# Exposing The Lies of the 20th Century | Aaron Bastani Meets Tariq Ali Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzkxIVPc8Ao Recap page: https://rapidrecap.app/video/jzkxIVPc8Ao Generated: 2026-01-18T18:31:05.83+00:00 --- ## Quick Overview Tariq Ali argues that the collapse of the Soviet Union did not lead to the end of American imperialism, contrary to popular belief, and attributes the subsequent decline in Western media openness and intellectual rigor to the end of the Cold War competition, which previously necessitated showcasing dissenting voices. **Key Points:** - Tariq Ali organized his first demonstration at age 14 or 15 against the US execution sentence for a black man named Jimmy Wilson stealing a dollar, facing an unsympathetic American Consul General Oswald Spankler. - Ali notes that the Chinese revolution of 1949 and the Vietnamese resistance against the US heavily influenced political thought in South Asia, citing an uncle naming his son Ho Chi Minh after the fall of Dien Bien Phu. - The defeat of Tsarist Russia by Japan in 1905 triggered the 1905 revolution, which Lenin welcomed as weakening Tsarism considerably, demonstrating the impact of non-European victories. - Ali asserts that the Second World War involved three different wars: the Japanese conflict against China starting in 1937, the Japanese defeat of the British at Singapore, and the main European conflict. - The post-Cold War assumption that American imperialism would end was false; Ali warned friends that American imperial interests would receive an enormous boost after destroying their enemy, the Soviet Union. - Ali pinpoints the collapse of the Soviet Union as the end of the most innovative period of British television, like Channel 4, because the West no longer needed to demonstrate superiority by permitting dissenting voices. - Senior BBC staff told Ali they received pressure from Alistair Campbell and the Blair government, and one Director General, Greg Dyke, admitted Downing Street complained about too many anti-war voices on Question Time, leading them to hire pro-war Kurds to fill the audience. **Context:** The conversation is an interview between Aaron Bastani and Tariq Ali, a historian, author, and co-founder of the left-wing publisher Verso and the New Left Review. Ali, born in British India in 1943, discusses his early political awakening shaped by his radical communist parents in Pakistan and key historical events like the Chinese Revolution and the US treatment of African Americans. The discussion centers on historical memory, the nature of American imperialism post-Cold War, and the decline of intellectual dissent in Western media. ## Detailed Analysis Tariq Ali contends that many people mistakenly believed American imperialism ended with the Soviet collapse, whereas it actually gained strength, a reality he argued against constantly. He traces his political formation to his radical parents in Pakistan and his early activism, exemplified by organizing a march to the American consulate at 14 over the sentencing of Jimmy Wilson. Ali emphasizes that historical consciousness is crucial, quoting Churchill: "The farther back you can look, the farther forward you can see." He details how non-European victories, like Japan defeating Russia in 1905 and the Vietnamese defeating the French, profoundly radicalized post-colonial peoples. Ali describes the atmosphere in the UK against the Vietnam War, where solidarity with Spanish Civil War veterans was strong. He argues that mainstream history largely ignores critical elements of WWII, such as the Nanjing Massacre and the central role of the Soviet Union (whose victories at Stalingrad and Kursk prevented Hitler from taking Europe) and Chinese resistance. Ali believes media conformity worsened significantly after the Cold War ended, as the need to showcase Western ideological superiority by allowing dissent (like the creation of Channel 4) vanished. He recounts how Al Jazeera faced direct interference from the US military garrison regarding footage showing US Marines killing an innocent family in Iraq. Furthermore, Ali and others pleaded with Gorbachev to secure a treaty guaranteeing no NATO expansion eastward, a guarantee the Germans, specifically Chancellor Kohl, broke, leading to the current destructive path Russia is on. ### Tariq Ali's Political Origins - Radical upbringing in Pakistan - Organizing a demonstration at 14 against US injustice - Influence of the Chinese Revolution and anti-imperial resistance in South Asia ### Historical Revisionism in WWII - Argues for three wars: Japanese-Chinese conflict (starting 1937), fall of Singapore, and the European war - Highlights the central role of the Soviet Union and Chinese resistance, often ignored in Western accounts ### The Post-Cold War Illusion - Popular belief that US imperialism ended after the Soviet implosion was wrong, as American imperial interests were greatly boosted - The promised 'peace dividend' never materialized ### Decline of Dissenting Media - The end of the Cold War ended the West's need to demonstrate ideological superiority by permitting dissenting voices, leading to a decline in intellectual rigor in outlets like the BBC and Channel 4 ### US Imperial Interference - Ali recounts Al Jazeera being threatened by the US military for planning to air footage of US Marines killing an Iraqi family - Notes that few countries remain truly sovereign under current US influence ### Gorbachev's Miscalculation - Senior Russians warned Gorbachev against trusting the West and failing to secure a treaty against NATO expansion, despite pledges from Chancellor Kohl, leading to a 'horrific mistake' for the Soviet sphere.