Ileana Chan: The West Is Losing & China Is Winning Without Fighting - EP 124

Iran's Exiled Scholar Who Impeached Khamenei Speaks Out - Mohsen Kadivar - Pt. 2

An exiled Iranian mujtahid — imprisoned twice, banned across Iranian platforms, and teaching at Duke University — gives his most candid assessment of the Islamic Republic, Velayat-e Faqih, and what the Trump-Netanyahu war has done to Iran's democratic reform movement.In Part 2, Prof. Mohsen Kadivar breaks down the two dimensions of the Islamic Republic — where it succeeded and where it catastrophically failed — and shares his evolved final position: a secular democratic state separating religious institutions from the state. He reveals why he impeached Khamenei, why Iran's hardliners, US Republicans, and Israeli Zionists are aligned against peace, and why Trump — not Iran — bears responsibility for the current war. 🔍 IN THIS EPISODE:— Why Kadivar was exiled rather than jailed — and why his influence only grew— The two dimensions of the Islamic Republic: success vs catastrophic failure— One-third of Iranians in poverty while money flows to Gaza, Lebanon & Yemen— The January crackdown: real death toll, Mossad involvement & Ahmadinejad's secret role— Why the Jin Jiyan Azadi movement actually won partial victories— Kadivar's four-stage evolution — from theocracy to secular democracy— Why he impeached Khamenei Senior — and how Trump's war made Khamenei Junior leader— Obama's deal, Trump's betrayal, and why both wars started during active negotiations— Hardliners in Iran + Republicans in US + Zionists in Israel: the alliance blocking peace👤 ABOUT PROF. MOHSEN KADIVAR:Research Professor of Islamic Studies at Duke University. Twice tried by Iran's Special Court for Clergy, imprisoned 18 months, forced into exile. One of the most authoritative scholars to challenge Velayat-e Faqih from within Shia jurisprudence.🔗 PROF. KADIVAR'S WORKS:Theories of State in Shiite Fiqh: https://english.kadivar.com/1998/02/20/the-theories-of-state-in-shiite-fiqh/Impeaching Iran's Supreme Leader: https://english.kadivar.com/2014/05/23/impeaching-irans-supreme-leader/Human Rights & Reformist Islam: https://english.kadivar.com/2020/08/05/human-rights-and-reformist-islam/Islam and Democracy: https://english.kadivar.com/2018/07/06/islam-and-democracy-perspectives-from-reformist-and-traditional-islam/Reforming Islamic Thought: https://english.kadivar.com/2015/11/11/reforming-islamic-thought-through-structural-ijtihad/Rethinking Muslim Marriage Rulings: https://english.kadivar.com/2023/01/07/rethinking-muslim-marriage-rulings-through-structural-ijtihad/Full website: https://kadivar.com/1253/📚 REFERENCED BOOKS:Succession to Muhammad: https://www.cambridge.org/eg/universitypress/subjects/history/middle-east-history/succession-muhammad-study-early-caliphateThe Prophet's Heir (Yale): https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300229455/the-prophets-heir/📌 STAY CONNECTED WITH KIANISTAN:🔔 Subscribe for geopolitics, history & global south conversations🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms — search Kianistan🌐 https://www.kianistan.com💼 Sponsored by: https://www.worldwidelistings.co.uk

Hidden Islam: Wilayat al-Faqih, Shia Thought & Clerical Rule | Prof. Kadivar - Ep 130 P1

