This pattern of rule is not peculiar to the Middle East. Throughout the Islamic world, this is the pattern.

Submitted by Ramana Rajgopaul (India), Jan 24, 2008 at 02:29

I intend buying this book at the earliest to get a more detailed understanding, though your synopsis is clear enough in its scope. Your comment would suggest that this is peculiar to the Middle East. Perhaps the book is restricted in its study to that area. From my personal experience living in India with connections in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, besides the wide coverage of news of countries like Malaysia and Indonesia in India, it is obvious that this pattern of behaviour is universal in the Islamic world. It is precisely this value system that keeps the vast majority of Muslims in such abject poverty and ignorance.

"Individualism will make headway among Middle Easterners, however, only when "what they are for is more important than whom they are against."" This attitude is prevalent in all the places that I have mentioned above.The problem with Islam as it is practiced is that individualism is discouraged as being unislamic by the vested interests. I doubt that in our life time we can see any change coming about in this mind set and that is the tragedy of Islam, otherwise a beautiful religion.

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