The Persian Gulf War: Explained & Deconstructed
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 พ.ค. 2024
- In 1990, Saddam Hussein's Iraq invaded its neighbor, Kuwait. Several months later an American-led military coalition waged a brief war to reverse the invasion. Though greatly overshadowed by subsequent events, especially the 2003 Iraq War, the 1990-91 Persian Gulf War remains a pivot point of recent world history. In this video, we'll go very deep to explain the context, background, causes, political issues, and aftermath of this highly important conflict, and why it still matters.
My Book, The 50 Most Important Things in History: www.amazon.com/dp/B0C6YRTMXF
My website: www.seanmunger.com
My Ko-fi: Ko-fi.com/seanmunger
My blog: gardenofmemory.net/
Major sources for this video:
The Gulf War Reader by Micah L. Sifry & Christopher Cirf (New York: Times Books, 1991)
Gulf War: The Complete History by Thomas Houlahan (New London, NH: Schrenker Military Pub., 1999)
The Gulf War: Overreaction & Excessiveness by Hassan A. El-Najjar (Dalton, GA: Amazone Press, 2001)
Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush (New York: Random House, 2015)
House of Bush, House of Saud by Craig Unger (New York: Scribner, 2004)
Third Graders at War by Felix G. (Dog Ear Publishing, LLC, 2011)
Miscellaneous documents from the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library & Museum (especially documents related to global warming): bush41library.tamu.edu/
Extensive bibliography of sources on the Persian Gulf War, compiled by a noted historian:
edmoise.sites.clemson.edu/ira...
Chapters:
00:00-11:17: The Invasion (& Introduction)
11:17-26:28: Background I - The Middle East
26:28-40:27: Background II - Saddam
40:27-52:13: Background III - Bush
52:13-1:00:01: The Big Picture
1:00:01-1:06:47: The Occupation of Kuwait
1:06:47-1:15:08: The Diplomatic Game
1:15:08-1:27:19: Politics
1:27:19-1:39:14: The War
1:39:14-1:45:40: The Spin
1:45:40-1:57:00: Aftermath I - Saddam on the Ropes
1:57:00-2:08:26: Aftermath II - The Environment
2:08:26-2:15:56: Aftermath III - The Political Tail
2:15:56-2:21:32: An Ominous Follow-Up
2:21:32-2:28:25: What Happened to Everyone
2:28:25-2:31:59: Conclusion
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Saddam couldn't have picked a worse time to invade Kuwait. With the Soviet union failing, the US military had a massive army ready to fight the Soviets standing around with nothing to do. Great job Sodom
I was in Turkiye as a US civilian at the time. I remember hearing from military rank and file, just before that, how boring it was not to have a war, and how difficult it was to get military promotions in peace time. They were definitely ready for it.
Highway of death was not a war crime. Bombing an enemy column of tanks and stolen goods from Kuwait is not a war crime. It may not be pretty, but neither is war in general. Let's not forget who the initiator was in this war.
My father was a soldier in the late Soviet-Afghan War (Mujahideen). My uncle was in the coalition in the Gulf War. I was deployed in Iraq from 2005-9. I am a first generation Afghan-American Kurd. History is far more nuanced than what the average textbook or what the _”History Channel”_ would have you believe.
Absolutely right!
I was confused until I read the "Kurd" part then everything made sense.
Pretty remarkable family history, thanks for sharing.
Criminally underrated channel. Easily some of the most informative historical information on TH-cam.
Criminally?
@@AviViljoen Its almost a crime that not more people know this channel, because it is very informative and it should be the norm, not exception.
Word. Stumbled upon it last week and watched to Iran Contra affair. Great stuff, unbelievable what they got away with
@@mikeking1948same vid brought me here too. Agree I can't believe this isn't more popular. Amazingly informative
@@mikeking1948I'm getting ready to watch that one next after this I love how sean breaks everything down this is the kind of history that I miss I do not love revisionist history revisionist history pisses me off this is real history this is true history right here and that is the kind of history that I love
I’m convinced this guy’s a robot. There’s just no way he just keeps churning out quality this quickly!
LOL, I've worked on almost nothing else for the past 3 weeks!
