Snowden, U.S. Tech Trust, and Strategic Mistakes

You've been writing us questions, thoughts, prayers, and lambasting criticism for months - so today we're finally taking a dive into the inbox. Holy crap there's a lot here. Y'all mentioned The Wire, TDSDS, starting careers in geopolitical analysis, tech nationalism, the balkanization of the internet, and sooooo much more. Tune in to hear it all :) Thanks y'all.

--

Timestamps:

(00:00) - Intro

(02:33) - The Wire

(05:25) - Media Consumption and Bias

(06:46) - Trump Derangement Syndrome and Strategic Thinking

(16:16) - Effective Media Consumption Strategies

(28:23) - Balancing Realism and Idealism in Humanitarian Work

(35:28) - Navigating Career Dissonance

(35:56) - Breaking into Geopolitical Analysis

(37:16) - The Value of Mentorship

(39:39) - Building Expertise in Geopolitics

(41:27) - Creating and Sharing Content

(43:18) - The Importance of Learning and Adaptability

(44:59) - Geopolitical Decisions in Various Careers

(53:53) - Shadow Fleets and Oil Markets

(01:00:28) - Multipolar vs. Unipolar World Conflicts

(01:06:42) - Balkanization of the Internet

(01:09:25) - The Rise of Nationalism in Software

(01:10:36) - The Tension Between Tech Companies and Governments

(01:12:46) - The Impact of Snowden's Leak on American Tech

(01:13:26) - Trump's Influence on Tech Nationalism

(01:18:30) - Trump's Strategy for the Midterms

(01:29:53) - The Geopolitical Importance of the Midwest

(01:37:12) - The Future of Geopolitically Mundane Places

--

Referenced in the Show:

--

Geopolitical Cousins is produced and edited by Audiographies LLC. More information at audiographies.com

--

Jacob Shapiro is a speaker, consultant, author, and researcher covering global politics and affairs, economics, markets, technology, history, and culture. He speaks to audiences of all sizes around the world, helps global multinationals make strategic decisions about political risks and opportunities, and works directly with investors to grow and protect their assets in today’s volatile global environment. His insights help audiences across industries like finance, agriculture, and energy make sense of the world.

Jacob Shapiro Site: jacobshapiro.com

Jacob Shapiro LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jacob-l-s-a9337416

Jacob Twitter: x.com/JacobShap

Jacob Shapiro Substack: jashap.substack.com/subscribe

--

Marko Papic is a macro and geopolitical expert at BCA Research, a global investment research firm. He provides in-depth analysis that combines geopolitics and markets in a framework called GeoMacro. He is also the author of Geopolitical Alpha: An Investment Framework for Predicting the Future.

Marko’s Book & Newsletter: www.geopoliticalalpha.com/marko-papic

Marko’s Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marko-papic-geopolitics/

Marko’s Twitter: https://x.com/Geo_papic

Marko’s Macro & Geopolitical Research at BCA: https://www.bcaresearch.com/marketing/geomacro