World

In Middle East, Democracy Is Doomed Because There’s No….Rain?

Why do stability and democracy fluorish in some places of the world, but not others? Here’s one provocative theory: rain.

In Middle East, Democracy Is Doomed Because Theres No....Rain?

The Hoover Institution‘s Stephen Haber and the University of Washington’s Victor Menaldo, explain that democratic societies need farms. Farms need rain. But in the Middle East, agriculture is virtually impossible because of the dry and arid climate. Experts in property rights, they make the point that nobody owns the rain. But in arid lands, a small elite owns the property rights to water–hence, autocratic societies flourish.

They write:

A glance at a precipitation map of the world quickly reveals why the countries of the Middle East and North Africa have social structures that are not conducive to democracy: they are among the driest places on earth. With the exception of a few very narrow strips along the Mediterranean, and the river valleys of the Tigris, Euphrates and the Nile, agriculture is virtually impossible. As a result, these societies did not evolve out of family farmers who accumulated surpluses that could fuel a long-run process of economic growth, investment in education, and democratization.

Instead, they were populated by tribal, nomadic peoples, such as the Bedouins of the Arabian Peninsula or the Berbers of North Africa, whose economic raison d’etre was to provide long-distance transport across the desert. Grain agriculture was only possible in a few places where a river, like the Nile, could be harnessed. The economies of scale and barriers to entry imposed by the need to obtain property rights to water gave rise, however, to a society composed of a wealthy elite and a vast, impoverished peasantry. No one owns the rain, but access to irrigation is a natural candidate for concentrated ownership.

Here’s Haber on Bloomberg TV explaining himself:

Read the rest of the article here.

So will democracy take root in the Middle East? Maybe after a rain dance or two.

Comments (76)

1 2
  • Meyvn
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 6:03pm

    Islam(e) is the problem.

    Report Post » Meyvn  
  • axel@25
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:47pm

    I have a plan to make sure they have plenty of water…
    send a dozen or so ICBM’s (Inter Continetal Beach Movers) to turn a few million acres of sand into glass lined lakes (Lake Tunisia, Lake Cairo, etc)…When the glaciers melt the extra water can be stored there.
    Two problems solved…and we already own the equipment…so it’ll be cheap too!)

    Report Post »  
  • axel@25
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:31pm

    Maybe it was a typo….
    they meant (B)rains, as in,… “the people don’t have enough brains in Northern Africa”

    Report Post »  
  • Whirling Dervish
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:28pm

    ….. And that’s how you tie political system to global warming.

    Vietnam doesn’t quite count because they are Buddhist, despite monsoon season I suppose.

    Report Post » Whirling Dervish  
  • Attilashrugs
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:23pm

    Part of the Faith required of Israel was leaving the land of Egypt with its annual flood, for a land dependent upon God’s rain dew and mists.

    Report Post » Attilashrugs  
  • edyoukated
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:19pm

    Maybe that explains why Isreal spends so much time destroying and then taking Palisinian farm land.

    Report Post »  
  • DemocracyisTyranny
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:19pm

    The Comment Gods like to delete my comments

    Report Post » DemocracyisTyranny  
  • dthomps6
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:18pm

    By that theory, Columbia, Nicaragua, Cuba, etc. should be bastions of Democracy because they have rainforests.

    Report Post » dthomps6  
  • axel@25
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:16pm

    Democractic principles are not understood or even liked by the progressive/communist/liberals that usually inhabit the US diplomatic Corps. or even by the political elite that are in charge of “nation Building”. Proof can be found when you ask a simple question…..

    …WHY… if the US gets involved in helping set up a new government..ie Iraq or Japan or Afghanistan, etc….do we ALWAYS set it up to follow anything but a Representative Republic? They get Prime Ministers, or 1 Pres AND a prime minister, and a constitution that has no resemblance to or own?

    Rain … maybe. However that may explain why it didn‘t develope on it’s own..spontainiously.
    What it doesn’t explain is why, even when it gets given to them, it still gets srewed up…THAT’S because we set up a “democratic TYPE” of government not a Representative Republic that we understand, and end up dealing with a nation we don‘t understand where Liberty and Justice for all isn’t even in the handbook.

