What happens when one of America’s boldest investigative journalists pulls back the curtain on what he calls “one of the most propagandized societies in human history”? On this episode of the Unfettered Speech podcast, Max Blumenthal joins us to talk about what he witnessed firsthand while living in Israel to research his groundbreaking book Goliath: Life and Loathing in Greater Israel.

Blumenthal doesn’t hold back. He explains how he used his own privilege as a Jew to expose realities carefully hidden from American audiences. What he found was a society, in his words, “on its way to carrying out a Holocaust in the name of preserving Jewish sovereignty”—a grim warning he once hoped was wrong, but now believes is being played out in Gaza.

We dig into what Blumenthal calls the “Zionist fantasy”: Israel as “a villa in the jungle,” a European-style safe haven surrounded by populations it sees as threatening. He argues that keeping this illusion alive requires constant expansion, more walls, and the erasure of Palestinian life. And when moments like October 7th break that illusion, the backlash only grows harsher.

Perhaps most striking is Blumenthal’s challenge to American Jews: how can you fight white Christian nationalism at home while supporting Jewish ethno-nationalism abroad? “You can’t be a small-d democrat in the United States,” he argues, “and defend a Jewish state that denies basic rights to the people living under it.”

Whether you agree with his conclusions or not, Blumenthal’s firsthand perspective forces us to wrestle with hard questions—about identity, power, and what it would truly take to build peace.

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Chapters:

0:00 Welcome and Introduction with Max Blumenthal

5:15 Inside Israel: Max's Experience Writing Goliath

10:25 Propaganda and Character Assassination

17:38 Liberal Zionism and J Street's Role

25:31 Two-State Solution: Impossible Fantasy

34:11 Arab World's Silence on Gaza

43:19 Zionist Billionaires vs Anti-Zionist Jews

48:42 MAGA Movement and Israel Politics

56:35 Israel's Future and Path to Peace

60:00 Conclusion and Final Thoughts