The Unified World Order: The Exposition of Open World Peace Paradigms Bakare Adewale Muteeu Abstract In pursuit of a capitalist world configuration, the causal phenome- non of globalization spread its cultural values in the built interna- tional system, as evidenced by the dichotomy between the rich North and the poor South. This era of cultural globalization is pre- dominantly characterized by social inequality, economic inequality and instability, political instability, social injustice, and environmen- tal change. Consequently, the world is empirically infected by di- vergent global inequalities among nations and people, as evidenced by the numerous problems plaguing humanity. This article seeks to understand Islam from the viewpoint of technological determinism in attempt to offset these diverging global inequalities for its “socio- political economy”1 existence, as well as the stabilization of the in- terconnected world. Based upon the unifying view of micro- Islamics, the meaning of Islam and its globalizing perspectives are deciphered on a built micro-religious platform. Finally, the world is rebuilt via the Open World Peace (OWP) paradigm, from which the fluidity of open globalization is derived as a future causal phe- nomenon for seamlessly bridging (or contracting) the gaps between the rich-rich, rich-poor, poor-rich and poor-poor nations and people based on common civilization fronts. Keywords: Micro-Islamics, open globalization, open civilization logic, open peace platform, global union, micro-religious plat- form, open world peace, world star pentagon Bakare Adewale Muteeu has a B.Eng. (electrical/computer engineering) and a MA (interna- tional affairs and diplomacy). He is a Microsoft certified technology specialist; member, In- stitution of Engineering and Technology London, Nigerian Society of Engineers, and COREN; and assistant manager, Zenith Bank Plc. Information Technology Department, Kano, Nigeria. He can be contacted at waleshk@yahoo.com. ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 75 Introduction Order “is a condition in which everything is in its [right] place.”2 In world af- fairs, order determines how states conduct their affairs with each other. Mean- while, globalization is empirically a causal phenomenon for spreading world order in the contemporary international system. In view of the essentiality of world order in global governance, after World War II the United States and fifty other nations established the United Nations and its agencies for this very purpose. Since the end of the Cold War and the Soviet Union’s disintegration, western influence has penetrated the former Soviet-bloc countries that have joined the European Union (EU), and has become even more entrenched worldwide.3 The 9/11 attack, which arose out of al-Qaeda’s violent reaction to the flu- idity of western cultural globalization theory, destroyed a leading capitalist symbol and thus threatened the international system’s stability. President George Bush’s subsequent invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as his proclaimed “war on terror,” have led to their collapse and in- creased regional as well as global instability. In both scenarios, I am particu- larly shocked and saddened by the trauma these two catastrophic events have caused humanity in the early part of this millennium – imagine the huge loss of innocent human lives and the extent of the collateral damage incurred! As this “war” cooled down, Wall Streets’ 2008 financial meltdown trig- gered a devastating wave of capitalism’s global financial crisis that gradually spread across the country and then the world. This led to demand destruction, massive unemployment, and price deflation. As Sheldon Filger wrote: The root cause of the economic and financial crisis was the United States mortgage market selling sub-prime mortgages to large numbers of consumers with inadequate incomes. These mortgages were [packaged] into securitized paper investments, and sold by Wall Street to major financial institutions across the globe. These securitized assets were later transformed into toxic acid when the mortgages became non-performing and thereby, infecting the entire worldwide financial system.4 According to “World Bank report about 60 to 90 million people could be pushed into extreme poverty, as a result of the crisis in addition to estimated to 160 to 200 million people who fell into poverty from rising food price in 2005 and 2008.”5 Many other regions were in crisis at this time: sovereign debt crises in the Euro Zone; Occupy Wall Street and the continued inability to address long- standing socioeconomic problems in the United States; wars, human rights 76 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 76 abuses, drug-related violence, natural disasters, and poverty in Asia and Africa; and the Arab Spring and the nuclear issue in the Middle East. One result of this chaos was the ongoing depiction of Islam and Muslims as threats to world peace, stability, and freedom, as if the truth of Samuel Huntington’s (d. 2008) “clash of civilizations” theory was unfolding right before our eyes. On the contrary, Sayyid Qutb (executed 1966) referred to Islam as a religion [or civilization] of unity in this great universe, a unity which com- prises all elements, from a single particle to the most advanced species of sophisticated life. It is the unity of all existence; inanimate and animate (plant, animal and human). All activities in the cosmos are included and in- tegrated in this unity; whether they concern the rotation of the planets or the workings of human minds.6 In this article, I will attempt to expose the convergence of Islamic thought alongside developments in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to unveil the world star-pentagon framework from Marshall McLuhan’s (d. 1980) approach to technological determinism in order to derive the OWP. On the one hand, the outcomes of these findings shall [theoretically] lead to the development of an Open World Society (OWS), where all human beings shall have equal right to life and shall be granted unreserved rights [or “free- dom of movement”7] to reside in any country of their choice irrespective of their religion, color and tribe but on the basis of preferred civilization. Such beings will have to have regard, respect and recognize identity and values in- herent in any of the Union states where they may reside without undermining their host civilizations. On the other hand, it is feasible to determine the concept of an OWS – where the integral components of values (both lower and upper limits) of all religions and those without religions are considered on the foundation of open freedom, which in turn are parametric (or a well thought out) inputs to the formation of interdependent super states for global integration, cooperation, and stability in the form of a global union. This intellectual attempt is similar to the one made by al-Ghazali (d. 1111) in his The Revival of the Religious Sciences, where he presented “his unified view of religion incorporating elements from all three sources formerly con- sidered contradictory: tradition, intellectualism, and mysticism. [Historically], the work has been considered the greatest religious book written by a Muslim, second only to the Qur’an.”8 In this article, however, the search for a unifying approach to world peace would not have been necessary if the limit of religion were actually a wholly Adewale: The Unified World Order 77 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 77 personal affair, as the Qur’an also refers to the religion of Islam as a civilization with the twin components of identity and values for advancing global social development. Therefore, Islam is analytically global from the fallout of Hunt- ington’s conceptual definition of civilization, for it contains all of those insep- arable components necessary for the survival any civilization – language, traditions, religion [or irreligion], and history – despite its current portrayal of being in conflict with the universal concept of world religions. Finally, as Albert Einstein (d. 1955) stated, “the problems that exist in the world today cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.”9 The solutions proposed below will be framed by the OWP paradigm, in which Islamic thought will be juxtaposed with ICT concepts, while global solutions will be translated from their interfaces, in which lies the OWP configuration. The resulting abstract solutions will attempt to answer the oft-asked questions about terrorism, world peace, and humanity’s future from the Qur’an. Objectives, Significance, Scope, Limitation, Methodology, and Data Analysis This study has the following objectives: 1. To liberate humanity from the current global economic stagnation and the instability inherent in all civilizations. 