TheWhy?Curve

Could Cuba be next on Donald Trumps’s to-do list? The government there is weak and the economy collapsing, so could he move to end the 67-year communist regime? Dr Joseph Gonzalez @appstate tells me and @LoudMouthComms discussions are already happening whycurve.com/episode/cuba-n…

With the Iran war proving difficult, will Donald Trump be tempted by a quick win in the Caribbean? Cuba’s communist regime has never been weaker, and Dr Joseph Gonzalez @appstate tells @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms a deal may already be done whycurve.com/episode/cuba-n…

Does the US assault on Iran mean international law no longer matters? And is that just ripping away the mask - have powerful countries always got what they wanted? Dr Ben Murphy @livuni_ILHRU TELLS @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms whycurve.com/episode/the-en…

Gunboat diplomacy -using gunboats (and submarines) to batter Iran because negotiations weren’t working. Is this the new way of international relations with the Trump White House? @aalatham @Diplomacy_Peace tells me and @LoudMouthComms whycurve.com/episode/gunboa…

Is the Iran war the latest example of US gunboat diplomacy? Two carrier groups involved in bombing, and submarines that torpedo Iranian ships - all because peace talks weren’t working. @aalatham @Diplomacy_Peace speaks to @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms whycurve.com/episode/gunboa…

Sir Keir Starmer staggers from one crisis to the next, but is it his fault, or is it the structure of government that is failing? @LoudMouthComms and I hear from Tom Skinner, who’s had an insider view of the perennial chaos inside Number 10 whycurve.com/episode/is-bri…

Another crisis in Number 10 - but have we now got a system that doesn’t work, whoever is in power? Tom Skinner, former special adviser in Downing Street under Cameron, May and Johnson, joins @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms to explain whycurve.com/episode/is-bri…

You thought the internet was free and open to all? Think again. @smalcomson tells @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms about the splinternet whycurve.com/episode/welcom…

Insider dealing as well as underage sex - what has come out of the Epstein files suggests a hidden business and political network doing cosy deals over champagne on the beach. Prof Ronen Palan @CityStGeorges tells me and @LoudMouthComms how it works whycurve.com/episode/epstei…

Have the Epstein files lifted the lid on the way business and political leaders share secret information - over champagne on private islands? Shady deals as well as twisted morals? Prof Ronen Palan @CityStGeorges tells @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms whycurve.com/episode/epstei…

We could soon be able to write the genome to create life says @AdrianWoolfson in his book On The Future Of Species - but should we? I and @LoudMouthComms ask him about the opportunities and the risks whycurve.com/episode/creati…

A major breakthrough in genome research means we could create life says @AdrianWoolfson - but SHOULD we pursue this? @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms ask him about the gains and risks, and his new book On The Future Of Species whycurve.com/episode/creati…

With so many Tory defections, is Reform UK anything more than a reboot of the old franchise? @loudmouthcomms and I ask @ProfTimBale @QMPoliticsIR whycurve.com/episode/right-…

Is Reform UK becoming Conservatives 2.0? High-level defections help bring in experience, but do they also bring the old Tory policy mistakes? @ProfTimBale @QMPoliticsIR tells @LoudMouthComms and @rdhearing whycurve.com/episode/right-…

The ice sheet of the post-war international system is melting along with Greenland’s permafrost, so how to figure out what remains solid? @stefwolff @unibirmingham tells me and @LoudMouthComms whycurve.com/episode/the-ch…

Everything we thought we knew about the transatlantic relationship is wrong. @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms pick through the wreckage with @stefwolff @unibirmingham whycurve.com/episode/the-ch…

The weeks after Christmas are traditionally the busiest for divorce lawyers. How sustainable is modern marriage, in a world of fickleness and universal choice? I and @LoudMouthComms ask @v_lamarche @Uni_of_Essex whycurve.com/episode/marria…

It’s the busiest time of year for divorce lawyers - but is formal marriage itself under threat? Are we less prepared to commit, and not for life? @v_lamarche @Uni_of_Essex discusses with @rdhearing and @LoudMouthComms whycurve.com/episode/marria…

Is MAGA moving into movies? Signs that 2026 could see a series of films and TV series reflecting Trumpian values, with big money backing. I and @LoudMouthComms ask Sarah Atkinson, Professor of Screen Media @KingsCollegeLon whycurve.com/episode/maga-m…