The French established protectorates across North Africa but they were not all of the same kind. The Gulf peninsula was ruled by tribally based federations tied together through political and religious affiliations. The most important of these was the house of Saud’s alliance with the figure Ibn ‘Abd el Wahab’. The Saudi/Wahabi alliance would emerge … Read more
Chapter 1: The Ottoman Empire and its Legacy in the Middle East The Middle East is the birthplace of three monotheistic faiths of Judaism (2000 BCE), Christianity (1st Century AD), and Islam (7th century CE). The Ottomans tried to regulate Islam across the empire through the Grand Mufti. In the 18th and 19th century, the … Read more
The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith was written at a time when Mercantilism was the dominant economic policy. Those who advocate mercantile policies think that for any country, imports are bad while exports are good. But what Adam Smith argued for, was that the key to growth and prosperity, was not to engage in … Read more
Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence is a book about gaining control over your attention. It’s getting harder to focus because there is more information and more ways to access this information. But what is important is to think of attention as a muscle, that, if worked on, will get stronger. What you decide to … Read more
This book by Sarah Chayes makes the argument that corruption is the precursor for violent extremism and not the other way around. The Prince ought to inspire fear in such a way that, if he does not win love, he at least avoids hatred. . . . This he can always do if he … Read more
Leo Strauss was a German-American political philosopher, and in this book records his oral commentary of Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra. Chapter 1: Introduction (Nietzsche’s Philosophy, Existentialism, and the Problem of Our Age) There is a connection between Nietzsche and fascism. Although Nietzsche was not a fascist, his philosophy is an extreme version of conservatism, and … Read more
The Psychology of Joker Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, provides the backdrop for the life of the famous Batman villain. The movie touches on key psychological themes that relate to Jung, Freud, Nietzsche, and Dostoevsky. Arthur has a problem; he sometimes loses control of himself, and bursts into fits of laughter. While working … Read more
The Superman Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Nietzsche is about Zarathustra, the prophet, who has come to preach the meaning of life: to strive towards becoming the Superman. Zarathustra was historically a Persian prophet, and Nietzsche’s style in this book, is to mimic religious text, in an ironical way, to show how the profound can be … Read more
In The Psychology of Revolution, Gustave Le Bon says that belief is unconscious and uninfluenced by reason. The revolution is the work of believers. It is hated by some and praised by others, and is a dogma that is either accepted or rejected as a whole, without the use of logic. Reason may spark a … Read more
The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind by Gustave La Bon explains the psychology of crowds, their vulnerabilities, and their greatest virtues. It is easy to be infected with the enthusiasm and the emotions that crowds evoke, which is why it is necessary to apply critical thinking, and not to yield every impulse you … Read more