Episode 2196: Michael Scott-Baumann on the unfolding catastrophe in Israel and Palestine
Last year, Michael Scott-Baumann, author of The Shortest History of Israel and Palestine and a peace activist at the Balfour Project, came on the show to talk about the problem to end all problems - the Israel-Palestine question. Today, Scott-Baumann explains, this problem has, if anything, metastasized into something even more shameful and insoluble. Gaza has been transformed from what he calls “the world’s largest outdoor prison” into a war zone and the two sides are no nearer what the Balfour Project calls “peace with justice, security and equal rights for Palestinians and Israelis.” Given this deeply depressing situation, it’s essential that analysts like Scott-Baumann keep giving us the bad news. There is nothing to be cheerful about here. The situation, Scott-Baumann reminds us, is unrelentingly bad. And it is likely to get considerably worse.
Michael Scott-Baumann is a graduate of Cambridge University and has an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He has 35 years’ experience as a history teacher and lecturer. He has traveled widely in the Middle East and worked as a volunteer under the auspices of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, with whom he conducted field work on the West Bank. He lives in Cheltenham, England.
Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.
Keen On is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe
Big Brother Down Under: Is it 1984 Already in Australia?
Mount Rushmore: America's Most Monumental Contradiction
George Packer's Emergency: When Facts Fail, Turn to Fiction
How 9/11 Broke the News, Both Then and Now: CNN's Finest Hour Was Also Its Last
An Anglo-American Way of Troublemaking: The Fierce, Unruly Life of Jessica Mitford
How Capitalism Can Save Capitalism: The Case for Stakeholder Capitalism
2% of Americans are Homeless: America's Most Shameful Open Secret
A Code RED For Humanity: Forget 80/20 - the 95/5 Rule of our AI Age
Why "Progress" is Ruling Class Propaganda: The Dangerous Idea that Built Civilization and is Now Destroying it
Two VCs, No Filter: The Naked Truth about Elon Musk and Sam Altman
From Mongolia to Silicon Valley: A Venture Capitalist's American Dream
The Broken China Dream: How Reform Revived Totalitarianism
A Tale of Two Kellys: Peter Wehner on the Intellectual and Moral Decline of the American Right