A FIELD THAT’S DUE FOR MAJOR CHANGES: A New Hope For Middle Eastern Studies. “It would be nice to have academic departments of Middle Eastern studies to turn to for understanding these days, but too many have traded scholarship for anti-Israel politics. No wonder most are now ignored, other than for their role in the self-immolation of U.S. universities since Oct. 7, 2023.”

For over half a century, “Middle Eastern Studies” has been driven by the Arab-Israeli conflict. Now Israel and the Arabs are on increasingly friendly terms, and Israel is on its way to being a normal country in the Middle East. I’m not sure the departments can adapt to this new world, but if they can’t they should be scrapped.