Is the eminence grise of Islamic studies losing his touch?
Bernard Lewis is clearly losing his acuity, and clarity of thought, as evidenced in his Wall Street Journal op-ed article. It's almost as though he wrote that article to please the editors of the Journal's editorial page, whose views concerning the Islamic world are sometimes at variance with reality on the ground.
I am saddened by Professor Lewis's decline. His best work is well behind him. Unlike, say, George Kennan who kept writing vigorous, well argued prose almost until his death in 2005 at the age of 101, Mr. Lewis seems to be giving the impression of being all over the place. Could this be the result of lessened personal research and reporting from the Islamic world that he used to understand so well a long time ago?