As a Persian Gulf War Veteran, I'd like to thank you for your deep dive into this subject. As you mentioned, there are plenty of "war map" and "timeline" coverage of the war, but there was pretty much no in-depth source covering all of the mechanics that brought us to the war, through the war, and the aftermath (at least not in one collection, such as your video). For me, you've been able to answer a lot of questions, confirm some suspicions, and add a lot of clarity. I'm especially grateful that you included mention of Gulf War Syndrome and it's likely connection with burn pits, depleted uranium, pesticides, and those (supposedly voluntary) PB pills. Thank you for this video. And for those watching and reading along, it's easy to criticize service members in hindsight. But you have to remember- a lot of us were 18-22 year old kids who joined the military in peacetime, mostly as an escape from declining wages once the excess of the 80s was winding down. I was told I was heading to the middle east directly after my MOS school, shortly after boot camp- and STILL couldn't find places like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, or Kuwait on a map. Everything was propaganda- we were going to protect the people of Saudi Arabia, and then to "free the innocent people of Kuwait." Before all this, we were all in high school- we were cool 80s kids. We didn't pay much attention to the news. Had we, we might have questioned why we were suddenly going to war with a country that we had recently supported. We didn't have the Internet to inform us of these things like kids have now. It does little good to judge young people of that era with the lens of today.
The pills. I remember people asking what they were, who made it, is it tested, etc. and told 'Dont matter, you're taking it'.
I definitely remember being wound up like a $20 Rolex to storm Normandy and save the world from Hitler 2. Then processing prisoners with their uniforms rotting off their bodies, like castaways, after surrendering entire companies for a MRE.
Oh and *don't* forget Vadering up 5 times a day. Good... times.
I am sorry that this "money" war happened and you were sucked into it. Those pills, burning trash, ptsd everything people went through is well put in this video and your comment brings additional point of view on all of it... As a younger person who is alive in "internet" aka "connected" world i wonder how/if a conflict like this happened today... and if it indeed happen, how long would it last.
To be fair in 1991 you fought against country that invaded another country, and not just you there were lot of countries in the coalition and even UN backed it up, excluding war crimes like highway of death (btw ironic how most war crimes US did in wars was done by the airforce) it was a mostly a quick and clean operation, unlike 2003 invasion of Iraq that was illegal and based on false pretenses.
Thank you for this comment! It was very insightful and I will be more empathetic when talking about veterans of this age, hope you can use this same empathy with us young folk too, we’re just trying to figure everything out like you did and times seem to be more ahead of us than with us
Thank you for your service Sir, and to all those who served.
I'm a veteran of Desert Shield/Storm. I'm one of the 250,000 Gulf War Syndrome vets, and have struggled my entire adult life with it. It would be nice if you did a deep delve into it. If you read the book Gassed in the Gulf you would have a really good foundation to build on. If you consider us 250,000 Gulf War vets, then the Gulf War produced more casualties than any other conflict since WWII, significantly exceeding Korea & Afghanistan and slightly edging out Vietnam. Obviously, not in deaths, just total casualties. Taking care of all these poisoned vets has been a huge financial burden for taxpayers - so I hope the cheap oil was worth it.
I'm a persion war vet too,was on highway of death, war crimes, all I sore was men in Iraq military uniforms, actually buried some,as far as a financial burden, just read, there giving all these illegals 2.200$,a month,pretty sad,they will take care of them before vets,I know I was gassed ,counted over 50 wells burning were we stayed,I think the burning oil was major problem, I said it from day one,for me,I feel great 63ys old,in best shape of my life,so far,so good. Lol
I had a supervisor who was a gulf War veteran. He said they were told to take white pills which they had no idea what they were. Just that they would protect them from Saddam's gas attack. Come to find out later he and so many others were given anthrax in pill form.
The issue with the "no blood for oil" protests is that it ignores the fact that the Kuwaitis were bleeding regardless of US involvement. What they were really saying is "No American blood for oil".
if i weren’t broke man… i cant like the videos on this channel enough. another incredible video dr. munger.
Jesus Christ this was long but probably the most well informed in depth historical video of the Gulf War I've ever seen on youtube.
Bravo Sir! This was well done.
Here's my little contribution to this bit of history. It was obviously not mentioned because the list itself is very extensive, but as an Argentine myself I'd like to mention a the participation of Argentina in the Gulf War which sticks like a sore thumb as one of two Latin American countries to take part of the Coalition (the other one being Honduras).
It was a bold, controversial and very unpopular political move by our then president Carlos Menem and our country's first (and to this day, most recent) military involvement since the Falklands/Malvinas War. It was all part of his plan to reignite and improve diplomatic relationships with the US and Europe (and pretty much everyone in NATO), the beginning of what is popularly referred to as the "carnal relationships" with the United States.
Around 500 troops, a destroyer, 2 frigates, 1 cargo ship, 2 helicopters (one destroyed) and 2 cargo planes were deployed to aid on the effort, under the name of Operation Bishop. The move had enough positive reaction by the big wigs at Washington that it led to the designation of Argentina as a Major Non-NATO Ally country.
More importantly, however, and more tragically as well, Argentina's involvement on the Gulf War is often considered to be one of the main reasons behind the 1992 terrorist attack on the Embassy of Israel in Buenos Aires and the 1994 attack to the Argentine-Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA in Spanish) which left 22 and 85 dead respectively. To date, the only terrorist attacks carried out in our soil by a foreign actor. Carlos Memem was son of Syrian immigrants and a Sunni Muslim-turned-Catholic, so there was a cultural aspect to it as well. To this day, no one has faced justice for these attacks.
