i think it was max weber that was making the point that corruption gets to a point where they become incapable of forming basic functions. including the exercise of state power. but we got to a stage with our armed forces where during the civil war, there was no minister of defense in this country. the minister of defense was only appointed a few months ago. procurement of arms was being done through individual commanders and people were being given cash to go around the world and purchase them. there was a total collapse of government. there was no system. it takes a lot of skill and determination to destroy a state. goodluck jonathan had the skill and determination to finish the destruction of the nigerian state and that is why the new administration has a huge task ahead of it to rebuild and reconstruct the nigerian state. >> it endured [inaudible] and i would support most of what he said but i would add one caveat. there was a deliberate policy to emasculate the military in order for it to prevent it ring a political intervention or a coup d'etat. that affected the readiness of t

are we marxist here, are we max weber, who are we following? john? john: one way to look at this is compare what happens in the united states to what happened in europe. this is exactly the time where religious adherence is declining. in the united states, it is going up so, why are two places so culturally connected going into opposite directions? i think a lot of it has to do the separation of church and state. it sets of what you might call a market oriented system of religion in the u.s. again, going back to the point of cultural engagement. if groups are to grow, they have to show in some way that they are relevant, that they have a message that people are willing to listen to that is presented in a way people are willing to hear. and that is what happens in america and that is kind of the religion -- the genius of american religion. it changes as the culture changes. it has this ability because it is not tied to a specific tradition or safe -- state sponsorship. it can change. as old groups lose their popularity, new group spring up in a happen