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Engaging the Muslim World
Western society is suffering from Islam Anxiety€”the product of fear-mongering and misinformation. There is a desperate need to debunk the myths concerning Islam in order to improve the political and ideological understanding between Muslim countries and their Western counterparts. Juan Cole, already celebrated for his rejection of stereotypes and his insistence on taking all perspectives into account, carefully sorts through and addresses all the major issues in Western - Muslim relations, terrorism, gas and petroleum dependence on the volatile Oil Gulf, the uncertainties of the Iraq War, and the little-understood regimes in Iran and Saudi Arabia. With clear-eyed determination, Cole separates spin from fact, providing substantive recommendations for the next administration on how to engage with key countries such as Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran. Finally, Cole reveals how we can repair the damage of the disastrous foreign policy of
282 pages, Hardcover
First published March 13, 2009
About the author
Juan R.I. Cole
28 books106 followersJohn Ricardo I. "Juan" Cole (born October 23, 1952) is an American scholar and historian of the modern Middle East, Islam and South Asia. He is Richard P. Mitchell Collegiate Professor of History at the University of Michigan. As a commentator on Middle Eastern affairs and US politics, he has appeared in print and on radio and television, and testified before the United States Senate. He has published many books on the modern Middle East and has translated Kahlil Gibran and Omar Khayyam. Since 2002, he has written a weblog, Informed Comment (juancole.com).
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
September 5, 2009
This sounded like an interesting explication of how the United States fails to understand the Muslim world and how it could go about changing that. As I read, though, I discovered that what he covers should be fairly obvious to anyone who, I don't know, doesn't get their news from Fox News or the more believable lies in The New York Times.
Sure, Muslim majority countries have oil and we wants it, oh yess, Precious. The U.S. doesn't understand the difference between Muslim activists and what are labeled terorists. This is what I mean about the obvious part here: people with intelligence and empathy will have already understood this, and many other things.
So, perhaps this book would be a good gift for the Michael Savage listening relative or the ignorant friend.
It wasn't what I wanted, so I didn't finish. I kept waiting for him to say the U.S. should just stop meddling in the affairs of Muslim-majority nations and mind their own business. Ah, I thought, then, but it is called Engaging the Muslim World, not United States Leave Everyone Alone.
Sure, Muslim majority countries have oil and we wants it, oh yess, Precious. The U.S. doesn't understand the difference between Muslim activists and what are labeled terorists. This is what I mean about the obvious part here: people with intelligence and empathy will have already understood this, and many other things.
So, perhaps this book would be a good gift for the Michael Savage listening relative or the ignorant friend.
It wasn't what I wanted, so I didn't finish. I kept waiting for him to say the U.S. should just stop meddling in the affairs of Muslim-majority nations and mind their own business. Ah, I thought, then, but it is called Engaging the Muslim World, not United States Leave Everyone Alone.
August 1, 2009
I've watched an interview with the author last night on "The Colbert Report" TV show. In spite of the comic nature of the show, the book seems to have a very realistic and serious approach to the Islamic world. Denying -or correcting- a lot of the false stereotyping towards Muslims.
Review update:
I'm almost done with the book. I will definitly look forward to re-read it in Arabic. The author demonstrated his theoritical muscles and explained where and how the previous American administration went wrong in Middle East, and how the new one can establish US energy saftey without wars and without looking into unrealistic alternatives.
Review update:
I'm almost done with the book. I will definitly look forward to re-read it in Arabic. The author demonstrated his theoritical muscles and explained where and how the previous American administration went wrong in Middle East, and how the new one can establish US energy saftey without wars and without looking into unrealistic alternatives.
December 23, 2010
I was pretty ignorant about the broader background issues of the middle eastern/Asian Islamic countries. Learning about the cultural, religious, social and political aspects of the region help highlight the complexity of actions and policies - much more complex than popular American opinion and most US international policy suggests. This book was a great overview for me. A lot of information in one place.
January 2, 2024
This is both a dated book in some ways and a "yes but" book and it's really 2.5 stars and I reserve the right to bump it down to 2. And, I eventually did.
