Customer Reviews

Middle East Rules of Thumb: Understanding the complexities of the Middle East

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4 star:		(1)
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Dr. Steve Carol, one of America's top experts on the Middle East, has provided the reader in this slim, but fact-filled and smooth narrative the keys to truly understanding the complexities of the Middle East. He sheds light and shatters myths about the region, and provides relevance, including why an Israeli-Palestinian peace will NOT end war in the region. He also points out why security fences are not new, but have been used to prevent crime and terror in many nations, including the U.S.A.

He points out that the coveting of non-Islamic territory and land by militant forces in the Arab and Islamic world is nothing new, but has been going on for century after century. Dr. Carol also points out too, that breaking treaties and agreements too is nothing out of the norm for terrorist organizations, since they regard (Americans and Israelis) as infidels and unbelievers worthy of deceit.

Dr. Carol shatters plenty of myths and provides the reader with a thorough fact-based analysis of the modern Middle East. It should be required reading for all Americans, especially the two Presidential candidates and their foreign policy staffs.

Middle East Rules of Thumb is an appropriate title of an extraordinary book authored by historian Professor Steven Carol. This handbook clarifies the complexities of Arab-Islamic history during the past 1,400 years with an array of current facts comprehensible to students even at the high school level. Carol's book should also be read, however, by college and university students so many of whom are misled by "politically correct" academics and journalists as well as by Arab propagandists.

This reader friendly volume provides much needed factual data about the Arab-Israeli conflict. It should be on the bookshelves of Hillel Houses and Jewish Community Centers, and it should be brought to the attention of all friends of Israel, so often in need of solid facts to defend the one and only Jewish homeland.

Prof. Paul Eidelberg, President
Foundation for Constitutional Democracy
Jerusalem

Dr. Carol has done a superb job in dissecting the complexities of the Arab/Muslim war against Israel.
"Middle East Rules Of Thumb," is impeccably researched.
Each page of this unique work is "brimming" with historical facts - POLITICAL CORRECTNESS NOTWITHSTANDING!
Dr. Carol explodes the 'myth' of a "historical" Palestinian nation and society. He shreds the analyses of so called middle east "pundits" who are awash in moral relativism. Historical facts and reality are brought into clear and unambiguous focus.
It is my belief that this volume should be required reading for all members of the United States Congress and Israeli Knesset.


Jeffrey Grill, M.D.

Dr. Carol's "Middle East Rules of Thumb" is the best history lesson on this complicated topic that I have read. It is concise, accurate and readily understandable. If one had the desire to learn the true history of the Arab/Israeli conflict and had only one book to read... Dr. Carl's book would be the one to choose.

In writing about the Arab-Israeli conflict it is easy to be either encyclopedic and impenetrable, or concise and oversimplified. Until reading Dr. Carol's breakthrough work, I had not thought it possible to avoid these extremes. Many authors have a thorough knowledge of the historical, cultural, and religious issues. Dr. Carol has mastered all three and has integrated them into a tightly woven collection of fifty "rules", divided into ten categories, which puts everything into its proper context. These rules are buttressed by more than twenty appendices and tables and an extensive bibliography.

Debates on the conflict are usually long on opinions and short on facts. Dr. Carol avoids editorializing as well as any author I am familiar with. Any serious future work which disagrees with any of his facts will have to document thoroughly a refutation. Otherwise it will have failed to convince any objective observer.

If you wish to browse through the book, may I suggest you read Rule 33. In one paragraph it crystallizes the Arab negotiating strategy and how it has neutralized Israeli claims and even battlefield victories.

"Middle East Rules of Thumb" is the new gold standard of fact-based middle east sources. If Dr. Carol could be persuaded to write a similar work on American History, perhaps he could save a generation of students from the PC lies they are taught in high school.

Much of the misery inflicted on the planet emanates from the Middle East, a failed region that cannot manage itself peacefully while it seeks to impose its influence and chaos on everyone else. With a history whose roots are many hundreds of years old, one would think that we could understand what is happening there and why, but the key players of that tortured part of the world thrive, and have thrived for centuries, on obfuscation, misinformation and disinformation. For the sake of its own survival, the free world needs to understand what really goes on in the Middle East, and finally there is a book that cuts through all of the confusion, setting the record straight using very carefully researched facts. Middle East Rules of Thumb is actually almost a user guide for negotiating or demolishing the labyrynths that have been erected to prevent the light of veracity from ever entering. I recommend this book to all who ought to know, journalists, broadcast talk show hosts, elected officials and their staff, educators and the general public who need to understand that the threat to all of us is real and palpable. If we really want to have a future, we all need to get involved. This easy to read book is as good a place to start as I know.

I BOUGHT THIS BOOK FOR MY HUSBAND AND HE THINKS THIS IS A GREAT BOOK. DR. CAROL HAS DONE A GOOD JOB WRITING THIS.

Dr. Carol obviously knows his subject. This book was very informative and for a hard subject I found it easy to understand. For anyone interested in the events in the Middle East, what has happened and what is happening - this book is a must to read.

Dr. Carol's "Middle East Rules of Thumb" is an important historical account of the Mideast. He addresses many misconceptions about the Arab/Israeli conflict in a clear and concise manner and provides a well documented account of the myths surrounding the formation of the state of Israel and the subsequent wars in the region. This work is an ideal supplement to any text on Mideast studies. It represents an excellent reference for those learning about the history, culture, politics and future of the Mideast. I have heard Dr. Carol lecture on the subject in the past and find this book to be an outstanding contribution to an often misunderstood and emotionally charged subject.

The book "Middle East Rules of Thumb: Understanding the Complexities
of the Middle East," by Dr. Steven Carol is a MUST HAVE book for
anyone interested in the Middle East! Dr Carol is not only extremely
knowledgeable on the subject, but also has the gift of wisdom which
enables him to use the knowledge and explain it to the rest of us. One
of my favorite sayings is, "Profundity must be wrapped in simplicity
in order to be useful." This subject is rather profound, to say the
least, and Dr Carol's book will bring a clear understanding to you.