Show Notes
We trace the evolution of international arms transfers from mercantilism to the modern era, and the perverse incentives produced by the symbiosis of private enterprise and state imperatives in arms production. Blood Work is a Scam Goldin ProductionThis episode was produced by Thomas O’MahonyOur theme song is ‘Dream Weapon’ by Genghis TronOur artwork is provided courtesy of KT KobelIf you enjoyed this episode:– Support Blood Work via Patreon– Leave a rating or review on your podcast app– Follow us on Bluesky / Instagram / Twitter THIS WEEK IN VIOLENCE: Killstreak InboundALSO AVAILABLE IN AUDIOInspired by the Pentagon’s recent deployment of computer game graphics to promote its illegal bombardment of Iran, producer Thomas takes a longer view at the relationship between the United States military and the video games industry. Sources: Amnesty International (June 1995), ‘RWANDA: Arming the Perpetrators of the Genocide’, available at Amnesty.org Jonathan Beatty and S. C. Gwynne (1993), The Outlaw Bank: A Wild Ride into the Secret Heart Of BCCI Steve Boggan (Nov. 23, 1996), ‘Bloody trade that fuels Rwanda's war (Operation Insecticide), available at The Independent Steve Coll, Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 George Cryle (2003), Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History Owen Greene and Nicholas Marsh (eds.) (2012), Small Arms, Crime and Conflict: Global Governance and the Threat of Armed Violence Nicholas Kotarski (2018), ‘Whose Monster? A Study in the Rise to Power of al Qaeda and the Taliban’, History Theses, 47 Keith Krause (1992), Arms and the State: Patterns of Military Production and Trade Mamello Mosiana, Hennie van Vuuren and Daniel Ford (Nov. 13, 2024), ‘Unaccountable 00040 | Willem ‘Ters’ Ehlers – apartheid’s secretary turned genocide arms dealer’, available at Open Secrets John U. Nef (1950), War and Human Progress: An Essay on the Rise of Industrial Civilization Robert Pear (Apr. 18, 1988), ‘Arming Afghan Guerrillas: A Huge Effort Led by U.S.’, available at The New York Times(archived) Frederic S. Pearson (1994), The Global Spread of Arms: Political Economy of Economic Security Peter Dale Scott (2007), The Road to 9/11: Wealth, Empire, and the Future of America William Shawcross (1988), The Shah’s Last Ride Stockholm International Peace Research Institute [SIPRI] (2010), ‘End-User Certificates: Improving Standards to Prevent Diversion’, available at SIPRI Stockholm International Peace Research Institute [SIPRI] (2024), ‘The SIPRI Top 100 Arms-Producing and Military Services Companies, 2024’, available at SIPRI Rachel Stohl and Suzette Grillot (2009), The International Arms Trade Joe Stork (Nov. 1, 1995), ‘The Middle East Arms Bazaar After the Gulf War’, available at Middle East Research and Information Project Andrew T. H. Tan (ed.) (2010), The Global Arms Trade: A Handbook Adam Tooze (Mar. 23, 2023), ‘Chartbook 204: Iraq’s economic impasse twenty years after the invasion’, available at Chartbook | Adam Tooze Mark Townsend (Oct. 28, 2025), ‘UK military equipment used by militia accused of genocide found in Sudan, UN told’, available at The Guardian Matt Wells (Feb. 10, 2000), ‘Arms firm linked to Rwandan army chief’, available at The Guardian Brian Wood and Johan Peleman (2000), The Arms Fixers. Controlling the Brokers and Shipping Agents Image: Soldiers patrol outside of Goma International Airport in North Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo (2022)
More from Blood Work
This episode was produced in collaboration with Ten Thousand Posts This week, Hussein is joined by Tom and Greg from Blood Work, to talk about the 2010 film Four Lions, written and directed by Chris Morris. The boys talk about their impressions watching the film in their youth, and revisiting it as an adult, in the aftermath of the failed War on Terror. They talk about the film as a reflection on ageing and mid-life crises, a satire on the concept of the “good Muslim”, and how the film foreshadowed what vigilante extremism would look like in the future. Listen and subscribe to BLOOD WORK: https://www.patreon.com/cw/BloodWorkShow Follow Greg on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/gregk.co.uk Follow Tom on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scamgoldin.bsky.social ------- LEBANON AID LINKSHere are some fundraisers to support collective rebuilding and survival efforts on the ground in Lebanon. -Beit El-Baraka started out as a food bank, but has grown to help people afford rent, cover their essentials, and live with dignity. https://beitelbaraka.org/donate-directly/ or donate in general https://beitelbaraka.org/donate-now/ -LiveLove was a charity for a number of other matters, but since 2024 has been solely comitted to helping people displaced by Israeli attacks.https://livelove.org/donate -Lebanese Food Bank supports displaced and impoverished peoplehttps://lebanesefoodbank.org/take-action/donate/ Solar Powered Lebanon is an initiative to restore people's power using solar panels, since larger infrastructure is at constant risk of attack.https://fundahope.com/en/campaigns/solar-powered-lebanon ----- PALESTINE AID LINKS These are some general links you can support collective efforts with! -The Palestinian Communist Youth Union is doing a food and water effort, and is part of the official communist party of Palestinehttps://www.gofundme.com/f/to-preserve-whats-left-of-humanity-global-solidarity -Water is Life, a water distribution project in North Gaza affiliated with an Indigenous American organization and the Freedom Flotillahttps://www.waterislifegaza.org/ -Vegetable Distribution Fund, which secured and delivers fresh veg, affiliated with Freedom Flotilla alsohttps://www.instagram.com/linking/fundraiser?fundraiser_id=1102739514947848 ----- PHOEBE ALERT Okay, now that we have your attention; check out her Substack Here!Check out Masters of our Domain with Milo and Patrick, here! -------- Ten Thousand Posts is a show about how everything is posting. It's hosted by Hussein (@HKesvani), Phoebe (@PRHRoy) and produced by Devon (@Devon_onEarth).