2. To transform major civilizations into five interdependent union groups (or “super states”) to ensure freedom for everyone. 3. To depict the ideals of a global village as fluidity for open globalization, where global identities and values (Q. 49:13) are pertinent to an open global economy and universal human advancement. 4. To introduce a paradigm shift in the understanding of Islam from the tech- nological domain, one that links Islamic principles with logical expression and retains its traditional meaning. 5. To establish an Islamic philosophy from axiomatic and conceptual study of ICT’s particle world on a micro-religious platform (“micro-Islamics”). 6. To illustrate the need to reorient the international system so it can integrate the Muslim (and non-Muslim) identity as a hallmark for the envisaged world harmonization protocol. 7. To make the present “war on terror” effective as a universal effort toward developing an attainable global security index. 8. To emphasize that Islam is structured to coexist on a concept of open globalism and currently, in conflict with on-line globalization except through peaceful diplomatic cooperation, integration, and not war. 78 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 78 The ongoing conflicts and wanton destruction of life and property prove the failure of most of the principles, theories, philosophies, and policies that form the structures of current unipolar world’s order. The resulting lacuna has been created must be filled by a unifying system that will fill this lacuna and bring humanity to the path of lasting and unifying peace and progress in all platforms (e.g., the socio-political, economic, religious, technological, and security) using the emerging ICT to link the Qur’anic concept of unity and apply it to solving global conflict situations. It is hoped that this work will help eradicate conflict at the global level and serve as a well thought-out master plan for the envisaged new, peaceful, pro- gressive, and freedom-guaranteeing global village. It seeks to harmonize hu- manity and its many societies with rare intellectual prominence and to research the position of Islam and the world. The scope of this discourse is limited to unveiling Islamic philosophy from technology as an open world order and peace to humanity, as well as the validity of its global unity. In other words, it focuses on the quest for the survival of all sects, tribes, and nations based on shared civilizations (i.e., the concept of “Unified Identity Theory”10) and their recognition of differences for representation and administrative purposes. My research methodology is based on the axiom of linking knowledge from the Qur’an to the built concepts of emerging technologies. The linked platform unfolds the inherent human identities and values on a technological domain, as an Open Peace platform for analyzing the so-called Muslim mind. This pattern of technology adaptation for building the OWP lies in one’s ability to understand the connection-knowledge (or wisdom) where it converges in concept with related natural forms or phenomenon, even though they appear to be different in form or expression. Complexities may exist in linking (or understanding) the different classes of built knowledge or thoughts in order to derive a common class that connects them, as method of linking them (the web of relationship) is likely to be mis- understood due to constant changes in knowledge acquisition type (or material inventions). In other words, as Einstein remarked in his theory of relativity, “the world appears not as a structure built out of independent existing, unan- alyzable entities, but rather as a web of relationships among elements whose meanings arise entirely from their relationship to the whole.”11 From this point on, information and communication technology (ICT) will be defined as a domain or tool for establishing a linked operational knowledge environment or platform from which to view humanity’s various identities and values. Meanwhile, it is a novel on the other side of ICT in the quest to salvage the survival question for a better world, and actualizing the Islamic Union, alongside other member union groups, as an open civilization platform. Adewale: The Unified World Order 79 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 79 While on this platform, inferences will be translated into physical signif- icance and applied in the same way as regards any instance of Islamic truth that also serves, in principle, as a study interface. Therefore, the search for the underlying unity of all existence, from a single particle to the most advanced species of sophisticated life, requires ingenuity in our attempt to derive inter- face solutions from particle world (of ICT) and use them to resolve complex event-driven life situations. This view of knowledge contains no sentiments and/or emotions, for it is concerned only with what works on a technological terrain to move humanity closer to global peace and balance. Table 1 shows the completeness of Qur’anic message as regards a digital domain and logically justifies the truthfulness of its method. Since logical truth is the bedrock of digital technology, this is also true for all software-driven technologies up to the Information Age. Henceforth, Islamic truth will be fur- ther explained analogically on a technology domain in order to express the Qur’an’s messages as part of that unity. Table I: Truth Table (The Islamic Truth Interface) Sons (S) Daughters (D) Interpretations 0 1 He gives daughters to whom He wills 1 0 He gives sons to whom He wills 1 1 To some He gives both sons and daughters 0 0 To others He gives none at all SD+SD+ SD+SD = A complete Boolean expression or existence* Data gathered are analyzed corroboratively through the qualitative method by building an axiomatic construct on the subject to create a logical interface for interpretation. Theoretical Framework and Definition of Terms In 1962, McLuhan unveiled his theory of technological determinism (“the me- dium”) as a framework for how technology impacts humanity and society. His unorthodox theories on communication sprang from his view that the “channels of communication are the primary cause of cultural change” and that “[f]amily life, the workplace, schools, health care, friendship, religion, recreation, politics are all touched by communication technology.”12 I therefore use his theory as my overall frame of reference for understanding Islam and Muslims from ICT parlance toward building the international system’s next dimension. 80 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 - -- - ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 80 He also opined that “every new form of media innovation to be an exten- sion of some human faculty: book is an extension of the eye, wheel is an ex- tension of the foot, clothing is an extension of the skin, electronic circuitry or the computer is an extension of the central nervous system” and that, at least theoretically, “technological determinism means inventions in technology in- variably cause cultural change.” In other words, “the modes of communication shape human existence.”13 Thus, “the theory states that media technology shapes how we as individuals in a society think, feel, act (as the medium is the message) and how are society operates as we move from one technological age to another (Tribal-Literate-Print-Electronic).”14 Being unconcerned with a historical analysis of media, I will focus on how communication channels in the electronic age have converged with Islamic thought in order to create a future global society. Therefore, this is “the rise of global village where electronic media are retribalizing the human race, and in touch with everyone, everywhere, all-at-once-all-the-time-instantaneously” as “closed human systems no longer exist.”15 At this point I would like to present