    Report Post »  
  • TheGreyPiper
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:06pm

    Plausible, although liberty and free societies are pretty scarce in most temperate lands as well– take Africa (please) — the parts that aren’t desert are some of the most fertile and potentially abundant lands in the world, and have never been anything but brutal tribal regimes — except where the Evil White Man invaded and tried to impose Evil White Man’s Government. Likewise South America — despite a largely favorable climate, liberty and a free society has been scarcer there than it has in Spain itself.

    So yeah, climate and favorable conditions are sure a help, but there’s more to freedom than regular rain.

    Report Post » TheGreyPiper  
  • BetterDays
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:58pm

    Rain , rain go away….
    In Seattle it rains everyday, and all they can grow there is liberals, some crops should not be grown.

    Report Post »  
  • clockwatcher
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:35pm

    You can‘t or don’t want to be save these people. Let them and thier 34,65,78,103 virgians all make marters out of themselfs.

    Report Post » clockwatcher  
  • Drum Man
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:32pm

    It’s a dry rain….

    Report Post » Drum Man  
  • Islesfordian
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:29pm

    North Africa was known as the bread basket of the Roman Empire. Israel was the land of milk and honey. It isn’t the weather that makes democracy hard. It’s Islam.

    Report Post » Islesfordian  
    • thebarbarian
      Posted on April 7, 2011 at 9:13pm

      so true, and don’t forget we grow crops in our deserts.. oops not any more thanks to the libs turning off the water supply.

      Report Post »  
  • RPK
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:26pm

    In the western US, we made the desert usable for farmland….in the thousands of years that Arabs have inhabited their desert, they’ve created nothing but violence and hatred. If not for the fact that oil was discovered under their sand, they would still be living in the 14th century.

    Report Post »  
  • gago
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:24pm

    so Israel is the only place in the middle east where there is rain?

    Report Post »  
    • Blackhawk1
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:10pm

      No they are the only ones ambitious enough to use drip irrigation and grow crops in the Middle East. Muslims are to lazy to work the land. They have the slave women tend the sheep while they concoct a way to blow up the infidels.

      Report Post » Blackhawk1  
    • gago
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:38pm

      When Isreal left some of the settlements in palestine they left them some of the fields with their irrigation system so they could grow crops. One year later these fields can no longer be used for farming. Rain isn’t the problem, Islam is.How has Israel turned a dry and hostile land into an oasis in the middle of the desert? The sad fact is that the muslim countries around Israel have only themselves to blame. they didn’t educate their children, reciting the koran in it’s entirety and having no other knowledge only keeps you stuck in the middle ages

      Report Post »  
    • vennoye
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 6:38pm

      Mark Twain’s description of the Galilee in 1867:

      These unpeopled deserts, these rusty mounds of bareness that never, never, never, do shake the glare from their harsh outlines…; that melancholy ruin of Capernaum: this stupid village of Tiberias, slumbering under six funereal palms. … A desolation is here that not even imagination can grace with the pomp of life and action. … We reached [Mount] Tabor safely. … We never saw a human being on the whole route.

      There was no vegetation until the Jews came back to the land.

      Report Post » vennoye  
  • xoke
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:12pm

    You know…that actually makes a lot of sence. The basis of capitolism, the basis for a good democratic republic is the ownership of private property. If the property sucks…ie rocks and sand, there isn’t a lot of motivation to own it.

    Or they are just a bunch of barbarians, lol

    Report Post » xoke  
  • Socco
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:01pm

    Democracy is two wolves and a sheep, voting on what to have for supper. This is a republic.

    Report Post » Socco  
  • carrietony
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:59pm

    READ THE BIBLE God banished Ismel to the dessert, then came the muslims!!!

    Report Post »  
  • commonsenseguy
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:58pm

    hey, i have a great idea, why don’t dig a lot of lakes in those areas , i know it don’t rain much , but we could take all the toilet water that is spewing from all these left wing nut jobs and we could fill every lake we dig with it, then there will never be a water problem as long as they are around { just a thought }

    Report Post »  
  • Gonzo
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:57pm

    It rains like hell in Cuba.

