This episode of The Dig is sponsored by the listeners who support us on Patreon and by University of California Press.

One title that I think listeners might find interesting is

A Half Century of Occupation, Israel, Palestine, and the world's most intractable conflict by Gershon Schaeffir.

Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem turned a half-century old this month.

Shafir's essay collection asked three questions.

What is the occupation?

Why has it lasted so long?

And how has it transformed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

He explains how the occupation became what it has become and where it is likely headed,

pointing to the paradoxes, legal inconsistencies,

and conflicting interests that have weakened the occupiers hold,

and leave the occupation vulnerable to challenge.

A half-century of occupation,

Israel, Palestine, and the world's most intractable conflict,

by Gersh and Shafir, out now from University of California Press.

Welcome to The Dig, a podcast from Jacobin Magazine. My name is Daniel Denver, and I'm broadcasting from Providence, Rhode Island.

Ironically, Donald Trump won the presidency, in significant part by pledging to do something

that his predecessors had already done a great deal towards accomplishing.

Building a big, beautiful wall on the border with Mexico.

For liberals and centrists, the wall now shares a toxic association with the Trump brand.

It is now correctly perceived by many to be far-right white nationalist xenophobia at its worst.

But until recently, militarizing the border with Mexico

...