Undemocratic and oppressive nature of mideast governments for millennia? Seriously? :)
I'm sensing a prejudicial subtext from your comment and other comments you made, that you think the governments and the people they represent, are incapable of producing prosperous and just societies.
Millennia? You do realize democracy is a less-than-four-hundreds year old concept? At least in its modern sense, which I would like to think is the one you are referring to when speaking about women rights (i.e. "democracy" that abhors slavery/serfdom... those slave athenian woman definitely had no rights).
You do realize democracy is a less-than-four-hundreds year old concept?
--Wait, WAT? In general, you confuse citizenship with democracy; and more particularly, you confuse a republic, with a democracy (the USA is the former, not the latter). Democracy is an ancient concept. Equally as old and well known are its many "problems", of which the ancients were well versed. The notion of a republic is an (historically) more sophisticated take on a democracy, and is well over two millenia old (Rome, etc).
Um most other places were pretty oppressive too as far back as recorded history goes. Democracy and human rights for all citizens are pretty recent developments.
