Episode 582 Show Notes- Middle East Turmoil and the Daniel Penny Trial Fallout

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Episode Description

In this episode of The P.A.S. Report Podcast, Professor Nick Giordano dives into two major stories shaping the global and domestic landscape. First, Professor Giordano explores the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria and its implications for the Middle East and U.S. foreign policy. Then, the Daniel Penny trial, a case that reveals the troubling cultural shifts in America. From the rise of extremist groups in Syria and the Middle East turmoil to the erosion of civic duty at home, this episode uncovers how misguided policies and narratives threaten stability and justice.

Episode Highlights

• The fall of the Assad regime: Implications for Syria, U.S. foreign policy, and Middle East turmoil.
• The Daniel Penny trial: A case that exposes the weaponization of the justice system.
• How cultural and policy shifts undermine civic duty and personal responsibility.

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Show Notes- Middle East Turmoil and the Daniel Penny Trial Fallout

Welcome to The P.A.S. Report Podcast

[Intro Transcript]

Hello everyone, and welcome to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. I’m your host, Professor Nick Giordano. Be sure to subscribe and follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. Also, visit The P.A.S. Report website at https://pasreport.com. And I encourage you to share this podcast with your family and friends. We talk about a lot of important issues on this podcast and this week is no different.

Middle East Turmoil

There is a lot going on, both internationally and domestically, and so in this episode, I am going to discuss the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria, the Middle East turmoil, and what it means for the United States, and then I will get into the domestic side of things because I really want to talk about the Daniel Penny trial and what it says about America.

To understand what’s going on in Syria, we need to go back to 2011 because Syria has been a disaster for over a decade. When the Arab Spring broke out in 2011, it fueled instability and ignited a civil war in Syria. This led to reports that Assad was using chemical weapons.

In response to these reports, President Obama issued his now infamous redline. On August 20, 2012, President Obama declared if the Assad regime used chemical weapons, he would seek to oust the Assad regime and conduct regime change.

Shortly after, Assad crossed the red line and the world turned to see what President Obama would do. At this point, the American people were war-weary. They’ve witnessed a number of military engagements in the Middle East after the debacle of Iraq. The American people didn’t want to get entrenched in another Middle Eastern war that would cost a trillion dollars, thousands of American soldiers their lives, and tens of thousands coming home with life-altering injuries.

Despite America’s policymakers pushing for us to get involved, 75% of the American people rejected our involvement. They didn’t see how it was in our interest and said let them kill each other.

Ultimately, President Obama didn’t seek regime change, and the world took note. See, President Obama boxed America into a corner with his redline threat. When an American president says something, when they don’t follow through, it is seen as a sign of weakness.

But I want to make clear, I am not advocating that we should have gotten involved in Syria. Syria was a disaster and there was no good options. Sometimes, as the sole superpower, you only have bad options and outcomes, and worse options and outcomes. Syria was one of those scenarios.

What I am pointing out is that when President Obama made a threat and didn’t follow through our adversaries – Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and Venezuela – all became much more aggressive. They viewed the United States as a paper tiger. Just look at how Russia took the Crimea in 2014. Do you think it’s a coincidence that Obama didn’t follow through in 2013 and Russia annexed Crimea in Ukraine in 2014? Remember, in international politics, there are no coincidences.

The instability in Syria also led to the birth of the al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda aligned group, as well as the rise of ISIS following an internal al-Qaeda rebellion.

Then President Trump came into office and one of the first things he did was target ISIS and ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Sound Clip- Trump announces al- Baghdadi’s death

While the civil war continued, Assad seemed to have gained the upper hand, and things appeared to stabilize to a certain degree.

Then last week, in blitzkrieg-like fashion, Syrian rebel groups quickly took the city of Aleppo, Homs, and then Damascus. Assad did not fight until the end like Saddam Hussein or Muammar Gaddafi. He fled the country and was granted asylum in Russia.

So, what changed? Perhaps it was the fact that Russia couldn’t prop up Assad anymore because of the invasion of Ukraine. Hezbollah couldn’t send in thousands of fighters to help reinforce the Assad regime either. And Assad’s own military units abandoned their post.

So what are the implications? Who are these rebel groups? What does Assad’s fall mean for the Middle East? What does it mean for the United States? You have American policymakers cheering this on, seemingly learning nothing over the past twenty years. I will discuss it all when we get back from a quick break. So, hang tight, and we will be right back.

Break

What Comes Next in Syria Following Assad’s Fall?

