You are right it is totally meaningless. The similar argument that science is particularly suited to the religion of western europe suffers from similar flaws

You are right it is totally meaningless. The similar argument that science is particularly suited to the religion of western europe suffers from similar flaws and is generally overdrawn. It isn't really accurate to describe science "as flowering in muslim lands" when in reality the patronage of rulers with disposable income was far more important than any religious beliefs. Simply spending money won't create a healthy respect for science in a culture that doesn't respect it. The timidity that the article describes is still very pervasive. I don't see an easy way out for many of these societies. Simply changing government policy or spending more money can be counter productive and serve as a crutch that hides the real problem.