With tensions in the Middle East elevated due to the conflict in Gaza and now American soldiers being killed by Iranian backed terrorists, I believe it is wise to learn as much as possible about the Middle East to make the most informed decisions possible going forward.

A key to understanding the Middle East is to understand Islam. While there are many similarities between Christianity and Islam, the differences make the two religions seem worlds apart. Just like it is impossible to understand Christianity without knowing Jesus of Nazareth, it is likewise impossible to understand Islam without knowing Muhammad. While there are dozens of portrayals of Jesus, most recently with “The Chosen,” there are no such programs about Muhammad, leaving most Westerners with little understanding of exactly who was Muhammad. To fill that void, Middle Eastern correspondent Lesley Hazleton wrote “The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad” to show that Muhammad was a complex leader who led a difficult life.

Like Jesus, Muhammad drastically changed the world around him creating a religion that filled the world and shaped the lives of many today. Yet, Muhammad was also a man with human flaws that changed his message from one of peace to conflict.

While Hazleton breaks her book down into three parts, I actually found Muhammad’s life divided in half—the years before Medina  and the years after. There seemed to be a fundamental change in Medina as Muhammad went from being an outsider in Mecca, preaching a new religion, to the undisputed religious and political leader in Medina. It is similar to Christianity but a reverse order. Whereas the Old Testament was much more militant while the New Testament spoke of peace, in Islam the revelations that made up the Quran go in the opposite direction.

Muhammad had little chance for success. Being born after his father passed and his mother dying when he was six, he grew up an orphan in a society that cared little for orphans. Yet, without any power or prestige, he earned the reputation for integrity and honesty as he worked his way up to positions of importance with his uncle’s trading caravans. However, after feeling as if he had earned respect, he was reminded who he was when his uncle denied his marriage to his daughter because of his low status. Hazleton writes, “To a boy imbued with the rough egalitarianism of Bedouin life, all this could only have come as a shock. His own people had co-opted faith, piously declared it even as they contravened its most basic principles. From his perch on the sidelines, he saw the social injustices of what was happening all too clearly.”

One eventual positive in his life was Khadija, a wealthy women 25 years his senior, who hired him to help with her caravans until they fell in love, and she proposed marriage. While their years together were difficult, they loved and supported each other for 25 years.

When Muhammad first told her he heard the voice of the angel Gabriel and thought he was either possessed or going mad, Khadija told him to listen and accept the messages. She stood by him as he began to preach the message of Islam and felt the hatred from the Mecca elite. Muhammad loved Khadija and refused any other marriages until after her death.

According to Hazleton, during these early years, the verses in the Quran were “an impassioned protest against corruption and social inequity. They took the side of the poor and the marginalized, calling for advantaging the disadvantaged. They demanded a halt to the worship of the false gods of profit and power along with those of the totem stones. They condemned the concept of sons as wealth and the consequent practice of female infanticide. And above all, they indicated the arrogance of the wealthy—‘those who amass and hoard wealth,’ who ‘love wealth with an ardent passion,’ who ‘are violent in their love of wealth.’” Yet, turning away from the gods whom the pilgrims of Arabia visited could greatly hurt the wealth of Mecca, so much so that when Muhammad’s uncle and protector died, other Meccan leaders teamed up to kill the threat to their livelihood. Fortunately for Muhammad, he was warned in a dream and he and his followers made the trip to Medina where he had been invited to come as a judge but eventually became their leader and prophet.

In Medina, now as the leader, the revelations were less about a peaceful society and more about governance and control. Revelations now said, “Permission is granted to those who fight because they have been wronged…those who have been driven out of their houses without right only because they said our god is God.”

Consolidating his power, Muhammad eventually either exiled or killed the three Jewish tribes at Medina when they did not join Islam. Turning his attention toward Mecca, his forces began attacking caravans. Eventually the two cities were in an all-out war. Muhammad was able to take over Mecca making himself the undisputed political and religious leader.

Rising from an lowly outsider managing caravans for his uncle to become the religious and political leader, one would expect changes in the Quranic verses. It may have been the burden of leadership or the loss of Khadija, but Muhammad changed in Medina, which was reflected in the Quran. The verses transformed from societal actions to a guide to enforce God’s law.

Hazleton writes in such a way that the book reads more like a novel than nonfiction. Her storytelling ability brings the life of Muhammad to life for Western readers. She presents his life as a timeless journey of an underdog who grows up to start a major world religion. She is respectful in narration while at the same time showing that Muhammad is not just the prophet of Islam but also a man with both positive and flawed characteristics. Hazleton does an excellent job also explaining the origins of Islam while also challenging some false perceptions such as the role of women that occurred after the prophet’s death. For anyone concerned with the region, it is necessary to understand Islam and Hazleton’s “The First Muslim” is a perfect place to start for readers at any level.

