Tag: academia
Nouveaux philosophes, neo-conservateurs
This fine piece on that moment in French intellectual history, in 1977, that saw the birth of the “nouveaux philosophes” should have pointed out that many of these philosophers (a title undeserved by BHL at least) are now the French equivalent of neo-conservatives: BHL as “liberal interventionist” or Glucksmann as Sarkoziste.
Napoleon’s Egypt
Uber-blogger and Middle East historian Juan Cole has a new blog on Napoleon Bonaparte’s invasion of Egypt, the first modern invasion of the Middle East by a Western power. It’s called Napoleon’s Egypt and goes along with Cole’s new book, Napoleon’s Egypt: Invading the Middle East. Cole is appears to be going through the invasion chronologically, quoting from memoirs and and biographies written at the time — in the excerpt below, from an eye-witness account of how Napoleon came decide on invasion:
‘In the month of August 1797 he [Bonaparte] wrote “that the time was not far distant when we should see that, to destroy the power of England effectually, it would be necessary to attack Egypt.”
In the same month he wrote to Talleyrand, who had just succeeded Charles de Lacroix as Minister of Foreign Affairs, “that it would be necessary to attack Egypt, which did not belong to the Grand Signior [Ottoman Emperor].” Talleyrand replied, “that his ideas respecting Egypt were certainly grand, and that their utility could not fail to be fully appreciated.”
More from that except here.
Alain Roussillon died yesterday
The French scholar Alain Roussillon, an expert on Egypt and the director of the CEDEJ in Cairo, passed away yesterday from a after suffering from a brain hemorrhage. He will be buried in Egypt, where his mother came from.
I last saw Roussillon on March 5, when we had a long chat about the constitutional amendments and current political situation in Egypt. I remember him being concerned about the rising social tensions in Egypt, seeing in them both an opportunity for the expression of genuine grievances and the return of la question sociale in Egyptian politics and a potential danger. He compared the present situation to the atmosphere of the year preceding the July 1952 coup — the Cairo fire and ensuing riot, the political intrigue, the massive social disaffection and rejection of the government. Some of the large-scale strikes we had seen at the time made him suspect that the legendary patience of long-suffering Egyptians was wearing thin.
“Street protests in Egypt are dangerous – you will have thousands of deaths in case of a riot. Neither the Muslim Brotherhood nor the regime really control the street,” he said. “The January 1952 model is reproducible.” We differed somewhat on that point, but agreed on one thing: the greatest threat to the regime is not the Muslim Brotherhood or some other political group, but popular attitudes towards it, and there are few countries where the state lacks as much legitimacy as Egypt.
He was very well versed in the debates in the Egyptian press and intellectual circles — the way positions are taken and framed, the coded references and intellectual antecedents of the idées reçues of Egyptian discourse. He was also alarmed, as someone who has spent most of his adult life chronicling Egyptian society, of the ascendancy of shallow conservative and materialistic ideas in Egyptian life — the entire ecosystem of ideas and practices that has largely taken over this country in the past 20-30 years, ideas he explored by examining the new Islamic writings that were came out of the globalization of Islam.
He was a fascinating conversation partner, I regret that we will not meet again.
The announcement of his death, information on the church service, and a note from the CEDEJ staff follows after the jump in French and Arabic.
Continue reading Alain Roussillon died yesterday
Norman Finkelstein denied tenure
I don’t really have anything to add to what Richard Silverstein has written on the subject. It’s sad for Finkelstein, sad for DePaul University, and sad for academia generally speaking, especially as it is generally recognized that Finkelstein is an accomplished scholar and it appears he was denied tenure essentially because of his personality. Finkelstein is an aggressive debater, some people (even among his ideological allies) may think he is too polemical but I think that kind of aggressivity is essential when the party he opposes (Alan Dershowitz and his ilk) had the resources to wage entire campaigns of obfuscation and slander.
See also Kafr al-Hanadwa and of course Finkelstein’s own website, where there is a statement of support by noted Holocaust historian Raul Hilberg as well as an interesting interview on the 1967 war I recently listened to.
