MM#291-- The Crisis In The Middle East and Its History

Welcome to the Theory to Action podcast, where we examine the timeless treasures of wisdom from the great books in less time, to help you take action immediately and ultimately to create and lead a flourishing life. Now here's your host, David Kaiser.

Hello, I am David and welcome back to another Mojo Minute. On October 7th 2023, just some two months ago, the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hamas, based out of the Gaza Strip, launched an unprovoked and vicious surprise attack on over 20 communities in Israel. The attack was unlike anything seen since the major wars in Israel in 1968 and 1973. Hamas murdered over 1,200 innocents, including the beheading of children, and over 5,400 people were injured and over 230 hostages were taken. Again, we are just two months removed from those events and yet the claimer for a ceasefire has increasingly been ramped up on the state of Israel to stop their hunting and killing of these horrific terrorists who conducted the October 7th assault, and the claimer from the Biden administration to Israel has ramped up behind the scenes to ask them to engage in a ceasefire. In our Liberty Minutes of October 8th, 10th and October 12th, we talked about this very incident. We stated that this was Israel's September 11th. Can you imagine this question after our 9-11 here in the United States? Can you imagine if, from 9-11, we were asked by the international community on, say, november 11th? Hey guys, I knew you were just starting to ramp up your fight against the evil doers that conducted those horrific attacks on September 11th, but can we ask for a ceasefire? Can you imagine the gall of that question? Can you imagine the nerve to even ask that question? It seems our international community, and most especially the United Nations, has lost any moral clarity whatsoever. We have seen the anti-Semitism come out in full force in the last two months, especially at our Ivy League schools. More to come on that. That has been an overwhelmingly disgusting display, but we will address those frauds in a later Liberty Minute. But for today, to help us understand the history and the context of where these Islamic radicals come from and what they're thinking is, let us turn to one of the most gifted writers and historians on these topics, who unfortunately just passed away back in 2018. He wrote some wonderful books. Bernard Lewis was a premier Islamic scholar. He educated millions around the world on the nature of Islamic fundamentalism and most especially, on Islamic radicalism. In fact, let's go to one of his books now the Crisis of Islam to Understand Better what we Are Dealing With Radical Islamism, to which it has been customary to give the name. Islamic fundamentalism is not a single homogeneous movement. There are many types of Islamic fundamentalism in different countries and even sometimes within a single country. Some of some are state-sponsored, promulgated, used and promoted by one or other Muslim governments for its own purposes. Some are a genuine popular movements from below. Among state-sponsored Islamic movements, there are again several kinds, both radical and conservative, both subversive and preemptive. Conservative and preemptive movements have been started by governments in power seeking to protect themselves from the revolutionary wave. Such are the movements encouraged at various times by the Egyptians, the Pakistanis and, notably, the Saudis. The other kind, far more important, comes from below, with an authentic popular base. The first of these to seize power in, the most successful in exercising it, is the movement known as the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Several Islamic regimes now rule in the Sudan and for a while ruled in Afghanistan, and Islamic movements offer major threats to the already endangered existing order in other countries, notably Algeria and Egypt. And here is where Bernard Lewis, the scholar, really helps us as a guide in this matter, by walking us through these complex motives, for which radical Islamic regimes gain a much better understanding of their authenticity and motives, as well as their bad intentions. It's important to note that the first of these movements started in the late 18th century with the advent of Wahhabism, and then, just in the last 100 years do we see a rise of radical Islamic fundamentalism, completely with the state in the state, within the state, in the example of the revolution in Iran in 1979. Let's go back to the book to gain more understanding. The Muslim fundamentalist, unlike the Protestant groups whose name was transferred to them, do not differ from the mainstream on questions of theology and the interpretation of scripture. Their critique is, in the broadest sense, societal. The Islamic world, in their view, has taken a wrong turning. Its rulers call themselves Muslims and make a pretense of Islam, but they are in fact apostates who have abrogated the holy law and adopted foreign and infidel laws and customs. The only solution for them is to return to the authentic Muslim way of life, and for this the removal of the apostate governments is an essential first step. Fundamentalists are anti-Western in the sense that they regard the West as a source of the evil that is corroding Muslim society. Their primary attack is directed against their own rulers and leaders. Such were the movements which brought about the overthrow of the Shah of Iran in 1979 and the murder of President Sadat of Egypt two years later. Both were seen as symptoms of a deeper evil to be remedied by an inner cleansing In Egypt. They murdered the ruler but failed to take over the state In Iran. They destroyed the regime and created their own. So the rise of Islamic radicalism has gained popularity only in the last 