To quote P.J. O'Rourke... (sp?)" When was the last time Egypt won a war since the invention of gunpowder"
The same is true for most of the middle east nations. They seem to be caught in a 10th Century time-warp. There was an article published this week by an Arab who essentially claimed that there was in fact a terrible lack of progress in Arab countries, and that the cause was to be found with Arab attitudes and polcies. It was quite refreshing to read.