In this episode I speak with Melani McAlister, professor of American Studies and International Affairs at George Washington University and author of the remarkable new book Promises Then the Storm — a journal she began on October 5th, 2023.This conversation moves through her life story: • growing up an evangelical Christian in North Carolina • discovering Amnesty International, human rights work, and the Middle East in 1982 • learning Arabic in Cairo • joining Mobilization for Survival in the late 1980s • working with queer and feminist organizers • being listed by the ADL as a “hate group” simply for recognizing the PLO • teaching the U.S. as an empire to a changing generation of students• Palestinian Poetry as ResistanceWe discuss Christian Zionism, the shifting landscape on American campuses, the rise of the alt-right, the weaponization of antisemitism, and why Palestine now resonates with Black, South Asian, Latino, and other marginalized communities.Melani argues that the human rights era has collapsed, that Gaza revealed the hypocrisy at the center of the old world order, and that what comes next must be a planetary consciousness rooted in ecology, sustainability, and the dignity of all people.At the end, Melani reads from one of the most powerful entries in her book — a passage I’ve set to original music from a close friend. Please stay for that.Melani’s book: Promises Then the Storm https://www.amazon.com/Promises-Then-...Music: https://michigan25yearsago.bandcamp.com/00:00 Coming Up…01:08 Palestine Exhaustion and McAlister’s Book06:55 Growing Up Evangelical to 1982 Israel Invasion of Lebanon10:45 The Christian Zionism Puzzle Piece13:40 McAlister Drops Messianic Christianity14:53 On Being a “Good Girl” and Religiosity17:57 Obiedence of Suicide Bombers19:02 Media Sources as American Zionist “Doctrine”21:52 The Next Wave of Protests23:53 McAlister’s Activist Path through Amnesty, MOBE, Academia31:59 Addressing Antisemitism, Living in Berlin, the Collapse of the Right36:04 The Legacy of the Jewish Left39:05 Judaism from Zionism and Israel40:35 A Journal Passage on Antisemitism44:04 Forgetting about Antisemitism and Weaponizing Antisemitism47:22 Palestinian Poetry, Darwish, and Anger50:03 “Identity Card”50:38 How Students Have Changed After Gaza57:00 Self Determination Beyond the Nation-State1:02:17 Oppressor-Oppressed Narratives1:06:05 Palestine is the Symbolic Center of the Decolonizing Struggle1:16:38 The End of the United Nations?1:20:25 We Should All Write Diaries1:22:30 October 14th. Free Palestine.

Imagine it’s Thanksgiving ten years ago. Your slightly unhinged Uncle Bob starts talking about a mysterious financier with a private island, underage trafficking, a bizarre “temple,” secret deals in Africa, ties to intelligence services, oligarch donors, and elite universities. You’d probably roll your eyes and wonder if he needed a psychiatric evaluation.Fast-forward a decade: victim testimony, court filings, FOIA dumps, leaked emails, and relentless reporting have confirmed that most of that “crazy” rant was… real. Not the Reddit fan-fic version — the documented, boring-legal-paperwork version. So what does that say about the world we actually live in?In this conversation, I sit down with Dropsite News investigative journalist Murtaza Hussain to talk about the system around Jeffrey Epstein: the money pipelines, the intelligence overlaps, the arms deals in places like Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Mongolia and beyond, and what the upcoming release of new Epstein documents might reveal.We talk about how to cover a story like this without feeding antisemitic conspiracies or Nick-Fuentes-style fantasies — while still being honest about the role of Israel’s covert networks, Western power, and the moral rot of a global oligarchy that likes to pretend it’s defending “democracy.”This is not a video about one “lone monster.” It’s about the empire that produced him.00:00 Coming Up…01:09 Crazy Uncle Bob Tells You About Epstein07:10 What Do We Do When The Crazy Uncle Is Right?14:35 Murtaza Hussain’s From Occupy To Epstein17:01 The Ethical Considerations of Explosive Reporting20:59 What is The Epstein Story… Really?25:36 The Smoking Gun Has Been Fired, Selling out Africa, and More to Come35:07 What About Blackmail?41:14 What is Coming Next From the Epstein Releases48:28 Oligarchy Destroys Democracy55:40 Simple Sex and Money At The End of the EmpireBECOME A MEMBER - MONTHLY MEMBERS ONLY LIVESTREAM https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5NIku35U9thGG9WBJjE0sw/joinFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

