How Islamic law held back the Middle East

It's interesting that the author of the reviewed book believes corporations to be a significant differentiator of the Western economies and their success. Recently the limited liability enjoyed by companies, their executives and directors has been somewhat reduced by the courts. Executives and directors have been held personally liable for some of the more egregious acts of corporate mismanagement in the past ten years.

I guess this just shows that capitalism is not a panacea but a balancing act -- one where the rights of the corporation have to be balanced against those of wider society. The Middle East needs to strike its own balance here too, but one that is far more on the side of freedom than it is now.