I was recently forwarded an article by a trusted friend that I found most interesting. It was written by a European psychologist, Nicola Senners, and documented the fact that consanguinity (marriage between blood relatives, commonly first cousins) is a very widespread practice among Muslims. It pointed out that 67% of Saudi Arabian marriages are consanguineous, as are 64% in Jordan and Kuwait, 60% in Iraq, 48% in Bahrain, 42% in Lebanon, 40% in Syria, etc.
While it's well known here in the west that intermarriage between blood relatives is an invitation to having mentally deficient children, higher than average instances of insanity, and other health related issues, apparently they didn't get the memo over there in the Mideast.
While it's possible this is all a hoax, I did Google Nicola Senners and found him listed as a respected, published author. If his study is accurate, and I have no reason to believe it isn't, it explains a lot about why things are as dysfunctional as they are in the Muslim world today. Fourteen hundred years of intermarriage can seriously pollute the gene pool. Ya think maybe they should consider a bit of chlorine?
S
I heard the same thing about intermarriage between cousins in the Middle East. The human condition is a strange one.
ReplyDeleteDifferent culture. Nomads are off the grid entirely. Makes them hard to track where we are all traceable at the touch of a button...
ReplyDeleteMarrying your cousin? Not for me...