Victor Davis Hanson: When I Cruised Iraq in an Abrams Tank
Podcast: Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words
Host: Victor Davis Hanson | The Daily Signal
Date: January 2, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode is the second of three special listener Q&A installments, where Victor Davis Hanson (VDH) answers questions submitted by his fans, focusing on his familial farming history in California’s Central Valley, tank warfare and technology, military history, and a critical reflection on Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath and the “Okie” experience. VDH’s answers are rich with storytelling, historical analysis, and personal anecdotes, delivering both nostalgia and perspective on how the past has shaped the present.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Farming in California’s Central Valley

(Timestamps: 04:10–18:06, 20:20–26:03)

• Origins of Family Farming:
  Hanson discusses the agricultural roots of his family in California, recounting how his great-great-grandmother chose their land for its artesian pond and proximity to Sierra snowmelt.

  • "They picked this place because it had an artesian pond. The water table is only about 10 [feet]." (04:47, VDH)
  • Early farming relied on dry farming of wheat and oats due to the lack of established irrigation.

• Irrigation Development and Water Rights:
  A detailed journey from dry farming to the introduction of irrigation canals and the eventual impact of the Big Creek hydroelectric dam project, which powered Southern California and transformed valley agriculture.

  • "Everything changed when the dams came in... And that allowed the bottom lake—Millerton Lake—to supply all of the irrigation districts around Fresno." (09:32, VDH)
  • Hints at community tensions over water theft and the ongoing struggle with declining aquifers.

• Farm Tools, Tractors, and Mechanization:
  Hanson fondly recalls his family’s team of workhorses and subsequent transition to tractors, especially the revolution brought by Ford's 9N, the Jubilee, and Massey Ferguson models.

  • "My grandfather used to tell me, 'Boys, thank God for the Ford Ferguson tractor and the 9N.'" (12:20, VDH)
  • Family tractors all had nicknames—Bluey, Ollie, Big Boy, Massey twins—personalizing the story of mechanization.

• Organic Farming and Markets:
  The Hansons managed up to 180 acres, including a 25-acre organic plot, bringing diverse produce to farmers markets and involving children in every step.

  • "We bought a telephone van... and we would put about £3,000 fresh tomatoes, plums, peaches... and they'd sell out. And you can make a lot of money, but no pesticides, no nitrates." (15:51–16:15, VDH)
  • Organic farming subsidized the rest of their operation:
    • "This little 25 acres made so much money we would break even every year." (18:03, VDH)

• Government Regulation in Raisin Farming:
  Hanson illustrates the effects of federal policies on raisin growers, highlighting price-fixing mechanisms and struggles with the Raisin Administrative Committee.

  • "They said, 'You don't own them. You got to deliver all of them.' ... I got the full price of $500 a ton for 15% of the crop." (22:00–24:05, VDH)
  • He points to the demise of the raisin industry for almonds due to labor and regulatory changes.

2. Tank Warfare – Personal Experience & Military History

(Timestamps: 26:06–38:09)

• American vs. Export Abrams Tanks:
  Insight into how US-exported weapons, including Abrams tanks, are deliberately engineered to be less advanced than domestic versions.

  • "When we export any weapon system...we have a general rule that that weapon system...would not be able to have equity with the weapon systems that we have now." (27:10, VDH)

• Tactical Use of Tanks:
  Hanson underscores the importance of combined tank operations vs. standalone use, referencing HR McMaster’s leadership in the Gulf War’s largest tank battle and relating his own experiences embedded with US forces in Iraq.

  • "I rode in an Abrams for...a half an hour. And believe me, I could not believe the difference. It was like a Cadillac." (30:59, VDH)

• Comparisons with Historical Tanks:
  Commentary on World War II armored warfare, highlighting German tank superiority on paper but affirming the American Sherman tank’s reliability, production scale, and evolutionary improvement.

  • "Of all the Sherman tanks...I think there were 11,000 destroyed in World War II. Three out of five crewmen survived. And that was not true of the destroyed [Russian] one." (32:21, VDH)
  • "It had an airplane engine in it. It was very reliable...it was so versatile, and you could do so many things with it." (34:45, VDH)

• Anecdotes and Pop Culture:
  Referencing films like Fury and the mythos of tanks like the Firefly and the Grant and Lee tanks.

