Investors in mud
As Arabs and Muslims, we have been overdoing feeling sorry for our situations and comparing our deterioration with other nations that were once in our shoes, but managed to develop and become major financial and industrial powers. Our thinkers and intellectuals are still divided about the reasons that led to our deterioration and remaining at the tail of the world, while other nations became leading ones.
Some of them justify such deterioration by holding tight to Islam and forget that advanced countries managed to develop without even embracing Islam. Others say that the reason is totalitarian regimes that have dedicated the entire state to serve the ruler, which I think is partially true. Nonetheless, let us not forget the Soviet Union that was once ruled by a totalitarian regime, while at the same time was a major power everybody feared.
Thinkers have been discussing dozens of reasons for Arabs’ shameful deterioration. However, I am not here to give the best answer to that question, but everybody is still free to try reaching a certain goal even if they eventually fail to do so. I tend to support the idea of justifying such retreat on restrictions on scientific research for religious reasons and claims that approaching certain researches is a religious taboo and a violation of our religion, which subjects wrongdoers to very strict punishment.
This is what both politicians and religious people believe to be true based on our retardation. They even invest well in such situations, making endless fortunes and gains that would vanish if the situation changes. The best proof of this is that the richest categories of Arabs are people belonging to these two groups - politicians and people of religion, who have twisted religious regulations to their own interests and justify their unreligious practices.
They lie in the name of religion, get bribes in the name of religion, kill in the name of religion, fight in the name of religion and reach truces in the name of religion, mainly relying on the spread of ignorance amongst the majority of Arab peoples who are fully controlled by politicians and clergymen. I know I did not suggest any solutions, but I have at least highlighted the facts. —Translated by Kuwait Times