A common indicator that the system of honor/shame is in full bloom is the degree of pomposity that obtains among the notables in the society.
A genuinely effective social organization does not have time for grand displays of station. Like the standing army that has little to do and so focuses on clean uniforms and parade drills, so institutions that have stopped functioning well turn to grand expressions of pomposity to maintain the heirarchy that otherwise they would be experiencing only in the press of battle.
The mullahs of the Arab world and the Jewish world come to mind.
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