The biggest way it's dated is that Cole wrote just a year or so before Bibi Netanyahu's return to power in Israel, a power which has been near-continuous since 2009. Especially vis-a-vis Iran and "proxies," increases in anti-Islamic/Islamic countries animus in the US since that time has been ultimately driven by this. The Iran nuclear deal, then Trump's torpedoing of it, come to mind. Obama's semi-withdrawal of the US from Iraq (it isn't total, and the US still threatens to freeze Iraqi foreign reserves if it doesn't stay in line) and other things have also happened since then.
The "yes, but"?
Cole goes beyond rightfully calling out American primitivisim on attitudes to and lack of knowledge about Islam and into being an apologist.
One example jumped out on page 84, where he claims Wahhabis aren't Sunni: "Of the twelve members of the al-Qaeda board of directors, nine were Egyptian (and thus from a Sunni background, not a Wahhabi one)... " That's not true, and I'm pretty sure, no, I'm damned sure, Cole knows that. A basic Google search will tell you that Wahhabism (which is not the members' term for their movement, anyway, showing that Cole's explanations are sometimes superficial), is a segment within the Hanbali school of Sunni Islam. That's not the only apologetics issue, but it's the most egregious.
Second, in the chapter on Iran, it takes nearly half a chapter to get to Grand Ayatollah Khamenei and explaining that he, not Ahmadinejad at that time or whomever Iran's president is whenever, controls about all the Iranian foreign policy levers. (He does, later, explain that outside Iran, many Shi'ites follow Khamenei politically but not religiously.)
Third, while in this chapter, in his discussion about Ahmadinejad as a Twelver Shi'a waiting more ardently than some for the Hidden Imam, he says, "but, in fact, most millenarians are fatalists."
Really? David Koresh? Heaven's Gate? JWs still banging on my door after recalibrating the millennium dating and details?
Finally, per what I said above, Cole is really superficial on many aspects of, and discussion of, Islam. Note how I spelled "Shi'a" with the diacritical? He doesn't. And, he's inconsistent. He has, in Lebanon, "Baalbek" not "Ba'albek," but "Biqa'" not "Biqa" His spellings in general are inconsistent. "Usamah" bin Laden always with the final "h." "Mulla" Omar without. And, beyond spellings? I mentioned the "Hidden Imam." Cole doesn't even use that term, though later, he does use the phrase "hidden Twelfth Imam." That said, he doesn't explain this.
Well, really, finally, it's also dated on the oil issue, with the rise, for better and for worse, of fracking.
The biggest way it's dated is that Cole wrote just a year or so before Bibi Netanyahu's return to power in Israel, a power which has been near-continuous since 2009. Especially vis-a-vis Iran and "proxies," increases in anti-Islamic/Islamic countries animus in the US since that time has been ultimately driven by this. The Iran nuclear deal, then Trump's torpedoing of it, come to mind. Obama's semi-withdrawal of the US from Iraq (it isn't total, and the US still threatens to freeze Iraqi foreign reserves if it doesn't stay in line) and other things have also happened since then.
The "yes, but"?
Cole goes beyond rightfully calling out American primitivisim on attitudes to and lack of knowledge about Islam and into being an apologist.
One example jumped out on page 84, where he claims Wahhabis aren't Sunni: "Of the twelve members of the al-Qaeda board of directors, nine were Egyptian (and thus from a Sunni background, not a Wahhabi one)... " That's not true, and I'm pretty sure, no, I'm damned sure, Cole knows that. A basic Google search will tell you that Wahhabism (which is not the members' term for their movement, anyway, showing that Cole's explanations are sometimes superficial), is a segment within the Hanbali school of Sunni Islam. That's not the only apologetics issue, but it's the most egregious.
Second, in the chapter on Iran, it takes nearly half a chapter to get to Grand Ayatollah Khamenei and explaining that he, not Ahmadinejad at that time or whomever Iran's president is whenever, controls about all the Iranian foreign policy levers. (He does, later, explain that outside Iran, many Shi'ites follow Khamenei politically but not religiously.)
Third, while in this chapter, in his discussion about Ahmadinejad as a Twelver Shi'a waiting more ardently than some for the Hidden Imam, he says, "but, in fact, most millenarians are fatalists."
