Many thanks for a hugely informative and interesting article.

If I may, I would hope for some comment on an idea I have put forward: the possibility of an Islamic 'economic caliphate', with all Muslim nations sharing a common currency. This particular approach to a common currency conforms (as I understand it) with "Sharia" in that it guarantees the absence of poverty while divorcing the funding of government from taxes and public debt (in the normal course of things, at least--war or natural disasters might yet require them). For that matter, the supply of money itself (as currency) would no longer involve debt--and with nationalized banks interest on borrowing could be totally abolished. Moreover, it is neither Sunni nor Shiite (nor any other theology or ideology) in its particulars and would not compromise in any way national sovereignty. It would be compatible with any form of government. If nothing else, surely as a basic economic idea it is one that Islamic scholars might find interesting?