Why should you care about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict? Most Americans think of it as a fight over a narrow strip of land, by adversaries who each have some legitimate grievances but also some marks against them. It is, therefore, far from obvious why outsiders should be concerned. But this apathy is misguided: much of what people think they know about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict is just dead wrong.

In this upcoming talk, ARI’s director of policy research and foreign policy expert, Elan Journo, explains why this conflict is essentially between the Enlightenment ideal of freedom and a profoundly anti-Western movement that enslaves in the name of Allah. He also explains how America’s morally agnostic peacemaking efforts only empower the jihadists, and as the jihadist movement gains momentum across the Middle East, the stakes for Americans multiply.

“The Israeli/Palestinian conflict can be a forbidding, convoluted subject. My aim is to show how Ayn Rand’s distinctive philosophic outlook can clarify a foreign-policy challenge that many have written off as intractable,” says Elan Journo.

Elan Journo, a fellow and director of policy research at the Ayn Rand Institute, and specializes in the application of Rand’s ethics of rational egoism on foreign policy. His 2009 book, Winning the Unwinnable War: America’s Self-Crippled Response to Islamic Totalitarianism, analyzes post-9/11 U.S. foreign policy from the perspective of Rand’s philosophy. His work has appeared in Foreign Policy, the Journal of International Security Affairs, Middle East Quarterly, and in popular media outlets, including Foxnews.com, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Sun-Times, Australia’s Herald Sun and Canada’s Globe and Mail. He has been interviewed on Fox News Channel, PBS, NPR and hundreds of radio programs nationally and internationally. Mr. Journo has briefed congressional staffers and speaks regularly at conferences and university campuses, including Stanford, Berkeley, UCLA, New York University, George Mason University and the U.S. Naval Academy.

When will Elan be speaking in a city near you?

• Chicago — March 10. Refreshments begin at 6:30 PM. Talk begins at 7:00 PM at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers, 301 East North Water Street, Chicago, IL 60611.
• New York City — March 11. Refreshments begin at 7:00 PM. Talk begins at 7:30 PM. CUNY Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016.
• Palo Alto — March 17. Refreshments begin at 7:00 PM. Talk begins at 7:30 PM at the Sheraton Palo Alto, 625 El Camino Real, Palo Alto, CA, 94301.
• Irvine — March 25. Doors open at 7:00 PM. Talk begins at 7:30 PM at ARI headquarters, 2121 Alton Parkway, Suite 250, Irvine, CA, 92606.

Take the discussion online with #ARIonTour.

FREE for students. Walk-ins welcome. Register online.