The Chicago Way® podcast: Guest Nick Kass
By John Kass
October 19, 2023
Gaza war coverage is all too full of spin, tribal cheerleading and hysterics.
But Israel is at war, and you don’t have time to hear happy talkers who babble about Chicago pizza in one breath and war on Hamas terrorists with the other.
You need to listen to a pro’s pro, a U.S. Foreign Service officer diplomat and Intelligence expert with 30+ years of experience in the field:
Nicholas Kass.
Nick is my younger brother.
Jeff Carlin and I wanted him back on the Chicago Way® podcast to talk about the war in Gaza and what the U.S. must consider.
He is a serious man. And we are in serious times. A few weeks ago, on another podcast with another serious man—my friend and U of Chicago Professor emeritus Charles Lipson–we mentioned the Bible passage about putting away “the things of a child” when you become a man:
“When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” Corinthians 13:11, King James Version.
Currently, Nick is a Senior Fellow for European Affairs at the Capital Center for The National Interest. He is also Executive Director for International Corporate Affairs for the Alexandrion Group and lives with his family in Bucharest.
He served the U.S. as Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operation U.S. Department of State; Director for European Affairs, National Security Council, The White House; Senior Political Officer U.S. Department of State; Director for Intelligence Programs, National Security Council, The White House, and many other postings.
He also served as an officer with the Central Intelligence Agency and was awarded for his unique contributions to the CIA HUMINT mission, as an Intelligence Briefer for the Director of Central Intelligence, and analysis for senior policy makers.
My younger brother is the most brilliant man I know. He loves the United States of America and has given his life in service to our country.
He is a most serious man. And we are in serious times.
-30-
Comments 8
My lifelong best friend has lived in Jerusalem for 54 years. Raised a family there with her late husband. 3 of her grandkids are in the Israeli army. The only argument that makes any sense is that the “intelligence failure” was intentional. Israel has some of the best intelligence in the world. Too many warning signs here. Forces are at work here that are not being exposed.
Excellent discussion with Nick Kass. Especially the last five minutes about stabilizing the world community without incinerating it.
Yianni and Niko,
Great discussion. Time for serious people is long past due, and I fear the current leftist/socialist/marxist administration and minions will continue their fight to remake America into their image of progressive mumbo-jumbo! We need serious folk who can counter this offensive and alter the current course of turning this country in a national sh-thole! Need more sane heads like Niko to step up and push back….
Anyone who doubts that the current administration is not serious….just look at their nomination of Jack Lew for Ambassador to Israel.
Excellent podcast today, always great to hear your brother Nick’s insights. He brings an educated and experienced view on many complex world issues. I like how he brings history into the present and looks at possible implications for the future. The slaughter of Israelis by Hamas was horrific. How people can justify evil is beyond belief. I see more dark days coming. God Bless you, Nick and Jeff!
So, “wait and see” – is the gist of the podcast conversación with Nick Kass on the Israli – Hamas conflict?!
Rajagopal Namperumal
Chris Hedges, the Pulitzer-winning, former NY Times Middle East Bureau Chief, offers valuable historical context to the horrors unfolding now.
If we’re to pull the needles of truth from the haystacks of lies put our by both Israel, Hamas, the “left wing” and “right wing” media, his essay is essential reading.
He starts out with, “Israel was founded on lies. The lie that Palestinian land was largely unoccupied. The lie that 750,000 Palestinians fled their homes and villages during their ethnic cleansing by Zionist militias in 1948 because they were told to do so by Arab leaders. The lie that it was Arab armies that started the 1948 war that saw Israel seize 78 percent of historic Palestine. The lie that Israel faced annihilation in 1967, forcing it to invade and occupy the remaining 22 percent of Palestine, as well as land belonging to Egypt and Syria…. ” https://scheerpost.com/2023/10/18/chris-hedges-israels-culture-of-deceit/
John,
Brother Nick is a treasure of wisdom and insight. Why can’t we have more grownups like him in public service?