re: Saud Onaizi

Submitted by true believer (India), Apr 26, 2006 at 02:10

It is not the responsibility of US education system to produce moslem or arab scientists and engineers. The Jewish , Indian and Japanese communities both in US and in their own countries have produced outstanding scientists and engineers because these communities value educating their children over other things. Some even sell or mortgage their properties to finance the education of their children.And their children thirst for knowlege and higher education. Also the Israeli, Indian and Japanese, governments have really done a lot to build infrastructure and improve the quality of higher education back at home. Why don't your oil rich islamic republics open universities and schools and fund education in their own countries ? Instead they are busy funding madrassas for giving religious instruction. And for your kind information, the US does not control the gulf economy as you may like others to believe. It just buys gulf oil like every body else. Gulf economies and the bulk of revenues is controlled by the selfish and myopic sheikhdom (the Sauds of KSA are a perfect example while Jordan may be an exception) who don't give a damn about their people. I will tell you why you arabs are behind in education. Oil has made you dirt rich, but you continue to be lazy as ever, and your societies that take more pride in destroying than creating anything don't value education . Your petrodollars may buy the best teachers, books ( even university seats in west ) but it can't buy education, it has to be learned. Period.

Why are all the good schools in Saudi Arabia are started and managed and run by outsiders (almost entirely non muslims) ? Most of the good teachers there are non arab. You may not be aware of the fact that that the best university in the Arab world that is capable of some serious scientific research is the American University of Beirut, founded way back in 1888 by non sectarian (aka non moslem) private enterprise. If you want to produce scientists and engineers you have to do more than running universities that offer Arabic or islamic studies. Just taking pride in the fact that Baghdad was the centre of learning eleven centuries back, or because the arabs invented the modern numeral system and algebra is not good enough. And don't expect the western world to educate you. Firstly they have no moral compulsions whatsoever to do so. Secondly the American academic won't waste his/her valuable time learning Arabic to rewrite books on science, technology or business administration for your benefit. Thirdly nobody can educate you against your will.

-Francis

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".