What happens when Islam's highest-ranking scholar turns the tradition against itself? Prof. Mohsen Kadivar — Iranian mujtahid, reformist theologian, and Duke University professor — joins the Kianistan Podcast for a rare, in-depth conversation on Islamic scholarship, Shia authority, and the intellectual roots of clerical power. Imprisoned for his ideas, banned from publishing, and ultimately exiled from Iran, Prof. Kadivar didn't abandon his faith — he reformed it from within. This is Part 1 of a two-part series.🔍 WHAT YOU'LL DISCOVER:— How a Shia mujtahid became one of the most dangerous critics of the Islamic Republic— Why Wilayat al-Faqih (guardianship of the jurist) lacks solid roots in the Quran, Hadith, or classical fiqh— The real difference between Sunni and Shia religious authority — it's not what you think— Why Shia clergy are financially independent from states — and why that's changing— The surprising Shia roots of political Islam and its founding fathers— How Sufism bridges Sunni and Shia traditions — and why Henry Corbin called them "two sides of one coin"— Why authoritarian repression of scholars is a political problem, not an Islamic one— The three dimensions of Imamate: political rule, source of knowledge, and mystical sainthood👤 ABOUT PROF. MOHSEN KADIVAR:Mohsen Kadivar is an Iranian mujtahid, Islamic theologian, philosopher, and leading intellectual reformist. He is Research Professor of Islamic Studies at Duke University. Imprisoned for 18 months in Iran for his reformist writings, he has been in exile since 2008. His work critically examines Shia political theory, human rights in Islam, and structural ijtihad.🔗 RESOURCES MENTIONED & PROF. KADIVAR'S KEY WORKS:📖 Theories of State in Shia Fiqh: https://english.kadivar.com/1998/02/20/the-theories-of-state-in-shiite-fiqh/📖 Theocratic State: https://english.kadivar.com/1998/11/22/theocratic-state/📖 Khorasani's Political Philosophy: https://english.kadivar.com/2006/09/19/khorasanis-political-philosophy/📖 Impeaching Iran's Supreme Leader: https://english.kadivar.com/2014/05/23/impeaching-irans-supreme-leader/📖 Human Rights & Reformist Islam: https://english.kadivar.com/2020/08/03/blasphemy-and-apostasy-in-islam/📖 Reforming Islamic Thought Through Structural Ijtihad: https://english.kadivar.com/2015/11/11/reforming-islamic-thought-through-structural-ijtihad/📖 Islam and Democracy: https://english.kadivar.com/2018/07/06/islam-and-democracy-perspectives-from-reformist-and-traditional-islam/📖 Rethinking Muslim Marriage Rulings: https://english.kadivar.com/2023/01/07/rethinking-muslim-marriage-rulings-through-structural-ijtihad/📖 Succession to Muhammad (Cambridge): https://www.cambridge.org/eg/universitypress/subjects/history/middle-east-history/succession-muhammad-study-early-caliphate📖 The Prophet's Heir (Yale): https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300229455/the-prophets-heir/📖 Annemarie Schimmel (Wikipedia): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annemarie_Schimmel📖 Swedenborg & Esoteric Islam: https://swedenborg.com/product/swedenborg-esoteric-islam/📌 STAY CONNECTED WITH KIANISTAN:🔔 Subscribe for geopolitics, religion & global south conversations🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms — search Kianistan🌐 Visit: https://www.kianistan.com💼 Sponsored by: https://www.worldwidelistings.co.uk

Is Capitalism Destroying Us? Riba, Fiat Money & Islamic Wealth — Dr. Omar Javaid | Ep 129

