Why did we go to war in Iraq in 2003? What happened in the 18 months between 9/11 and March 2003 that drove that decision? What was it about George Bush and Tony Blair that meant war was on the cards? And what motivated these two men at the peak of their powers – with the world on their side – to pursue a war that would prove to be historically unpopular and taint their legacies forever? In the midst of a presidential contest in America where every day the Iraq War – a topic for debate, there is no better time to ask what effect that 18 month period had on the society we live in today.​ The Iraq War came following a moment of crisis – September 11th. In real-time, the world watched our leaders react and make decisions based fast-paced information being presented to them, not unlike the moment we're currently facing with COVID. The issue, however, is that the response to the Iraq War led to an all-time low level of public trust of government officials and media – something that we never fully recovered from. How does that level of distrust in leadership response to crisis effect the current state of the world?​ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices