The Syrian Civil War And Its Impact On Europe. Democratic Perspective again welcomes Dr. Paul Lenze, Jr., political science professor at NAU and Middle East expert to discuss his new book: Syrian Forced Migration and Public Health in the European Union.
He points to 2015 as the key date in the Syrian civil war when Russia got involved. That’s when millions of Syrians and others from the region began migrating to Europe. The so-called Old (western) Europe welcomed the refugees. The New (eastern) Europe didn’t. Nevertheless, he says the assimilation process has gone relatively well. But it depends on situations on the ground. Western European countries have helped them assimilate while Eastern European countries have kept them in camps.
Asked how to get to something positive going forward, Lenze says there needs to be a negotiated settlement. Assad has won. We need to bring all parties to the table for talks. We need to stop support of the Saudis in the Yemen civil war. We need to stop the bellicose reactions to Iran. And we need to bring in UN.
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Juan Cole Interview – Podcast April 29, 2019
Better Understanding Islam And The Qur’an. Democratic Perspective welcomes Juan Cole, professor of history at the University of Michigan and founder of Informed Comment, to discuss his new book Muhammad, Prophet of Peace Amid The Clash Of Empires. Contrary to the belief that the scriptures of Islam promote violence, Cole explains that the Qur’an has been very badly translated. “I looked at it with the eyes of an historian,” he says. “I’m reading it in the original Arabic and I’m reading it in context with the Greek and Persian and other works of that time. Context is everything.”
According to Cole, “The clans of the Prophet who were based in Mecca were the custodians of the shrine of God. They kept the peace. The Prophet was a peacemaker. The Qur’an actually says that the God of the Christians and the Jews is the same God that they worship. And it says that righteous Jews and Christians are going to heaven.” Cole says that, though the Qur’an has verses that state “when you are attacked, defend yourselves and fight the unbelievers wherever you encounter them,” it’s not talking about Jews and Christians. It’s talking about a specific group – the militant pagans [polytheists] of Mecca who were attacking Muslims at the time.
Cole further explains, “There is nothing distinctive in the Qur’an about war. The great French student of Islam, Maxime Rodinson told my teacher…’Any religion can be interpreted any way.'” Cole says that’s true of Islam, Judaism, Christianity and other religions.
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