Reza Aslan - Reza Aslan is a writer and scholar of religions.
Born in Iran, Aslan is currently a research associate at the University of Southern California's Center on Public Diplomacy. He was a visiting assistant professor of Islamic and Middle Eastern studies at the University of Iowa and the Truman Capote Fellow in Fiction at the Iowa Writer's Workshop.
A frequent commentator on television, radio, and in print, Aslan is a graduate of Santa Clara University, Harvard University, and the University of Iowa. He is the author of No god but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam and How to Win a Cosmic War: Why We're Losing the War on Terror.
Praveen Madan - Praveen Madan is an entrepreneur / investor seeking out business opportunities along the US-India Corridor, "the new silk road" of global commerce.
Most recently, Madan was a Managing Director at Trilogy, a business-value centered company headquartered in Austin, Texas. He oversaw the launch of Trilogy's new Telecom Business Unit in India developing innovative business services for Indian Telecom clients.
In his new book, the acclaimed writer of No god but God and Middle East analyst for CBS News Reza Aslan lays out, for the first time, a revolutionary assessment of the social movement behind al-Qaeda and like-minded militants throughout the Muslim world.
He argues the the goals and aspirations of Jihadists are so impossible to achieve in this life that they have been forced to transform their earthly struggle for power and influence into a metaphysical conflict between Good and Evil -- what he calls a Cosmic War.
Surveying the global scene, Aslan explores why religion is once again becoming the supreme marker of identity in nearly all parts of the globe.
In doing so, he launches a revolution in the way we understand -- and confront -- radical Islam. How do you win a cosmic war? Refuse to fight one.
I just make a speculation. America will become more soft in Obama regime, and it will weaken Israel lobby and we can see what is really what they want to do to this world.
Insightful. I think he should have also mentioned that the Jihadists are at war with free trade and personal freedom.
He touches on some of the ways the US has miscalculated the true intentions of the Jihadists.
I think that only an American could make that statement. Jihadists are completely accepting of personal freedom within their view of it - i.e. Patricentrically.
The Jihadist movement frequently points accusing fingers and the American supported dictators throughout the Middle East with respect to their repression of personal freedoms of their citizenry.
Forget the GWB speech ("They hate us for our freedom") it's a duplicitous lie. They no more hate you/us for your freedom than you'd hate the man who stole your car for his.
They may very well hate us for what we choose to do with our freedom, however. But that's very different - and the key to this is authoritianism and libertarianism.
A Libertarian may disagree vehemently with what you do, but as long as it does not affect anyone but you, it's your own business. An authoritarian opposes the action regardless of its sphere of influence, and will aim to prevent it whether it only affects willing parties or not.
The Jihadists, like the American Christian right, are firmly Authoritarian, whether the issue is homosexuality, abortion, drug usage or anything else, both sects firmly instist that they have the right proscribe your actions based on their religion and beliefs, in spite of the effects of the actions being extremely limited.
"Islam-ists" do not prescribe to the true Islam and that is that everyone who is not a Muslim is 'the infidel' and must die. Plain and simple. That is the teaching of the Quran and it is very blunt. I would like to have heard more on the differences in Islamic belief systems that exist. The Al-Qaeda regime seems to be holding the true teaching of the Quaran, yet few people address this fact.