Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Secretary of Defense James Mattis resigned on Thursday in part because he felt his president was violating the code of the Marines, that no man should be left behind. In abruptly pulling out of Syria, Trump was abandoning the Syrian Kurds, the only allies the US could find in the […]
Islamophobia and the Misuse of History: Iran, Alexander the Great and the Qur’an
As I mentioned earlier, an anonymous troll going by “Kirby” has attacked my new book Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires I have begun by addressing some of his substantive critiques ( here and here) – even though they may appear to be minor, because it is an opportunity to talk about […]
Putin: ISIL Defeated; “Right” for “unneeded” US Military to Depart Syria
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Sarah Sanders, Trump’s spokesperson, alleged that the Russians are unhappy with Trump decision to get out of Syria. As usual, Ms. Sanders is building sandcastles in the sky with no foundation. BBC Monitoring reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke at a news conference on Dec. 20 on Rossiya 1 […]
Review of Juan Cole, “Muhammad: Prophet of Peace” at The New Arab
The New Arab is carrying a review of my new book, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires by Usman Butt, “multimedia television researcher, filmmaker and writer based in London. Usman read International Relations and Arabic Language at the University of Westminster and completed a Master of Arts in Palestine Studies at the […]
Mattis was no Shining Knight: From backing Yemen War to Whitewashing Khashoggi Murder
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment): Official Washington was horrified at the resignation on Thursday of Secretary of Defense James Mattis, who wrote Trump a letter (below) that said “Because you have the right to have a Secretary of Defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, I believe it is right […]
A New Middle East: Winners and Losers from Trump’s Abrupt Syria Withdrawal
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Trump shook up the Washington establishment and Middle Eastern and world politics on Wednesday by abruptly announcing by Tweet a full and immediate withdrawal of US military forces from northeast Syria. Trump’s motives for what he does are never easy to fathom. He may have been driven by a desire […]
Islamophobia & the Misuse of History: Isaiah 29 and Attacks on my “Muhammad: Prophet of Peace”
When I wrote Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires, and published it with a trade press, I knew what I was doing. The book is history, and I genuinely had an open mind when I approached the writing of it. But trade publications seek to reach the wider public, and it was […]
What did Flynn Know about Russian ties to Trump and When did he Know it?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Disgraced former National Security Adviser to Donald Trump, Michael Flynn, had his sentencing postponed until March on Tuesday after Judge Emmett Sullivan raked him over the coals for lying to the FBI in the White House and for intimating that he was not really guilty and had been entrapped by […]
History and Essentializing Muslims as Violent: More on “Kirby’s” attack on my “Muhammad: Prophet of Peace”
As I noted here, an anonymous operative going by “Stephen M. Kirby” who is otherwise a ghost on the internet attacked my book at a major hate site directed against Muslims (I won’t link precisely because it is a hate site). Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires Available at Nicola’s Books in […]
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