Empire, Republic and Shadow Wars

Empire, Republic and Shadow Wars

Empire, Republic & Shadow Wars connects the battles you know to the battles you’re not supposed to notice. I’m Shawn—teacher and historian (B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. coursework in U.S. military history & empire). You’ll still get cinematic arcs on the Pacific War and Vietnam—and we’ll dive into the shadow wars: the war on terror, the war on drugs, covert finance, BCCI, and alleged/Documented intersections of intelligence services and the drug trade. We follow the paper trails, declassified files, and institutional incentives that move power.

Episodes

April 29, 2026 62 mins

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Episode 6 of our mini season "The Great Unraveling" is finally here. Over the past five episodes, we've traced how American political discourse became weaponized, how both parties learned to delegitimize elections, how political violence gets selectively remembered, how two incompatible constitutional orders came to govern American life, and how radical ideas captured elite institutions. Today we&apos...

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Over the past four episodes, we've traced how American political discourse became weaponized, how both parties learned to delegitimize elections, how political violence gets selectively remembered, and how two incompatible constitutional orders came to govern American life simultaneously. Today we're exploring how this transformation happened—not just through laws and court decisions, but through a systema...

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November 13, 2025 54 mins

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Civil rights vs. civil liberties—what happens when rights collide? Today we discuss. 

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October 27, 2025 41 mins

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Over the past two episodes, we've traced how American political discourse became weaponized decades before Trump, and how both parties learned to delegitimize elections they don't win. Today we're examining something even more fundamental: how Americans think about political violence.

The story we tell ourselves about political violence in America goes something like this: We're a peaceful democra...

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September 29, 2025 64 mins

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Today we dive into the election of 2000. This is when both parties learned to delegitimize elections they don't win. 


Want to support the show and gain access to bonus episodes? Follow the link below:

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1169162/supporters/new

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September 21, 2025 30 mins

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We interrupt season 4 to bring you a special mini series (never fear I already have several WWII episodes written and one is already recorded). This series is based on the events of September 10, 2025, and the aftermath of that day. The purpose is to look into how the US got to this point and hopefully find a way for us to get out of it. I hope you all find it informative. 

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August 12, 2025 26 mins

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This is the American History Podcast, Season 4, Episode 37. I'm your host, Shawn, and welcome to "The Track of Ghosts" - the second of four episodes on the New Guinea Campaign.

Questions: email shawnwarswick@gmail.com 

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Guess who's back? Yep. We have a new WWII episode. I wasn't sure this day would arrive, but it has. In this episode we begin a four part look at one of the forgotten aspects of WWII in the Pacific. 

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July 12, 2025 34 mins

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Today we have a special treat. Author Samuel Marquis joins the show to discuss his latest book, "Captain Kidd: A True Story of Treasure and Betrayal." This is a fantastic book, and one I know you'll love. You can purchase it on Amazon or at your local bookseller, including Barnes and Noble. 



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February 28, 2025 30 mins

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We are getting close to the conclusion of the series.

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February 22, 2025 27 mins

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Finally we delve into the events of the year 1983. 

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title says it all. In the 1970s it seemed like the United States was on the decline, but the story wasn't over. 

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We continue with Jimmy Carter and the Cold War. 

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The title sort of says it all. Enjoy

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Welcome back to 1983: The Year the World Almost Ended. In this episode, or miniseries of episodes within the main series, I want to take a look at the Worker’s state, specifically the Soviet Union, but also some of the “workers paradises” that were built in Eastern Europe in the aftermath of World War II. 

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Another bonus episode from our now discontinued Patreon. Enjoy

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This bonus episode covers the Cold War in the 1960s

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This is a bonus episode introducing "1983" which was a pattern only show about how the world almost ended in 1983 and none of us really knew it. 

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