This refers to Jamal Mecklai's column "A more Islamic world" (Market Maniac, November 15). It is not a necessary outcome that lower oil prices will deepen and strengthen Western-style liberal democratic strands in West Asian countries. Although the ability of oil-rich states to support the Wahhabi fundamentalists might fall, it will also sharply reduce the state's capability to give lots of freebies to the middle and lower classes. West Asia can easily produce 25 million barrels of oil a day that can yield a cash flow of $800 million a day. Global terrorism funding of a significant scale is still manageable. In any case, the Saudi support to the extreme factions has been declining. Drugs and Islamic diaspora's donations have supplemented petro-dollars. It is possible that a reduction in state welfare and subsidy programmes will trigger a bigger percentage of youth to move away from democratic reforms.
P Datta, Kolkata
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