James Finck is a professor of history at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. He may be reached at HistoricallySpeaking1776@gmail.com.

In 1984, Democrats needed a candidate to challenge the very popular Republican incumbent President Ronald Reagan. Democratic frontrunner Walter Mondale, an ex-U.S. senator and state attorney general from Minnesota who had also served as Jimmy Carter’s vice president, seemed as though he would be a shoo-in for the presidency; this was confirmed with his dominating Iowa Caucus win.

Yet, at the caucus, a lesser-known U.S. senator from Colorado fared much better than expected. Still, nobody really paid much attention to Gary Hart. That is until he shocked the political world by winning the New Hampshire primary. Though 10 years younger than Mondale, Hart, another Democrat, seemed like a different generation. His youth and charisma reminded voters of Kennedy–something he did not try to discourage.

Hart then continued his run, winning both Vermont and Wyoming. He insisted he was a new type of Democrat who had new ideas. He wanted to cut taxes while at the same time increase welfare and healthcare for all. What helped halt Hart’s momentum was during the March 11th televised debate after Hart laid out his plan, Mondale turned to the camera and said, “Where’s the beef?”

Mondale’s question implied Hart was all talk and no substance. While the slogan itself did not solely defeat Hart, it did stick to his campaign and made more people question his policies.

The line resonated with voters because it had recently aired as a slogan for Wendy’s Restaurants during the previous Super Bowl. The commercial starred three elderly ladies eating at Home of the Big Bun. When one lady opened her burger to find an exaggerated tiny hamburger patty, she exclaimed, “Where’s the beef?”

It’s no surprise that Super Bowl commercials made their way into political campaigns. Super Bowls in this country are a big deal. In fact, of the top 30 most watched television programs of all time, 23 are Super Bowls.

Part of the reason for large crowds is that many Americans love football. But that alone does not account for such high ratings. Another major factor are the commercials. Even viewers who are not sports fans watch this one game more and more regularly because of the heartwarming, comedic or even sometimes outlandish advertisements.

During the regular season only 35% of women watch football. Super Bowl ratings show that number jumps up to 75%. That is a huge leap! And it’s mostly because of commercials. Even for men, the next morning around the water cooler, it seems like more are debating which were the best commercials more than recapping the plays on the field. Commercials have taken the Super Bowl from a paramount sporting event to a cultural phenomenon.

“Where’s the beef?” is not the only phrase to make it into our everyday vocabulary. In 1993, after Larry Bird and Michael Jordan played the greatest game of HORSE ever for a Big Mac and fries, the phrase “nothing but net” became the catchphrase that is now heard during every basketball contest from schoolyard picks to the NBA. In 2010, the E*TRADE baby first used the line, “Well, that’s going to cost you a lot of money.” That phrase has been used in boardrooms ever since. Of course, let’s not forget that in 2002 the greeting for any group of guys became “Whassup” after the Budweiser commercial.

While “Where’s the Beef” may be the most famous example of the relationship between the Super Bowl and politics, there have always been subtle political or cultural messages–especially recently.

Many ads have catered to the left’s message of diversity and inclusion. Coca-Cola’s “It’s Beautiful” 2014 commercial showed every shade of humanity while “America the Beautiful” played in multiple languages, and Airbnb’s 2017 “We Accept” commercial was pretty much the same as Coke’s, but with pictures of diverse people and written text claiming they accept everyone. Days after President Donald Trump announced his travel ban, Budweiser showed the harrowing immigrant story of their German co-founder, Adolphus Busch. And finally, Audi’s daughter ad with a father concerned that his daughter would not be treated fairly in a soapbox derby race full of boys aired in 2017.

The right has also had their share of ads like the Servant Foundation’s “He Gets Us” campaign with the message that Jesus loves them, and a string of patriotic ads like the NFL’s Ragged Old Flag in 2020, and Chrysler’s 2012 “It’s Halftime in America” commercial starring Clint Eastwood. But probably the most notable is from 2002, when Budweiser’s famous Clydesdales kneeled to honor the victims of 9/11. With no dialogue, the reverent Budweiser commercial aired only once.

While the first Super Bowl was in 1967, most consider the first famous Super Bowl commercial came a few years later in 1973. The ad was for Noxzema Shaving Cream and the company cracked at least one successful code by using celebrities to push their products. This particular ad had Farrah Fawcett from Charlie’s Angels smearing shaving cream all over the face of New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath with the tagline, “Let Noxzema cream your face.” The line might not get past censors today, but it opened the door to famous football players and models—think “Mean” Joe Green or Cindy Crawford.

