The Political Economy of Arab Cultural Underdevelopment

Lawrence E. Harrison pins the blame forArab-Islamic underdevelopment ona set of cultural dysfunctions. Among those that interest me are “submissivecollectivism rather than individualism” and the hostility to ‘innovation,’‘change,’ and ‘dissent’; “isolationism” not just toward non-Muslims but eveninternally, placing an “emphasis on family, clan and ethnic cohesion ratherthan broader relationships”; and “clerical interpretations ... that have ... transmittedfatalistic dogma, ... permitted adoption of scientific and technologicaladvances from outside but closed the door to the liberalizing cultural forcesthat made these advances possible.”1Well, the Saudis do “believe that oil was a gift from Allah ... It was areward for their devout belief ... Ever thankful, they see no reason to deny theteachings of theKoran.”As for importing western know-howwithout the valuesthat come with it, the Saudis also believe that “God has given them oilwealth which is to be translated into money as a means by which they can modernize. But one should never interfere with the other”2 – as if one can buya television set without the manual that tells you how to use it ...