Zohran Mamdani’s victory didn’t just shake New York politics — it cracked open a deeper fear that’s defined Western liberal discourse for decades. Figures like Sam Harris and Bill Maher built careers on the fantasy of the “Good Muslim” — the secular, assimilated, apolitical figure who makes the West feel safe. But Zohran’s unapologetic politics, rooted in solidarity with Palestine and working-class liberation, expose the hollowness of that narrative. In this episode, we revisit Mahmood Mamdani’s landmark thesis in Good Muslim, Bad Muslim to understand why Zohran’s success provokes such hysteria — and what it reveals about how the West still divides the Muslim world into those it can use and those it must fear. From Sadiq Khan’s media approval to the wild panic surrounding Zohran’s rise, this essay is about power, empire, and the myths that keep them intact.0:00 Intro - A Perfect Science Experiment1:05 "We Want Those People Here In Our Society" - Sam Harris5:05 "They have to Say Aloud Our Western Values" - Bill Maher7:12 Bill Maher Brings Up Zohran's Ugandan Citizenship10:05 Sam Harris responding to "Stealth Islamists"17:27 Sadiq Khan vs Zohran Mamdani - What is the Dangerous Idea?18:20 Mamood Mamdani's Good Muslim, Bad Muslim29:04 The Colonial Fear of Zohran and Palestine Support32:04 What's Changed in the Last 10 Years?Good Muslim, Bad Muslim Sept 2002 by Mamood Mamdani https://jan.ucc.nau.edu/sj6/mamdanigo... BECOME A MEMBER - MONTHLY MEMBERS ONLY LIVESTREAM    / @jayshapirodilemmapodcast  For more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

The Rashomon Effect - Multiple people witnessing the same event remember it in contradictory ways, often colored by their own self-interest, trauma, or worldview.Applied to the killing of Rafaat Alareer and a Tweet by Bari Weiss00:00 The Rashomon Effect02:58 The Killing of Rafaat Alareer04:24 Perspective One - Bari Weiss, The Zionist Journalist12:42 Perspective Two - Rafaat, The Poet18:03 Perspective Three - IDF, The Killer20:20 Perspective Four - Me, The Onlooker25:01 The Exhausting Rashomon Problem, The Philosophical Problems, and "If I Must Die"Sources: https://electronicintifada.net/content/my-final-moments-refaat-alareer/50193https://wordswithoutborders.org/read/article/2024-01/remembering-dr-refaat-alareer/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/8/palestinian-people-mourn-the-death-of-refaat-alareerhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refaat_AlareerBECOME A MEMBER - MONTHLY MEMBERS ONLY LIVESTREAM https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5NIku35U9thGG9WBJjE0sw/joinFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

Malcolm X was more than an activist or organizer. In this conversation, Michael Sawyer, author of Black Minded and the forthcoming The Door of No Return, takes Malcolm seriously as a philosopher who linked Black freedom in the United States to anti-colonial struggle in Palestine. We talk Malcolm’s trip to Gaza, his push to move the fight to the global commons and the United Nations, and why he believed moral clarity must come before politics.This episode wrestles with the hardest question, the tension between violence and liberation. King’s nonviolence, the Panthers’ self-defense, Malcolm in the middle, what actually changes unjust systems, what counts as violence when power calls even peaceful disruption violent, and how that logic plays out in Gaza today. We connect Malcolm’s internationalism to Gen Z protests, the language of decolonization, and the growing refusal to blur anti-Zionism with antisemitism.If you care about Palestine and Gaza, if you want to understand Malcolm X beyond the poster and the pull quote, if you are trying to think honestly about means and ends, this one matters.BUY MICHAEL SAWYER'S BOOK HEREhttps://www.plutobooks.com/product/black-minded/READ ZIONIST LOGIC BY MALCOLM X HERE https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/socialist-viewpoint-us/mayjun_05/mayjun_05_21.htm00:00:00 Coming Up…00:01:08 Member Thanks…00:01:47 Before Thoughts - Michael Sawyer Intro00:02:50 Before Thoughts - A Spectrum of Violence. MLK, X, Black Panther00:16:21 Sawyer’s Path to Malcolm X00:26:42 Malcolm X as a Philosopher00:31:03 The Internationalism of Malcolm & Malcolm Goes to Gaza 00:35:48 Does the International Scope Hurt the Cause?00:41:49 On Malcolm’s view on Violence and Liberation00:53:50 Understanding the Systemic Enemy00:58:12 The Gen Z Protests from Kenya to Nepal01:04:31 The Questions Around Malcolm’s Assassinations01:09:25 The Black American and Judaism, Zionism and Marcus Garvey01:20:08 After Thought - My Next Guest and Wrestling as PoliticsBECOME A MEMBER - MONTHLY MEMBERS ONLY LIVESTREAM https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5NIku35U9thGG9WBJjE0sw/joinFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