Is the global financial system rigged against ordinary people? What does Islam really say about money, wealth & economic justice — and how is it radically different from capitalism AND socialism?Dr. Omar Javaid, Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Institute of Business Management, Karachi, breaks down one of the most misunderstood topics of our time: Islamic Socioeconomics.From the hidden dangers of fractional reserve banking to why so-called "Islamic banks" may not be Islamic at all — this conversation will challenge everything you thought you knew about money, ownership & the role of the state.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🔍 WHAT YOU'LL DISCOVER━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━→ Why "Islamic Economics" is the wrong term — & what Islamic Socioeconomics actually means→ The real difference between capitalism, socialism & the Islamic model of wealth→ How fractional reserve banking quietly steals value from ordinary people via inflation→ Why modern Islamic banks avoid Musharaka & Mudaraba — the very partnerships Islam encourages most→ How capitalism commoditized money, labor & land — and why Islam forbids all three→ The concept of alienation: what Marx and Islam surprisingly agree on→ Why the modern state is an "amoral machine" incapable of building a truly Islamic economy→ Whether Iran's post-revolution economy was truly Islamic — or just rebranding→ Gold, silver, fiat currency & what a truly Islamic monetary system looks like→ Why Islamic finance institutions with "halal" stamps may be doing more harm than good→ How entrepreneurship & small business are closer to Islamic values than corporate employment━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━👤 ABOUT DR. OMAR JAVAID━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━Dr. Omar Javaid is an Associate Professor in the Entrepreneurship Department at the Institute of Business Management (IoBM), Karachi, Pakistan. His work bridges Islamic economics, entrepreneurship & social sustainability. He is the author of Social Economic Sustainability Through Moral and Social Capital: The Tale of Three Enterprising Communities (Springer, 2024).━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🔗 CONNECT WITH DR. OMAR JAVAID━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━📘 Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/dromarjavaid/💼 LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/javaidomar/📄 Research → https://jibm.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2-1.pdf📚 Springer Book → https://link.springer.com/book/9789819681334🔬 ResearchGate → https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Omar-Javaid-3/research━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━📌 STAY CONNECTED WITH KIANISTAN━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🔔 Subscribe for geopolitics, economics & civilizational conversations🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms — search Kianistan🌐 Website → www.kianistan.com💼 Sponsored by → www.worldwidelistings.co.uk

Iran-US Deal or War? Truth About the MOU, Strait of Hormuz & Israel's Veto — Ali Borhani - Ep 128