a list of terms that I will be using throughout the rest of this paper. • Micro-religious platform: The systematic study of Islamic principles and expressions encoded in an ordinary language construct that are transferred to a complex digital domain. Its meanings are designed to meet up with the ordinary human mind and to provide physical significance and benefit to humanity at large. • Digital domain: The explanation and analysis of Islam’s truth in relation to the axioms of logical truth and the realities of the Information Age or emerging technologies. • Micro-Islamic(s): A corroborative broad study interface of Islamic civi- lization as viewed from the laboratories of the particle world, of ICT to the ordinary human mind toward world understanding, and its harmo- nious actualization of the Islamic community side by side with other major civilizations. • “Unified” or “Open”: In the context of this article, these terms signify a hidden word mechanism for the balance and global survival of all major civilizations based on equal opportunity to peaceful acceptance of values and identities in to a global union. In other words, open is a path that al- lows 360° perspective to life and work, and the end result is a unified (a common) view. • Open globalism or globalization: The integration of dissimilar major civ- ilizations into separate common market places while co-existing as one Adewale: The Unified World Order 81 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 81 global market place without undermining their intrinsic identities for value exchange. In other words, it is “the intra and inter-connection of cultural, economic, political and social systems among nation states on the basis of values that does not contradict with intrinsic identities of their major civi- lizations, towards a borderless universal social formation.”16 • The Qur’an: An open book and guidance to humanity at large. One only needs to reflect and study it, and its meaning will become clear, whether it is related to this life or the afterlife. It contains open thoughts and pro- tocols to harmonize humanity and, thereafter, to liberate humanity from its present circumstances. • The Hadith: The Prophet’s application of the Qur’an to human life. Explaining the Open World Peace Paradigms This section deals with the convergent source (the unity of all sources) and the concept of Islamic source (faith). The term source converges in meaning with Islamic source, or faith, as the other part of the interface that unifies it. In order to understand the concept of convergent source on a micro-religious domain, its meaning is shifted to communication parlance, in which the source functions in the same way as a message initiator. Traditionally, communication is defined as a process of sharing ideas, information, and messages with others at a particular time and place. It includes writing, talking, nonverbal (e.g., fa- cial expressions, body language, or gestures) and visual communication (e.g., the use of images or pictures via painting, photography, video, or film), and electronic communication (e.g., telephone calls, email, cable television, or satellite broadcasts).17 Meanwhile, different kinds of communication media have enabled mes- sages to travel over distance and time ever since people began communicating with each other. The word medium is defined as a channel or path for sending, recording, and transporting a message or information between communicators, whereas media is plural, meaning more than one medium. In general, communication consists of three simple steps: AXIOM I 1. A source encodes his/her meaning in a signal. 2. This signal is transmitted to a receiver. 3. The receiver decodes it by attributing meaning to it (see figure 1). If the meaning discerned in the signal is similar to the one intended by the source, communication has occurred. To the extent that the two meanings do not match, communication has not occurred. 82 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 82 Figure 1: Steps in Communication AXIOM II 1. Each act of communication is separate and discrete and can be studied as such. 2. Communication is linear, in the sense that a message travels one way from a source to a receiver. 3. The source transfers thoughts to the receiver. Having simplified the process of communication, it is clear that a source encodes the message by modulating speech over the air carrier (signal) in order to transport an intelligible message to the receiver, who will later decode it. This implies that communication has occurred – as a manifestation of speech between the source and the receiver – without the former losing its physical and behavioral property for the latter. Similar to the above-stated concept, all communication process designs follow the same simple analogy of source-medium-receiver even on higher technological platforms. For example, a personal computer’s capabilities can be enhanced by a speech recognition interface that allows its operations to be executed by a person “talking” to it through a microphone. Since different communication phenomena converge with all emerging technologies in dig- ital, mobile, and satellite communications systems, all sources’ behavior be- comes the same despite their being different in form. This is called the “unity of all sources” or the “convergent source.” AXIOM III 1. Speech remains the source’s property, as it is not equal in form to the source. Speech is generated in communication, but remains separate, dis- crete, and circumstantial. 2. A modulated air signal, which envelopes an intelligible message, is not equal in form to the source or the receiver; rather, it is a communication link between both of them. 3. The receiver’s interpretation of the speech is the true replica of the true message, a manifestation of word, expression, thought, and/or creation. Adewale: The Unified World Order 83 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 83 Based on these unified views, the Muslim mind conforms to the principle of communication art. This form of complex art is the creative power behind all sources that allows the message to be recreated at the receiving end (viz., a reproducing property of a single particle to the advanced species of sophis- ticated life in the universe when created by the first cause of creation). This attempt, however, unveils the origin of the concept of Islamic faith where it unifies with communication art in phenomenon. AXIOM IV 1. The Qur’an states that the Absolute Source (Allah, the Creator) decrees whatever He wills to exist by saying “Be and it is,” which reveals the power behind an intelligent creativity of all existence with some forms of complexity: Intelligent Design. 2. The Qur’anic statement “Be and it is” (Q. 3:47),18 as embedded in a simple language construct, means the same under the unified view, as it is in the ordinary process of complete communication art (see Axiom III). In this context, “Be” is the will to create and the ability to recreate as a function of its realization, appreciation, or utilization (Q. 86:11-12). This can be clarified further by comparing the four above-mentioned axioms. Be = encoding = speech = word And = signal = modulated air signal = Holy Spirit It is = decoding = reality = replica of speech By deduction from the above-stated relationships, it is logical to say that the Absolute Source (Allah) cannot be equal to all of the stated forms of the communication protocol (viz., Word, Holy Spirit, and Reality). Henceforth, the logical truth is that the three steps of establishing a communication proto- col – coding, signal, and decoding – are characteristic products created by the source and recreated so that the receiver can understand the message. Simi- larly, a word is the code that rides on the Holy Spirit (the signal carrier), while the word’s content is decoded to reality by using the reproductive property at the receiving end that unifies all sources as absolute. AXIOM V 1. The Absolute Source is not in the same form as the signal. 2. The Absolute Source is not in the same form as speech. 