Iranian scholar Hamid Dabashi goes deep on empire, Iran’s revolutionary currents, and Palestine. We cover his “two nemeses” frame—global imperialism vs domestic tyranny—and why opposing one never excuses the other. He unpacks Islamism as a (once) liberation theology and its limits, the polyfocal currents inside Islam, the 1979 revolution’s three forces (nationalism, Marxism, Islamism), sanctions and the erasure of Iran’s middle class, and why airstrikes only unify Iranians behind a garrison state. We discuss Gaza (denouncing Oct 7 while naming the ongoing genocide), BDS as civil disobedience, Israel as an American outpost, and a future beyond Zionism/Islamism. Plus: Iranian cinema’s philosophy (Kiarostami, Majidi), national trauma (1953, Iran–Iraq War), and how agonistic pluralism could reframe the region.00:00 Coming Up…01:31 Before Thought - Membership Thanks02:10 Before Thought - Dabashi Intro and Three Forces of Moral Politics09:55 Origins & Polyfocal Islam: Mecca/Medina as Blueprint13:34 Three Currents of Resistance: Socialism, Nationalism, Islamism22:07 Who is a Good Muslim? A Good Jew? Religion’s Double Edge26:48 Why is Israel so Obsessed with Iran?30:57 Iran, “The One That Got Away” and the Hostage Crisis39:57 Two Nemeses: Domestic Tyranny vs Global Imperialism43:31 The Enemy of My Enemy49:25 October 7, BDS, and Moral Consistency56:49 Violence and Liberation, and The Only Viable Political Horizon59:04 Optimism About The Future01:05:42 A Celebration of Iranian Cinema and Trauma01:12:14 After Thought - More on Violence and Liberation01:14:23 After Thought - Malcolm X in Gaza and my Next GuestIranian Films mentioned:Close UpThe RunnerThe Little StrangerThe Color of ParadiseHarold Lasswell on the Garrison State: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_LasswellMalcolm X in Gaza and Zionist Logic Article:https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/socialist-viewpoint-us/mayjun_05/mayjun_05_21.htmBECOME A MEMBER - MONTHLY MEMBERS ONLY ZOOM/LIVESTREAM https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5NIku35U9thGG9WBJjE0sw/joinFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

In this conversation with sociologist Nandita Sharma, we dig into the deep contradictions of nationalism, sovereignty, and the postcolonial state. Sharma argues that the nation is not a pathway to liberation but a mechanism of ruling that reproduces inequality, exclusion, and capitalist domination. We explore her personal story of migration, the legacy of anti-colonial struggles, Palestine and Hawaii today, the meaning of indigeneity, and her call for a planetary commons beyond rulers, borders, and citizenship. This is a provocative, challenging, and visionary dialogue about what true freedom might mean in our time and what the counterfeit version of it might be.BECOME A MEMBER - MONTHLY MEMBERS ONLY LIVESTREAM https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5NIku35U9thGG9WBJjE0sw/join00:00 Coming Up…01:13 Become a Member02:30 Nandita Sharma - Before Thoughts07:46 The Elephant in the Room: Nationalism and a Personal Story12:23 Core Thesis of Home Rule16:17 Colonialism vs. National Sovereignty22:55 Nationalism Defined30:50 Are you Erasing Indigenousness?40:45 Palestine and the Trap of Nationhood52:12 History Didn’t Have to Be This Way58:14 The Vision of a Planetary Commons01:06:35 The Gen Z Protests and What Can We Do Now?01:15:03 No Borders and Migrant Struggles01:18:26 Palestinians Deserve Better Than a Nation State01:20:49 After Thought on “Decolonizing Our Conceptions of Freedom”01:23:56 Members Get the Spillover01:24:25 Next Guest PrepFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

A former Israel Consulate staffer for the U.S. Southeast—Brandt Burleson—breaks silence. For eight years he built church networks, wrote Bible-laced talking points, and helped run a PR machine that, in his words, “wrapped a starvation campaign in a Judeo-Christian bow.” He explains how Christian Zionist theology was leveraged to pressure politicians, how pastors were courted and choreographed, what he saw after October 7th (including raw screening sessions), why the line between “ally” and “apocalypse” talk got so blurry, and what finally broke his conscience. This is part confession, part anatomy of influence.BECOME A MEMBER - MONTHLY MEMBERS ONLY LIVESTREAM https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5NIku35U9thGG9WBJjE0sw/join00:00 Coming Up…01:24 Become a Member / A Random Email from Brandt04:04 From Pastor's Son to Israel’s “Useful Idiot”07:43 An Ad on LinkedIn Changes Brandt’s Life12:29 Courting the Christian Zionists for Israel20:01 What Brandt's Colleagues Really Thought of Apocalyptic Christian Zionists26:32 The Israeli Cynics and Messianic Fanatics29:17 October 7th and the Religious Danger of Atrocity Propaganda37:23 Thoughts on the Selective Outrage about Violence and Religion40:49 Brandt Loses His Religion In a Swamp of Religious Contradictions43:24 The Palestinian Narrative, The Jewish Messiah, and The Red Heifers 46:55 What Was and Wasn’t Included in the October 7th Screenings50:49 The Rigged Global Political Structures That Enable Narrative Framing55:20 “I Really Hated Myself”59:24 On Coleman Hughes, Curated Israel Trips, and False Information01:02:32 Where Christianity and Christian Zionism Goes From Here01:07:26 How Brandt Left / “There are Things That Are Worse Than Being Unemployed”01:12:44 After Thought / Humanizing Extreme Violence and Revisiting a Boy Named NemrFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