Really? David Koresh? Heaven's Gate? JWs still banging on my door after recalibrating the millennium dating and details?
Finally, per what I said above, Cole is really superficial on many aspects of, and discussion of, Islam. Note how I spelled "Shi'a" with the diacritical? He doesn't. And, he's inconsistent. He has, in Lebanon, "Baalbek" not "Ba'albek," but "Biqa'" not "Biqa" His spellings in general are inconsistent. "Usamah" bin Laden always with the final "h." "Mulla" Omar without. And, beyond spellings? I mentioned the "Hidden Imam." Cole doesn't even use that term, though later, he does use the phrase "hidden Twelfth Imam." That said, he doesn't explain this.
Well, really, finally, it's also dated on the oil issue, with the rise, for better and for worse, of fracking.
May 27, 2019
As a complete novice to politics in Muslim majority countries, I found this book to be an excellent insight into the misunderstandings frequently pushed in western media. The book also focuses on US policy and engagement with countries in the east, where they have gone wrong, and what they could do better. Although the book ends circa 2008 it felt entirely relevant too.
September 23, 2021
My review disappeared while I was in the middle of it and I don’t want to write it again. I would like to see Cole’s analysis of the last 10 years and his recommendations as the failure to follow his guidance has led to great wastes of lives and money and only benefitted the massive American war machine.
October 13, 2017
A good book if you want to understand the Muslim World, but engaging with it is another matter entirely. Mr. Cole does a great job outlining America's past with the Middle-East but gives little advice on the handling of democratic negotiation other than the basics of democratic negotiation.
June 23, 2009
How we can repair the damage of the disastrous foreign policy of the last eight years, and forge ahead on a path of peace and prosperity.
With clarity and concision, Juan Cole disentangles the key foreign policy issues that America is grappling with today—from our dependence on Middle East petroleum to the promotion of Islamophobia by the American right—and delivers his informed advice on the best way forward.
A noted historian of the Middle East and a celebrated blogger, Cole has a unique ability to take the true Muslim perspective into account when looking at East-West relations, making well-rounded and prescient insights as he suggests a course of action on fundamental issues like religion, oil, war, and peace.
Cole argues that:
• Al-Qaeda is not a mass movement like fascism or communism but rather a small political cult like the American far-right circles that produced Timothy McVeigh.
• The Muslim world is not a new Soviet Bloc—it is full of close allies or potential allies.
• There can be no such thing as American energy independence; we will need Islamic oil to survive as a superpower into the next century.
• Iran is not an implacable enemy of the United States—it can and should be fruitfully engaged, which is a necessary step for American energy security since Tehran can play the spoiler in the strategic Persian Gulf.
• America's best hope in Iraq is careful, deliberate military disengagement, and not immediate withdrawal or a century-long military presence.
With substantive recommendations for the current administration on how to move forward in key countries such as Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran, Engaging the Muslim World reveals how we can repair the damage of the disastrous foreign policy of the last eight years and forge ahead on a path of peace and prosperity.
To learn more, visit The Progressive Book Club: http://www.progressivebookclub.com/pb...
With clarity and concision, Juan Cole disentangles the key foreign policy issues that America is grappling with today—from our dependence on Middle East petroleum to the promotion of Islamophobia by the American right—and delivers his informed advice on the best way forward.
A noted historian of the Middle East and a celebrated blogger, Cole has a unique ability to take the true Muslim perspective into account when looking at East-West relations, making well-rounded and prescient insights as he suggests a course of action on fundamental issues like religion, oil, war, and peace.
Cole argues that:
• Al-Qaeda is not a mass movement like fascism or communism but rather a small political cult like the American far-right circles that produced Timothy McVeigh.
• The Muslim world is not a new Soviet Bloc—it is full of close allies or potential allies.
• There can be no such thing as American energy independence; we will need Islamic oil to survive as a superpower into the next century.
• Iran is not an implacable enemy of the United States—it can and should be fruitfully engaged, which is a necessary step for American energy security since Tehran can play the spoiler in the strategic Persian Gulf.
• America's best hope in Iraq is careful, deliberate military disengagement, and not immediate withdrawal or a century-long military presence.