3. It is not logical for Absolute Source to change form in order to become a part of what it has created (the universe and all in it; see Axiom I), but 84 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 84 to remain an entity (One) apart, and not into any of the three forms of the communication protocol; an immaterial sense (Q. 112). At this juncture, the concept of communication between two separate en- tities, namely, the creator/source and the created/receiver, are the purest (or natural) forms of all built knowledge that conforms with the expanding pos- sibilities of all creativity in its empirical form of understanding art. The Open World Peace Concept This OWP concept is realized by acknowledging that the form of the Absolute Source cannot be found in anything created in and/or belonging to the world (see figure 1) in order to have or gain absolute control over the entire universe. This generalization is same for a source that controls, through the power of communications protocol, all realities at the receiver’s end. Therefore, every- thing in the world was created through the concept of understanding oneness and made perfect. That is to say: 1. Limits of the outcome of the closed integral function of all sources, where the inhibiting variables of that function tends to zero = convergence of all sources = Open World Peace = Open globalism/globalization. 2. It is bounded by the upper and lower limits of all sources under open freedom = the equality of all sources. 3. Open globalism can only occur under open freedom = acceptance of the Global Union’s partial entities with their corresponding continental iden- tities and values. Thus, recognizing the missing ingredient (the concept of the unity of all sources) is the greatest formula for global harmony. This is discoverable in all human endeavors without exception. In other words, the struggle to achieve the convergence of all existence will con- tinue to keep humanity on the path of discovery. The Path to the Open Peace Model The analytical path to restoring global peace (harmony or union) can be accel- erated by the systematic grouping of world-class/major civilizations that are labelled as sources, and recognize them as elements of that same structure that are indestructible partial entities of hypothetical Global Union. These are the European Union (EU), the African Union (AU), the American Union (AMU), the Asian Union (ASU), and the Islamic Union (IU). All of these sources have a high propensity to initiate communication in order to encode values on human Adewale: The Unified World Order 85 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 85 minds, whereas the mind is the signal carrier to the realities of either harmo- nious or perturbed societies (or a mix of both) in the contemporary world. Figure 2: Steps in Peace Communication Thus the outcome of the convergence of all sources or civilizations is strengthened by the collective will to institutionalize civilization-based soci- eties, which are commonly transmitted by ordinary human minds. This phe- nomenal drift toward a unifying world can be actualized from the much-awaited global peace structure, in which the global union shall be formed by a benevolent hegemon who will pursue beneficial policies common to all major civilizations for sustainable growth and development. Therefore, the physical significance of this kind of world system recon- figuration can be achieved in the form of regional leadership and governance, where all occupants are harmonized as various continental partial entities of the world star pentagon. By implication, all people shall be granted full rights to reside in their respective dreamland and experience peace, as the world can better be governed when regional organizations are modeled by the identities of their major civilizations and are interdependent, as is the case with the global union. To the end, the misunderstanding of the unity of all sources (as in major civilizations) is the cause of perpetual intra-civilization clashes due to the non- convergence of the present structures of global governance, economy, legis- lation, and policies as opposed to the concept of an ideal open world peace. Not until the hidden bedrock of a harmonious ingredient toward global union is recognized will humanity be freed from the scourge of nuclear war threats, poverty, hunger, terror, disease, and so on. The Open Peace Model on the Technological Platform While on a micro-religious platform, the implication of non-convergence of sources like the software product makers in the software industry is a threat to the ideals of global village – how? They establish communication through software, which controls the activities of a networked future. To this effect, it is perti- 86 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 86 nent to know that if software developmental lead and competitiveness of manufacturers are not monitored or the program codes not published ade- quately for other universal contributors to step up innovative progress work, on the advancement and maintenance of the virtual world created by hu- manity. The huge investments of the world would probably, be endangered to security holes and monopoly.19 But with the promotion of unity in the industry, humanity may once again be freed from the monopolistic approach of companies like Microsoft, Apple, and IBM. Currently there is phenomenal drift or migration toward open source software technology, which is infinitely customizable; it can run on outdated underpowered hardware and can be scaled down from the biggest computers (servers) to the smallest mobile devices. One such software package is Linux, which its developers placed in the public domain so people could use it for free and modify its program code by improving and even building upon it. Many people consider open source a revolutionary trend, just as Linux is an open source development model. Linux’s greatest strength is the fervor, the sense of near-religious zeal that burns in its devotees’ hearts. They really believe they have the answer, and that they will turn the IT world upside down.20 The Convergent Structure of a Unified Scripture The concept of convergent structure can be viewed on a digital domain, as in- dustry giants are now learning to live with the unanticipated challenges of net- work convergence. But the belief that the technology remains as crucial as Internet telephony (the convergent phone) has proven to be optimistic. It seems that the telecoms business is not what it used to be, for stock values have col- lapsed and wiped out more than $350 billion in investment. This also triggered what has been described as the worst period of capital destruction in modern financial history. And as if this were not enough, the industry must now ad- dress a fundamental shift in technology that, if mishandled, could threaten commercial leaders with inexorable decline and ultimate extinction.21 Due to advances in the personal computer’s (PC) multimedia capabilities when combined with low-cost Internet access, it has become feasible to sustain the voice-over Internet protocol (VoIP) engendered by the development of gateway products. Thus, calls can now be posted from a computer (an ad- vanced system) to a phone (an earlier network). This development had a dra- matic effect on VoIP’s commercial importance: It expanded the user base from PC users to telephone and mobile phone users. This gateway principle was also adapted to enable phone-to-phone VoIP, which allows low-cost voice. Adewale: The Unified World Order 87 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 87 Now, Internet users can sell low-cost telephony by using VoIP gateways on the Internet to bypass the high tariffs of international links. As a result, it is becoming clear that the search for convergent technologies is a realistic path to creating balance in today’s global economy from the con- sumer’s viewpoint. Moreover, it is likely to end the industry giants’ global dom- inance. This economic behavior in a technology domain is similar to Islam’s convergent structure as regards managing the world to create balance and end global dominance. But attempts to change the status quo have, to various degrees, degenerated into global disorder, threats of nuclear war, and intra- civilization clashes. Thus the case for convergence holds for international net- works and is equally applicable to the enterprise wide area network (WAN) or local area network (LAN). Internet protocol (IP) telephones can offer all the functionality of a conventional Private Automated Branch Exchange (PABX) handset with broadband