Useful Idiots with Katie Halper and Aaron Maté

Support our work and watch the Friday Free-For-All: It Doesn’t Go Well When JD Vance Tries to Define Socialism https://usefulidiotspodcast.com
Please watch and share this full interview with Muhammad Shehada.
Join us LIVE on Youtube every Monday at 10am EST for Monday Mourning, where we watch the Sunday morning news shows so that you don't have to.
Go to https://groundnews.com/useful to get 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan and unlock world-wide perspectives on the stories shaping our world.
Pre-order Aaron's new book on the Ukraine war: Their Blood, Our Bullets https://orbooks.com/catalog/their-blood-our-bullets/
Check out Quince and use our code https://quince.com/useful for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
Check out TruDiagnostic and use our code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com
Check out HomeServe at https://homeserve.com/useful
Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/IDIOTS
Check out Chilipad and use my code sleep.me/USEFUL for a great deal: https://sleep.me/useful
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This week, we’re joined by Useful Idiots fan-favorite Muhammad Shehada, the political analyst and writer from Gaza who has guided us through the mirk of corporate media propaganda since the first week of Israel’s genocide three years ago.
On the week of the third anniversary of October 7, and as Gazans prepare for their fourth winter in these unimaginable conditions, Muhammad shares what he’s heard about the conditions on the ground from his friends and family, many of whom have been killed by the Israeli military.
My late friend, Ali, my closest friend, was in a refugee camp in the center of Gaza. I asked him how it was going. And he said, ‘Well, you know what? If there’s a God, if there is a judgment day, I would ask him for one thing, one thing only.‘I would ask him to force those Israeli soldiers to go on the same adventure that I have to take every single day to find water and food. Nothing more. That is enough punishment for them. The idea of going every day, out in the open under airstrikes, under constant gunfire, and walking around desperately from one place to another, ten hours just to find water, that is enough punishment.Share
Recently, Israeli filmmakers premiered a new film called Naza in which they interview Israeli soldiers confessing to war crimes. The Israeli government has threatened the filmmakers and there have been protests at the homes of one of the filmmakers’ parents. We asked Muhammad about the film and what he makes of the backlash.
The most striking thing in that movie was how casually soldiers describe the atrocities they unleashed in Gaza, as matter-of-fact with zero remorse or contortion, nothing.And the thing that strikes you the most is that those soldiers were not providing these confessions out of guilt or shame. They were providing it out of excitement. They were very eager to brag about the formidable force that was at their disposal.I’ll give you an example. I read an article in an Israeli newspaper describing soldiers who were coming back from Gaza and falling into severe depression. They interviewed a psychiatrist in that article to provide analysis about why soldiers feel depressed when they come back.The psychiatrist didn’t say it’s because the soldiers feel guilt or shame. He said it’s because the soldiers in Gaza felt like gods. They were superhumans. They decided who lives and who dies, like they are in charge of life and death of two million people.And then that psychiatrist says that when those soldiers come back home, they feel like nothing. Nobody knows them. Nobody recognizes them. Nobody opens the door for them. There’s no prestige. And that’s what tears them down the most.That’s why a lot of people go back to serve in Gaza, because of the adrenaline, because of the excitement, because of the euphoria of feeling like a god, feeling like a superhuman. And it seems to me that those soldiers in Naza were basically craving that sensation again. They were bragging.Watch our full, extended interview with Muhammad, and please share this episode. Corporate media has ignored Gaza for most of the genocide, so we rely on voices like Muhammad’s to break the information siege.
00:00 Intro
00:37 Marco Rubio claims US "would never violate another country's sovereignty"
03:43 Mike Johnson won't take any blame for GOP disaster in midterms
05:49 Muhammad Shehada gives an update on 3 years of genocide
34:39 Debunking Israel's "journalists are Hamas" list
38:26 Israeli app allows spyware to take over phone
53:46 Why former IDF soldiers WILLINGLY CONFESS to crimes in Naza film

