[KevinDavis]

I did see something about the Ottoman Empire, and they where much more different than the Caliphates. I think the Congressmen means that a Super Caliphate is being created and that is my gut feeling..

[RightCenter]

the Ottomans were despotic, but fairly unzealous as far as a caliphate went. in the 18th and 19th centuries they were all about being decadent and smoking the hashish. if they had stuck around we wouldn’t have Salafi radicals clamoring for a caliphate, because the anemic Ottoman Sultan would already be their caliph.

[muawiyah]

If it's Iran pushing anything they're behind reorganizing the ME and Near East as a Persian Empire. If it's the Arabs, they are after a Caliphate (their term for the same thing only it's looser with more warlords 'cause that's what they do). If it's the Turks they want a tax farm so they call it an empire but move the capital to wherever they are!

Each of these groups assumes it is superior to the others and of greater worth. Right in the middle there are the Kurds ~ Salaldin took over the Empire after the Turks had softened it up subtantially. He was a Kurd yet he did nothing for his peeps ~ just left them hanging in the breeze.