More important than Muslim control may have been the spirit of dissent evident in the words of some major figures, the free-thinking challenges that made scientific inquiry possible, the mixing of cultural currents that tested varying perspectives.
Does anyone really doubt that the outcome of the Lilly Ledbetter case would have been different if the majority of Supreme Court justices had faced the kind of discrimination Ledbetter or their colleague Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had? Ginsburg, as is evident from her dissent, saw the facts of the discrimination a lot differently than her male counterparts.
The ease with which Musharraf has crushed dissent was evident at Punjab University, where Khan emerged yesterday after two weeks in hiding.
This concern was evident in Scalia's dissent in the Hamdi case, in which he asserted that an American citizen in his home country is always entitled to a judicial hearing justifying detention - unless Congress suspends the writ of habeas corpus.
Andrew Lansley has reiterated his determination to drive the health and social care bill through parliament – regardless of the opposition of professional medical organisations, all but one of the royal colleges, evident public disquiet and dissent from senior members of his own party.
Calder Valley residents have an independent mind-set, the roots of which may be traced way back to the tradition of nonconformity and dissent which was evident a couple of centuries ago.
Nowhere is the deliberate censorship of "free" dissenting voices more evident than in the radio industry, a significant majority of which turned against the Dixie Chicks.
The crackdown on dissent and increase in repression evident in Putin's Russia after the protests has also dashed hopes that the renewed willingness of Russian citizens to protest would lead to change in the country.
After the war, dictators naturally suppressed the signals of dissent that would otherwise have become evident in the 1960s and beyond.
Tighter controls to prevent dissent, let alone a "color revolution," are evident reminders of the past.
Like others, she suspected that Roberts' opinion was originally a dissent -- and that the sudden shift in tone and logic is plainly evident in his language.