connections to anywhere on the WAN or the LAN. The world hopes and expects the next stage in the Internet’s evolution to engender the convergence of all of the world’s public networks into a single packet-based network that carries voice, data, and multimedia traffic, as well as one that supports an increasingly wide range of innovative network services. From the viewpoint of micro-Islamics, the above-stated phenomenon is akin to the Qur’an, viewed here as a unifying scripture that converges with earlier scriptural values, while Islam is projected as a convergent civilization that allows all other major civilization networks without undermining their intrinsic identities for global value inter-exchange and services. However, the Qur’an is mostly relegated to the status of a fictitious book, although Islam itself is a unique make-real system that can be realized alongside other systems as the convergent civilization and not, as some religious activists argue, one that exists in splendid isolation. Therefore, its unifying script im- provises a major harmonization protocol with earlier and existing civilizations. On the one hand, the Islamic system’s behavioral pattern is convergent in struc- ture, as it supports open globalization and allows other civilizations to strive. On the other hand, the Islamic world system is downwardly compatible with other existing systems if tolerated, but nevertheless has independent ca- pabilities in governance, economy, law, culture, among other spheres, within its territory. In the upcoming Islamic world, individual desires or class struggle shall not be prioritized over the needs of future generations for their own de- velopment so that humanity as a whole will continue to benefit. Based on this axiom, the Islamic system is shielded by Shari‘ah-driven solutions that enable it to avert the types of ongoing global economic and development crises found in other event-driven global economies. 88 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 88 By implication, the present international system has not integrated any form of Islamic practice or legitimized the acceptance of the Islamic system. Thus it is not referenced, encouraged, or compromised in matters dealing with global governance and economy. However, the ongoing global neglect of the Muslim mind will clearly continue to degenerate into what is unpleasant, bar- baric, and retrogressive as regards human progress if the present global econ- omy and governance strategies remain unchecked. Therefore, these looming global situations are likely to expand from the Muslim world into other worlds and cause a systemic disaster if the necessary balance is not sought. In other words, concerned people perceive the present world situation as a struggle for actualizing the long-awaited dream societies of their choice that their leaders continue to assert that they will provide. Islam: A Major Civilization The Muslim identity is crucial but relatively the same in concept as regards the relevance of identity to the orientation of a global network. This can be better imagined by understanding the usefulness of domain names to enable one to surf the Internet. Interestingly, Internet technology allows a PC to com- municate via a local Internet service provider (ISP) with an international com- puter network. Normally, the PC loads the operating system (OS) into its memory (workspace) during the boot process, after which it is ready to log into the networks of large computers via a connection media. This connection links remote PCs to international networks at a specific connection speed (e.g., bandwidth). Thus, the Internet provides services like the World Wide Web via a web browser while experiencing an arbitrary one-world concept and peace through information and communications art of sharing. Based upon the above-mentioned paradigm, the Islamic highway is built and structured. Figure 3 illustrates the convergent Muslims identity at one global node: the qiblah (praying toward Makkah, the source). This configu- ration allows the art of sharing the possible reflections of the Qur’an, depicting these possible reflections as unified messages that run dynamically in the Mus- lim mind in a way that resembles a computer’s operating system. It can there- fore sustain generations of Muslims in their quest for Islamic civilization’s survival amidst other civilizations. In sum, a computer boots only when information is loaded and allocated into its workspace (memory) so that the desired program(s) can be executed. In the same sense, Muslims read the Qur’anic information in and out of mem- ory on daily basis, especially during Ramadan. It is usual for them to read or Adewale: The Unified World Order 89 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 89 recite the Qur’an at least five times a day during the prescribed prayers while facing Makkah. Some may undertake the pilgrimage to Makkah. Apart from these two rituals, there are weekly community prayers and two public holidays (‘Id al-Fitr and ‘Id al-Adha) at which, along with the pilgrimage, Muslims can meet to discuss matters affecting their global community. This resembles the way small local computers connect to international networks to access shared resources via metropolitan Internet providers. These above-mentioned Muslim attributes cannot be downsized through any of the built international organizations (world institutions); however, they can be compromised diplomatically as Muslim identity, in order to experience perpetual peace on the platform of open globalization and freedom. Mean- while, other Islamic practices (e.g., law, governance, banking, economy, and culture) are conventional value services within the Islamic system (hereinafter “Muslims values”) that are seeking world recognition and understanding from all peace-loving human beings. Some of these Muslim values are documented in the Hadith and the Shari‘ah and are dependable on the platform of the Qur’an, which expresses Islam’s dynamic practicability on humanity and its many societies. This can be portrayed mathematically as, The Muslim mind = Muslim identity + Islamic values = Islamic civilization = Islamic Union Hence, the integration of Islamic civilization over a geographical expanse not bounded by space and time is equal to the Islamic union, as a global part member of the Global Union (see figure 3). Figure 3: The Islamic Highway, which envelopes the five pillars and is shielded by the Shari‘ah. 90 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 90 The Convergent Civilization (The Unity of Civilizations) The Concept of Islamic Peace The Internet’s electronic global market structure is interconnected by an in- ternational network of computers that communicates with one voice via Trans- port Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). TCP/IP is an industry standard that globally integrates communication among platforms (e.g., Mi- crosoft, Apple, Novell, Linux, and Unix) and security on the Internet. The in- dustry has adopted it to ensure harmonious, error-free communication on a global level regardless of an individual computer’s specific operating platform or location. This approach enables a global interconnectivity, as if all com- puters were just one large computer. Just as different computers are globally tied to the Internet, one can use the same analogy to argue that one day differ- ent civilizations will be plugged-in, in principle, just like the Internet. The question is how this will occur (Q. 2:135-36). Conceptually, the Internet is the actualization of the economists’ perfect market structure, for there is free entry and exit, no transportation, large buyers and sellers, and no boundaries or physical contact. This is a phenomenon of one common world and the experience of peace. No single entity “owns” or controls its services, as the Internet promotes information sharing and other transactions. Countless independent corporate, organizational, governmental, military, and academic sites supply information in conformity with the world- wide agreed-upon and accepted legislation. The non-functionality of any one site does not threaten these services, as the technology continues to harmonize everyone through sharing. Although no single organization can set the Web’s rules or guidelines, two groups have a great influence over its look, feel, and