In parent's defense he was (a) quoting someone and (b) intentionally simplifying and distilling into a narrative label, which is the whole point of this thread.

In parent's defense he was (a) quoting someone and (b) intentionally simplifying and distilling into a narrative label, which is the whole point of this thread. It's also true that the Muslim Golden Age and european dark ages overlap, to the extent that you want to think in such terms. OTOH, I would point out that civilized or barbarous, Muslim or Christian, lords abused their subjects.