Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Robert Wright debates the uses and misuses of American military power with Shadi Hamid, author of the new book The Case for American Power.
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Exclusive Overtime discussion: nonzero.org/p/is-american-might-right-robert-wright
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0:00 Teaser
1:01 Shadi’s path to his new book, The Case for American Power
9:51 George W. Bush’s “Freedom Agenda”
13:19 Does America’s role in Gaza undermine Shadi’s case?
16:47 Shadi’s case for US moral supremacy
23:36 What does China want?
34:19 What justifies military intervention?
40:32 Bob: International law is the answer
51:25 Heading to Overtime
Discussed in Overtime:
More on Chinese aspirations.
America, f—k yea?
How the Iraq war propelled Donald Trump’s rise.
Moscow’s view of American behavior.
Could the US have shaped a better Putin path?
Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Shadi Hamid (The Washington Post, Wisdom of Crowds, The Case for American Power). Recorded October 29, 2025.
Twitter: twitter.com/NonzeroPods
Shadi’s podcast: https://wisdomofcrowds.live/podcast
Robert Wright debates the uses and misuses of American military power with Shadi Hamid, author of the new book The Case for American Power.
Subscribe to The NonZero Newsletter at: nonzero.org/subscribe
Exclusive Overtime discussion: nonzero.org/p/is-american-might-right-robert-wright
Join NonZero's newly established Discord server: discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMF
0:00 Teaser
1:01 Shadi’s path to his new book, The Case for American Power
9:51 George W. Bush’s “Freedom Agenda”
13:19 Does America’s role in Gaza undermine Shadi’s case?
16:47 Shadi’s case for US moral supremacy
23:36 What does China want?
34:19 What justifies military intervention?
40:32 Bob: International law is the answer
51:25 Heading to Overtime
Discussed in Overtime:
More on Chinese aspirations.
America, f—k yea?
How the Iraq war propelled Donald Trump’s rise.
Moscow’s view of American behavior.
Could the US have shaped a better Putin path?
Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Shadi Hamid (The Washington Post, Wisdom of Crowds, The Case for American Power). Recorded October 29, 2025.
Twitter: twitter.com/NonzeroPods
Shadi’s podcast: https://wisdomofcrowds.live/podcast
