused on China, it ju...

23 Touko 20251h 15min

India and Pakistan: Nuclear Neighbors on the Brink

India and Pakistan: Nuclear Neighbors on the Brink

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comRecorded 5/7/25India and Pakistan have been unhappy neighbors since 1947 and Britain’s decolonization of the subcontinent. They’ve f...

10 Touko 202559min

Donald Trump Wants to Divide Up the World With His ‘Friends’

Donald Trump Wants to Divide Up the World With His ‘Friends’

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comGreat power competition has gotten old for President Donald Trump—never one for a fair fight. He’s looking for a little great power ...

2 Touko 202556min

Why An Empire Eats

Why An Empire Eats

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comConquest is back baby! Eastern Europe, Taiwan, Greenland, Canada? It’s all on the table—and maybe up for grabs. Here to help us sort...

25 Huhti 202559min

Erdogan’s Path to Pure Authoritarianism

Erdogan’s Path to Pure Authoritarianism

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comTurkey’s president has grabbed a bit more power for himself with the recent arrest of the mayor of Istanbul. The mayor was thought t...

15 Huhti 20251h 1min

Immigration Policy As Defense Policy

Immigration Policy As Defense Policy

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.comSpecial for our international listeners, did you know you can now buy a pathway to U.S. citizenship for the low, low price of $5 mil...

11 Huhti 202558min

Suosittua kategoriassa Politiikka ja uutiset

aikalisa
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
tervo-halme
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
politiikan-puskaradio
rss-podme-livebox
viisupodi
et-sa-noin-voi-sanoo-esittaa
rss-asiastudio
otetaan-yhdet
rikosmyytit
the-ulkopolitist
rss-mina-ukkola
linda-maria
radio-antro
rss-vaalirankkurit-podcast
rss-merja-mahkan-rahat
popcorn-with-esko
rss-polikulaari-humanisti-vastaa-ja-muut-ts-podcastit
rss-50100-podcast