It really amazes me how such a minuscule and overall irrelevant aspect of such a conflict can actually have so many repercussions that most people aren't even aware of.
My uncle who was a part of the force deployed for the liberation of Kuwait, he was shocked at the brutality and carnage he found as the road leading into Kuwait was lined with Kuwaiti citizens hanging from poles, and as the Iraqi army was fleeing the city with vehicles filled with Gold, Electronics, stacks of cash, were carpet bombed from above with no way to escape the US Aircraft sent to mow down the fleeing Larsenists. He said seeing the level of burning bodies and the smell forever changed him. His PTSD was off the charts, and he was a Gunnery Sargent and one of the toughest guys I ever knew. When he cane back he really struggled and never really recovered. God protect our veterans and current military and give them peace.
One point I would like to make, bombing retreating soldiers is not a war crime, bombing civilians and surrendering soldiers would have been. The troops on the "highway of death" were not surrendering, they were repositioning so they could put up a fight elsewhere. The claim that it is a war crime is just plain false. Retreating soldiers are not considered out of combat as defined by any legal agreement. If you think about it that would make any strike on troops not currently fighting a war crime.
Otherwise I really enjoyed the video, very well put together and I liked that it focused on the aspects that were not direct military action.
You're parroting a very thin lie. That was one of the most despicable war crimes ever perpetrated, using banned weapons such as cluster bombs, and many in the convoy were civilians. During the Feb 25 ground war they fitted plows onto M1A1 Abrams tanks and indescriminately buried thousands of surrendering Iraqi soldiers and civilians alive.
Acts of utter cowardice.
The US seems happy to indiscriminately massacre from behind the safety of superior technology, but when the playing field is leveled, they flake out.
The US has repeatedly set the bar extremely low in military conduct, they no longer have any shred of moral high ground remaining.
I've always wanted to go back to college to study history in particular, but my work schedule and lengthy commute to work prevent me from doing so. Listening to videos like this and others, where one doesnt necessarily need to be watching the sceeen to understand the subject matter being presented, are the next best thing in my opinion. I am grateful to content creators like you and others for sharing your knowledge via this platform.
This is my favorite kind of comment to receive! Several people have similar stories, commutes, long work schedules etc. I'm so glad to be helping people in your kind of situation. Thanks so much! 🙏
I still can’t believe my professor asked me to summarize such a complex & multilateral conflict within a 20 mins presentation during my last year of BA😳 Thanks for another fantastic video for us conflict nerds
I had an ex girlfriend who ended up joining the Army and went to Iraq. She saw the highway of death firsthand and said it was unbelievable. Burnt body after burnt body after burnt body sitting in their truck seats, frozen in time.
Recently found you through your Iran-Contra video and now you post this! Really enjoying your videos, especially the more modern day ones. Keep up the amazing work!
Haha, I'm the opposite, in that I found the channel thru the grant video and really like that civil war/reconstruction era stuff along with the birth of the labor movement during that time and then on to the modern day. Although I am enjoying this video, as well.
Sean is absolutely spot on when he says that this is an often over-looked war in terms of its cumulative effects on recent, modern & future geo political events / history. Nice to see it being given the attention & deep dive that it certainly deserves!
While the wars in the middle east weren't _strictly_ blood for oil (to the consternation of our 45th president), they were absolutely in furtherance of -capitalism- the liberal Democratic order.
One of the lesser reported side effects of this war (and a case study in why American health care results are so poor) has been the expansion in Kuwaiti waistlines coinciding with the expansion of US fast food companies.
Originally sent there to provide food for the troops on base, it turns out the Kuwaitis wanted to drink that milkshake after all...
On top of the fact that w. Bush brought a slew of ppl from his father's admin into his own (who thought there was unfinished business w Iraq & saw in 9/11 the perfect opportunity to complete it) Bush also personally had feelings that taking Baghdad would have given his dad a much better chance at reelection. So, again, unfinished business I guess but in this instance it seems like it has a more personal air to it.
As a European born in the 2000s, I have never heard much about the Gulf War from either the media or people who lived during the time due to the subsequent 2003 Iraq War far overshadowing it in terms of public discourse. I am an aspiring foreign relations student and the in depth look into both the domestic as well as international situation of all the nations entangled in this conflict helps paint a more enlightening picture of the whole affair, and provides extremely valuable for the past, present and future of everyone involved. Your channel is a true hidden gem and you provide a true treasure cove of masterfully explained historical topics.