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Quince and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
* Check out TruDiagnostic and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Go to https://groundnews.com/useful to get 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan and unlock world-wide perspectives on the stories shaping our world.
Support Two Pro-Palestinian Activists Targeted by ICE: https://chuffed.org/project/200834-support-deported-activists?utm_campaign=campaign_share&utm_id=01a09598-a023-794c-aa44-bfe0371f4d89&pdm=twitter
Pre-order Aaron's new book on the Ukraine war: Their Blood, Our Bullets https://orbooks.com/catalog/their-blood-our-bullets/
Check out Quince and use our code https://quince.com/useful for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
Check out TruDiagnostic and use our code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com
Check out HomeServe at https://homeserve.com/useful
Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/IDIOTS
Check out Chilipad and use my code sleep.me/USEFUL for a great deal: https://sleep.me/useful
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Support our work and get the ad-free, extended interview with Momodou Taal and Chris Godshall: https://www.usefulidiotspodcast.com/p/bombshell-cornell-suspends-pro-palestine?r=je5va&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Watch the Friday Free-For-All: MAGA Congressman Warns that Belligerent, Religious Army is Planning to Destroy the Middle East https://www.usefulidiotspodcast.com/p/maga-congressman-warns-that-belligerent?r=je5va&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Join us LIVE on Youtube every Monday at 10am EST for Monday Mourning, where we watch the Sunday morning news shows so that you don't have to.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Quince and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
* Check out TruDiagnostic and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Go to https://groundnews.com/useful to get 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan and unlock world-wide perspectives on the stories shaping our world.
Support Two Pro-Palestinian Activists Targeted by ICE: https://chuffed.org/project/200834-support-deported-activists?utm_campaign=campaign_share&utm_id=01a09598-a023-794c-aa44-bfe0371f4d89&pdm=twitter
Pre-order Aaron's new book on the Ukraine war: Their Blood, Our Bullets https://orbooks.com/catalog/their-blood-our-bullets/
Check out Quince and use our code https://quince.com/useful for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
Check out TruDiagnostic and use our code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com
Check out HomeServe at https://homeserve.com/useful
Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/IDIOTS
Check out Chilipad and use my code sleep.me/USEFUL for a great deal: https://sleep.me/useful
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Support our work and get the ad-free, extended interview with Momodou Taal and Chris Godshall: https://www.usefulidiotspodcast.com/p/bombshell-cornell-suspends-pro-palestine?r=je5va&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Watch the Friday Free-For-All: MAGA Congressman Warns that Belligerent, Religious Army is Planning to Destroy the Middle East https://www.usefulidiotspodcast.com/p/maga-congressman-warns-that-belligerent?r=je5va&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Join us LIVE on Youtube every Monday at 10am EST for Monday Mourning, where we watch the Sunday morning news shows so that you don't have to.
A New York prosecutor has reopened a sexual assault investigation at Cornell University after a woman alleged she’d been drugged, assaulted and gang raped by seven former and current members of the Chi Phi fraternity in 2024. The allegations came in a lawsuit filed this month by a woman identified only as “Jane Doe,” who says campus officials and law enforcement failed to take her accusations seriously.
None of the alleged attackers have been arrested.
To discuss this case, we’re speaking with someone whose case Cornell DID take seriously:
Momodou Taal is a Ph.D. student at Cornell University who was suspended twice for joining a demonstration calling on Cornell to divest from Israel and faced deportation from the US. As a result, he left the US but was arrested and detained by the UK government under a law that allows police to question anyone they suspect to be involved in “current, emerging and future terrorist activity.”
We speak with Momodou and his lawyer, Chris Godshall, about why Cornell prosecuted the crime of peaceful protest against Israel with such intensity while covering for the seven students accused of rape.
Subscribe to watch the extended interview with Momodou and Chris where we discuss Israel’s power over Cornell, the weaponization of antisemitism, and the current state of conversation between Zionist and anti-Zionist students on campus.
You’ll also get our Friday Free-for-All: MAGA Congressman Warns that Belligerent, Religious Army is Planning to Destroy the Middle East