In this conversation with political economist Adam Hanieh, we trace the deep connections between fossil fuels, finance, Palestine, and the climate crisis. From his formative years in Ramallah during the Second Intifada to his current research, Hanieh explains how oil became the invisible substrate of modern life, how Gulf petrodollars built today’s US-dominated financial order, and why Israel and the Gulf monarchies emerged as twin pillars of American power after 1967. We explore the global shift of oil toward China, the enduring grip of the dollar system, and why the liberation of Palestine must be understood as inseparable from struggles for climate justice and decolonization.Become a member to support my work and join the members only livestream where we can share ideas, critiques, responses, or other observations about our strange world. Final Sunday of each month. See you there!My interview on BettBeat Media on Israel, Zionism, Gaza, philosophy and more:    • Jay Shapiro EXPOSES the Truth About Israel...  Crude Capitalism by Adam Hanieh here: https://www.versobooks.com/products/2...Petrodollar Explained by Explains 101:    • America's Most Powerful Weapon Is Not Nuke...  00:00 Monthly Members Only Live Stream Announcement02:00 Coming up...02:34 Before Thoughts / “Our Analog World” and the Power of Oil12:30 From The Second Intifada to the Petrochemical Question15:38 The Ubiquitous and Invisible Age of Oil, The Substrate of Everything21:53 Western Capitalism, Colonialism, and the World Wars27:58 The Gulf States Become the “Oil Deposit That Matters”32:58 Post WW2 Anticolonialism and What Went Wrong in The Gulf States38:49 OPEC and an Attempt to Take Control of the Upstream41:08 Israel Works Itself Into the Region And Proves its “Value” in 196746:20 How Petro Monarchs Maintain Control52:09 Why Wasn’t Israel a Problem?56:58 The ‘73 OPEC Crisis, the Petrodollar System, and the Financial Structure Today1:08:06 Currency Wars, Climate Change, and China’s Rise1:16:00 The Sovereign Wealth Funds of the Gulf and The Arms Trade1:19:01 Israel and America’s Entangled Dollar Dominated Interests1:24:40 Disincentiving Fighting Climate Change1:28:35 Climate Justice and the Moral Horror of Palestine1:32:49 After Thoughts / Petrodollar Explained recommendation / HowTheLightGetsInFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com

In this conversation, I sit down with Mubarak Awad, often called the Gandhi of Palestine. Born in Jerusalem during the Nakba, Mubarak’s life has been defined by both tragedy and resilience — from burying his father as a boy, to dedicating his life to nonviolent resistance under occupation. We trace his extraordinary journey: his efforts to teach nonviolence in Palestine, his eventual deportation by Israel, and his continued commitment to peace and justice in exile. Mubarak reflects on his life’s work, the heartbreak of displacement, and his current feelings about the ongoing struggle. This is the story of a man who refused to give up on nonviolence, even when enemies were everywhere on both sides.Find more about Mubarak Awad at nonviolenceinternational.net00:00 Coming Up - Before Thoughts01:32 A Childhood Before The State of Israel06:29 Violence On The Horizon and "We all Hate The British"12:25 1947 and 1948 And Losing His Father24:10 1967 and Israel Bulldozes Awad's House and Hopes in Nasser29:06 Yale or Lee College? And Seeing American Segregation36:40 Learning about Gandhi41:21 Palestinian Resistance in the 80's55:25 The Anger in the Palestinian Movement1:02:11 Why Is Israel Threatened by Non Violence "The Prefer I Throw Bombs"1:04.40 The Unforgettable Nakba and "Who Lived In This House?"1:10:05 The First Intifada and Awad's is Targeted and Deported1:23:06 Leaving Palestine1:29:53 The Violence Today and Hamas's Form of "Resistance"1:36:15 What Happens Next? "The Cloud is now on Gaza"1:41:25 After ThoughtsFor more from Jay visit whatjaythinks.com