Background Briefing: October 25, 2018
A Murderous Prince Will Bribe a Corrupt Dictator
We begin with the alarming possibility that the brutal and unconstrained Saudi Crown Prince MbS will get away with a gruesome murder that shocked the world because the corrupt Turkish dictator Erdogan who may or may not have the evidence of what happened inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, is so easily bribed. David Phillips, the Director of the Peace-building and Rights Program at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University and author of “An Uncertain Ally: Turkey Under Erdogan’s Dictatorship”, joins us to discuss his article at the Globe Post, “U.S. Needs Strategic Balance in Dealing with Saudi Arabia and Iran” and how Erdogan is likely to line his pockets rather than reveal the evidence of MbS’s guilt which he has been dribbling out. And although there are reports that Erdogan is trying to talk King Salman into not having MbS ascend to the Saudi throne, the likelihood is that this reckless, ignorant young leader will be around for decades causing a lot more chaos than the disastrous record so far in his short tenure as Crown Prince. But with America led by a venal and callous president and his sycophantic Secretary of State, along with our own wrecking ball John Bolton, the kind of strategic balance in the region between Saudi Arabia and Iran that David Phillips is calling for is not likely to come from this administration, unless the American people rise up and vote these corrupt incompetents out of office.
The Consequences of Hate Speech
Then we speak with Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a Professor of History and Italian Studies at New York University and a cultural critic who writes on fascism, racism, authoritarian rulers and propaganda. She joins us to discuss her article at CNN, “Mail bombs: Hate speech can have consequences” and we examine some historical parallels with the rise of Mussolini in the 1920’s and rise of political violence in America today under a president who has been inciting political violence throughout his campaign and presidency. We also assess whether Trump will resort to a “Reichstag fire” event to distract the public and inflame his base prior to the election.