Rat Massacres & Hog Wars

What a Failed Rat Hunt Says About Colonialism Guest: Michael G. Vann, Professor, History, California State University, Sacramento; author, "The Great Hanoi Rat Hunt: Empire, Disease, and Modernity in French Colonial Vietnam"; host, “New Books in History” podcast The story of colonial-era French-controlled Hanoi being overrun by rats illustrates how prejudiced, arrogant, and perverse incentives lead to ineffective solutions. The Great American Hog War Guest: John J. ("Jack") Mayer, research scientist and manager, Savannah River National Laboratory A combination of feral pigs and wild Eurasian Boars is destroying crops and ecosystems across America, despite culling attempts. Hunters bring in the big guns, and a few helicopters. The stakes are high for the pork industry.