If you enjoyed this episode:– Support Blood Work via Patreon– Leave a rating or review on your podcast app– Follow us on Bluesky / Instagram / Twitter Blood Work is a Scam Goldin ProductionThis episode was produced by Thomas O’MahonyOur theme song is ‘Dream Weapon’ by Genghis TronOur artwork is provided courtesy of KT Kobel Article 1: Ethiopia says it must defend itself against Eritrea's 'all-out invasion'Reuters – Oct 09, 2026Reporting by Dawit Endeshaw Article 2: Eritrea asks UN to intervene in standoff with EthiopiaReuters – Oct 10, 2026Reporting by Reuters
This is a preview. To hear the entire episode and help Blood Work to survive and thrive, become a supporter on Patreon. Gregk and Thomas mark Blood Work’s first birthday with a casual discussion about what we learned in the year 1 AS (Anno Sangui). Image: A cupcake with a single candle being lit on fire with a handgun. I mean, I don’t know, I feel like this one’s pretty self-explanatory. Blood Work is a Scam Goldin ProductionThis episode was produced by Thomas O’MahonyOur theme song is ‘Dream Weapon’ by Genghis TronOur artwork is provided courtesy of KT Kobel If you enjoyed this episode:– Support Blood Work via Patreon– Leave a rating or review on your podcast app– Follow us on Bluesky / Instagram / Twitter THIS WEEK IN VIOLENCE: Look at MeALSO AVAILABLE IN AUDIOFor this week’s newsletter, we’ve got some thoughts about US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s expressed desire to publicly broadcast an execution, the long history of violence, justice and spectacle in American politics, and how this latest development sits in that tableau.
We close out our series discussing how drone warfare advanced a new military ethics in which the lives of combatants are sacrosanct, while civilian lives are expendable. Image: A photograph on an Israeli UAV dropping grenades from the sky. Blood Work is a Scam Goldin ProductionThis episode was produced by Thomas O’MahonyOur theme song is ‘Dream Weapon’ by Genghis TronOur artwork is provided courtesy of KT Kobel If you enjoyed this episode:– Support Blood Work via Patreon– Leave a rating or review on your podcast app– Follow us on Bluesky / Instagram / Twitter THIS WEEK IN VIOLENCE: Van LifeALSO AVAILABLE IN AUDIOThis week, we attempted to provide a neat summary of events which unfolded at RAF Fairford (Difficulty: Expert), and provided some general commentary on how politicians, police and the press have handled themselves.
This is a preview. To hear the entire episode and help Blood Work to survive and thrive, become a supporter on Patreon. On January 20, 1942, a group of SS officers and mid-level bureaucrats from the ministries of the Third Reich convened at a lakeside villa. The agenda: Genocide. Image: A photograph of one of the interior corridors of 56-58 Am Wannsee (Credit: Werner Zellien) Blood Work is a Scam Goldin ProductionThis episode was produced by Thomas O’MahonyOur theme song is ‘Dream Weapon’ by Genghis TronOur artwork is provided courtesy of KT Kobel If you enjoyed this episode:– Support Blood Work via Patreon– Leave a rating or review on your podcast app– Follow us on Bluesky / Instagram / Twitter THIS WEEK IN VIOLENCE: Bozo TimeALSO AVAILABLE IN AUDIOIt was a bad week for anyone with a moral compass or semblance of a commitment to having consistent and coherent principles. In that spirit, we came through with two stories about two different groups of pigs, bozos and slobs, presented in the spirit of admiration about what a wonderful and cool world we have built, here, on this planet, together.