Welcome back to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. Bashar al-Assad didn’t take the path chosen by Saddam Hussein or Muammar Gaddafi. He chose to live, and fled the country, but now the question is what comes next. Before the break I explained how there are many American policymakers cheering this on. Some are even going so far as to herald it as a new era of freedom that will send reverberations throughout the Middle East.

Unfortunately, these people are relatively clueless, and our policymakers are more intent on crafting policies based on how they want the world to be, rather than how it actually is. Once again, our policymakers demonstrate their shortsightedness. As the Assad regime in Syria collapses, many are heralding a new era of freedom in the Middle East. They made the same mistake with the Arab Spring.

You had a bunch of morons cheering on the Arab Spring and then the Middle East turmoil began. They were saying its all about freedom. That the people of North Africa and the Middle East have shown they are tired of the oppressive regimes and that this was a new era of Middle Eastern politics.

But let me ask you something. The Arab Spring impacted more than a dozen countries. Some governments fell, while others remained. But in all the countries where we saw the Arab Spring, how many of them are free today? How many of them implemented democracy? The answer is simple. Zero.

Not only did the Arab Spring not bring freedom or democracy, but in many cases, it led to even greater instability, more oppressive regimes, and the rise of extremist groups. Libya descended into chaos and became a hub for human trafficking and terrorism. More people have died in Libya since the downfall of Gaddafi than during Gaddafi’s 42-year reign. In fact, you can go to the marketplaces of Libya today, and in some places, you can attend a slave auction.

Egypt briefly flirted with democracy, only to revert to military rule. Syria, the heart of this conversation, plunged into a devastating civil war that left hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced, and who knows how the situation will unfold.

There are only three possible outcomes. Syria figures out a way to create a unified government that is able to effectively govern and rejoin the international community. That would be the most optimistic scenario. It’s also the most unlikely scenario. Another scenario is that the rebel groups that ousted Assad turn their guns on each other in order to fill the vacuum of power that now exists. It will be brutal. There will be a lot of death and destruction. The civil war continues and Syria is a failed state. That is a much greater possibility.

The final outcome will be that the largest rebel group assumes control and all that’s happened is one tyrant has been replaced by another. This too, is much more likely and realistic than thinking it will all work out. So, we have to look at which group has the greatest likelihood of emerging victorious and who will lead Syria going forward.

Sure, Assad’s fall weakens Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah’s influence. And yes, Assad was a brutal tyrant who tortured and murdered his own people. But Assad’s demise creates more instability and turmoil in the Middle East

But what comes next may be worse. The largest rebel group is Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, known as HTS. The leader of HTS is Abu Muhammed al-Julani. Who is al-Juliani? Well, he is a former al-Qaeda and ISIS operative.

For the last few years, al-Julani has been attempting to rebrand himself as a pragmatic leader, but his history, his record on extremism, human rights abuses, and authoritarian rule in northwest Syria tells a different story.

Al-Juliani traveled to Iraq in 2003 to fight Americans. We ultimately ended up detaining him, and he became a close underling of future ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Once we turned over the prisons to the Iraqi government, al-Juliani and al-Baghdadi were released and went to Syria as the Syrian civil war began. Following a rift in al-Qaeda as Baghdadi declared his ISIS caliphate, al-Juliani began the al-Nusri Front – an al-Qaeda affiliate group – to fight against the Assad regime.

In 2016, al-Julani announced that the al-Nusra Front would sever its ties with al-Qaeda and rebrand the group, which has ultimately become known as HTS. He is extremely calculated and did the rebranding in an attempt to consolidate power and to gain broader support among Syrian opposition factions.

However, we saw through the rebranding. HTS is designated as a terrorist organization by us and several other countries. We have conducted airstrikes against his organization, and HTS remains a dangerous and deadly group. It has been accused of human trafficking, human rights abuses, and silencing opposition voices in areas under its control through torture and murder.

Yet, HTS has become the dominant rebel faction in Syria. He is a polarizing figure, and while supporters of his praise him as a key leader in the resistance movement, he is nothing more than a ruthless tyrant.

The fall of Assad doesn’t guarantee freedom. It certainly ensures more Middle East turmoil, and it will most likely replace one tyrant with another, and further destabilize the region and instability continues to increase on the world stage. We have learned nothing from the chaos that followed in Libya, Yemen, and other countries.

Our policymakers have proven how shortsighted they are. Sometimes, it is better to deal with the devil you know as opposed to the one you don’t. This is not to say that Assad was a good leader. This is not praising Assad. Assad is a horrible human being, but at least he was predictable. Now, we are entering a period of unknowns that could make the region more destabilized.