direction (Q. 49:13): the W3 Consortium and the browser developers. The World Wide Web (W3) Consortium, based at the Massachusetts In- stitution of Technology (MIT) and at Europe’s International Network Routing Addresses (INRA), consists of individuals and organizations interested in sup- porting and defining the Web’s languages and protocols (e.g., HTTP and HTML). It also provides free products (e.g., browsers and severs). This is the closest anyone gets to setting standards for and enforcing rules about the W3 (visit http://www.w3.org).22 The browser developers themselves, most notably Microsoft and Netscape, compete to provide the most popular and technically advanced browser. Although they claim to support and adhere to the W3 Con- sortium’s proposed guidelines, they also include their own new features in new versions of their software – features that often conflict with each other and with what the W3 Consortium is doing. Adewale: The Unified World Order 91 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 91 Sometimes trying to track all of these new and rapidly changing devel- opments feels like being in the middle of a war zone, with the W3 Consortium trying to mediate and prevent global thermonuclear war. As Web designers are mostly stuck in the middle and faced with choosing which browsers to support and how to deal with rapid change, an event-driven phenomenon, as opposed to balance, is the norm. It seems the world stops here, and this is probably where a whole lot of the world’s money is. The Hypothetical Components of a Real Global Village Micro-Islamics translate the Internet’s conceptual impact on the behavior of people and societies into the physical realization of the global villages’ ideals. The domicile civilizations form the independent part members of the real global village, which is built on common destinies, policies, and economies while in- tegrating humanity as a whole. In the same vein, each part member shall har- monize its member nations into dissimilar, independent member union groups (viz., European, American, Asian, Islamic, and African) via tolerance, cooper- ation, and integration (e.g., in terms of economy, culture, technology, military, legislation, and trade) for the global survival of identities and values. Following the gradual movement of nations from an ideology of civiliza- tions into one of different member union groups, each one will come to rep- resent a distinct global identity and values while converging at the center (as a global union) to strengthen the new mutual ties toward human advancement and socioeconomic development. According to this concept Islam, in its en- tirety, is a world system that forms itself into an Islamic union group and seeks world understanding as it communicates in one voice (Arabic/the Qur’an) to- ward a seamless integration into an open global economy. With the birth of this Open World System configuration, the Islamic world shall have a uni- versal Islamic civilization charter under the auspices of the Islamic union. At that juncture, humanity will be able to see the beauty of Islam as a complete tradition of global unity and a mirror to other civilizations. This form of uni- versal arrangement shall offer all people free exit or entry into the civilizations of their choice, the ideal of a global village. In the aftermath of establishing this world peace framework, all Muslims, irrespective of background and geographical location, await the atmosphere of Islam, as the Qur’an is currently under lock. The global opposition to Is- lamic law and practice is the ordinary explanation given for Islamophobia. However, this in no way negates the fact that the current reality throughout the Muslim world could be vastly improved. But, given the reality of the world’s current circumstances, what is needed is a change that can give hope 92 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 92 to those who are oppressed. Therefore, this attempt must seek to eradicate global plagues, fear, terror, and poverty through a system of global education. Just like the Internet, no particular race or nation can claim leadership of the world, as its security is a collective human responsibility with respect to other civilizations and each one’s equal right to exist and to lead. Qur’an 109: 1-6 proclaims the concept of a Unified World Order (UWO) in the following terms: “Say O Unbelievers, I do not worship what you worship, nor do you worship what I worship. I shall never worship what you worship, nor will you ever worship what I worship. You have your own religion, and I have mine.” On a global scale, this passage legitimizes the existence and recognition of all civilizations in terms of global identities and value creations. Thus it implies: You (Unbelievers) = Other member Union groups Religion = Civilization Worship = Practice I (Believer) = Islamic Union (IU) By direct substitution, micro-Islamics understands these verses in the fol- lowing terms: “IU Members do not practice what members of other unions practice, and members of the latter do not practice what members of the former practice. IU members shall never practice what members of other unions prac- tice, and members of the latter shall never practice what members of the for- mer practice. All other union groups have their own civilizations, and the IU has its own.” This understanding displays the equality of all people (viz., the identities of believers and non-believers) in order to exist and co-exist as in- terdependent civilizations, which is the global village’s other side and has the same significance. Figure 4: The Global Union. Global Keys: EU = European Union, AU = African Union, AMU = American Union, ASU = Asian Union, IU = Islamic Union, GU = Global Union. Adewale: The Unified World Order 93 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 93 In light of the above configuration, the world will become a better place only if open world peace missions are promoted toward open globalism (a shared understanding that all human beings and civilizations have common destinies and the right to coexist), for true global governance can only be achieved by freely adopting transparent systems based on global identities and values. Hence global interaction cannot be imposed via unipolar declara- tions, oppression, condemnation, and wiping out other civilizations. The X-rays of the independent union group are common values, a com- mon destiny, a common currency (e.g., EU=Euro, AU=Afro, AMU=Dollar, IU=Islo, ASU=Aso), common economies, a common transparent government, common markets, a common language, and so on. The X-ray of the interde- pendence of union groups include global peace and security, global science and technological advancement, global trade, and cooperation and integration. The X-rays of the global union are of two types: (1) the seats of world insti- tutions (e.g., global peace, trade, tourism, economy, health, education, and co- operation) and (2) a common inter-union currency that no single country would use or control as national currency. In essence, it would be a negotiable currency used by all independent union groups/members to promote global trade. The Convergent System The Concept of Islamic Law We are often amazed at the extent of human advancement and the huge fi- nancial investment in emerging technologies, up-to-date legislation, and the establishment of global governing organs via the concept of globalization (viz., the spread of one cultural value). Researchers are striving to overcome those situations that impede human unity, progress, and freedom. Now it is the turn of grid computing. Humanity has created a virtual world; however, it can still be hacked, hit by viruses, ruin the investment, or even erase the data collected over generations. In light of the ongoing fast-paced technological revolution, change, or impact alongside the rate of innovation in security and defence systems, un- locking the power of Internet-based grid computing, untroubled by low-level concerns about where the computational resources might be located, may prove to be a massive boost to corroborating engineering.23 Grid computing is increasingly seen not so much a way to enhance computing capability, but more as a general solution to the growing commercial need to construct, as a matter of routine, distributed systems that are reliable, scalable, and secure. 