What can I say, except:

:up: Man, did I keep alot of you busy, huh ?! :rotfl:

lol it beats working... :oops: :lol: speaking of which, I think I'll try and go do some.

LOL :)

I would say Sociology in general, and particularlyy the courses I chose when I majored in it, is geared around the evolution of (from the 19th century onward) and today's modern Western culture. Anthropology is geared more toward ancient and/or undisturbed (not many of those left today) cultures. Unless one takes courses, or does focused research, that are aimed specifically at the ME (which I didn't at the time, being more interested in other things) then it becomes a gap as its neither an undisturbed ancient culture nor a contemporary Western one.

Never having looked at it through the social science lens academically, I find it difficult to try and do so now. Western culture I can examine much more critically but I think our culture is as alien to them as theirs is to us.

I think what makes the Arab world so difficult to understand,m in general, and to deal with, is that its not a single nation state (nor even a couple) but a group of geographically and (somewhat) politically diverse nations. And then there are the various Arab populations that have emigrated to the West and become integrated, to one extent or another, within our society but still somewhat separate from it.

As to the other minorities that make up our society I think they've generally become integrated enough into our modern culture that they're no longer considered "the other". Arabs to us we see more as stereotypes fitting within either the "Abu the cabdriver/711 clerk" category or "Abu the Islamo-fascist extremist". And even those minorities we still marginalize (like Native Americans in the US and Canada or Mexicans in the US), they are already conquered peoples which we don't feel threatened by or generally take much notice of.

Native Americans we've successfully forced onto reservations and "solved" that problem (they are out of sight, out of mind). With (many) Mexicans in the US, they're a pool of extreme low wage labour doing the jobs that most Americans don't want to do (at least not for the same wage) for wages business can profitably exploit.

With Arabs our typically prejudicial and parasitic approach hasn't worked out so well: we've, more or less, secured their resources but we haven't been successful in "taming" them in the process.

I am cool with all that, Scandium. Thanks for the addition.

But perhaps one should not be too insecure about the differences between islamic nations. Europe is a collection of different nations and cultures as well and we are capable to speak of 'the West'.

Hence the "Middle-East" is what can not be labelled 'the West'.

Next thing to do is 'simply' list the most relevant differences and there you have it:

"The Gap"
:know:

[last post for tonight)