Radio War Nerd #305 — The First China-US Cold War (Part 3): The KMT-CIA Opium Trafficking Racket
Guest: Carl Zha, podcaster
Recorded: November 19, 2021
In part 3 of our RWN series on the first US-China Cold War, guest Carl Zha of the Silk & Steel podcast recovers the lost history of the US-backed KMT units forced over the border from southern China into northern Burma, where they set up what would become the center of the global heroin trade — with help from Langley.
Listen to Part 1 (EP #301) and Part 2 (EP #303) of RWN's series on The First China-US Cold War.
Check out Carl Zha's podcast Silk & Steel. Follow Carl on Twitter.
Total time: 1:39:34
Comments (20)
You guys should bring back Carl to either do another part of this or on China's currently evolving position!
Wish this were MUCH more widely known.
Here is a (very friendly) interview with Steele: https://news.sky.com/story/christopher-steele-confessions-of-a-former-british-spy-on-boris-johnson-vladimir-putin-and-donald-trump-12438095 Quite hilarious really.
Ibis Trilogy is amazing
An interesting thought came up when you guys were discussing the economics of opium trade. In colonial possessions, it appears to be a very effective stand-in for sovereignty, i.e. the ability to print money, where none existed.
That's a great point.
Off topic: I was just researching the Falklands war, and see a pattern from Alliendes social reforms. The hero syndrome goes strong for stupid people with a job, they best should be demoted.
My Dehong Dai friend Along told me that Dehong Dai/Shan language is about 50% intelligible with Thai language - some of the other Dai languages, like Xishuangbanna Dai, may be even closer than that. And of course, there's a lot of cultural similarities, like religion. Dai people almost universally adhere to Theravada Buddhism just like the Thai people, except for a (n apparently non-negligible) number of Shan converts to evangelical Christianity in recent years.
Oh btw I'm sure I'm a dumbass but where do I get the newsletters? I mean it took me about a year to realize I was listening to a pirate feed so..
I believe they've said if you e-mail them, they can send you the back catalog.
Yes dude this is my kind of territory.
I am just here to listen to the bit where my wife watching anime in the background made it into the recording
what was the anime
Just outside of Taipei (in the amalgamated “New Taipei City” which is mostly urban but has some extremely rural/wild areas) there’s still a “Little Burma” dating from the late 1950s/early 1960s. No dope peddling there these days though
Can we get a follow up about the Kuomintang Islamic insurgency?
Absolutely cannot wait for Carl Zha’s Chinese Civil War series, whenever we will be blessed with it.
Also hoping for Carl Za series of the Manchu invasion of China
I’ve been waiting for this
So excited to listen to this, putting EVERYTHING else on hold to make time
FIRST