Is the Iran-US memorandum of understanding a real breakthrough — or a memorandum of unraveling? UK-based geopolitical strategist Ali Borhani breaks down why every time a deal framework emerges, it collapses — and what that means for the world economy, the Strait of Hormuz, and the future of US power.Ali also explains why Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz has sent shockwaves from Manila to Mumbai, why Israel has zero interest in any deal, and why 60 days is nowhere near enough to resolve 75 years of hostility.🔍 WHAT YOU'LL DISCOVER:— Why the MOU keeps unraveling and what "understanding" actually requires in diplomacy— How Iran turned the Strait of Hormuz into the world's most powerful economic weapon— Why Israel will block any financial relief for Iran — and why that matters more than nukes— The cascading global effects already hitting Japan, India, South Korea, and Europe— Why 60 days cannot resolve what took 17,550 days to create— China's real strategic play: watching America self-destruct without firing a shot— What happens if there's no deal — and why going "full broke" risks a decade-long insurgency— Why America's credibility loss is China's greatest gain right now— The hidden carbon cost of war — and why Ali's TEDx talk on military emissions is a game-changer⏱ CHAPTERS:00:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk] — Introduction & Why the MOU Keeps Failing01:50 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=110s] — Ali's TEDx Talk: The Invisible Carbon Cost of War06:10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=370s] — Why Military Emissions Are the Elephant in the Room08:50 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=530s] — From the TED Talk to the Iran-US Conflict09:40 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=580s] — The MOU: Memorandum of Understanding or Unraveling?11:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=660s] — Why Trump Doesn't Have the Political Capital to Sell a Deal14:20 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=860s] — 75 Years of US-Iran History You Can't Ignore16:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=960s] — Iran's 15 Neighbors and Why It Refuses the Neoliberal Model18:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=1080s] — Can America Actually Want a Deal?20:35 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=1235s] — Iran's Nuclear Program: The Most Inspected in the World21:50 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=1310s] — The Strait of Hormuz: Iran's Unexpected Economic Weapon25:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=1500s] — Global Cascading Effects: Fertilizers, Semiconductors & Dental Gloves27:10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=1630s] — Frozen Assets: The $28 Billion (and $128 Billion) Problem28:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=1680s] — Why Israel Will Never Tolerate Financial Relief for Iran31:20 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=1880s] — Israel: No Flexibility, No Deal, No Concessions34:10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=2050s] — What If America Turns Iran Into a Failed State?36:50 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=2210s] — The Insurgency No One Is Calculating38:40 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=2320s] — If the MOU Passes: What Happens in 60 Days?44:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=2640s] — Iran & America: More Common Ground Than Anyone Admits46:40 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=2800s] — Is America Actually Preparing for War?48:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=2880s] — The Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire That Wasn't51:10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=3070s] — China's Role: Non-Intervention or Strategic Patience?55:10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=3310s] — America's Soft Power Is Collapsing in Real Time57:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=3420s] — No Deal Scenarios: Endless Extension or War?1:01:15 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NJ7ml4nyUk&t=3675s] — Ali's Substack: FuturEarly & How to Follow His Analysis👤 ABOUT ALI BORHANI:Ali Borhani is a UK-based geopolitical strategist and Managing Director of Strategic Advisers Limited, where he has spent 30 years advising multinationals and large family offices on macro-level geopolitical risk and strategy. His TEDx talk at the University of Surrey — on the hidden carbon emissions of war — was selected as an Editor's Choice. His Substack, FuturEarly, distills global macro trends for policymakers, investors, and institutions.🔗 CONNECT WITH ALI BORHANI:🌐 Website: https://www.aliborhani.com/ [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbldERzNFeVBaUklBbkFsOERQVHZ0azNBSm1QQXxBQ3Jtc0tsLWpidGFpeGtheTEyeV9PcF9kQVZSS0pQcEIzb0g4VzBIT05uOS15U2hjcmNReHFtaC1nM093SXJkS1g4Zm03NTFudXFKd00xZ3Z5VDdVX21OWUdKSDU2ZXJVTFo2MlZNMnllTXY3Tlpnc0VjVVhsWQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aliborhani.com%2F&v=6NJ7ml4nyUk]📖 Substack (FuturEarly): https://futurearly.substack.com/ [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbmdUbnNOeENVbU5BbnlSd1JwbGItbVdtZHFXZ3xBQ3Jtc0tsLWF4LXJVbEhrZ2xYOFBNcGVIMUF3QTVOY3lXZVZET3hmc3FzTnBhWms3SVlmbW84WVBpYmpKclBMQU1yNXlFYlJsaTlNZDgzTkIwdHg2ZFpQRVVtMWQzZmtvWF91bEVZMS1NNm1ZYlgwTDRzakg1Yw&q=https%3A%2F%2Ffuturearly.substack.com%2F&v=6NJ7ml4nyUk]▶️ YouTube Shorts:    / @futurearly   [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC02PTX70ninHS7yqQPCU6sA/shorts/shorts]💼 LinkedIn:   / ali-borhani-988b4115   [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbUdWaW4wcjZGYVZrVTB6SllISmVwLUJoXzd2QXxBQ3Jtc0tsSFpSUU1EcHZlUHVOTEktMjZrWVVZZXZQc2NhaVR6VlNDVFJFcGF5a0lUUmRoUEp3SDFVQzlyLUdlN2VFamhqbVUtcDhLcmxMLTJKVE5ZTmdiMDFWc1V2SERhcDB3aXRaZEx4N3dfUWVDQVlWUUNKaw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fuk.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fali-borhani-988b4115&v=6NJ7ml4nyUk]🎤 TEDx Talk — Why We Ignore the Environmental Cost of War:    • Why we ignore the environmental cost of wa...   [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOJuHtd0oS4]📌 STAY CONNECTED WITH KIANISTAN:🔔 Subscribe for geopolitics, history & global south conversations🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms — search Kianistan🌐 Visit: https://www.kianistan.com [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqa2dyOVZSb1ZTSHBiTFRvTFRaNmUxeTlBd2R3UXxBQ3Jtc0tsWXZvR2FFb3d4dkx1QWpmUDZoXzNEMy12S3dEQkpDVTRMRUJyUzZFNXlxNWtiQUQ3YjhpVjJQNXBramxBaFRmVkhDbGxOMnpqLWIxQzFIMlJ2RFhnazUtWGg3QzBlTXY1b1laNENQVkdzZmQ5a3JPQQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kianistan.com%2F&v=6NJ7ml4nyUk]💼 Sponsored by: https://www.worldwidelistings.co.uk [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbDlOMG1WR29XZWhFRnc3V0M1UGdoVkphLXV3Z3xBQ3Jtc0trZDNkeHY5NEU2bV9ndHZyTXFfZkV3aTJUUF9nX084bGtiSFBfcEFkNnN6SG5ZNUhwdGNPcmdSLWJGRDlDNy1ITVZaOFRZYkpDQjRVTU1JZ2h3aFpQbFM3MG44Z1U1bWpmTENNeENRak8tQjRTM2tmcw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.worldwidelistings.co.uk%2F&v=6NJ7ml4nyUk]