    Report Post » Gonzo  
    • commonsenseguy
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:05pm

      @gonzo, whats up, yep it does rain like heck in cuba, their government controls the water to, sounds like what they are trying to do in texas with these so called water conservation districts, i was going to dig a pond on my place as was told i had to get a permit the permit was denied on the basis it would cut of the natural flow of the water, what the heck does that mean any ways, it is just a pond a big freaking hole, anyways i did it any ways and they are trying to fine me for it, or they said i had to fill it back in. what a bunch of crap. anyways have a great day.

      Report Post »  
    • Gonzo
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:32pm

      I’m MAD as heck today Commonsenseguy, all of Soros‘ robotic minions threatened Beck’s advertisers to the point that FNC wasn’t making the money they wanted off the 5:00 time slot. So, Texas controls your water and George Soros controls what you watch. It’s a great effing country aint it?
      Hope you’re doing well.

      Report Post » Gonzo  
    • Anonymous T. Irrelevant
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:18pm

      @Commonsenseguy
      When you dig a pond, it has a run-off that drains back into the creek/river that feeds it. A pond is nothing more than a reservoir for holding some of the water from the creek/river. Without some kind of refresh or water feeding a pond, it will eventually dry out.
      Why they would deny you makes no sense to me.

      Report Post » Anonymous T. Irrelevant  
  • vennoye
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:51pm

    Duh! Who gives us rain? And why do they not have any?

    Report Post » vennoye  
  • BIGJAYINPA
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:49pm

    Makes good sense to me. Control the food, control the people. And the best way to control the people is to restrict their access to the means to better themselves. Throw in a religion that denys the individual any hope of salvation and only provides a means to further control the people and you have the Caliphate. It is not a coincedence that the Ottomans/Moorish Empire controlled large areas of arid space and came to grief when they expanded out from there.

    Report Post » BIGJAYINPA  
    • smithclar3nc3
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:55pm

      They‘re infiltrating country’s around the world as I type though they’re not the OTTOMAN or moorish empire they still are Muslims

      Report Post »  
  • Untameable-kate
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:47pm

    Does this mean that all we really needed to do is dig a couple of canals and ditches?? Brilliant, let’s do that!!

    Report Post » Untameable-kate  
  • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
    Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:45pm

    Let them have their democracy, I will take the Republic of the United States anyday!!!

    Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • Revere1
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:50pm

      I guess all we need is climate change then, not regime change: http://www.battlefield315.com/2011/02/global-warming-panic-explained.html Democrats love their kooky weather-related theories.

      Report Post » Revere1  
    • commonsenseguy
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:54pm

      @snowleopard, you hit the ball out of the park, i will keep my republic also. viewed your painting yesterday, and they are great, just wish i had that kind of talent, o i do, i am very good at aggravating my lovely wife just enough that she will let me go fishing, { don’t say nothing, but i think she is on to my litter trick } anyways great work and have a great day.

      Report Post »  
    • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:09pm

      @commonsenseguy:

      Fishing is a true art, you have to figure out what the fish will go for, pray you are right, and then figure how to persuade the dumb thing to take the bait and then get it into the boat while it fights like a bee stung grizzly bear on a bad day…in otherwords, fun and art all in one.

      Just keep away from the sharks unlike that guy yesterday did.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • CatB
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:09pm

      @SNOW …

      Right on!

      Report Post »  
    • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:11pm

      @Commonsenseguy:

      Thanks also for checking my art out; I love to share it with people.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • AnAppealToGod
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:13pm

      How much money did they spend on this study? Our little 3lb fallen brains are compelled to try and act like we can explain everything. Stupidity can “reign” anywhere.

      Report Post » AnAppealToGod  
    • cheezwhiz
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:24pm

      democratic societies need farms. Farms need rain. But in the Middle East, agriculture is virtually impossible because of the dry and arid climate.
      —————-
      Then explain Isreal you dum-bass.
      Explain their advances in dryland farming, drip irrigation and tissue-culture propagation .
      Explain why Israel can grow fruits and vegetables on a land similar to their neighbor’s land , the neighbor’s who just chuck rocks or blow themselves up while begging for aid.
      Oh and visit Yuma’s farms before babbling about dry and arid climate

      Report Post » cheezwhiz  
    • Gold Coin & Economic News
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:28pm

      So, I guess the Arizona desert is an Arab Theocracy?

