Even where the Ottoman Empire ruled, Jews were considered metics — foreign resident groups, with semi-autonomous deferential administrations.
Even where the religious restrictions are squarely outlined, the sense of defilement that underlines the rules has largely been imposed by male religious scholars or leaders.
Mr Haugen points out that even countries where the rule of law is now reasonably secure used to have corrupt and violent police, dysfunctional legal systems and de facto impunity for the rich and powerful.
To achieve equal opportunity you must have what the athletes have: an even playing field where the rules are public and goals are clear.
This can lead to politics played out that can be intense and sometimes even debilitating, especially at institutions where the rules of engagement are ill defined or not respected.
At its best, Dungeons & Dragons is a game without limits, where even the rules themselves can be subsumed by the logic and necessity of shared storytelling.
Along Ngong Road, one of Nairobi's busiest arteries, people wondered whether drivers could be persuaded to obey traffic lights, even smart ones, in a city where the rules of the road seem to be open to personal interpretation.
And there have already been cases where the rules were broken -- even while the rules actually applied.
The train had left the station, and she had found an "all-too-comfortable seat" on board "among the other pathetic, whimpering fools, and soon to depart for destinations doomed, deranged and possibly even unsanitary — where the heart rules and the mind follows".
These challenges might be even more pronounced in a developing country like India where the rules are not always that clear and conflicts of interest proliferate.
