Global Losers

The world's problems have grown with its population; from tribal societies to cities of people with little-to-no daily interaction with each other. And since every individual person has their own personal strife it is no surprise for an entire nation of people and their problems to flood whatever region they occupy. Couple a population's intimate conflicts with the nation's geography (climate, resources, size, etc.) and it is easy to see how certain regions of the world are destitute and engulfed in turmoil. David S. Landes essay, Losers, is an article, profuse with evidence, looking at the 20^th century's most significant Global flops.

Landes works his way down from "prosperous" struggling countries to the bottom rungs of the World ladder, which are in such poor condition that it is a shock that the population continues to grow. Nevertheless, the Middle East is among the most prosperous of tumultuous regions. With a plentiful supply of crude oil that still has roughly 130 years of extraction and exploding areas of commerce such as Dubai, the economic potential for the Middle East is immense. However, due to the region's political ideals and cultural and religious mentality, the Middle East has been economically crippled. While the oil industry has accrued nearly 2 trillion dollars since 1973, the region has not been able to expand and benefit from the Global economy. The primary reason for such impedance is due to aggressive military behavior and religious fundamentalism. Violence, political instability and firm allegiance to religious doctrine is precisely why the Middle East cannot capitalize on their resources and vast geography.