Bit of a sidenote, but I'd love to see deconstruction like this done about the US/NATO intervention in the Yugoslav wars, as that is another 90s era conflict which has largely faded from the public consciousness outside of Eastern Europe. It had extreme effects on the overall politics and stability of European continent with many of it's effects being felt even now, as well as being an important talking point in the later years of the Clinton administration.
I never realized the connection between Clinton's disaster of a military rescue in Somalia in early presidency, making him hesitant to get the US involved in the Yugoslavian attrocities.
To be fair, neither did Europe, European govts sat around yapping & doing absolutely nothing about human rights attrocities next door to them,
for all the Clinton waffling, when the US decides to do something it actually does it in a timely manner.
The EU has been one huge clusterfuck of lots of talk & criticizing the US while doing absolutely nothing except bickering arguing & making promises they take months to do a thing about.
Europe was a disaster of inaction in both Yugoslavia & the Ukraine, lots of talk & promises, followed by more arguing & zero actuon
Small side note, my history professor differentiated between Bush Sr. & W by referring to them as 41 & 43.
As in “This was a policy that was brought into effect by Bush 43 during his first term.”
How do you keep pumping out so many bangers so often??
It seems as if it's what he lives and breathes, and putting it into a video is just telling a story. He makes it look so easy! Awesome videos
True story
I believe I’ve heard him refer to himself as Doctor Munger before, but don’t quote me on that however without a doubt 100% he’s a history teacher (I assume a professor but I haven’t heard him mention that word yet, however I’ve only heard him say Doctor Munger once IF I heard him say that at all so he obviously prefers to let his knowledge tell his story for him and that’s alright I’m totally for it he doesn’t need to tell us everything obviously but I’m sure knowing he legitimately studied history does help some people to trust that what he’s saying is true).
I have a Ph.D. in history so I can legitimately be called "Dr. Munger," and while I *am* a history teacher, I'm not a "professor" in the way most people mean it (on faculty at a higher education institution). So I do not call myself "Professor."
@@SeanMungerbut you've taught courses before so you're a professor to me.
No idea if you'll ever read this - but this video and your channel are unbelievably brilliant. You deserve every shout out and credit you get
Thank you so much! 🙏
@SeanMunger I know these comments are 7months old... but I check your channel all the time to see if you posted anything new. Thank you for your work, I am grateful you do this.
My dad was in the 82nd Airborne Division and he served in the Gulf War so I remember A LOT even though I was only six years old at the time. It's so strange because there was over 600k US troops deployed which dwarfs even our invasion of Iraq in 2003. I was living on Ft. Bragg at the time, and you could hear the artillery at all hours because they were training like crazy right before they deployed.
My father was in the 82nd as well!
same at ft benning. like random thunder. jus part of the damn weather
I’m 11 minutes in and when you said you’re going centuries back in context, I got so excited! Your videos are fantastic and really help to fill in a major gap in my history knowledge, as I loved history throughout school but they jumped past post-WWII pretty quickly and I was never able to pursue a history degree for my bachelor’s. Your deep dives are absolutely fantastic - your channel is my recent favorite
That's how I am as well I love history myself and he did a very very good job of going very deep into all of this
That you have less than 30k subscribers is an absolute travesty. I'm personally offended that more people aren't aware of you, given the quality of both sequence and research on display here.
You span the gamut from a focused instructor to well-spoken, lucid orator and storyteller. There is a masterful, deft balance of information and emotional throughline.
A concise, sharp historical record of a relatively complex conflict. I could say the exact same about your examination of Iran-Contra. I've always loved history, but I would have never missed your class if I had you as a professor.
Thank you so much! I'm happy to have 30K subscribers, it's much better than I had 6 weeks ago. My goal is to teach people history that they might not have sought out before. Comments like yours make me hopeful that I'm doing that. 😉
@@SeanMunger This is the first video of yours I've watched and I'm glad I found this channel. I'm sure you'll have 100k subscribers in no time. Very few channels do these kind of in depths break downs of the politics and history surrounding conflicts like this. There's millions of people who appreciate this kind of content but it's a matter of how many people stumble across it or TH-cam recommends it to.
Seems you're doing pretty well in the algorithm though and I'm sure your channel will continue to grow. I'm a history nerd and I can recognize when someone is genuinely passionate about these subjects and want to share their knowledge which I appreciate as a younger, less educated but curious person whos struggled to find this type of content and resource to expand my own knowlefge.
Keep up the good work. I'd recommend more of these war related videos but I'll be sure to check out your other videos on other topics as well
I appreciate the video, and its excellent analysis of the first Gulf war.
I do want to clarify, as someone who is more familiar with war crimes than I'd like to be, that the 'highway of death' was not a war crime. There were people who claimed that it was, but none with a good understanding of what constitutes a war crime. To borrow from a military lawyer: "Not everything that is unpleasant is a war crime." If you've got a source that comes to that conclusion, and is familiar with the relevant international law, I'd be very interested.