  • "Did you ever see that Brad Pitt movie Fury? ...The Americans with their uploaded Sherman medium tank..." (33:08, VDH)

3. Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, the Okie Diaspora & Central Valley Class

(Timestamps: 38:09–57:16)

• Dust Bowl Migration and its Legacy:
  Hanson contrasts the suffering depicted by Steinbeck with his own experience growing up among descendants of Okies in California.

  • "One of the groups...they were called okies versus non okies. And what did that mean? ...White kids that were poor and they had a slight southern accent and they dressed differently." (39:51–40:20, VDH)

• Assimilation and Class Divide:
  By the 1980s, Okies were largely assimilated. Bakersfield, once synonymous with dispossession, has become a hub of economic dynamism versus relatively stagnant Fresno.

  • "By 1980, that was gone. They were completely assimilated. And...the most successful people I know...are second and third generation Oklahoma diaspora." (41:14, VDH)

• Class and Social Tensions:
  Vivid memories of ethnic and class-based divides at his high school and the rough social landscape of the Central Valley:

  • "In high school, the big fights...were from Okies calling Mexicans beaners...and Mexicans calling Okies white trash." (46:05, VDH)
  • "If you want to be frank...about who was discriminated the most at the school, I would say, Okies." (50:31, VDH)

• Reflection on Grapes of Wrath as Art and Propaganda:
  Hanson respects Ford’s movie as an artistic achievement, but critiques its exaggeration of hardship and government benevolence:

  • "It exaggerated the discrimination and the poverty and maybe it glorified the government a little bit. But yeah, it kind of demonized the farmer." (52:17, VDH)

• Personal Anecdotes and Color:
  The segment is sprinkled with stories of Hanson’s interactions with Okie, Mexican, and other farmworker families, as well as playful recollections of growing up on the ranch.

  • "Joe, my grandfather said, those are tire tracks. No, no, no. A snake will grab his...[tail]..." (54:57, VDH on the hoop snake myth)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Farm Water Wars:
  "I had a neighbor, I won't mention him, who kept stealing water and I would lock it with a padlock and he would break it. It was horrible." (07:32, VDH)

• On Mechanization:
  "My grandfather..never made the transition...He didn't know how to drive a tractor. He was a great teamster. So he would always say the whole barn was full of horse collars..." (12:20–13:40, VDH)

• On Federal Raisin Control:
  "You bring them [raisins] in...and then we Count up all the raisins in the whole valley and we get a tonnage. And then...as bureaucrats how many can be sold at a break even price...The government would actually go in. And if you tried to sell...they gave you a certain amount...But if you tried [more]...then they would say, you're a scab." (21:00–23:12, VDH)

• On US Exported Abrams Tanks:
  "Those Abrams tanks, if they got into a fight with an American Abrams tank, would not be as successful." (28:15, VDH)

• On T-72 vs. Abrams:
  "They were daring me to drive their T72...but then I rode in an Abrams for I don't know, a half an hour. And believe me, I could not believe the difference. It was like a Cadillac." (31:21, VDH)

• Class Tension in the Valley:
  "It was more about class, I think." (51:10, VDH)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Farming and Water Rights History: (04:10–11:39, 12:20–15:14)
• Tractors, Mechanization, Organic Markets: (12:20–15:51, 15:51–18:06)
• Federal Raisin Control & Policy: (20:20–26:03)
• US Military Tank Technology and Use: (27:10–31:28)
• Sherman Tanks, Firefly, WWII Analysis: (32:21–37:54)
• The Okie Diaspora, Central Valley Diversity: (39:51–50:31)
• Reflection on Grapes of Wrath and Critique: (45:19–53:21)
• Anecdotes & Personal Memories: (53:21–57:16)

Tone and Language

VDH’s storytelling is informal, colorful, and rich with lived experience and historical analysis. He is candid, sometimes self-deprecating, and often adds humor or folk wisdom to his recollections. The tone balances nostalgia (for a vanishing agrarian world), analytical depth (when discussing tanks and history), and frankness about class and ethnic tension in Central Valley life.

For those interested in the intersection of American agricultural life, military history, and the real human cost of social change, this episode is a rewarding listen, filled with wisdom, practical knowledge, and evocative storytelling.