Balkanization of the Middle East?

Middle East is not easy to understand, as is always misled the foreign powers to mis-shape it according to their own understanding of the region. Since a century ago, Middle East's borders have been in a constant change. Changes with one thing in common, always imposed by foreign powers. These changes has one more thing in common, the tendency toward splitting the region into smaller administrative regions. Changes took an awkward turn when oil found, as many states were created out of tribes not nations. Looking at today's Middle East, you either see failed states, or small consumer entities that cannot depend on themselves. Why the region failed when it was once one of the leading progressive entities in the world? Rulership has always been a strange thing: when it stems from the demand of those who were ruled (we are not talking about democracy here), it's always more successful. When it's imposed by the others, it alienates itself form the ruled, even if it's sufficient enough. When the Middle East is not ruled by the others, it's ruled by those who are dependent on the others, or have a strict belief in the other's way of life and politics. Middle East finds it difficult to stabilize because it does not have local rulers, local researchers, local ambitions, etc. As the rulers advocate for

democracy while imposing dictatorship, the researchers try to find out the latest trend in the west, while youths suffer from lack of places to reside. As a Middle Eastern, I see the problem as: a people with no hope of making something out parlous situation. The vision of future is sacrificed to the waiting for the invincible westerns to surprise us with any invention, far beyond our imagination. This is true not only for iPad and BlackBerry, but the way of life and ruling. And it's hard for me to say we'd always be losing unless we grow some sort of local thinking. In the other words, unless we improve our self-esteem and try to surprise the world, and even help them with what we can do. Unless people decide to act for a big project in mind, nothing can appear from those who are delighted with discussing Apple's latest invention, or Fukuyama's latest theory. Don't take me wrong, I'm not saying the 'evil other' is the cause, but saying we are the cause since we do not have a hope of making ourselves something instead of waiting for the mercy of the other. The change which we see at the moment carries hope, yet we should know the real change should be in people's way of thought not rulers, otherwise we may see Middle East caught in a huge trend of Balkanization, as it once did one century ago.