Skip to main content

One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This. Omer El Akkad. Key Points and best quotes.

 


Omar El Akkad's "One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This" is a compelling critique of Western liberalism, especially in light of the Gaza conflict post-October 2023. Through interconnected essays, El Akkad examines the moral inconsistencies within Western societies, emphasizing the gap between declared values and actual practices. Drawing from his personal experiences—being born in Egypt, raised in Qatar and Canada, and working as a journalist covering global conflicts—he offers a unique perspective on identity, belonging, and moral responsibility.

Key Themes:

  1. Western Hypocrisy and Moral Contradictions:

    • El Akkad highlights the disparity between Western nations' professed commitment to human rights and their actions, particularly regarding the Palestinian plight. He critiques the performative empathy that often conceals a deeper indifference to systemic injustices. As he notes, "Rules, conventions, morals, reality itself: all exist so long as their existence is convenient to the preservation of power."
  2. The Role of Journalism and Media Bias:

    • Reflecting on his journalism career, El Akkad discusses the challenges of maintaining neutrality in the face of evident oppression. He argues that the media often perpetuates biased narratives, leading to public apathy. He emphasizes that "journalism at its core is one of the most activist endeavours there is. A journalist is supposed to agitate against power, against privilege... A journalist is supposed to agitate against silence."
  3. Personal Narrative and Identity:

    • El Akkad intertwines his personal journey with broader political commentary, exploring the complexities of being an immigrant and a journalist in the West. He shares experiences of systemic racism and the struggle to find belonging in societies that often view him with suspicion. He poignantly states, "I live here because it will always be safer to live on the launching side of the ... ."

Omar El Akkad's "One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This" offers a profound critique of Western liberalism and its contradictions, especially concerning the Gaza conflict post-October 2023. Here are some notable quotes from the book and others books of him. 

  1. On Performative Empathy:

    • "One day, when it's safe, when there's no personal downside to calling a thing what it is, when it's too late to hold anyone accountable, everyone will have always been against this."
  2. On Western Liberalism's Contradictions:

    • "It's difficult to live in this country in this moment and not come to the conclusion that the principal concern of the modern American liberal is, at all times, not what one does or believes or supports or opposes, but what one is seen to be."
  3. On Historical Narratives and Oppression:

      • "While the terrible thing is happeningwhile the land is still being stolen and the natives still being killedany form of opposition is terroristic and must be crushed for the sake of civilization." 

4.                On Western hypocrisy.

 West you talk about doesn’t exist. It’s a fairytale, a fantasy you sell yourself because the alternative is to admit that you are the least important character in your own story. You invent an entire world because your conscience demands it, you invent good people and bad people and you draw a neat line between them because your simplistic moralities demands it. But the two kinds of people in this world are not good and bad, they are engines and fuel. Go ahead, change your country, change your name, change your accent, pull the skin right off your bones, but in their eyes they will always be the engines and you will always, always be fuel."

From the book, "On strange Paradise"

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Tom Segev at 80: Why One of Israel’s Leading Historians Now Calls Zionism a Mistake. Haaretz. Analysis and Summary. Haaretz

                Tom Segev. Looking Back, Israeli Historian Tom Segev Thinks Zionism Was a Mistake April 4, 2025 — By Ofer Aderet (Analysis and Summary) Haaretz  Israeli historian Tom Segev , long known for his critical lens on the history of Israel and Zionism , has made perhaps his boldest statement yet. At the age of 80, Segev reflects on his personal journey and the historical myths that shaped both his family narrative and the nation’s identity. His revelations , detailed in an in-depth Haaretz article, offer not just a personal reckoning but a broader challenge to Zionism’s moral and historical foundation . Key Themes and Analysis 1. Personal Revelation and Historical Reckoning Segev opens his reflection by confronting a deeply personal myth : the circumstances of his father’s death during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. For decades, he believed the official narrative that his father, Heinz Schwerin, was killed heroically...

Detour of Diplomacy: Netanyahu’s 400 km Flight Route to Dodge ICC Arrest.

  Netanyahu’s Altered Flight Route to Washington: Avoiding ICC Arrest Warrant Risks The skies are no longer a safe passage for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu . Following the issuance of an ICC arrest warrant for alleged war crimes in Gaza , Netanyahu was forced to take a dramatically altered flight route to Washington, extending his journey by over 400 km to avoid the airspace of countries that could enforce the warrant . Drawing from reports by Haaretz and other trusted sources, this post unpacks the details of Netanyahu’s detour , the geopolitical implications , and how the ICC’s legal shadow is reshaping global diplomacy. Detailed overview of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s altered flight route to Washington to evade risks of arrest under the ICC warrant, as reported by Haaretz and other corroborating sources: 1. Flight Detour to Avoid ICC Enforcement Countries Netanyahu’s official plane, the Wing of Zion , took an unusual 400 km longer route to ...

Marianne Hirsch: The Erosion of Academic Freedom and the Authoritarian Threat to American Universities.

Marianne Hirsch on Free Speech, Authoritarian Tactics, and the Crisis in American Universities Marianne Hirsch , a renowned scholar of comparative literature and gender studies at Columbia University , is widely respected for her work on cultural memory, trauma , and post-memory (the relationship of second-generation survivors to historical trauma). As a leading academic voice , she has long defended the role of the university as a place of intellectual freedom and ethical responsibility. Now, in light of recent crackdowns on campus activism and freedom of expression , Hirsch raises urgent concerns about the future of academic institutions in the United States .               Marianne Hirsch. 1. Suppressing Speech: A Classic Authoritarian Tactic Across history, authoritarian regimes have attacked universities and stifled free expression. Examples include: Nazi Germany Latin American dictatorships Current regimes in Russia, Hungary, and ...

$220M RETENTION AWARDS TO STAFF BY CREDIT SUISSE WHILE $2.2B LOSS DURING 3RD QUARTER.

" The Swiss bank said in a financial report released on 29 September that during the first six months of 2023 , it had paid a total of $220m in retention awards and to staff working on acquisition-related activities. The bank also warned that it expected a $2.2bn loss during the third quarter including $1.6bn in loan losses from assets placed in the combined group's so-called bad bank. Credit Suisse made selective retention awards to key staff in a bid to stop them leaving after UBS's $3.25bn acquisition was pushed through in March, people familiar with the matter told Financial News previously. Many of these were for senior dealmakers within its investment bank, they said" The Swiss bank was losing 200 employees every week after the shotgun marriage, and around 8,000 staff departed during the first half of 2023 " SOURCE: https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/credit-suisse-shells-out-220m-to-retain-key-staff-during-ubs-takeover-20230929

"Video Shows Aid Workers Killed in Gaza Under Gunfire Barrage, With Ambulance Lights On" Key Points. NYTimes

   Development:  "Israel Says Its Account of Rescue Workers Killed in Gaza Was Partly ‘Mistaken’ The Israeli military had previously asserted that the workers had been “advancing suspiciously” toward its troops. A video obtained by The New York Times on Friday appeared to contradict that account." NYTimes.  Main Points & Details 1. Video Evidence Contradicts Israeli Claims Video from a paramedic's cellphone shows ambulances and fire truck were marked and had emergency lights on. Contradicts Israeli military statement that vehicles were " advancing suspiciously" without headlights or signals. Video shows convoy moving in early morning with headlights and flashing lights active. 2. Scene and Circumstances of the Attack Convoy stopped to assist an earlier ambulance under attack. Video shows aid workers in uniform exiting vehicles to help. Intense gunfire erupts , captured on video and audio for nearly 7 minutes. Paramedic recording the video re...