Finally, it should be noted that the 1973 Noxzema commercial cost a whopping $42,000, (roughly $288,000 today) while 30-second spots for this year’s game ran for around a measly $7 million. Yet, as more than 100 million consumers were expected to tune in, for companies with the means, it is worth it. If Super Bowl commercials can stand out, advertisers’ brands become immortal.

 James Finck is a professor of history at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. He may be reached at HistoricallySpeaking1776@gmail.com.

I rarely get personal with my articles, but this week’s subject resonates with me. One of the hardest days of my life was when a doctor confirmed to my wife and me what we already suspected – that my son, my oldest child had autism.

We knew that not all was lost. Compared to many, we are blessed in that he is high-functioning and incredibly smart. Yet it is still a blow to any parent knowing that their child is different and would have challenges many other kids would not have to face.

That has been the case with our child. While he excelled in school, graduating as valedictorian and earning the state regent’s scholarship, he struggled making connections. He has always wanted friends, but does not know how to talk to his fellow students. It’s difficult for people he meets to understand what is going on in that big brain of his. He struggles to look people in the eye, does not know what to say and can’t understand nonverbal cues. It’s easy to judge him as slow, until you talk to him about movies. Suddenly, he comes to life and knows more about movies than anyone I know—how they are made, who starred in and directed every film, and even types of techniques the directors used. I have read some of his movie reviews and he sees movies different than most and understands things that I did not even know I was supposed to understand.

My dream for my son is that the world understands that he is special, and that autism makes him different not lesser. That is the exact message of HBO’s Temple Grandin. Grandin’s condition allows her to see things differently which has allowed her to improve things in her field. The biopic of her life and struggles have brought hope to thousands of parents like me who want what is best for their kids.

I teach at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. I could write dozens of articles about why this school is special, but the one program of which I am most proud is The Neill-Wint Center for Neurodiversity. Started by Kathy Perry and sponsored by Phillip and Katie Wint, the center’s mission is to assist students with autism spectrum disorder in their transition to college life and to help ensure postsecondary success. Partly because of the center, on Feb. 23, as part of the Emerson-Weir Liberal Arts Series, Temple Grandin herself will be the keynote speaker.

My son, who is currently part of the Neill-Wint Center and lives on campus, comes home at least once a week and we watch a movie together. With his love of all movies and me being a historian, we tend to watch a classic. However, this past week he asked that we watch Temple Grandin staring Clair Danes in preparation for her upcoming visit. I was so inspired by this movie that I knew I needed to include a review in my column.

Grandin, born in 1947, dealt with autism in a time when the condition was still relatively unknown. The movie starts with her at a boarding school where, because of a strong mother and sainted teachers who recognized her gifts, she was able to excel. It then followed her through college and graduate school. At each level there were many who stood in her way, believing she was not capable of learning. At each level, she proved them wrong. Not only did she learn, but she excelled and became a published author and expert in animal behavior.

At the end of the movie, she is attending an autism conference where parents were shown trying to handle their autistic children in different ways. When Grandin speaks up and announces that she is autistic and a has a Ph.D., suddenly every parent in the room wanted to hear everything she had to say. Symbolically, ever parent of an autistic child, including myself, was in that room. Seeing what she overcame shows each of us that our children can also. There are things I can say technically about the movie, but it only seems right that I turn that part over to my son.

“Temple Grandin is a fine film. It does a good job at explaining who Temple Grandin is, specifically when it comes to her work in agriculture that first brought her attention, as well as her life growing up with autism that most people know her for. Claire Danes is great as Grandin, disappearing into the role without her performance coming across as cartoony. Director Mick Jackson succeeds at getting across how Grandin thinks, thanks to the stylistic use of on-screen graphics as well as small cutaways to show how she interprets certain phrases literally. Temple Grandin might feel like a TV movie, and it probably won’t blow everyone’s minds away, but it’s still worth a watch.”

I am excited to see Dr. Grandin in person. Watching the movie has made her a personal hero. She broke down many barriers in higher education and paved a way for students like my son and the others to chase their dreams. It is because of people like Dr. Grandin that USAO has already seen several students in the Neill-Wint Center walk across the stage at graduation.

That day at the doctors may have been one of my hardest days, but I also know that watching my son cross the stage in April when he graduates college will be one of my absolute best.

James Finck is a professor of history at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. He may be reached at HistoricallySpeaking1776@gmail.com.