94 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 94 As companies merge to form temporary alliances, the rise of the Internet, the emergence of e-business, and the dynamic business climate are all undermin- ing the traditional reliance on single-platform computer systems. Hence, the world is progressing toward liberating humanity. But, one should ask, how much freedom would have to be sacrificed to make the world secure? On the technology front, there is a growing need for high-quality high- performance tests and measuring instruments. As these must be, by definition, more advanced than the technologies being tested, instrument manufacturers must play the leading role in this sphere. This underscores their critical role in establishing new communication standards and protocols. The information superhighway is digitally shielded and protected against system proliferation, collapse, or intrusion thanks to the employment of fire- walls, data encryption techniques, and up-to-date anti-virus programs residing in global networks. These products give hope to the interconnected world, for viruses can be quarantined by cleaning or deleting the infected data, as well as captures or signals, and hackers can be blocked in order to sustain the net- work’s security performance and stability. This completeness in system design both enables the digital world’s continued existence and expands the possi- bility of various applications (e.g., e-banking, e-commerce, and e-security)24 to function as expected and without problems. In the case of micro-Islamics, this is exactly how the Shari‘ah functions, because its raison d’être is twofold: to (1) preserve and protect Muslims amidst other civilizations and (2) provide security to the world’s other occupants. Therefore, one can say that it resembles an anti-virus program or a firewall that shields Muslims from oppression, corruption, or attack (by way of con- demnation and civilizational extinction) so that Islamic civilization can con- tinue to exist and develop. Meanwhile, the effect of open globalism upon human beings, regardless of their geographical location, is the production of true independence and the provision of the Qur’an’s universal messages for each civilization’s continued sustenance and survival. Therefore, we can say that Muslims have already been liberated from any form of selfish economic, social, or political order, as well as from neo-colonialism. Given this reality, they are ready to serve asciviliza- tional leaders and possess the needed energy to shape this and later centuries. By and large, Islam offers a peaceful co-existence while harmonizing all human beings with the message of open globalism, which is currently in con- flict with the West’s globalization concept. This paradigm shift, however, em- powers everyone to take self-control of their common destinies while living in peace with other civilizations. Adewale: The Unified World Order 95 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 95 The Concept of Perpetual Violence A computer system is a product of micro-programs that are built on computer technology (e.g., hardware and software) and can be applied to most human endeavors. Generally, the hardware’s resource capacities determine the soft- ware programs’ compatibility and performance when built on the latest bit pro- gramming. The release of new a operating system (OS) is critical to the development of new computer features or architecture. This new OS may run slower on an older computer due the the latter’s outdated processing speed and available memory. For instance, when its minimum system specifications do not meet the new OS’s hardware requirements, as provided by the original equipment manufacturer, a hardware-software conflict may occur. The resulting incompatible processes usually impede progress or productivity, as they be- come more aggravated on a global network. Consequently, harmonious ICT advancement can be achieved only by re- searching the convergence of higher bit programming, hardware speed, and memory management for emerging global network capabilities and features. Toshiba has made a major commitment, though its Unified Digital Platform (UDP) project, to achieve a true convergence of technologies.25 This is one of the paths toward actualizing humanity’s hypothetical views and aspirations for a global renaissance. Following the above-mentioned concept of machine conflict, Muslims regard the Qur’an as the final operating script for humanity. In this perspective, humanity and societies are synonymous with the global computer network (hardware), on which different harmonious and interoperable systems run as a single, final, or unified OS when viewed from a node. In other words, the global requirement for achieving a peaceful world is the willingness to con- sider upgrading the international framework of global governance for com- patibility with Islam and the rest of the other major civilizations. Logically, this means that the envisaged open global economy has to accept the Muslims’ identity and values. Therefore, it holds that the global process of harmonious convergences of both humanity and societies would foster the long-anticipated true freedom of civilizations. The fact that Islam appears to be the only religion embedded with faith, as well as practical legislation and governance, limits the grip of other civilizations on its land and people. As a result, those behind the New World Order have been unable to truncate Islamic practices and brought about nothing to the generality of Muslims but perpetual violent reactions in their hidden quest for open freedom and equal rights for everyone. Even though history had it that previous pioneers of human progress in the earliest and advanced stages of globalization have rescued the world from 96 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 96 worst forms of governance, politics, and socioeconomic order and legislation. Islam, on th eother hand, contains two distinct yet interrelated and inseparable components: faith and statehood. Thus, in humanity’s quest for real peace the freedom of religion, in accordance with its composition and values, has a role to play in the international system’s reconstruction. However, Islam appears to be the most challenged religion, both in terms of doctrine and practices, when it comes to fitting into the contemporary world system. If Islamic civi- lization is not accorded the same right or mutual global significance as other major civilizations to enjoy an open freedom of its values, I predict that the world’s ongoing violence and conflicts will become more complex and inde- terminable to resolve. Muslims in the Middle Computer systems commonly use only one OS even when it is dual bootable; one has a choice in this regard. Large-scale networks can be composed of different computers running on different operating systems. This factor of integration, migration, and interoperability of operating systems enables the building of one harmonious network. In this context, the “Muslims in the middle” are akin to those Muslims who live in non-Muslim civilizations. Their choices of governance are inherent in Islam, which could best be prac- ticed in a system of open federalism. One must realize that two systems can function in any state, either as separate entities or as shared value services under a common constitution (e.g., having both Islamic and western banks). But they can also coexist as independent states linked together by an open federation. The Qur’an appears to be a natural open source script, just like the Linux open source software runs on servers as well as mobile computers. Even better, Islam could be practiced on a global scare (the Islamic union) as well as under open federalism (local Muslim associations). Discussion: The Open World Peace (OWP) Protocol Right now, the OWP protocol is a language based on the equal survival patterns for all people and nations and it is common to all civilizations (Q. 49:13). In recognition of this, this article does not seek to support the spread of terrorism because there is no clear justification for it. On the other hand, the OWP pro- tocol is derivable from digital logic to ICT platforms and is linked with the Qur’anic message on the other side of the interface that unifies them. My goal in this article, therefore, is