There are several ways in which being nonaligned would have offered an advantage and disadvantage to a developing nation during the Cold War, but in general they would have been able to trade with both sides.
The most straightforward theory for Western Rome's collapse pins the fall on a string of military losses sustained against outside forces. Rome had tangled with Germanic tribes for centuries, but by the 300s “barbarian” groups like the Goths had encroached beyond the Empire's borders.
Mahmud ll was the sultan during that time.
Postive effects could be that it brings people together, gives them a community for supporting each other, focuses their attention on God. It provides a moral framework, comfort for those in need, the promise of an afterlife... and so on.
Negative effects are that the different religions can be seen to inspire conflict in the world, some might say that they focus people too much on religious things rather than on day to day things (so you lose the plot basically!).
