Provoked with Darryl Cooper and Scott Horton

EP:64 - The Permanent Crisis

October 4, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

EP:64 - The Permanent Crisis

The hosts open with a darkly funny admission: they're relieved America lost its war with Iran. Not because they want American servicemen hurt, but because losing to a weaker opponent might finally teach the Pentagon something that decades of spin-doctored defeats in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan could not. "If we had gone in and it turned out that the Iranian regime just was that fragile and we knocked them out that first day and everything fell apart and we just felt like great big winners," Cooper says, "we might be at war with China over Taiwan in five years." The silver lining of humiliation, he suggests, is that it limits future ambition.

Losing wars you can't spin

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What you'll learn

1 (00:10) **Show Open & Host Banter** - Darryl and Scott joke about computer problems, Zoom conflicts, and chopping firewood
2 (03:24) **Podcast Success & Audiobook Struggles** - Scott's five-and-a-half-hour episode on early 1919 gets over 400,000 downloads; they discuss the difficulty of recording audiobooks
3 (06:01) **Ad Read: Expat Money Summit** - Scott promotes the Expat Money Summit for investing in foreign properties, specializing in Latin America
4 (06:42) **Hijack Plot Skepticism** - The hosts discuss a reported near-9/11 hijacking plot, expressing deep skepticism about the official narrative
5 (10:42) **US Withdrawal from Iraq & MAGA Cope** - The hosts analyze the US withdrawal from Iraq and the coping mechanisms of Trump supporters
6 (15:42) **Silver Lining of Losing** - The hosts argue that losing the war in Iraq is a long-term good because it humbles the US and prevents overconfidence
7 (19:27) **Ad Read: Expat Money & Agorist Tax Advice** - Scott repeats the Expat Money pitch and introduces Matt Cersley for tax advice

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

In this episode, we discuss U.S. military involvement in the Middle East, including the withdrawal from Iraq and debates over American power in the region. We also discuss false flag claims, security fears, Netanyahu, Israeli politics, Gaza, and allegations about ignored warnings before October 7.

Later, we compare cult behavior with political movements and how groups maintain belief despite failure. We finish with broader international tensions involving Cuba, Hezbollah, Kaliningrad, NATO, Russia, and the risk of nuclear war.

Chapters:

00:39 Computer Woes and War Updates

05:46 Sponsor Break and Agenda

06:41 The Hijack Plot Debate

10:42 Iraq Withdrawal and Empire

19:25 Expat Money and Tax Advice

21:20 Viewer Comments and Coffee

23:51 Skepticism on the Plane Story

25:03 Netanyahu and Hidden Warnings

29:10 Terrorists Ruin Everything

30:25 Carrier Moves and Cuba Rumors

32:01 Melanoma Scare and Ugly Stories