to nudge along the process of gradual change in how the world works as well as to simultaneously change how humanity reasons. Adewale: The Unified World Order 97 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 97 On this note, little did George Boole (d. 1864) know that he was providing a way in which the future world could be explained through the power of al- gebraic logic (viz., built digitalized knowledge) and its applications to life and work, while simultaneously expanding humanity’s possibilities beyond the ordinary level of human perception to the master art of intelligent creativity (in communications, biotechnology, computing, and so on). The development of these emerging technologies continues to rapidly change the world’s rea- soning and traditions through globalization, which had earlier brought about remarkable human progress, as seen in the now-divided world of a rich North and a poor South. The horrors of the earlier global traditions of colonization and slavery, which can be considered the high points of large-scale dehumanization, have not been forgotten. Both of those periods can be considered. The prolonged existence of the two institutions enabled one part of humanity to pull far ahead, at least in terms of development, of all the other parts. Now that the West has globalized its culture, how does the rest of the world intend to cope with the ever-widening developmental gap engendered by the digital divide and debt, war and political/economic insecurity, and seemingly insoluble so- cioeconomic problems (e.g., poverty, illness, racism, and amorality)? Such realities are causing many people to ask: What legislative and economic changes must be make to end this situation? What are the limits of freedom in regard to maintaining an acceptable moral value for society? What is the law’s intents as regards the factor of dehumanization as argued by the pio- neers of the New World Order via the Human Rights Charter, non-govern- mental organizations, and world institutions or organizations? Such rhetorical questions often cause various global identities and values or member union groups to emerge out of major civilizations. The interdepend- ence of these independent sovereign union groups can only be actualized through the concept of open globalism in order to rescue the world from global dominance and disorder. This view is based on the global scale of open free- dom, which means that all such groups will be free to adopt or discover a com- mon transparent governance and economic system in order to end the current (and largely negative) global status quo and strive for a Unified World Order. Therefore one must acknowledge every piece of art used in this article as humanity’s collective intellectual property that also serves as a selfless con- tribution to bringing about an Open World Peace or Open World System. Thus one can conclude that Islam, defined as a peace/mercy to all the worlds, is now imminent through the use of ICT, both as a conceptual global instrument for viewing the human mind and as a well-thought-out explanation of micro- Islamics, in order to uncover the light of Islam amidst the contemporary world’s varied societies. 98 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 98 Conclusion At this juncture, one can say that the conceptual field of ICT is an appropriate tool for diagnosing the present global circumstances, both as a study interface and as a pure learning environment that is balanced and without sentiment. Researchers continue to study and analyze the unified views concerning the Islamic system and its values. One field in this regard is putting the Shari‘ah, which is widely criticized and condemned as uncivilized and barbaric, on a new philosophical path of study: micro-Islamics. This approach would explain the concepts related to Islamic law and punishments in clear terms according to a clear criteria that would use the power of ICT as instrument of measure- ment. Perhaps posterity will have the opportunity to witness some of the an- swers to the concerns raised by contemporary human rights organizations and other groups/institutions that the Shari‘ah dehumanizes certain groups of peo- ple. In the end, humanity would witness an OWP from the perspective that it was globally conceived from an Islamic context and given to humanity at large. In this regard, it is vital to re-echo the open peace options presented in this article as a process of working to actualize a unified world order. This process should not be discarded as illogical on the basis of sentiment over Islam’s global status through fabrications designed to truncate world peace, for it is a declaration of the purest and natural form of Islam (a unique and distinct civilization) as embedded in the Qur’an and the Hadith literature. Islam seeks to spread the message of open globalism/globalization worldwide in order to realize universal justice for all major civilizations and their peoples. One can only hope that the world’s leaders will eventually win the hearts and minds of all civilizations while considering the unified world order option on the grounds that the existence of all people and civilizations are crucial to the effort of establishing an understanding world. Endnotes * This article is a product of twenty years of independent research toward open humanity. 1. Adewale M. Bakare, “Unlocking the Unified World System and Its Theoretical Global Solutions,” Turkish Journal of International Relations (submitted No- vember 2012), 2, http://alternativesjournal.net. 2. National Institute of Open Schooling, “Political Science Online Courses, Op- tional Module 1: World Order and the United Nations,” 309, www.nios.ac.in/ srsec317newE/317EL29.pdf. 3. Muzaffer Ercan Yimaz, “The New World Order: An Outline of the Post-Cold War Era,” Turkish Journal of International Relations 7, no. 4 (2008): 47, http://alternativesjournal.net. Adewale: The Unified World Order 99 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 99 4. Sheldon Filger, “Global Economic Crisis,” www.globaleconomiccrisis.com. 5. United Nations Development Programmes, Economic Crisis, “Women and chil- dren stand to bear the brunt of the global economic crisis,” www.undp.org/eco- nomic_crisis. 6. Sayyid Qutb, Islam and Universal Peace (Indianapolis: American Trust Publi- cations, 1993), 5. 7. Al-Mallah Y. Hashim, The Governmental System of the Prophet Mohammad (SAW): A Comparative Study in Constitutional Law (Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, 2008), 225. 8. Unified View”, Microsoft Encarta 98 . 9. Think Exist 1999-2013. http://thinkexist.com/quotation/the_problems_that_ exist_in_the_world_today_cannot/10140.html. 10. Bakare, “Unlocking,” 2. 11. Newsweek, (August 13, 1979), 46. 12. Marshall McLuhan, “Technological Determinism,” www.doctordi.ca/COMS201/ TechDeterminism.html. 13. Ibid. 14. Honors: Communication Capstone Spring 2001 Theory Workshop.”Technolog- ical Determinism Theory,” www.uky.edu/~drlane/capstone/mass/determinism. htm. 15 McLuhan, “Technological Determinism.” 16. Adewale M. Bakare, “The Open World System and Political Economy: A Ba- karean World,” Turkish Journal of International Relations 11, no. 2 (2012): 96. 17. Litfin Duane, Public Speaking: A Handbook for Christian, 2d ed. (Michigan: Baker Book House, 1992), 18-20. Much of the following section is based upon this source. 18. The English translations are taken from Ali Yusuf Abdullah, Roman Transliter- ation of The Holy Qur’an (Lahore: Islamic Book Foundation, 1934. 19. Isaac Richard,” Why Linux Really Does Matter,” Computers in Africa, South Africa ( 2001):12-14. 20. Ibid., 12-14. 21. Roger Dettmer, “Internet Telephony (The Convergent Phone),” IEE Review Journal 48, no. 1 (2002): 23. Much of the following section is based upon the information contained within this article. 22. Lemay Laura with revisions by Tyler Denis, SAMS Teach Your Web Publishing with HTML 4 in 21 Days (Indianopolis: Sams Publishing, 2000), 25-26. 23. Tony Hey, “Unlocking the Power of the Grid,” IEE Review Journal 48, no. 3 (2002), 9-12. 24. Dave Ireland and Paolo Trevisan, “Measurement and the Networked Future,” IEE Review Journal 47, no. 6 (2001): 49. 25. Vassillis Seferidis, “Boxing Clever,” IEE Review Journal 47, no. 6 (2001): 41. 100 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 31:2 ajiss31-2_ajiss 3/26/2014 8:07 AM Page 100