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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

#41

Post by phil248 »

krmmalik wrote: post #7

I'm sorry but i find that article rather myopic. Most of the claims in that article seem more opinion than good research. For those that are interested in getting a balanced view can get their own research on what life is actually like in Saudi Arabia by talking to a large community of expats there that would rather not return to home soil. That said, Saudi arabia enjoys healthy support from the west and has done so…

If I want an accurate view of life in a foreign country, the last people I would ask are ex-patriots.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#42

Post by jonesb6 »

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…

I went to a school in the North West with a large international program. A ton of students were Saudi Arabian. The new king actually raised their living stipend. Students are payed something like $1000 for every time they are published, regardless of the journal's reputation.

I think at high levels they realize their reliance on oil will be their downfall. And they are making huge investments in education (in my experience mostly for men) and I believe renewables as well.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#43

Post by vinceguidry »

jqm wrote: post #35
vinceguidry wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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?

Do Muslims in the West practice female genital mutilation? I was unaware.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#44

Post by nova »

raverbashing wrote: post #31
llamataboot wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

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

No opinions, only censorship.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#45

Post by gnaritas »

raverbashing wrote: post #31
llamataboot wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Gangs and crime aren't new, none of those things threaten our existence or the western way of life.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#46

Post by jon-wood »

raverbashing wrote: post #31
llamataboot wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

We do not have Sharia Law areas in the UK. I have no idea where that story came from, but its not based on fact. Particularly amusing was the Fox News coverage of areas of Birmingham where apparently white people can't go - my white friends who've lived there for decades would like to dispute that.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#47

Post by amalag »

she_moves_on wrote: post #40

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…

Amazing how one theocracy, Saudi Arabia, is ok, but the other theocracy, Iran, is bad.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#49

Post by pavel_lishin »

jsprogrammer wrote: post #37
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...

I would imagine that a Saudi Arabian exchange student wouldn't have "desert views" high on their list of sight-seeing priorities.

Re: Saudi Arabia, an ISIS That Has Made It

#50

Post by maelito »

she_moves_on wrote: post #40

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…

I believe the colors for the author denote only the degree of geopolitical conflict
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