On this week's show, Leo discusses George W. Bush's speech to the nation about his troop surge plan.

New Capital Show (January 11, 2007)

On this week's show, The New Capital hosts investor, tycoon, philosopher, philanthropist, and Bush-basher George Soros just prior to his appearance in Houston at The Progressive Forum.  Soros' new book, The Age of Fallability, is a meditation on "what's wrong with America" through the lens of Soros' lifelong philosophical "reflexivity" framework.  In this framework, absolute truth does not exist, reality difficult to discern, and an individual's thoughts themselves play an active role in the creation of realities.  What does any of this have to do with America and American politics?  Tune in to find out. 

In Houston tonight, expect Soros to focus on the "war on terror," the main topic in his new book.  Soros echoes a frequent criticism: a war on an abstract concept, i.e., "terror," is untenable.  You can make war on an actual enemy, but you must adopt programs to deal with socio-economic phenomena.  To set the stage for Soros on today's show, I'll discuss the best piece I've read on how to "close out" the Bush War on Terror, Declaring Victory" by James Fallows, Bush's latest move with al Qaeda prisoners, and American officials in Iraq who are figuring it out.  As elections approach, and the Republican scare machine cranks up, it is vital that the American public not knee jerk into November, but instead carefully consider nuanced arguments about how best to attain security.

LISTEN: New Capital Show (September 7, 2006)

This week, and in light of the Israeli/Hezbollah war, we'll discuss war.  Is war ever just?  Are there rules of war?  If so, what are they?  What happens if they are violated?  Are there ever any beneficial outcomes from war?  These questions and more, including these items:

• In environmental news, Yao Ming swears off shark fin soup, and Lebanon's environment is another casualty of war
• In politics, a conservative pastor breaks ranks with the Republican Party - and watches his congregation shrink, Republicans put the Green Party in business in Pennsylvania, and Iraqi kidnappers reach out and touch some Americans
• In science, intelligent design goes down to defeat in - of all places - Kansas
• And in energy, some hungry big money flows into alternative energy, Vail Resorts goes wind power, Detroit repeats its sorry history, and California hits speed bumps trying to kick oil

My thanks also to Brandt Mannchen of the Sierra Club for taking me Tuesday on my first ever tour of The Big Thicket an hour northeast of Houston.  Little remains of the original forest that greeted settlers in the 1800's, but what does made me "pine" for what was lost: ancient, towering trees of an astonishing variety rarely seen in one place - beech, native magnolia, cypress, cedar, oak, sycamore and of course, pine, all commingling in a quasi-rain forest we should be proud to protect in Houston's backyard.  I encourage you to get involved with not only saving, but expanding the Thicket.  Contact Brandt to find out how you can help.

LISTEN: New Capital Show (August 3, 2006)