And of course, if you haven’t already, read his books:
P.S. Can someone explain to me whether this means it is unlikely Finkelstein will be hired anywhere else? Can a campaign be organized for him to be hired elsewhere? Perhaps in the region, since Finkelstein is interested in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict…
Shame on you, Tabsir
Without wanting to get into the recent decision by the British Academics’ Union to pass a motion encouraging a boycott of Israeli universities and academics (I fully support this show of solidarity which remains, after all, optional and provides a course of action for selective boycott of academics who are in bed with the Israeli security establishment), I was rather dismayed to see this critic of the boycott use a picture of Nazi persecution of Jews in the 1930s. It’s especially sad as this site, Tabsir, often has great posts on things Middle Eastern by well-known specialists in their fields. So what is that picture saying? That the majority of British academics who voted in favor of the boycott are Nazis? That they are anti-Semites? This is typical of the use of alleged anti-Semitism to deflect justified criticism of Israel, which after all has carried a brutal occupation for many decades. I expect it from Likudnik hacks like Abraham Foxman and the ADL, but not of Tabsir.
It’s Islamofascism Awareness Day
Oh yes it is:
The campus project was planned by conservative writer and activist David Horowitz as a response to attempts last year by officials at Pace University to prevent a Jewish student group from hosting a screening of “Obsession” on the university’s West-chester, N.Y., campus.
Mr. Horowitz, whose Terrorism Awareness Project is sponsoring tomorrow’s events, said the use of the term “Islamofascism” is part of the educational mission of the “teach-ins” planned around the film showings.
“The most important thing is to make people recognize who the enemy is. People cringe when we use the word ‘Islamofascism’ because they haven’t been prepared for it,” he said in a telephone interview, adding that there are real similarities between Islamic extremism and the fascism of Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. “It’s not for nothing that the Iranian army goose-steps.”
“Obsession” won best feature-film honors at the 2005 Liberty Film Festival. It has been widely praised by conservatives and broadcast on the Fox News Channel.
The movie made headlines when members of the Pace chapter of Hillel, a collegiate Jewish organization, said they were “intimidated” by university administrators after a campus Muslim group complained of Hillel’s plan to show the documentary in November as part of Judaism Awareness Week.
Can’t wait for Christianofascism and Judeofascism (better known as Zionism) Awareness days. Come to think of it, how about Shintofascism and Hindufascism Awareness?
[Thanks, E.]
SOAS Students support a free Egypt!
Click on the thumbnail below to read a letter of support to Egyptians against the amendments from the School of Oriental and African Studies’ Student Union.
Favor: Can you send me the latest MEJ?
I have a favor to ask readers with access to academic databases. The new issue of the Middle East Journal is out, I’d like to read it but there is no way to get it from their website other than ordering a paper copy, which won’t get to Egypt for ages. I asked a friend with access to AUC’s and a US university’s database and they can’t get it electronically either. I’m particularly interested in the Egypt article, but the others look very interesting too.
I’d appreciate any help. Thanks.
Update: Got them, thanks!
Europe is ours
Ours, I tell you! Dirka dirka Muhammad Jihad! Muahahahahahahaha!!!!
Islam could soon be the dominant force in a Europe which, in the name of political correctness, has abdicated the battle for cultural and religious control, Prof. Bernard Lewis, the world-renowned Middle Eastern and Islamic scholar, said on Sunday.
The Muslims “seem to be about to take over Europe,” Lewis said at a special briefing with the editorial staff of The Jerusalem Post. Asked what this meant for the continent’s Jews, he responded, “The outlook for the Jewish communities of Europe is dim.” Soon, he warned, the only pertinent question regarding Europe’s future would be, “Will it be an Islamized Europe or Europeanized Islam?” The growing sway of Islam in Europe was of particular concern given the rising support within the Islamic world for extremist and terrorist movements, said Lewis.
I wonder if this prediction will be as accurate as Lewis’ last one. Read more for Bernie’s take on the Persian threat. When will some kind soul put him out of his misery?