      Report Post » Gold Coin & Economic News  
    • cheezwhiz
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:29pm

      But in arid lands, a small elite owns the property rights to water–hence, autocratic societies flourish.
      ————
      Does this brainfart explain the CA Central Valley ?
      I think this moron has it totally upside down.
      The fact is
      when autocrats and a small elite own the water, fertile productive lands become arid

      Report Post » cheezwhiz  
    • thepatriotdave
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:32pm

      Wow, I really screwed up that last post. One more try…

      I say we sell them water, or we trace them water for oil, but the one thing we NEVER EVER allow is for them to drill for water anywhere that is considered American land. Or, we can just wait for Global Warming to turn the deserts into rain forests.

      What is it?
      http://www.AmericasTeaPartyNews.com

      Report Post » thepatriotdave  
    • docgreen
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:51pm

      I wonder when they’ll put two and two together and realize, there mostly muslim countries that have No rain!? Read what the Bible says about the Jews and Israel! The land will Blossom, when the Jews return to Israel! Know look at most the desolate countries in the Middle East! No Jews and No water!….. The same thing happened in Iraq! Hmmmmm, maybe it has something to do with Islam/muslims not loving the Jews and Christians!…

      Report Post »  
    • Anonymous T. Irrelevant
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:59pm

      I’m not sure if it REALLY has to do with the climate as much as it does initiative and motivation.
      With all that praying and bowing to the East every hour, it is hard to get anything else done.
      Didn’t seem to bother our ancestors out west in THEIR dry arid land conditions. They found a way. Of course, they had freedom.
      Sounds like a roundabout way of saying what snowleopard had to say.

      Report Post » Anonymous T. Irrelevant  
    • Marylou7
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 4:59pm

      I want to check out your art. Link please.

      Report Post » Marylou7  
    • Michael61
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:41pm

      Many mistakenly believe that ALL human societies, if left to themselves, will evolve into Jeffersonian democracies. They deduce it from evolution in animal kingdom.

      Not true.

      To quote: The results of evolution are sharks, rats, and parasites as well as humans. Animal species adapt to different ecological niches, and human societies are not different.

      Somalis adapted to their ecological niche (sea pirates, attack ships and demand ransom). Berbers and Arabs adapted to their ecological niche (land pirates, attack merchants caravans and demand ransom).

      What Jeffersonian democracy are you talking about?

      Report Post »  
    • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 5:57pm

      @Marylou7:

      Just click on the link attached to my screen name – place the cursor over any part of it and click, it will take you directly to my gallery.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • THEONEMACMAN
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 7:19pm

      NO snowleopard ,
      we need LIBERTY !
      not Democracy !

      Report Post » THEONEMACMAN  
    • restorehope
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 7:31pm

      Instead of weather, a lot of it has to do with repressive cultures and religions that keep people from improving their lot. Generations of doing as you are told and not thinking for yourself will produce the way of life that is prevalent in the Mideast.

      Report Post »  
    • thepatriotdave
      Posted on April 7, 2011 at 1:46am

      Wait, so all this hatred and killing is all about water?

      Seems to me that they have had thousands of years to work this problem out. Follow me for a second… Obama wants NASA to make it a priority to recruit Muslims from around the world to work for them. If the smartest minds of the Muslim world have yet to figure out how to fix their water problem, then what makes Obama think they are smart enough to work for NASA?

      What is it? (photo)
      http://www.americasteapartynews.com/freedomjamboree.php

      Report Post » thepatriotdave  
    • whiffledust
      Posted on April 7, 2011 at 2:55pm

      [quote]Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
      Posted on April 6, 2011 at 3:45pm
      Let them have their democracy, I will take the Republic of the United States anyday!!![/quote]

      Ditto cat – let’em choke on DEMOCRACY.

      Report Post »  
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