Samir Amin, who experienced pivotal and crucial moments in the Arab world's history, was a student in Paris when the Arab setback occurred during the 1948 Nakba and the occupation of Palestine. He also witnessed the defeat of 1967 and its grave implications for the fate of the Arab world and the beginning of the collapse of the Arab political and unity project.

Later, he witnessed the September 11 attacks and their repercussions, which imposed a heavy "tax" on the Arabs. The fall of Baghdad was one of its direct results, marking a "dead" future for the Arabs after the events of New York.