“Every empire ends by confusing its survival with the survival of its weapons.” — paraphrasing the moral universe Chris Hedges has spent his career warning us about Once upon a time, Dwight D. Eisenhower issued a warning. It was 1961. He spoke cautiously, almost politely, about a “military-industrial complex” —a partnership between arms manufacturers, politicians, and generals that could devour democracy from within. The warning was treated as historical wisdom, a relic from an older, gentler America. Sixty years later, that warning reads less like caution and more like prophecy understating the apocalypse . Because what Eisenhower feared has now evolved into something far grander, richer, and more grotesque: The Trillion Dollar War Machine™ —a permanent economy of death, upgraded with Silicon Valley software, AI-enabled killing, and venture capital enthusiasm. Chris Hedges, in his conversation with political scientist William D. Hartung, names the beast without flinchin...