1919, Siege of Mecca, Family Narratives

What 1919 (The Year That Changed America) Tells Us About 2019 (0:36) Guest: Martin Sandler, historian, Emmy-winning TV writer, author of “1919: The Year That Changed America” (2019 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature) As 2019 winds down, maybe you’re feeling a little winded. A lot has happened –is happening –in America. At moments like these, a little perspective is useful. A hundred years ago, America was turning the page on a year that changed the nation in fundamental ways. Some have called 1919 “the year our world began.” Historian Martin Sandler’s book about the parallels between 1919 and 2019 just won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature.  How the Siege of Mecca Shaped America’s Complicated Relationship with Saudi Arabia (30:36) Guest: Yaroslav Trofimov, Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent, The Wall Street Journal and Author of “The Siege of Mecca: The Forgotten Uprising in Islam’s Holiest Shrine and the Birth of Al Qaeda” The exact motive behind a shooting at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Florida two weeks ago is still unclear. But officials are treating it as an act of terror. The shooter was a member of the Saudi Air Force receiving flight training from the US military. He killed three people and injured eight others. There’s some evidence he held extremist views. If you’re surprised that a Saudi pilot would be in the US for military training, there are actually hundreds of such students here right now. Saudi Arabia has been a close military ally of the United States in the global war on terror. But it’s a tricky relationship, because Al Qaeda and ISIS can both trace the inspiration for their extreme views back to Saudi Arabia. Fifteen of the nineteen 9-11 hi-jackers were Saudi. These terrorists trace their inspiration, in particular, to a siege that happened 40 years ago in the Holy City of Mecca. The Apple Seed (50:38) Guest: Sam Payne, The Apple Seed, BYUradio Sam Payne from The Apple Seed looks back at Y2K.  Return Ancestral Lands to Native Americans. Eur