POINT COUNTERPOINT - a new miniseries for The Beirut Banyan podcast.

An exchange on political affairs impacting Lebanon and the Middle East, from a unique vantage point in Beirut. 

Co-hosted by Bashshar Haydar (professor of philosophy at AUB) and Michael Young (senior editor at Carnegie’s Middle East Center and editor of Diwan) - Beirut-based analysts sharing their nuanced perspectives while honing in on particular disagreements.

Moderated by Ronnie Chatah.

Episode 1 hones in on two issues: (1) Western double standards vis-a-vis foreign policy and humanitarian intervention, and (2) the question of criticism during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Stay tuned for more episodes later this summer.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

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https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

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Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:05 (Part 1) Western double standards
7:06 Liberal democracy
13:14 Nationalism
18:20 Intervention
24:05 Public opinion
30:33 Massacres & double standards
38:18 (Part 2) Question of criticism & Hamas
42:38 Justification vs political objectives
48:48 Accountability
52:28 Hamas calculations
56:55 US engagement

Western Double Standards & The Question of Criticism: Israel & Hamas

The final episode for the first season of Social Work Research Hub's miniseries, covering social work history and research in Lebanon along with intergenerational dialogue among social workers.

Tonight's guest is Solange Sakr.

- Holds a bachelor's degree in social work from Saint Joseph University (1965)
- Started working in social security as a social worker in 1966.

Hosted by social worker Aimee Ghanem - founder of Sworld.

Audio version available on The Beirut Banyan podcast.

We extend our thanks to CEREC (www.thecerec.org) for providing the studio. The opinions expressed in this video are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the views of the platform.

Don't forget to like the video, subscribe to the channel, and hit the bell icon to receive updates on all our new developments and insights.

سلسلة فيديوهات قصيرة تتضمن حوارات بين مختلف الأجيال من العمال الاجتماعيين، حول العمل الاجتماعي في لبنان.

باستضافة ايمي غانم مؤسسة Sworld 

النسخة الصوتية متوفرة على بودكاست Podcast the Beirut Banyan

ضيوف حلقة الليلة:

 صولانج صقر

حائزة على إجازة في الخدمة الاجتماعية من جامعة القديس يوسف (1965)

بدأت العمل في الضمان الاجتماعي كعاملة إجتماعية سنة 1966

نتقدم بجزيل الشكر لـwww.thecerec.org CEREC  لتقديم الاستوديو

الآراء الواردة في هذا الفيديو هي آراء الأشخاص المشاركين ولا تعكس بالضرورة وجهات نظر المنصة. لا تنسى الإعجاب بالفيديو، والاشتراك في القناة، وتفعيل زر الجرس ليصلك كل جديد.

 Social Media links:

•⁠  ⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4epEgD086z2AnrEB2a70zg
•⁠  ⁠https://www.instagram.com/p/C6OqvfoNzyG/  
•⁠  ⁠https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100095370669614 
•⁠  ⁠https://twitter.com/SworldLB 
•⁠  ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sworld-edu/ 
 
Website:
 
-https://sworld-edu.com/

SOLANGE SAKR - Social Work Research Hub (Ep.22)

Reflecting on the July 2006 War and UNSCR 1701 eighteen years later, during a time of escalation and regional war's expansion.

Looking back on humanitarian assistance in times of emergency and crisis, the Lebanese government's negotiating role in helping shape UNSCR 1701, a return to border conflict and battlefield over armistice and deterrence and the lack of state agency bringing us closer to Hezbollah's interests.

With Sarah Borgi - economist and independent consultant.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:
@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:
www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:11 First day
6:22 Anthony Bourdain
10:14 Samidoun
15:04 Guilt
19:39 Lebanon’s role
22:27 Opposition government
25:30 Free from Syrian hegemony
29:05 Leftist wing of March 14
34:47 Israeli attack on Hezbollah
38:03 Main points of UNSCR 1701
48:22 Warzone
51:02 Closer to the problem
54:47 Stature
57:12 Restraint
1:00:25 Legitimizing the battlefield
1:04:04 Drawn out
1:07:07 Deterrence
1:09:19 Armistice

Summer & War with Sarah Borgi (Ep.406)

Reflecting on the ongoing Hezbollah-Israel war in southern Lebanon and its impact on daily life away from the battlefield.

Looking back on periods of relative calm vs manageable instability, the long-term political and societal impact of failed governance, false economies and tourism destinations like Batroun, and an acceptance of impunity and injustice on the port blast's upcoming anniversary.

With George Wardini - director of PolyBlog.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:
@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:
www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:47 Relative normalcy
4:51 Relative anxiety
10:13 Targeted strikes
13:16 Familiar terrain
16:51 Failed state
19:42 Batroun
22:32 Static
26:37 Regime survival
31:47 The long term
34:58 Violence wins
37:13 Port blast & paralysis
39:36 Hezbollah undeterred

Summer & War (Part 2) with George Wardini (Ep.407)

On all that is happening in Beirut's southern suburbs, southern Lebanon and the region vis-a-vis Israel and Iran. Along with absent Lebanese diplomacy and the upcoming port blast anniversary.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:
@thebeirutbanyan

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www.beirutbanyan.com

Tragedy & Absurdity (Ep.409)

POINT COUNTERPOINT - Episode 2

An exchange on political affairs impacting Lebanon and the Middle East, with a unique vantage point from Beirut. 

Co-hosted by Bashshar Haydar (professor of philosophy at AUB) and Michael Young (senior editor at Carnegie’s Middle East Center and editor of Diwan) - both Beirut-based analysts sharing their nuanced perspectives while honing in on disagreements.