I think it hinges on cluster munitions being kinda banned under some treaties (to which the US was not party) along with an argument that once the highway was blocked, those surviving didn’t have a means of surrendering, just trapped to get bombed. However this critique is not really specific to Highway 80, it applies to all air warfare, and…I’m not sure highway 80 is really the best place to argue that, because…well, the purported victims largely had it coming under most folks’ moral compass
I'm a millennial (I'll be 36 in a few weeks) and the Persian Gulf War was absolutely something that was on my radar as a 4-year-old. Why? Because of back-to-back 24-hour news coverage that your average person living in the 90s couldn't get escape from (my father was OBSESSED with watching international news) and because as a New Yorker, this along with the WTC attack in 1993, was in the back of my mind when 9/11 happened when I was 14. So many of these things are connected, they are definitely not isolated events.
I'm millennial too (39) and I remember this at 6 and nonstop news cycle but to be fair, WWF did a Sgt Slaughter vs Warrior program that also just emphasized it.
I’m a millennial as well 38. Despite me being alive at the time I really don’t remember the Gulf War. I don’t know if it was because I really didn’t watch the news at that time or what
I’m a millennial as well 38. Despite me being alive at the time I really don’t remember the Gulf War. I don’t know if it was because I really didn’t watch the news at that time or what
I wonder if people watching news all the time on TV was a natural evolution from people in the 1940s wishing their radio news program was on 24/7. That thought had to have been in the back of Ted Turner’s mind from when he was a kid.
Same here I'm 39 and I remember seeing it on a TV at my school. That would have been 1st grade or kindergarten. I remember our teacher watching it on a classroom TV while we were gluing paper together or something and her being emotionally invested enough that I went home and asked my parents to explain it. My dad is a WWII history buff and would have been late 20's at the time so he was more than happy to educate me.
Thanks for the excellent video! I must however ask why you say that it is obvious that the "Highway of Death" was a warcrime, since I must admit that I don't quite see what makes it so obvious. You've read way more on this subject than I have, so maybe there is some nuance here that I'm missing.
What I see in the "Highway of Death" is a defeated army retreating or routing, and said army being pursued and largely destoyed by opposing forces. In all other conflict I have ever read up on, has attacking retreating forces been considered uncontroversial and fair game, even a crucial part of how war was conducted. Had the vehicles on the highway been mostly civilian, it would have definetly been a war crime, but as far as I can tell, there is no concrete evidence for civilian causulties.
Once again, you are much more knowledgeable on this subject than me, so I might have missed something major. Thanks for the great content, I watched most if not all of your long form content, and found it to most excellent.
The Highway of Death incident is highly controversial. I don't really have the time to rehash the arguments here, but extensive investigation was done--and largely ignored--on this incident in 1991 and 1992. Various reports and documents have been compiled on it. Here is one, with a section that provides considerable evidence that there were, in fact, civilian casualties, and the targeting of the highway violated existing U.S. law and policy. web.archive.org/web/20130215074409/deoxy.org/wc/wc-index.htm
i listen to these podcast style at work, and have run through most of the long form content. I love what you’re doing man, and really appreciate the work you put into each and every one of these to make them as detailed and comprehensive as possible
Same here when hardcore history and history on fire were my most listened to on both Apple Music and Spotify I realized I need new shit to listen to
I remember watching this on TV with my old man when I was in jr high. I asked him then if he thought I would have to fight in Iraq. Very prophetic question, 13 years later I did.
I am 56 and have for decades, paid a lot of attention to current events and history.. and hats off.. this is the best summary of events of the time I have ever seen.. and well presented.. much respect
I love when a new >1hr historical analysis video comes out. Not many channels I know that make these, but when they do come along it's a bit of a treat
I honestly can't put into words how thankful I am that i found your channel ❤️ The way you narrate and teach is not only clear to understand but also engaging. I already used the things you taught me with the JFK assassination in conversations with friends and family. So thank you so much 😊
Like many others, I only found this channel recently and I have been stunned by the quality and the pace of your releases. Each time you speak on a topic, it should immediately become a definitive reference point. I'm excited to see more take notice of this underrated channel - and they will soon.
Absolutely incredible video! It’s rare to see such in-depth and non-biased analysis on this site
As a fellow history graduate from Brazil, I congratulate the undoubtedly weeks long research you had to go through for a quality video like this
Just stumbled upon your channel, yet the first impression has been fantastic! Looking forward to future works from you
Thanks so much! 🙏
Yes I agree this video was a masterpiece I love how in-depth you went with it
I find your videos very helpful and informative. Iran-contra and the Gulf War were subjects I knew were important but struggled to wrap my head around until I watched your videos on the subjects. The top down perspective with historical context really helped me to understand not just the conflict, but also the wider landscape of the Middle East during and before the Gulf War. As the say, keep up the good work. I think videos like this have a hugely positive impact on a lot of people who may otherwise never understand how and more importantly why these conflicts happen.
