<![CDATA[VICE News: Shane Smith Has Questions]]>https://www.vicenews.com/s/sshqhttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!TqZ9!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30753f3a-d025-4175-820a-866bb0e2d8d3_1280x1280.pngVICE News: Shane Smith Has Questionshttps://www.vicenews.com/s/sshqSubstackMon, 11 May 2026 03:27:57 GMT<![CDATA['I don't think the average American taxpayer got much out of Afghanistan' | John Sopko on America's Endless Wars]]>https://www.vicenews.com/p/i-dont-think-the-average-americanhttps://www.vicenews.com/p/i-dont-think-the-average-americanThu, 07 May 2026 18:02:42 GMT

After overseeing more than 700 investigations into waste, fraud, and abuse during the 20-year war in Afghanistan, John Sopko explains how America spent trillions, empowered corruption, radicalized populations, and repeated the same mistakes over and over again — while contractors, bureaucracies, and political interests kept the machine running.

Sopko warns that future wars will look nothing like Iraq or Afghanistan, and says the U.S. government is dangerously unprepared for the realities of drone warfare and artificial intelligence.

“It wasn’t just military contractors selling boots and guns and airplanes to the Afghan military, police, and government,” Sopko explained. “It was actually about 30 U.S. government agencies operating in Afghanistan.”

“You have the money going to fight the war- and that was almost $1 trillion. I don’t think the American taxpayer got much out of Afghanistan.”

This is one of the clearest insider accounts yet of how modern wars actually work, and who benefits from them. You won’t want to miss it.

]]><![CDATA[Matt Mahan | Shane Smith Has Questions]]>https://www.vicenews.com/p/matt-mahan-sshqhttps://www.vicenews.com/p/matt-mahan-sshqThu, 16 Apr 2026 18:55:00 GMT

On this week’s episode of Shane Smith Has Questions, Shane and Matt Mahan discuss the reality behind homelessness in California, why housing is so expensive, and how bureaucracy and bad incentives have made it nearly impossible to build. Mahan explains how corporate power, regulation, and political complacency have created a system that continually becomes more expensive without delivering better results.

Mahan lays out why he believes California is at an inflection point and what a more pragmatic, results-driven approach could look like if anyone is willing to take it on.

]]><![CDATA[Scott Galloway | Shane Smith Has Questions]]>https://www.vicenews.com/p/scott-galloway-sshqhttps://www.vicenews.com/p/scott-galloway-sshqThu, 26 Mar 2026 18:55:00 GMT

Scott Galloway and Shane Smith talk through why the system feels off and why more people are starting to notice now. They dive into how wealth is concentrated among America’s wealthiest, how big tech quietly shapes the rules, and the erosion of America’s middle class. It’s blunt look at where things stand and what could come next if nothing shifts.

]]><![CDATA[Ian Bremmer | Shane Smith Has Questions]]>https://www.vicenews.com/p/ian-bremmer-sshqhttps://www.vicenews.com/p/ian-bremmer-sshqThu, 19 Mar 2026 18:54:00 GMT

On this episode of Shane Smith Has Questions, Ian Bremmer explains why regime change was a fantasy; how Iran is somehow making more money since the war started; and why the real pain at the pump, at the grocery store, in your portfolio- has not even hit yet.

Bremmer maps out a world unraveling in real time. A world where drone swarms are rewriting the rules of war, disinformation is warping reality, and how miscalculations in the Strait of Hormuz have tipped the global economy into freefall.

]]><![CDATA[Amos Hochstein | Shane Smith Has Questions]]>https://www.vicenews.com/p/amos-hochstein-sshqhttps://www.vicenews.com/p/amos-hochstein-sshqThu, 12 Mar 2026 18:53:00 GMT

The Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed, and energy expert Amos Hochstein is calling this the single greatest energy crisis in global history bigger than the 1973 OPEC embargo. With roughly 10 million barrels of oil per day missing from global markets, prices have surged from $60 to nearly $100 a barrel, gas is climbing toward $4 a gallon, and major producers like Kuwait, Iraq, and Qatar have already slashed production. According to Hochstein, if the Strait remains closed for just 10 more days, the economic damage could become permanent and very difficult to reverse.

The ripple effects are already being felt everywhere. Food prices, shipping, airline tickets, and everyday goods are increasing. Meanwhile, Republican senators are privately warning the White House that if this continues, they risk losing both the House and the Senate. Hochstein breaks down the best case, worst case, and most likely scenario for how this war ends and what it means for everyday Americans already feeling the squeeze at the pump and the grocery store.

The conversation goes beyond oil- connecting the dots between energy, AI, and the new geopolitical battleground.

]]><![CDATA[Bernie Sanders | Shane Smith Has Questions]]>https://www.vicenews.com/p/bernie-sanders-sshqhttps://www.vicenews.com/p/bernie-sanders-sshqMon, 09 Mar 2026 18:52:00 GMT

During Shane’s conversation with Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Bernie warns that a handful of the world’s wealthiest men are quietly engineering the most consequential revolution in human history- one that could wipe out millions of jobs overnight and leave ordinary Americans with nothing but unanswered questions. Driverless trucks, automated warehouses, AI lawyers and accountants. Bernie poses the question- “If people do not have work, what will they do all day?”

Sanders is especially critical of the billionaire class that is fueling this transformation, highlighting how- in his view- wealth and power have never been more dangerously concentrated. Sanders believes a federal wealth tax may be the last line of defense for working people. You won’t want to miss this episode.

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