pressures for marginal jobs domestically, pressures to emigrate, high unemployment among the young, and frequently large-scale social marginalization. Finally, a high growth ratio produces large numbers of children in families, and this may spread thin the family’s financial and emotional resources. Some research (Sulloway, 1996; Skinner, 1992) suggests that later-born children in families are more rebellious. This research suggests the possibility that in a population in which many families have many children, the level of rebelliousness in the society may be higher than elsewhere.

The demographic sources of disadvantage combine with the economic realities that many of the Muslim nations are among the poor nations of the world, and that the distribution of wealth in them is among the most regressive (United Nations Development Programme, 2002). The origins of economic inequality lie both in the hierarchical traditions of these countries and in the fact that the fruits of mainly Western-induced economic development in them have not been distributed equitably. Both the demographic and the economic realities feed into high levels of social and political dissatisfaction in these nations, and when this dissatisfaction is given meaning in the context of anti-Western and radical Muslim ideologies, a fertile breeding ground for terrorist recruits is at hand (Guenena, 1986; Ibrahim, 1980, 2002; Dekmejian, 1995).

The demographic and economic disadvantages of these regions do not lend themselves to short-term cures, much less arenas for short-term deterrence of radical sentiments and terrorist activities. They are among the longer-term conditions. The longer-term picture is, however, that if these disadvantages persist in the political and religious contexts of this region, there is reason to believe that the social malaise, alienation, and disaffection of significant parts of the populations will also persist. Appreciating these realities does not provide neat formulas for what the long-term economic, political, and foreign policies of the United States and the West should be. They surely dictate, however, that those realities have to be taken into account if policies are to be enlightened.