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Quince and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
* Check out TruDiagnostic and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Go to https://groundnews.com/useful to get 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan and unlock world-wide perspectives on the stories shaping our world.
Join Katie in NYC on Monday 9.28 at the SAY PALESTINE: Book Launch with Assal Rad https://www.eventbrite.com/e/say-palestine-book-launch-with-assal-rad-tickets-2001430016055?aff=oddtdtcreator
Pre-order Aaron's new book on the Ukraine war: Their Blood, Our Bullets https://orbooks.com/catalog/their-blood-our-bullets/
Check out Quince and use our code https://quince.com/useful for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
Check out TruDiagnostic and use our code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com
Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/IDIOTS
Check out Chilipad and use my code sleep.me/USEFUL for a great deal: https://sleep.me/useful
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Support our work and get the extended interview with Leonid Ragozin: https://open.substack.com/pub/usefulidiots/p/extended-interview-anti-putin-russian?r=je5va&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
Watch the Friday Free-For-All: Beware Iran! The Colony of Reptile Quarterback Hookers! https://usefulidiotspodcast.com
Join us LIVE on Youtube every Monday at 10am EST for Monday Mourning, where we watch the Sunday morning news shows so that you don't have to.

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Quince and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
* Check out TruDiagnostic and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Go to https://groundnews.com/useful to get 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan and unlock world-wide perspectives on the stories shaping our world.
Join Katie in NYC on Monday 9.28 at the SAY PALESTINE: Book Launch with Assal Rad https://www.eventbrite.com/e/say-palestine-book-launch-with-assal-rad-tickets-2001430016055?aff=oddtdtcreator
Pre-order Aaron's new book on the Ukraine war: Their Blood, Our Bullets https://orbooks.com/catalog/their-blood-our-bullets/
Check out Quince and use our code https://quince.com/useful for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
Check out TruDiagnostic and use our code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com
Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com/IDIOTS
Check out Chilipad and use my code sleep.me/USEFUL for a great deal: https://sleep.me/useful
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Support our work and get the extended interview with Leonid Ragozin: https://open.substack.com/pub/usefulidiots/p/extended-interview-anti-putin-russian?r=je5va&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
Watch the Friday Free-For-All: Beware Iran! The Colony of Reptile Quarterback Hookers! https://usefulidiotspodcast.com
Join us LIVE on Youtube every Monday at 10am EST for Monday Mourning, where we watch the Sunday morning news shows so that you don't have to.
An important update on the Ukraine Proxy War came this week with the Russian parliamentary elections.
Contrary to widespread predictions that Vladimir Putin’s days are numbered as a result of prolonged war, his party, United Russia, once again won a supermajority. It’s unclear how much rigging occurred to alter the vote, along with banning of opposition parties, but a sizable turnout gave Putin and the war an endorsement for now, much to the disappointment of neocons globally.
To discuss these pivotal elections, we spoke with veteran Russian journalist Leonid Ragozin. Ragozin is very critical of Putin and the Russian government, but also critical of all the western chauvinism directed toward his country and opposes NATO and the US’s murderous proxy war and sanctions on Russia.
And he explains that the real country in trouble is Ukraine:
Subscribe to keep reading and get the full, hour-long interview with Leonid Ragozin.
00:00 Intro
01:32 Netanyahu jumps on the Hasan Piker craze
07:11 NYC hosts former Al-Qaeda chief
08:58 Leonid Ragozin interview
15:36 Were Russian elections legit?
21:09 Does Putin have support in Russia?
24:30 Zelensky threatens Russia
46:49 Former Zelensky official sounds the alarm

Our Sponsors:
* Check out Quince and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.quince.com
* Check out TruDiagnostic and use my code USEFUL for a great deal: https://www.trudiagnostic.com

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy