PSC 1001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Resource Curse, Theocracy, Protestantism
Ideas as Structure: Political Culture and Ideology
I. Zakaria: The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad
A. Illiberal democracies: regimes that are democratically elected, but enact illiberal
policies
1. Eg. Poland (undermining the independence of the courts, problems with
the EU)
B. Arab world: trapped between autocratic states and illibral societies
1. 25% of middle eastern countries are partly free (vs. 75% for the world and
60% for Africa)
2. Culture → the culture is not supportive of democracy and western values
a) Islam?
3. Quranic model of leadership “authoritarian?”
a) The Bible is as such
b) Both are monotheistic (same God)
c) Islam has a tolerance for the religions of the book (Christianity and
Judaism)
4. No separation of the Church and State?
a) Neither in catholicism; theocracy a Jewish term
b) The United Kingdom doesn’t have separation of Church and State
→ the Queen is the head of the Church
5. Strong anti-authoritarian streak
a) Struggling to get people to listen to authority
b) “If he is ordered to do a sinful act, a Muslim should neither listen
to his leader nor should he obey his orders” (P.124)
c) More like protestantism, no official clergy
d) Hence the success of bin Laden
6. Culture is shaped by Islam in an anti-democratic way
a) See this in the most populous Muslim states
b) Bangladesh, Turkey, Indonesia, Pakistan, India, etc →
democracies that are established → all previously under European
control
C. The role of women
1. 40% of doctors (Afghanistan before the Taliban took over)
2. India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Turkey have elected women, had female
prime ministers
D. Conclusion: Islam is not the problem
E. Why only in the past decades?
1. “It is commonly noted that a million Jews left or were expelled from Arab
countries after the creation of Israel in 1948. No one asks why so many
were living in Arab countries in the first place”
2. Does not believe there is an Arab mind
F. Until the 1950s, there was great hope for the region → greater education of
women, social attitudes, etc
1. Failure of politics and economics that ended the great hope
Document Summary
Ideas as structure: political culture and ideology: zakaria: the future of freedom: illiberal democracy at home and abroad, illiberal democracies: regimes that are democratically elected, but enact illiberal policies, eg. Poland (undermining the independence of the courts, problems with the eu: arab world: trapped between autocratic states and illibral societies, 25% of middle eastern countries are partly free (vs. 75% for the world and. Judaism: no separation of the church and state, neither in catholicism; theocracy a jewish term, the united kingdom doesn"t have separation of church and state. Are all western imports: not working out as they should or where they"re supposed to, resource curse: not poverty, but wealth is the problem. Modernization and the west: pointing out singapore, hong kong, and seoul"s economic achievements a. German calls them copies of houston and dallas and are slums of the west : the result of the political and economic failure is radicalization and islamic.