Episode 2 covers three topics: (1) Trump's election win and what that means for US policy towards Lebanon; (2) the example of 1982 and drawing parallels between Western support for Bachir Gemayel's presidency and Joseph Aoun's current status as a potential consensus candidate; and (3) examining preconditions for internal strife and why the likelihood for a return to civil war is low.

Michael Young's articles discussed during this episode include:

"Trump or Harris? It's pointless to ask who's better for the Middle East" - The National
https://www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comment/2024/11/06/donald-trump-kamala-harris-middle-east-foreign-policy-israel-gaza/

and "Is Hezbollah Moving In?" - Diwan
https://carnegieendowment.org/middle-east/diwan/2024/10/coming-to-a-neighborhood-near-you?lang=en

Stay tuned for more episodes.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:
@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:
www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:53 Donald Trump's election win
20:16 The Example of 1982
43:04 The Potential for Civil Strife
1:04:34 Outro

Trump, 1982 & civil strife with Bashshar Haydar & Michael Young

Recorded Thursday, 5 December 2024. Three days before the Assad regime's fall.

An episode for Syria & Lebanon. Hosted by Ralph Baydoun (founder of Influeanswers) with George Wardini (director of PolyBlog) and Ronnie Chatah (host of The Beirut Banyan).

Ralph Baydoun leads the discussion and posits 'resistance'-focused counter narratives to neutrality and sub-state disarmament discourse. The conversation includes the potential for Israeli settlements in southern Lebanon, communities allegedly abandoned by the state, liberation as a so-called just means for continued armed struggle, the Lebanese army's limits in offensive and defensive measures, and how ideology and misinformation leads to false assumptions.

Make sure to check out and support Ralph Baydoun's Patreon channel: https://www.patreon.com/Perspectiveleb

Follow Ralph Baydoun on IG: [at]perspectiveleb and George Wardini on IG: [at]polyblog.lebanon

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:
@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:
www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
2:48 Up to the Litani
8:17 Ultranationalism
13:03 Settlement literature
17:25 Vulnerability
22:18 Dreams & religion
28:40 Constant war in Lebanon
30:02 Indefensible borders
37:13 Abandoned by the state
42:27 Sectarianism & sacrifice
51:45 The Syrian regime
53:47 Foreign involvement
1:00:21 Expansion & retreat
1:03:51 Liberation in itself
1:07:14 In the name
1:11:59 Warlike reasons to fight
1:14:45 The Lebanese army
1:16:41 A winning argument
1:21:51 Resistance

Dominant Narratives & Ideologies - hosted by Ralph Baydoun w/George Wardini & Ronnie Chatah (Ep.410)

An episode on the fall of the Assad regime and its implications on Syria and Lebanon.

Covering the rapid collapse of the Assad regime, identity formation in the wake of over half a century of minoritarian rule mired by tyranny, where Iran stands in the near future and a wider ambition for the region carried by hope.

With Bashshar Haydar, professor of philosophy at The American University of Beirut.

The Nidaa al Watan article mentioned is accessible here: https://www.nidaalwatan.com/article/297082-الهوية-الوطنية-لسوريا-ما-بعد-الأسد

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:
@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:
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Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
2:37 Carried by hopes
6:50 Many reasons for Assad’s end
11:31 The last stretch of the regime
20:29 Turkish ambition
24:58 Dictatorial security machine
28:07 Minority rule
31:05 Intervention
38:07 Arab nationalism & myth
41:51 We are people who suffered
48:40 Forced identity
55:00 Political Islam
1:06:51 Druze border villages & Golan Heights
1:08:27 Israeli military measures
1:12:34 The problem of peace & Israel
1:14:02 Back to Lebanon
1:21:55 The Iranian regime moving forward
1:26:23 Less pessimistic than usual

The Fall of the Assad Regime with Bashshar Haydar (Ep.411)

An interview by the gifted Marie Jo Sader, a Paris and Beirut-based independent journalist and 2023 Lokman Slim Prize winner for her investigative work on the circumstances of Lokman Slim's assassination.

A discussion on the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, a retrospective on anti-Assad protests that shaped Lebanon in 2005 and wider implications for Lebanon, Syria and the region.

Follow Marie Jo Sader on X [at]mariejosader

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

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@thebeirutbanyan

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Timestamps
0:00 Intro
0:22 Decades apart
3:17 Post Syria occupation journey
5:01 Signature elimination
6:59 Political reasons & calculations
8:27 Coordination between Syria & Iran
9:47 The Lebanese 'state'
12:38 Emotions of the moment
15:10 Notions of justice
17:14 Mohamad Chatah today

Decades Apart - An interview by Marie Jo Sader on the End of the Assad Regime

Words shared on the closing evening of Aaliya's Books.

With Nadia Tabbara, Brother Michael, Wael Taleb, Ronnie Chatah & William Dobson.

For Niamh Fleming-Farrel, William Dobson & the Aaliya's community.

The podcast is only made possible through listener and viewer donations.

Please help support The Beirut Banyan by contributing via PayPal:
https://www.paypal.me/walkbeirut

Or donating through our Patreon page:
https://www.patreon.com/thebeirutbanyan

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and your preferred audio platform.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter:
@thebeirutbanyan

And check out our website:
www.beirutbanyan.com

Timestamps
0:00 Intro
0:09 Nadia Tabbara
5:59 Brother Michael
12:45 Wael Taleb
17:57 Ronnie Chatah
28:31 William Dobson

To Aaliya's - with Nadia Tabbara, Brother Michael, Wael Taleb, Ronnie Chatah & William Dobson

Storytelling and conversations, from Beirut and beyond. Subscribe from your preferred podcast platform. Support us through Paypal or Patreon.

New tracks tagged #Lebanese podcast