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Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

nytimes.com

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Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#31

Post by raverbashing »

llamataboot wrote: post #15
notliketherest wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This. The oil that turns the crank of industry and provides the energy that produces so much of every comfort we hold dear in the west finances the very evil that seeks to destroy it. Until we end our reliance of oil, the middle east and Islam will continue to threaten the West's existence. It's a horrible irony.

Islam is not threatening the West's existence.

No, of course not

We just have "Sharia Law" areas in the UK, honour killings in Canada, people getting shot in France and elsewhere because of drawings, etc

And if someone disagrees I'd like to hear your opinion.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#34

Post by idibidiart »

pearjuice wrote: post #25

This is a friendly reminder that the United States have sponsored ISIS when they were still considered freedom fighters against Assad. The United States also happily still do business with ISIS in that they are buying extremely cheap, under market value, oil and capital goods from Iraq exported by ISIS. Of course, none of this is officially documented, just like how not a dollar its whereabouts, of the 40 billion dol…

Well stated.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#35

Post by jqm »

vinceguidry wrote: post #26
happyscrappy wrote: post #22

You can handle female genital mutilation with grace and magnanimity?

You can try to understand the conditions that beget such practices and work to alleviate them.

What if the conditions that beget such practices are a religion? Then what do we do?

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#37

Post by jsprogrammer »

Animats wrote: post #12

The author has a point. Most of the 9/11 attackers were Saudis. Bin Laden was a Saudi. Saudi Arabia is a dysfunctional country propped up by oil money. It's even more insular than it used to be. Saudis used to send their kids to the US to go to college, with Government funding. Now Saudi Arabia has enough educational institutions that they don't do that. Years ago, I met a Saudi girl finishing Stanford who mentioned…

>That route meant a long drive through the boring part of the US.

The US southwest is the boring part? You don't get those desert views anywhere else.

Virtual drive: http://www.brianfolts.com/driver/#origin=stanford&destinatio...

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#39

Post by darkr »

newjersey wrote: post #4
smegel wrote: post #2

And when the oil runs out, just another ISIS.

I was under the impression that the House of Saud supports fundamentalism just so they can stay in power.

So they get ousted (and potentially executed by a baying mob) and suddenly the Sauds they become socially liberal?

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#40

Post by she_moves_on »

One frustrating thing that the author gets wrong is labelling Iran the "Gray Daesh."

Iran has geopolitical conflict with the West, but it's a false equivalent of Saudi Arabia. Iran is a theocracy trying to control a population that growingly wants to be secular. Women in Iran go to university at higher rates than men, can drive, hold office, and vote. Life in Iran for a women is not perfect but is heaven compared to Saudi Arabia.

Iranian sponsored militias like hezbollah are in geopolitical conflicts as Iran wants more regional influence. They want regional islam. They are not trying to establish a global Shiite islamic state.

Like most things it comes down to money and power. Saudi plays ball with America economic hegemony and Iran does not. So rather than allying with the more moderate/educated nation with huge potential to be progressive, we ally with the one that is best for big business and willing to cede military control of the region to us.

The Iranian theocracy is fucked, don't get me wrong. But we really have our priorities in a mess.

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