The Truth About China: Mr Fong on Western Propaganda, Taiwan, Xinjiang & US-China Rivalry

Why do so many people in the West misunderstand China? Is it media bias, propaganda, cultural differences, or something deeper?In this episode of the Kianistan Podcast, we are joined by Mr Fong, a Dutch-Chinese commentator, YouTuber, and creator of Fong Truth. Having grown up in Europe, Mr Fong explains how his views on China evolved after questioning mainstream narratives and researching issues for himself.We explore the growing divide between China and the West, media influence, anti-China narratives, Taiwan, Tibet, Xinjiang, geopolitics, cultural misunderstandings, and the future of US-China relations in an increasingly multipolar world.If you're interested in China, geopolitics, international relations, Western media, Taiwan, BRICS, the Global South, and the changing world order, this conversation offers a perspective rarely heard in mainstream discussions.🔍 WHAT YOU'LL DISCOVER:• How Western education and media shape perceptions of China• Why Mr Fong changed his views after researching China independently• The role of propaganda in modern geopolitics• Tiananmen Square narratives and historical controversies• Xinjiang, extremism, and competing media narratives• Tibet, the Dalai Lama, and China's position• Taiwan's identity crisis and reunification debate• Why China approaches diplomacy differently from the West• US-China competition and the future of global power• Cultural misunderstandings driving international tensions• The rise of a multipolar world order• What Western audiences often get wrong about China⏱ CHAPTERS:00:00 Introduction01:35 Meet Mr Fong03:00 Growing Up Chinese in the Netherlands07:30 Western Education & Anti-China Narratives12:10 Media Propaganda and Public Perception17:45 Tiananmen Square and Historical Narratives23:00 Xinjiang, Extremism & Western Coverage29:45 Tibet, Buddhism & The Dalai Lama Question37:10 Chinese Governance and Development44:30 China vs Western Political Systems49:20 Taiwan Identity, Reunification & Future Risks57:00 US-China Rivalry and Global Power Shifts01:04:00 Understanding China Beyond Headlines01:09:00 Final Thoughts👤 ABOUT MR FONG:Mr Fong is a Dutch-Chinese geopolitical commentator, independent content creator, and host of the Fong Truth channel. His work focuses on China, international relations, media narratives, geopolitics, and the relationship between China and the West. Through evidence-based analysis and personal experiences, he challenges conventional narratives and encourages critical thinking about global affairs.🔗 CONNECT WITH MR FONG:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mrfong8122Buy Me A Coffee:https://buymeacoffee.com/mrfongTikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@fongtruthX / Twitter:https://twitter.com/FongtruthTwitch:https://www.twitch.tv/realmrfongRumble:https://rumble.com/user/MrFong📌 STAY CONNECTED WITH KIANISTAN:🔔 Subscribe for geopolitics, history, current affairs, and Global South perspectives🌐 Website: https://www.kianistan.com💼 Sponsor:https://www.worldwidelistings.co.uk#China #USChinaRelations #Taiwan #Geopolitics #MrFong #ChinaVsWest #WesternMedia #InternationalRelations #GlobalSouth #MultipolarWorld #ChinesePolitics #KianistanPodcastTAGS :China,Chinese politics,China geopolitics,US China relations,China vs West,Western media,China propaganda,Taiwan,Taiwan China,Tibet,Xinjiang,Chinese economy,Global South,Multipolar world,BRICS,Geopolitics podcast,Political podcast,China analysis,International relations