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2003-05-14 Arabia

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Posted by Fred Pruitt 2003-05-14 12:42 pm|| || Front Page|| [5 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 What an interesting set of articles. Have you guys heard all this before? Could this be the start of a sea change? (I'm not THAT hopeful, I'm just groping for alternatives to killing them all)

Posted by Scott 2003-05-14 15:07:49|| 2003-05-14 15:07:49|| Front Page Top

#2 Yeah, you see it from a little different viewpoint when they're trying to blow YOU up...

Posted by tu3031 2003-05-14 15:41:58|| 2003-05-14 15:41:58|| Front Page Top

#3 Scott: Very interesting, indeed. An anecdote: When I left Saudi in '88 (Jeddah, 6 years), society there was debating satellite dishes. They were still ILLEGAL, however, when I left. Fastforward to '97 and I'm sitting for an interview to work in Riyadh. I ask the guy about the dish situation, and he didn't know what I was talking about. I arrive and they're perfectly legal. TV ads, newspaper ads, shops. Dish, dish, dish!!! What the hell had happened? The Royals and the merchant classes had made a pact with the devil. In exchange for Wahibite cleric permission for dish legalization, the Royals had to open purse strings for the propagation of Wahibite theology on a much more intensive scale than had been done before. "Iqra'a" satellite channel, $ for madrassas world-wide, mosque construction world-wide, etc, recognition of Taliban in Afghanistan. Royals and merchants got to set up networks in London/Rome for direct transmission into Kingdom: ANA, MBC, Orbit,etc. Western influence on one hand and Wahibite repression on the other simultaneously. What a formula!! Wahibites also got their way re domestic education curricula. Look at the result.

Sea change? Maybe, but young smart Royals have to take over and upset the apple cart and have Saudi join 21st century and will have to ruthless and flexible at same time to cope with a force that is ruthless and inflexible. They haven't shown they are capable of doing the job as of yet.

Advantage us: Royals will want to preserve their power and will act in their own interests, which will coincide with ours. They will be less arrogant.

Advantage them: They don't give a damn about human life and will try to take everybody down with them to visit the 72 white raisins.

GBW and smart folks in Muslim world: Patience, audacity, and thinking out of the box are only solutions.

Let's keep our eyes on MEMRI.org for Kingdom's Arabic language press to monitor situation. Anyone who was good at Kremlin-watching will find those skills useful. The 21st century has its first full-fledged crisis on hand. Think in Cold War time terms (50 years is not out of question) as far as when we find out who the winners are.

Posted by Michael 2003-05-14 16:10:24|| 2003-05-14 16:10:24|| Front Page Top

#4 Mike, that explains a lot. Difficult not to see Islam as one black box. But if there are differences, good to know which to root for/against.

tu - Think so? My anecdote: '83 - Lived in apt complex next to several Arabs who went to Spartan School of Aeronautics. They were from Saudi, Egypt, Iraq and Syria. Some in Flight. Some in Avionics/A&P. Wondered even back then if we were training our own enemies. I was studying ministry, and I befriended and talked to them about God. One (Egyptian - Yasser) even said he came to believe Jesus to be God's Son. (which is accross the line for a Muslim) When the others heard about it, they warned he and I not to tell the Saudi (Mahdi) or he would try to kill Yasser and I , even here in America. Took him and several others to the wildest church I could find the next Sunday.
They may hate Ariel Sharon, but they fear Franklin Graham.

Posted by Scott 2003-05-14 16:58:02|| 2003-05-14 16:58:02|| Front Page Top

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