Photo: Forbidden City
JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW
Co-hosts: Gordon Chang, Forbes.com 
 
Hour One
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 1, Block A: Charles Burton, professor at Brock University, in re: 19th Party Congress and China and North Korea.  Steve Bannon went to China to ZhongHaiNan.  Chinese leaders supposed to leave at 67; Mr Xi doesn't care for that.  Ergo, Mr Wang will also stay in the Standing Committee of the Politburo.   Will China go over the cliff?  Xi’s mode looks risky. DPRK? China wants to oblige the US to leave East Asia, but I think the only solution is the unification of the Korean peninsula.  Xi may come to see that the alternatives are riskier for China. But will not squeeze the regime and create chaos – or worse:  democracy!
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 1, Block B:  Rick Fisher, senior Fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center, in re: North Korea's threat of an atmospheric launch and how the Chinese launches in 1966 and 1980 could be a blueprint. What happens if the Norks set off a thermonuclear device in the atmosphere and cause EMP damage in the U.S. ?  This looks like an act of war, and the question then becomes what we do about it. Detonate at a high-enough altitude could damage both Alaska and Hawaii -- fry the electronics, lead to severe damage. Yes, an act of war.  FDR: You don't wait for a rattlesnake to strike. GC: If a missile arcs over Japan, shoot it down.  If any damage to Japan or US, start a blockade. We're in a dangerous spiral.  Yes, n a sense it's to late to stop the DPRK, although e can begin rapidly and intensively build intercept systems; also ratchet up sanctions against China, which [basically has provided missiles to North Korea].s
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 1, Block C: Sadanand Dhume, AEI, in re;  Rohingya.  Burmese army has torched Rohingya villages, 300,000 have fled into Bangladesh (which is the size of Iowa and has 150 millions people).  Bangladesh has most generously thrown open its territory to the refugees.  India has not. There exists no ASEAN relief operation. 
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 1, Block D: Josh Rogin, Washington Post, in re; Secy Mattis arrives in Kabul shortly before Taliban strikes the airport. If they can mortar the airport, the situation is dire.  Russia in Syria. 
 
Hour Two
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 2, Block A:  Bruce Klingner, senior research fellow, Northeast Asia at The Heritage Foundation, in re; the latest on North Korea, including
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/north-korean-government-wants-help-from-experts-with-republican-ties-to-figure-out-trump-report/article/2635665 Bruce is one of two scholars who’ve been contacted by an intermediary. Track 1.5 – scholars discussing policy.
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 2, Block B:  Charles Ortel, managing director of research firm Newport Value Partners, in re: how the market is reacting to the North Korean crisis.   DJI would go down 3,000 to 5,000 points initially. Markets so leveraged there’d be a panicked rush to US debt. Smaller mkts in Europe and EMs would be flattened: no global system of regulation. Precious metals would skyrocket. . . . We’ve been living in a false market since 2008.
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 2, Block C:  Charles Clark, author, Hidden History of Arlington County, in re: “Deep State” was coined in poor countries, referred to coup-plotters . . .
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 2, Block D: Lou Ann Hammond, Driving the Nation.com, on re:  Zero-emission vehicle, Tesla (300 mi on a charge), or Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid (3o mi on a charge).
 
Hour Three
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 3, Block A:  Salina Zito, CNN, and Lara Brown, Georgetown, in re:  Tax reforms.
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 3, Block B:  Salina Zito, CNN, and Lara Brown, Georgetown, in re:  Special election, Republican vs Republican, Moore vs Strange: about poling the Man in the eye, where the Man is Washington.
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 3, Block C:  Monica Crowley, The Hill, and London Center for Policy Research,  in re: NFL losing strength
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 3, Block D:  Cliff May, FDD, in re:  Narcoterrorism
 
Hour Four
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 4, Block A: Amity Shlaes, The Forgotten Man, in graphic-novel form. Starts with Rex Tugwell and other professors sailing to Russia.
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 4, Block B: Amity Shlaes, The Forgotten Man
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 4, Block C:  Sean McMeekin, July 1914: Countdown to War
Wednesday  27 September 2017 / Hour 4, Block D:  Sean McMeekin, July 1914: Countdown to War