This is a situation to monitor, and I will bring you further updates on the Middle East turmoil as the situation unfolds. IN the meantime, we need to take a quick commercial break. When we get back, I want to turn to the domestic side of things and focus on the Daniel Penny trial as the jury returned a not-guilty verdict on Monday. This case has far-reaching ramifications and speaks about how our culture has changed due to radical progressives. So, hang tight, and we will be right back.

Break

The Daniel Penny Case – A Trial That Never Should Have Happened

Welcome back to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. It’s time to turn to the domestic side of things, and I want to talk about the Daniel Penny trial in this segment. A trial that never should have happened in the first place.

Penny, a former Marine, stepped in to restrain Jordan Neely after Neely was threatening passengers in a subway car. According to the progressive mindset, Neely’s behavior is excused because he was suffering mental health issues and was an emotionally disturbed person. While Neely’s death is tragic, the fact is that you cannot go around threatening and harassing people because you are suffering from a mental health condition. It’s not an excuse, and it doesn’t give license to harass and threaten anyone.

And to sit there and attack, charge, and call for the conviction of Daniel Penny is a disgrace. The fact that Penny’s actions were criminalized is a testament to how our justice system has been perverted and weaponized by political narratives and social pressures. On Friday, the jury came back deadlocked on the first and most serious count that would have landed Penny in prison for 10-14 years.

But why? Given all the testimony in the trial, this case didn’t require lengthy deliberations. Some defend the jury as if they did their due diligence, but the truth of the matter is that our system stands on the idea of reasonable doubt. The whole concept of reasonable doubt is that if a juror has even a .1% belief that the defendant is innocent, they must vote not guilty. Two minutes is all it should have taken to return a resounding verdict of not guilty.

The fact that it took them several days to come back deadlocked on the first count, and a couple of more days to come back with a not guilty verdict on the second count, is an absurdity in and of itself and shows a deeper crisis within our society. That deeper crisis is our society’s inability to use basic common sense.

While the “not guilty” verdict does bring some relief, the damage of these charges and this trial has already been done. Prosecuting Penny sent a clear and chilling message to every New York resident: stepping up to protect others can make you the villain, and the government will bring the full resources at its disposal to punish and make an example out of you.

See, they don’t want you to know that Neely had a history of violence, including an active warrant for assault. Listen, I sympathize and have compassion for anyone who suffers from mental health conditions, but just because someone may suffer from mental health conditions, it doesn’t give them the right to threaten, harass, and potentially harm innocent people.

And the truth of the matter is that millions of Americans suffer from mental health issues, yet 99% of them will ever engage in an act of violence in their lives. 99% of them will never threaten or harass anyone. So, let’s stop with the excuses. Penny’s response was not born out of malice. It was an act of instinct to protect those around him from what could have been a tragic escalation.

It had nothing to do with race despite what the race hustlers want you to believe. In fact, the majority of people in the subway car were from minority populations, and they were grateful that Penny restrained Neely.

How would you feel if you were in the subway car? Should Penny have waited until the individual began assaulting someone? Perhaps, pull out a knife and stab someone?

Unfortunately, the DA’s office sent a message that Samaritans are not welcome in New York City. You have to wait until someone is injured or dead before you get involved.

So, instead of applauding Penny’s bravery, we saw a rush to demonize and criminally prosecute him. They attempted to paint Penny as the villain and Jordan Neely as an innocent bystander before the facts were even clear. The narrative became one of race and class, rather than focusing on the simple truth: Penny acted to stop a threat, and the system and Neely’s family failed Jordan Neely. Not Daniel Penny, not the innocent subway riders, not our society.

This trial has long-term ramifications. It discourages people from stepping in during moments of crisis, and if you act to protect others, you could be the next target. You can be prosecuted, have your reputation dragged through the mud, and have your economic livelihood destroyed as you have to hire expensive lawyers to defend you, and not only will you be prosecuted criminally, but you will also be sued civilly. Your life is put on hold as you’re vilified in the court of public opinion.

We now live in an era where facts and evidence take a backseat to preconceived notions and identity politics.

The bottom line is this: no one should have to second-guess whether saving lives will cost them their own freedom. Yet, that’s precisely the environment this trial has created. It’s a miscarriage of justice, not just for Penny but for society as a whole. We must ask ourselves, what kind of society are we becoming when Good Samaritans are punished instead of celebrated? And it goes deeper than that. It’s a cultural problem that I will explain after we get back from this quick break.

Break

The Daniel Penny Trial Reveals the Death of Personal Responsibility and Civic Duty in America

Welcome back to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. Before the break, I alluded to how the Daniel Penny saga is not just a legal issue. It’s a cultural issue too. It speaks to a broader shift in America where personal responsibility, civic duty, and the idea of being a Good Samaritan are no longer virtues to be admired but liabilities to be avoided.

