I don't know if it matters, but what I originally wrote was this:
"Why are you saying that Bedouin culture is primitive? By what standard?"
I edited it to better get my point across.
And, by the way, s_b_q, you don't need to be a "relativist" to recognize that using the term "primitive culture" in this context is not only imprecise, but also borders on being racist--regardless of whether we are talking about Jordanian or Bedouin culture--and detracts from the conversation.
Cultural criticism is not racist, and that word has been used for far too long to shut down far too reasonable discourse.
Bedouin culture is primitive, in the sense that it resembles the state of earlier societies in history.
It has norms that significantly conflict with basic human rights. Attempting to conflate comparative cultural criticism with racism is nonsense. We should not hesitate to criticize societies that condone the systemic abuse of women, lack basic respect for human dignity, and encourage outright brutality. To that say that culture is primitive is to put it mildly.
Bedouin culture is also significantly different than urban Jordanian culture. Thus editing the question significantly altered the debate.