Thanks!
LOVE THIS .
I am a Gulf War Veteran . An earlier comment touched on the generation that made up the Military back then . So true .
The naivete , the trust in our "Leadership" along with so many other things.
Dang , my family knew more about what was going on there (where i was) back on American Soil via CNN than I'd ever know from infrequent "huddles" (formation) . To hear that Media was suppressed is amazing to me .
Anyway , i could go on n on about how great all of this is but from all the comments ive heard , ots already been stated .
Your format is OUTSTANDING Sir .
Your "Chapters" and the way you place present content in future chapters as a forewarning is incredible for a guy like me (with ADD) to focus .
Recently subscribed to your channel , I'm fixin to watch Titanic when im done commenting here but I'm'a DEFINITELY advertise your channel on Social Media . Another earlier comment , with regards to amount of subscriptions couldnt be more true .
Just discovered your channel last night and have been obsessed since. Absolutely love these long form history videos.
Thank you for your insights on this conflict! As a zoomer, the history of the 80s-90s I was taught mostly hinged on US-Soviet relations and was very black and white (and hurried through in favor of the world wars).
I don't have any memory before 9/11, so it's kind of jarring seeing how much more nuanced the US presence in the Middle East was before that event.
I hope you keep making these longer form videos!
I have no plans to quit! 😏 thanks!
Best video you’ve done by a country mile! All of the criticisms I had in the past are gone. Your tone is amazing, it’s no arrogant, and you seem enthusiastic about the content.
This is fantastic to see, we need more content like this online. I have no doubt if you continue you will blow up consistently
Sean, these lectures are very well presented. Your YT channel will be successful. Keep it up, don't let anyone change your style. It's working.
Thanks so much! 🙏 It's hard to keep on sometimes but I'm doing the best I can!
I live in the north west of England, a place heavily impoverished by Thatcher’s government. What people outside the uk might not realise is there were street parties when she died. Ding ding the witch is dead was number 1 on the charts (people weren’t saying witch though). It was a wild experience and pretty telling example of what her legacy is especially in former coal mining towns like my home town.
Also, amazing video as usual. I can’t even imagine the amount of research that goes into covering the topics you do
Thanks for your kind words! I have a lot of British friends and many of them have similar stories and deep bitterness over the Thatcher years. American media was generally very kind to her at the time, but the deeper you dig the more ugly her legacy becomes. She was utterly without empathy, and that's the worst thing for a national leader to be missing.
@@SeanMunger yeah I was like 14-15 at the time so I didn’t fully understand her impact here. However growing up, learning local history and getting involved with trade unionism has definitely opened my eyes a lot. Plus I basically grew up under her policies with Blair, Cameron and to a lesser extent May. So I saw in real time every service, especially youth and mental health, shut down due to lack of funding
Really liking your take on things, notably this one, so many focus on the military response and skim over the geopolitical reasons it got to that point.
It’s also interesting reading comments from the younger audience that wasn’t around to experience it personally. That point in life when you realize you’re not reading history, but have become part of it.
8:13 Hello from Nicaragua 🇳🇮, Sean! I am very glad you’re covering “Dessert Storm”. I was pretty young at the time and didn’t realized then how pivotal that war was to every conflict that came after that. Thank you for giving us, your followers, such in depth view in each of your videos. Great documentary!!
I know a lot of work goes into long videos like this, and it is greatly appreciated. More videos like this one please, if you can. I love learning about all the little things going on at the time of a great event in history, not just the event itself.
Been loving these deep dives you’ve been doing, it may be more time between uploads but it’s so worth it especially after finishing the Pierce video, can’t wait to watch!
Wow… instant subscription. Sean if you keep putting out content like this you will be a very very important resource to millions and millions of people. I love your style of educating your audience.
I love your approach to history, especially how you actually have a relevant education from the field unlike so so many other youtubers talking about anything and everything they have no connections to.
I'm a military tech and history nerd, and I've seen all of the stuff you're not talking much about a thousand times, it's nice to get the other parts. Thank you Dr!
Every video you put out like this has been pure gold! I absolutely cannot wait to tear into this one tonight! Thank you for making amazing content Sean!
This is my first video on this channel and I am blown away with the depth and breadth of the information provided. This is how history should be presented, with ample detail and multiple perspectives provided to allow for context. Thank you for sharing this good Sir. I am looking forward to seeing more on this channel.
This is my first video on this channel, and I have to say this has been one of the most informative videos I've seen in a long time. Thank you so much!
Love your videos and approach to history! You have a similar style to my favorite history teacher, and it's always nice to get all (or at the very least, a good chunk) of the context needed. Thanks for a great video!
