Trump's Stone Age rhetoric against Iran and the colonial mindset

Trump's rhetoric to bomb Iran "back to the Stone Age" stems from an uncouth and nakedly colonial and imperialistic mindset. There is no doubt that Trump is a product and embodiment of that colonial and imperialistic mindset. He sees and examines the world through this lens  -- though I doubt he even possesses such intellectual capacity. But what is deeply confusing and somewhat invisible is that the rhetoric of returning Iran to the Stone Age does not come from the mind of a modern human being, but rather from the mind of a Stone Age human.

In other words, Trump, Pete Hegseth, and his apparatus operate within a Stone Age structure. In this structure, everything is trampled. There is not an ounce of humanness left. All human and moral standards are crushed. There is not even a trace of decency; worse, they speak of these things with utter shamelessness and even boast about them. Such people, within such a structure, are bound by nothing except filling their pockets through theft and plunder, by using their brute force always at their reach. We have seen with our own eyes what has happened recently to Venezuela.

In a broader context, Trump and his circle are part of a flawed and sick neoliberal and neoconservative structure, greedy, run by tycoons, billionaires, and plutocrats, all wrapped in a veneer that is called "democracy."

Thus, it is not surprising to hear from Trump and his entourage that they want to return Iran, or any other country, to the Stone Age in which they themselves mentally reside. This is the colonial mindset. Trump declares it openly, but historically, most American rulers and the West in general have held such a mindset toward the East, and especially toward the Islamic world. We saw examples of this in Iraq, Libya, and Syria. No surprise. 

Trump orders review of all Biden-era refugee cases

This report is extremely shocking and upsetting. Today, Reuters reported that, according to a memo seen by the news agency, the Trump administration has instructed the U.S. Immigration Department to review all cases of immigrants who were accepted and entered the United States during the Biden administration. This order could apply to 233,000 immigrants who entered the U.S. between January 2021 and February 2025.

This is horrible news, as the Trump administration has already reduced the refugee admission cap. For example, in 2026, the admission cap is 7,500 people, allocated only to white South Africans.

During two years of field research in Washington, D.C., I met with newly arrived Hazara refugees who told me that they had spent between 2 to 7 years for their cases to be reviewed or processed. Most of these reviews are multi-layered. For instance, refugees from Turkey were first vetted by the Turkish government and NGOs. In the second stage, their cases were referred to the UNHCR, and in the final stage, to the U.S. Embassy, which passed them on to be vetted by U.S. security agencies such as USCIS and Homeland Security. 

This means the refugees have already undergone multiple instances of scrutiny and review beyond what is expected. It's unclear what this anti-refugee program is trying to find or what loophole it is trying to uncover that hasn't been seen before.

Now it has become clear that the reason why some refugees and immigrants who have been waiting for nearly four years to receive their Green Card and still haven't gotten it is due to the anti-refugee scheme that the current administration plans to implement.

This will further add to the sorrow and pain of refugees who have already endured. I can't help thinking of the intense psychological and emotional toll it would cause to thousands of families who have barely settled and have started their lives, hoping to enjoy a modicum of peace. What a cruel world we are living in. 

Trump's New Strategy, a New Hope for Afghans

Tonight, President Trump, announced his long-awaited strategy on Afghanistan. He vowed to work with Afghan government, to increase the number of troops and most importantly, to pressure Pakistan into ending harboring terrorist networks in its land. Trump's new strategy will ignite hope across Afghanistan, especially among young Afghans.

Factually, this speech was by far one of the most important of Trump's speeches both historically and geopolitically. It is true that Pakistan is the nest for all sort of terrorist networks. Surprisingly, these terrorist networks are controlled and administrated by the Pakistani intelligence service ISI and the army. We all know that the ISI was complicit in harboring Bin Laden for years and we also know that the 2008-Mumbai attacks were carried out by the Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terrorist network based in Pakistan. Trump has put his finger on the pulse of the problem in Afghanistan. That is that the Pakistan must end its support for the Taliban.

Trump's words tonight will reverberate across Afghanistan, especially among the youth. The exodus of Afghan refugees to Europe since 2014 was as a result of U.S. troops drawdown by the Obama administration. It was a mistake. Obama's speech in 2014 on troops drawdown like a bolt of thunder among Afghan people, especially the young ones. It left them weakened and terrified because in the absence of U.S. presence, the Taliban can run over the capital overnight. Currently, Afghan security forces are so ill-equipped and inadequately trained to take over the country's security.

However, Trump did not specify how many troops he will send to Afghanistan. Nevertheless, whatever number it would, it will boast the morale of Afghan government, its security forces and most importantly it will diminish the fear of living under stress and threats from the Taliban among Afghan people.

Finally, this new strategy will also ease the anxiety of U.S. ally, especially some of European countries that are being inundated with Afghan refugees. Trump's speech tonight was a promise that the U.S. will not leave Afghan people alone. Any troop surge on Afghanistan will enhance security and Afghans would be reluctant taking long and perilous journey to Europe.