75 years. There are many reasons for that, and we don't have time to go into all of them right now. After finding this information compelling and you want to learn more, we have just released a full Academy review on this very book, the Crisis of Islam by Bernard Lewis. So you can get the full 38 minute review of the book with all the key points broken down for you, giving you the great history and insight from one of the most premier Islamic scholars in the world. To do so, just click on the link below in the show notes and you can sign up for our very affordable monthly membership program to get you two book reviews each month, and we just released this book. Now, with regard to how the Muslims view the Israeli state, let's find out just how they do view it, because there's a long history. In 1941, with German help, via Vichy-controlled Syria, rashid Ali succeeded for a while in establishing a pro-access regime in Iraq. He was defeated by Allied troops and went to join the Mufti in Germany Even Anwar Sadat, by his own admission, worked as a German spy in British-controlled Egypt. The defeat of Germany in the collapse of the Third Reich and its various agencies left an aching void. As many saw it, it was the resulting interlude that, in 1948, the Jews were able to set up their state, inflicting a humiliating defeat on the Arab armies that were sent to prevent it. A new patron and protector, a replacement for the Third Reich, was urgently needed. It was found in the Soviet Union. Then came the collapse of the Soviet Union, which left the United States as the sole world superpower. The era of Middle Eastern history that had been inaugurated by Bonaparte and Nelson was ended by Mikhail Gorbachev and the elder George Bush. At first it seemed that the era of imperial rivalry had ended with the withdrawal of both rivals the Soviet Union because it couldn't and the United States because it wouldn't play the imperial role. But before long, events, notably the Iranian Revolution in the wars of the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, forced the United States to involve itself more directly in the affairs of the region. Middle Easterners saw this as a new phase in the old imperial game. Americans did not and showed that they had neither the desire nor the aptitude for an imperial role. Islam played a significant role during World War II as various Muslim leaders aligned with different factions based on their geopolitical objectives. For instance, figures like Rashad Ali of Iraq established that pro-axis regime with German assistance, suggesting a convergence of his interest in his ideological alignment with Nazi principles. Similarly, egyptian Anwar Saddam involvement as a German spy underscores the intricate webs of allegiance that were woven during those tultumous times. Many Americans, despite their country's significant role in the World War II, remained largely unaware of the complex political dynamics that marked the period, particularly in regards to Middle Eastern leaders aligning with the access powers in World War II. Misunderstandings about this past can breed Misconceptions about present-day Middle Eastern policies. The historical narrative often focused on Europe's role, overshadowing crucial events in other regions. For instance, the alliances formed by leaders like Rashad Ali and Anwar Saddam with the Nazis are rarely discussed, obscuring a key aspect of the wartime geopolitics. Understanding this history is paramount as it provides a richer, fuller understanding of the current relationships and power dynamics that continue to shape the world today. Continuing on the last 50 years, major events like the Gulf War have continued to shape and mold the Muslim mind and worldview. Let's go back to the book. The collapse of the Soviet Union, followed by the defeat of Saddam Hussein in the Gulf War in 1991, was a devastating blow to secular nationalist movements, notably that of the Palestinians, who once again, as in 1945, found themselves bereft of a great power patron and helper in their cause. Their Soviet protector was gone. Even their Arab financial backers in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, angered by enthusiastic Palestinian support for Saddam Hussein, for a while stopped their subsidies, leaving the Palestinians isolated, impoverished and enfeebled. It was this situation that forced them to think the unthinkable and enter into a peace process with Israel. The PLO was rescued and fundamentalist eyes ignamiously by the Americans in the Israelis and induced to enter into a demeaning dialogue with Israel. All this gave greater plausibility to the fundamentalist view of the world and greater appeal to their cause. They, and notably Usama bin Laden, interpreted the collapse of the Soviet Union in a different way. So you can see that Islamic radicalism has a very strange theology and is tied up into German Nazism from the 1940s, and the worldview is quite twisted, which brings out a direct anti-Semitism not seen in our world since the 1920s and 30s, most especially in Europe. So in today's mojo minute, the best way for Americans to react to all this anti-Semitism is to read and learn the real history of the Middle East, and one way to do that is to read the great scholars in this area, the well-respected scholars who give you the true story, not the propaganda, and you will do very well to start with our author, bernard Lewis. May God bless the state of Israel. May God bless the state of Israel, may God have mercy on its enemies, and may God bless people of goodwill.

Thank you for joining us. We hope you enjoyed this theory to action podcast. Be sure to check out our show page at team mojoacademycom, where we have everything we discussed in this podcast, as well as other great resources. Until next time, keep getting your mojo on.