Apparently ISIS isn't ISIS anymore. Or ISIL, either. I mean, feel free to keep calling it those things, but the group itself is now just going by "The Islamic State" (IS), or al-Dawlat al-Islamiyah in Arabic. This move clarifies all the questions people have been asking about the group's name, from whether it's better to … Continue reading What Is a Caliphate and Should You Be Terrified of It?
Category: blog
AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH: Islam and the American Slave Experience
Hey, I’ve moved! If you enjoy this post you can find more of my writing at Foreign Exchanges, a Substack newsletter covering a variety of topics in history and foreign affairs. Check it out today and become a subscriber! As we approach the end of African-American History Month, I thought it worth discussing the one … Continue reading AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH: Islam and the American Slave Experience
Happy Presidents Day: Teddy Roosevelt and the Perdicaris Affair (1904)
Hey, I've moved! If you enjoy this post you can find more of my writing at Foreign Exchanges, a Substack newsletter covering a variety of topics in history and foreign affairs. Check it out today and become a subscriber! President's Day here in the US brings with it a number of anecdotes about the bygone … Continue reading Happy Presidents Day: Teddy Roosevelt and the Perdicaris Affair (1904)
What is a “Man of Peace,” anyway?
Hey, I've moved! If you enjoy this post you can find more of my writing at Foreign Exchanges, a Substack newsletter covering a variety of topics in history and foreign affairs. Check it out today and become a subscriber! The outpouring of “man of peace” eulogies after Ariel Sharon’s death on January 11 got me … Continue reading What is a “Man of Peace,” anyway?
Abdullah Azzam: The Unmentioned Founding Father of al-Qaeda and Hamas
Hey, I've moved! If you enjoy this post you can find more of my writing at Foreign Exchanges, a Substack newsletter covering a variety of topics in history and foreign affairs. Check it out today and become a subscriber! I would guess that most people who know the name "Abdullah Azzam" today know it as … Continue reading Abdullah Azzam: The Unmentioned Founding Father of al-Qaeda and Hamas
Badly-drawn colonial borders are still a problem
Hey, I've moved! If you enjoy this post you can find more of my writing at Foreign Exchanges, a Substack newsletter covering a variety of topics in history and foreign affairs. Check it out today and become a subscriber! WARNING: VERY LONG A couple of months ago there was a piece in The Atlantic by … Continue reading Badly-drawn colonial borders are still a problem
The most wonderful time of the year
I woke up this morning with a major backache. This was my body's way of pre-injuring itself in preparation for the thing I'd been putting off all week, assembling my daughter's main Christmas present. This year she asked for a new play kitchen. She's had a plastic kitchen-thing since she was so little that I … Continue reading The most wonderful time of the year
Oman: Your Friendly Gulf Go-Between
As it turns out, the Iranian nuclear deal that has Saudi royals so concerned was made possible by the country that is probably Saudi Arabia's most nondescript neighbor: Oman. The year-long series of secret talks that were held between negotiators from the United States and Iran were mostly held in Oman and were mediated by … Continue reading Oman: Your Friendly Gulf Go-Between
The Story of Timur and the Ant
Hey, I've moved! If you enjoy this post you can find more of my writing at Foreign Exchanges, a Substack newsletter covering a variety of topics in history and foreign affairs. Check it out today and become a subscriber! Timur, a late-14th century Mongolian/Turkic warlord who tried to rebuild the Mongolian Empire and didn't care … Continue reading The Story of Timur and the Ant
Sermons, Coins, and Sovereignty
There are two symbols of sovereignty that were historically crucial for any serious claimant to authority. One is called, in Arabic, the khutbah, which is the communal sermon preached at the mosque every Friday. In pre-modern times, when there was no internet or even a newspaper and a person might conceivably not know who was … Continue reading Sermons, Coins, and Sovereignty
The Foreign Exchanges Companion 