Dilemma Podcast

Jay discusses Palestine with historian and author Ilan Pappe. Together they ponder if we are seeing the end of Zionism and what might that collapse might look like.

Jay then reads an essay on the topic of forgiveness and redemption and how the psychology of cognitive dissonance prevents us from having evidence change our mind.

In the final part of this series, Jay dissects the definition of the words Zionism, Israel, and Judaism and delivers a Speech he wishes a future Prime Minister of Israel would give. The entire collection and all resources can be found here: whatjaythinks.com

A conversation with Miko Peled on his journey from unquestioned Zionism to becoming an active Palestinian Activist.

In this episode we discuss:

Jacob Israel de Haan

Where are the Palestinian Nelson Mandelas?

How Miko changed his mind

When the only thing left is violence

Why Zionism is flawed from the beginning

What the future might hold for Israel

Zionism vs Judaism

and more...

A conversation with Richard English who dares ask the question "Does Terrorism Work?" In this episode we discuss: The IRA The Troubles Hamas Al Qaeda Jewish Terrorists Whether Israel is an example of successful Terrorism The motivations of terrorists How to evaluate the success of terrorists Deciphering the intent of terrorists How terrorist motivations change when they take power and more.....

A conversation with Haaretz journalist Gideon Levy where we take the pulse of Israel and discuss how he came to question the Zionist project and where we might go from here. In this episode he discusses: Two State Solutions What Israelis know How America ruined Israel Why journalists censor themselves The power of American Jews to change things If there is any hope Does Israel have a plan? More information and recommendations at whatjaythinks.com

Jay Shapiro breaks down arguments being presented by popular thinkers such as Sam Harris and from Zionists who defend Israel. He walks through the complications of deciphering the popularity of Islamism and Jihadism and Hamas and he outlines the mentality of "tribal essentialism".He teases a trilogy of upcoming episodes with Gideon Levy, Richard English, and Miko Peled...

David Livingstone Smith has been studying "dehumanization" for decades and has written three books on the subject. In this episode Jay and Smith apply his findings to the current conflict in Israel and broaden their scope to examine how a rising modern factor of "Distance" interplays with violence.

Jay Shapiro's personal essay and account of how the disfigurement of American Judaism has forged an existential crisis for something much bigger than survival of the state of Israel.

A nuanced look at the morality of intentions and self-deceptions in the Israel Palestinian conflict.

A look at the moral distinction between collateral damage, intentional civilian targeting, and something much more common and psychologically complex which the Jewish experience makes Israel particularly suspectable to...

What is it like to be a baseball bat?

This episode is a dive into the philosophical approach known as Object Oriented Ontology (OOO) with the author and philosopher Ian Bogost. Ian Bogost is a video game designer, author, and philosopher known for his most recent book Play Anything, but this episode is all about his book Alien Phenomenology: or What is it Like to be a Thing?