Juan Cole talked about his book, Napoleon’s Egypt: Invading the Middle East, published by Palgrave Macmillan. In his book he recounts Napoleon’s attempt to acquire Egypt as a French colony in 1789. The author reports that the initial incursion was successful, however, over time the Egyptians formed a resistance that depleted French control. He discussed the relevance and lessons of Napoleon’s expedition in Egypt to the current American occupation of Iraq. Steve Clemons offered comments and moderated the discussion. After his presentation he responded to audience members' questions.