Excellent video I’d really love to see a follow up one on the 2003 invasion of Iraq I really love these long format videos and being somebody who is also big on context I love how you make sure you provide as much as possible before going into the videos such an underrated channel I hope it will blow up soon it deserves more views
Sean you have an incredible mellifluous voice that fits this type of narration perfectly. Moreover, I love the little details of adding popular songs that people liked at the time (for cultural enrichment). Overall a very good history video! Thanks a lot for such an amazing work man!
Grateful for such in-depth, high quality content covering modern historical events
its so cool to see you essentially pioneer this hypermodern way of talking about human history, both in a factual and physical way, but also about what it means or what it might mean. the way you can seamlessly use visual aids and geography is awesome as you *do it better* with more of a captivating energy than ive seen with anyone else.
you've ignited a second wind in the history nerd that resides within.
for this we thank you sir
or as my tribe would say
miigwech., miigwech.
A great channel for learning. I’ve heard of so many of these events before, but they’re usually just mentioned here or there. It’s nice to learn why and how things happened
wow. this was information packed yet totally comprehensible and a pleasure to follow from start to finish. and as a fellow stickler for absolute context, the deep dives were much appreciated. thanks for taking the time to make this video!
The amount of work you put into these videos just for other people's entertainment/education is staggering.
Thanks so much for noticing! Yes, I work very hard at them. I do earn a little money from them here and there.
@@SeanMunger Your work is appreciated 👍
I want to thank you for this. This subject has been of interest to me and every other video / story was more so based to the battles or just a brief overview of the buildup to this. And i really love your context build up from as far back as the 1920s.
Phenomenal video and the video wasnt as long itself as i thought. Your clear speech makes it easy to watch the video for me at 1.5x speed and i loved it all.
looking forward to really getting into the meat of this-you're a brilliant presenter and I love your videos. it's extremely pleasing to see your channel grow so quickly!
The worst campaign mistake Bush made was checking his watch during the debate. It was an absolutely disastrous optic
Genuinely one of the best, most informative, interesting channels I have come across on TH-cam to date. Love your work man
I appreciate this analysis of the war beyond the usual military emphasis, and in particular I found the section on the environmental effects to be very striking. This is history told by a historian, and it shows, both in the scrupulous depth of it's research and in the professional manner in which it is presented. The latter of which had me engrossed throughout it's feature length runtime. I'm glad I found this video on my recommended. I think I oughta share this video with my Middle Eastern History professor, he'll get a kick out of it.
I really appreciate this video. I was just a kid, born in 86, when all this went down. To be honest, I've lived my entire life and not really thought much about it, despite my older brother having been on a destroyer in the Gulf at this time. I wouldn't even have thought to look something up about it, then this video showed up randomly on my feed. I'm glad it did.
Started with your Iran-Contra video and already I’ve fallen in love with your channel. Your videos are by far some of the most detailed and in-depth history documentaries I’ve ever seen.
Man perfect timing I’ve literally been trying to start learning about the Persian gulf war and sure enough you drop a video right on time! Hope you’ll go over the rest of the wars leading up to present time. Also would you consider doing a video on the six day war and what lead up to it?
Mr Munger - thank you for your amazing content. You have the great talent of explaining very complex subjects in simple and clear terms. Looking forward to your next episode!
I’m a fan of the ‘pins on maps’ history. However, I will watch this because I have never seen or heard of a deep-dive into the Persian gulf war. I have watched a couple of your other videos. Thank you for making these videos.
Others have probably mentioned this but The Operations Room has a really good series that gets into the details about the combat operations of the gulf war. I really like this video for focusing on the politics of it all, thanks Sean!!
Very informative and interesting! I'm inspired to learn more about Kurdish history. Sincere thank you for your hard work in producing these videos! I think you and other academics are doing the world a great service in making these videos by making this important information accessible to everyone! Keep it up!
If anyone wants a military breakdown on the same level of depth and detail as this video is on everything surrounding the war, I can not recommend HypohistoricalHistory’s nearly 3 hour long part 1 video on the war in Iraq. Part 1 covers this war, part 2 is supposed to cover 2003 onward when it comes out. Amazing details and well presented.
Dear Sean, I don't always find history easy to listen to, even though I'd really like to know. The problem is that it is often long and complicated, and in most cases, quite boring. However, you made your video/lecture such a joy to watch. Two and a half hours went by without me noticing. Your style is most engaging, and your analysis and treatment of the historical events are so skilfully put together that they are 'accessible'. Well done, and thank you.