It hits at the core of the American identity, and it is an intentional shift. Once upon a time in America, stepping in to help someone in danger was seen as an honorable act. Now, it’s a gamble. The erosion of these values has real consequences. We’re seeing a society where fewer people are willing to act because they fear retribution. They crazy part is that they don’t fear retribution from ordinary people, the fear retribution from the government.

It’s also a deliberate attack on the very essence of the American identity. This shift didn’t happen by accident. It’s part of an intentional agenda by the far-left to dismantle the values that have made this nation great: self-reliance, personal responsibility, and a commitment to our families, friends, neighbors, and communities.

Let’s be clear: the far-left wants to replace these American virtues with a culture of dependence on the government. They aim to convince people that the government, not We the People, is the only entity capable of providing safety, security, and fairness. When citizens are discouraged from stepping up in moments of crisis, as Daniel Penny was, the message becomes clear: don’t act; let the state handle it. This dependency isn’t just encouraged. It’s mandated through fear of legal repercussions and public shaming.

It’s the result of decades of narratives that discourage accountability. When bad behavior is excused, whether by blaming systemic racism, mental health struggles, or societal failures, it sends the message that personal actions have no consequences.

Ironically, these are the same voices that claim government is inherently flawed and systemically oppressive. They argue that our policies are rooted in racism and inequality, and they have created the very societal problems we face today. Yet, their solution is to empower that same government apparatus that they claim is racist and oppressive. It’s a paradox that reveals the idiocy of their argument.

If the state is as oppressive as they claim, why would we give it even more control over our lives?

Their agenda is misguided and dangerous. It undermines the concept of self-reliance, replacing it with a victimhood mentality that excuses bad and irresponsible behavior.

Jordan Neely’s tragic story is a case in point. While his struggles with mental illness deserve attention, they don’t absolve him of the responsibility to coexist peacefully with others. As I said before, millions of Americans suffer from mental health issues, and the overwhelming majority of them will never harass, intimidate, or engage in an act of violence in their lives.

Instead of holding him accountable, the blame is shifted and they attempt to absolve individuals of responsibility for their actions. The leftist narrative has turned Neely into a victim and painted Penny as the aggressor.

Moreover, the decline of civic duty has fostered apathy. How often do we see stories of people walking by a victim in need, heads down, unwilling to intervene? The Daniel Penny case only reinforces this trend. If stepping in might result in criminal charges or public vilification, why bother?

This cultural decline goes deeper, touching on the loss of shared values. Civic responsibility is at the heart of a functioning society. It’s what compels us to vote, to stand up for what’s right, and to protect those in need. Without it, we become a nation of bystanders, content to let whatever happen as long as it doesn’t touch us personally.

This attack on personal responsibility extends far beyond the subway that day. It strikes at the core of what makes America unique. From the very beginning, this nation was built on the idea that individuals are capable of governing themselves, that communities can come together to solve problems, and that personal accountability is the foundation of a functioning society.

The far-left’s push for dependency is a direct assault on these principles. They want a nation where people no longer look to their own skills, their neighbors, or their communities in times of crisis. Instead, they want us to instinctively turn to the government, a government that seeks more control. In the end, this is about power, plain and simple. A population that depends on the state is easier to manipulate and control.

Ironically, the far left’s policies exacerbate the very problems they claim to solve. By excusing bad behavior as a consequence of systemic oppression, they foster a culture of irresponsibility. By discouraging individuals like Daniel Penny from intervening in dangerous situations, they make communities less safe where those on the lower socio-economic scale will suffer the most and bear the brunt of these cruel policies.

By dismantling the idea of civic duty, they erode the social fabric that holds our nation together.

If we continue down this path, we will lose what makes America exceptional. The solution is to reclaim our identity as a nation of individuals who value self-reliance and personal accountability. It’s about understanding that real security and fairness don’t come from bureaucracies or government programs. They come from us. They come from communities where people look out for one another, take responsibility for their actions, and fulfill their civic duties.

The Daniel Penny saga should serve as a wake-up call. Will we continue to allow the far-left to redefine America as a nation of dependence, or will we stand firm in our belief in personal responsibility and civic duty? The answer to that question will determine the future of our republic.

We need to remember that stepping up to protect others is a moral obligation and a cornerstone of a civilized society. And we have to push back against the toxic narratives that discourage action.

We have to stand up for the principles that make America strong. The choice is ours.

Thanks for tuning in. Please share this episode with family and friends, and don’t forget to subscribe and follow the Podcast so you never miss an episode.

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Click here to read Professor Giordano’s latest piece at Campus Reform

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