With substantive recommendations for the current administration on how to move forward in key countries such as Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran, Engaging the Muslim World reveals how we can repair the damage of the disastrous foreign policy of the last eight years and forge ahead on a path of peace and prosperity.
To learn more, visit The Progressive Book Club: http://www.progressivebookclub.com/pb...
March 27, 2013
While the title is about "engaging" the Muslim world, the book is actually an issue by issue and country by country report on the news making parts of the Muslim world. It has a concluding chapter on the importance of engagement. Ideas on how this engagement can take place are suggested throughout the book.
Refreshingly, the issue of oil is discussed. If you follow the US news reports, you might reasonably conclude that oil is a side issue. Cole is up front with it and begins his book with the facts of oil availability, dependence and depletion.
While I had accepted it, I was not surprised to learn that Ahmadinejad's quote (actually from Khomeini) "Israel must be wiped off the face of the map" was actually "This Occupation regime over Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time". This quote, like so much else in relation to the Middle East, has been broadcast and rebroadcast and quoted in print such that it is accepted as fact in the US.
Another area where Cole gives perspective (where the news media does not) is the actual size of the extremist Islamic population. Like extremists everywhere, these people are a noisy confrontational minority. Cole puts numbers behind this with polling and election results. He also reminds that not long ago concerns about the region focused on the communism and Soviet Union influence, not religion.
Books like this one by Cole are a needed antidote to the sloppy and casual system of journalism in the US. I can only hope that this material is read by policy makers who should know this as background. I highly recommend this book for the general reader and those policy makers who get their understanding of the Muslim world from the US media.
Refreshingly, the issue of oil is discussed. If you follow the US news reports, you might reasonably conclude that oil is a side issue. Cole is up front with it and begins his book with the facts of oil availability, dependence and depletion.
While I had accepted it, I was not surprised to learn that Ahmadinejad's quote (actually from Khomeini) "Israel must be wiped off the face of the map" was actually "This Occupation regime over Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time". This quote, like so much else in relation to the Middle East, has been broadcast and rebroadcast and quoted in print such that it is accepted as fact in the US.
Another area where Cole gives perspective (where the news media does not) is the actual size of the extremist Islamic population. Like extremists everywhere, these people are a noisy confrontational minority. Cole puts numbers behind this with polling and election results. He also reminds that not long ago concerns about the region focused on the communism and Soviet Union influence, not religion.
Books like this one by Cole are a needed antidote to the sloppy and casual system of journalism in the US. I can only hope that this material is read by policy makers who should know this as background. I highly recommend this book for the general reader and those policy makers who get their understanding of the Muslim world from the US media.
June 7, 2011
Cole is a rarity in American academia in that he participates in the public discourse. Additionally, his excellent blog, "Informed Comment," helps to shape the public discourse. This book provides an informed tour of the Middle East, and addresses American challenges in the region. His knowledge of history and culture is excellent, and I found new facts about a region with which I considered myself familiar about every other page. That said, I believe Cole overuses opinion polling to back his points. First, opinion polling itself, without referencing historical trends, is not effective as a methodology for explaining consequences. If 85% of Pakistanis thought America was a threat during the Bush Administration this sounds like a strong indictment of the previous administration. However, if 85% of Pakistanis have always thought America is a threat, then one cannot fault the Bush administration for too many sins. On a more fundamental level, should America (or any entity) want everyone to like them? Cole does not really explain why popularity needs to be a major goal for American policymakers. 85% of Pakistanis may say that America is dangerous, but how many French people or Costa Ricans share this opinion?
August 4, 2010
fair and concise overview of the Middle East; Cole's policy prescriptions for solving the energy crisis, improving relations w/ Iran and the Muslim world, and resolving the Israeli - Palestinian conflict will not come as a surprise to anyone even vaguely informed on the topics, but they do enjoy popular support across the globe.
his observations on Central and South Asia, in particular Afghanistan, I feel are better explained elsewhere by scholars and journalists from the area. From my personal reading, Abdulkader Sinno has produced the most convincing account of political, organizational and institutional developments in Afghanistan starting in 1978. No one delivers the nuance on organizations in conflict within Afghanistan and the inherent contradictions in U.S. policy like Organizations At War.
his observations on Central and South Asia, in particular Afghanistan, I feel are better explained elsewhere by scholars and journalists from the area. From my personal reading, Abdulkader Sinno has produced the most convincing account of political, organizational and institutional developments in Afghanistan starting in 1978. No one delivers the nuance on organizations in conflict within Afghanistan and the inherent contradictions in U.S. policy like Organizations At War.