Thank you! 🙏
Amazing video, I was interested in the topic and what I really want to remark is how great it is to see the context of things in history. It is so easy to analyze things with our modern cosmovision and ideas and that is not always what the people in different eras had, so I have to applaud you for such a good set of the context. Great video
When you said at the beginning that this is a video that is best watched chapter by chapter, I didn’t believe you because the way you tell the historical story is so engaging and informative. But the other side of that coin is that in order to properly absorb the content you’re teaching, I really do have to break it into chunks, but only because there’s so much great information packed in.
Good problem to have. If it meant more videos like this, I would happily give the cost of a cheap cup of coffee on patreon or something, because it really helps to fill the gaps in what American students learn about history today; I had great history teachers but a combination of controversy and recency generally means a topic doesn’t get covered in the classroom, even when you can tell the history (like the creator of this channel does) while trying to avoid a slant.
Apart from your take on the Highway of Death, I liked this video.
You got a new subscriber after five minutes of this video. Love how you’ve turned history into your life’s work. Great video.
I am absolutely in love with your channel, especially the quality of the maps/infographics/clips you have used. Criminally underrated.
Thanks!
I have watched almost all of your videos, and I love them all! I especially like how they are all interconnected, wether minor subjects are referenced in each video (also a smart marketing tool) and I think your anecdotes/explanations are always thoughtful, organized, and clarified when tangential or a proposal of an idea in the context of research. From one context lover to another, you’re doing great work!
Thanks!
Thank you Sean for a very interesting and thought-provoking analysis of these events. Although I lived through them and remember many of them, your account helped me to see them from a new perspective. In "The Open Society and Its Enemies" Karl Popper wrote " the history of power politics is the nothing but the history of international crime and mass murder" - your account of the Persian Gulf War fully bears that out as do the sad events occurring not so very far from the same locale now.
Wake up babe sean munger dropped another banger
Wow, can't believe I'm here to see the premiere of a video from the channel I've been binging for months. Crazy.
don’t know how i stumbled onto this channel but i’m glad i did. love the in-depth coverage and the way you provide context to it
I've watched this twice, and about to go again. I feel like I've just taken a history red pill on Gulf War 1. I cannot wait to be sat at a dinner party and someone mentions it. Full smug face, "I happen to know a thing or two about this". Thank you for a brilliant video.
Attacking a retreating enemy is not a warcrime, so the Highway of death was not a warcrime.
This channel is just awesome. These videos are so well done and well researched, and are a real pleasure to watch and listen to.
I lived through the gulf war and can say I learned from this presentation. Great video! This was put together perfectly
Your Iran contra video was phenomenal, I'm really excited to check this one out! Thanks for posting such informative content
Even as just a history BA, it is so, so appreciated to have some actually good, thoughtful, and well-researched history content on the platform. Really glad to see a few superb channels like this not only making content but starting to catch on.
I'm glad channels like this are finally showing up on my feed. This is a high water mark for historical video essays.
i just found these yesterday and i love em! i usually listen while i'm doing work around the house keep em coming! :D
Excellent work . Please keep it up ! ❤
I quite enjoy these in depth videos of yours about history. You have a true knack for systematically and sequentially laying out all the factors important to understand these kinds of conflicts, from prelude to aftermath.
I first watched the Iran-Contra Scandal video and then this one, in stages. I would really appreciate videos about: the Islamic Revolution, the Iran-Iraq War, the Iraq War of 2003 and perhaps the War in Yugoslavia, the Vietnam War and the Great War (WOI).
Most history videos/documentaries on these topics are copyrighted and I suspect the channel creators have put them there illicitly. Where I can, I try not to infringe on copyrights (even semi-unknowingly), even though the bulk of that responsibility falls on TH-cam.
Another great video from this channel. Loved your Iran contra video and this was just as good if not better. Feels like this era of history doesn’t get the attention or in-depth analysis it deserves so glad you’ve chosen to cover it. Will probably need to watch the video a couple times before I truly get my head around all the moving parts similar to the Iran contra video but this first watch was throughly enjoyable. Thanks
I have watched this video right after i finished Iran-Contra Explained: The Wall of Crazy Scandal on your channel. I was in shock how good the information was, how well you have put the material together. I am watching this like my life depends on it... literally biting nails. You should have 100's of thousands of subs, gonna watch another video tomorrow. Thank you.
Nothing short of fantastic, objective and stated the facts. Loved it Sean keep it up
Can't wait to get off of work and watch this whole thing! Thanks for uploading, I love history.
Thank you Sean! It took me a couple days to get through the whole thing, as life would have it, but just like the iran contra video and a few others it was well worth the watch!
When I i volunteered in an aviation museum, i would completely immerse myself into the politics, designs, and pilot talks of the aircraft so i could give a more comprehensive history than what they could fit on the plaque.
You do that with things too large to fit in a museum, and for that I'm eternally grateful for the wealth of knowledge you share. Until the next one!
Your channel came up in my recommended after watching some bigger creators. Sean I can't believe you don't have more subscribers, your content is great!