A war in the Middle East. A closed shipping lane. And a chain of consequences that stretches from Irish petrol stations to South Korean chip makers, and from British supermarket shelves to the price of your next laptop.

In this episode, Tom, Sidd and Lily trace the true cost of the war with Iran — for the Iranian people, for the world economy, and your everday life.

The episode starts with mass protests brutally suppressed by the Iranian regime, Trump's promise that "help is on its way," the coordinated US-Israeli strikes on 28 February, the assassination of Supreme Leader Khamenei, and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz — the single most important shipping lane in the world. They examine why, despite weeks of bombardment and repeated claims of victory, the regime remains intact and the Strait remains shut.

From there the team maps the ripple effects: fuel protests that have brought Ireland to the edge of political crisis, a fertiliser shortage threatening the spring planting season across the northern hemisphere, a semiconductor supply crunch that could outlast the war itself, and a UK government quietly planning for food shortages by summer.

Running beneath all of it, China, quietly filling every vacuum the war creates.

Listen to related episodes:

The origins of the Iranian war: https://thepoliticaldispatch.podbean.com/e/irans-reckoning-counter-revolution/

The unravelling of the world order: https://thepoliticaldispatch.podbean.com/e/if-we-are-not-at-the-table/

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To get connected with Tom, Lily or Sidd, please find them on Instagram: @sparetom, @lilymott3, and @siddkurapati.

For more information about the show, please find Be the Change. Media Network on Instagram: @bethechangemedianetwork.

Opinions shared by the guests and hosts of this show are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Be the Change. Media Network.