September 13, 2009
A great, and quick, review of US foreign policy in the Muslim world (actually the Middle East, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan - Indonesia and the rest of South Asia are overlooked) and the historical factors effecting it. Pushes hard for diplomatic engagement with various parties, condemning the Bush policy of diplomatic isolation. Excellent intros to the Muslim Brotherhood, the Iraqi political scene and the contradictions in US foreign policy.
Only annoying thing is when he relates each point to how it is in the interests of the US to engage, almost as if that's the main reason to do so. Well worth a read for anyone interested in the region though.
Only annoying thing is when he relates each point to how it is in the interests of the US to engage, almost as if that's the main reason to do so. Well worth a read for anyone interested in the region though.
July 3, 2009
I gave this book 4 stars for what it should have been, not for how I felt about it.
Cole is a master - a Middle East historian who diverges greatly from the Lewis camp of Near East affairs. But this book, which started off strong, soon lost my interest. It might be because much of the information I've read before.
This book is an extremely important book, and Cole presents the information in a way that is easily accessible to people who don't know much about the region or about the issues. People who know a decent amount about the Middle East already might find it a bit tired, though.
Cole is a master - a Middle East historian who diverges greatly from the Lewis camp of Near East affairs. But this book, which started off strong, soon lost my interest. It might be because much of the information I've read before.
This book is an extremely important book, and Cole presents the information in a way that is easily accessible to people who don't know much about the region or about the issues. People who know a decent amount about the Middle East already might find it a bit tired, though.
November 19, 2010
An excellent overview of Cole's thinking over the past several years. Unfortunately, as such, he sometimes glosses over issues, which would be impossible not to do in a book of such great coverage (all major M.E. crises) and such short page count (250 as I remember). While I can forgive him for the glossing over, he is sometimes exceedingly partisan, and I think, perhaps too idealistic about the promise of negotiation and compromise with certain regimes (particularly Iran and Palestine).
May 23, 2011
Juan Cole is a professor of political science at the University of Michigan and he writes the blog "Informed Comment," which became a popular source of information about the Middle East after 9/11. This introduction to Middle East politics responds to American anxiety about Islam and the Muslim world by explaining that the Muslim world is not the simplistic monolith Western media narratives often portray.
July 3, 2012
Very insightful book. What pains me is his affirmation of how obtuse US foreign policy has been in relation to the Muslim world. It seems, and Cole confirms this, that every foreign policy decision made by the US in relation to the Middle East and oil-energy security is done out of short-term aims with Muslim-world governments and total disregard for Muslim populations and their puzzlement over America's behavior being so out of step with America's democratic ideals.
June 7, 2016
The title of this book is somewhat misleading. Mostly, it delves into the history of Muslim world conflicts, both internally, and with the West. One interesting concept that is explored are the parallels drawn between Fundamentalist terrorist groups in the Muslim world such as Al Qaeda, and domestic terrorism and hawkish Christian Fundamentalists in the US. This book is a good starting off point for deconstructing the biased (and often bigoted) Western viewpoint towards the Muslim-world.
August 10, 2013
A bit pedantic but there were so many things in the book that I hadn't considered. Makes me wonder though, if Juan Cole has it right why isn't the administration listening to him or even putting him on some sort of advisory panel. I mean Greg Mortenson got the ear of the Pentagon commanders, why not Mr. Cole?
September 22, 2011
Insightful with lots of prehensible history. The facts and backstories are engaging, in and of themselves. Prof Juan Cole makes a solid argument for re-thinking energy policies and encouraging dialogue with our global colleagues.
August 20, 2009
werking on it...
November 20, 2009
An excellent look behind the hype and myths that screen us from the reality of the Muslim world.
December 4, 2009
Highly recommend. An excellent summary of the history and politics of the middle east. Very timely.
Read
August 8, 2009Terrific insight into Iranian culture.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews