The Trouble With Saudi Arabia

I've often told friends that two trouble spots in the Middle East that don't get a lot of press, but nevertheless present serious danger to the West, are Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

Mention of Pakistan doesn't raise too many eyebrows; while it doesn't get a lot of media attention, everyone knows Pakistan is shaky and unstable -- and has nuclear weapons.

My mention of Saudi Arabia, though, surprises people. Click here for an article in The New York Times by the editorial board, entitled "The World Reaps What the Saudis Sow."

The article discusses Saudi government support for the radical Wahabi sect that is spreading hatred and intolerance throughout the Middle East -- including within Saudi Arabia itself. The article concentrates on Saudi-funded Wahabi interference in tiny Kosovo (population 1.8 million), which has always been known for its moderate version of Islam.

Some quotes:

Ostensibly a critical ally, sheltered from its enemies by American arms and aid, the kingdom has spent untold millions promoting Wahhabism, the radical form of Sunni Islam that inspired the 9/11 hijackers and that now inflames the Islamic State.

And:

Kosovo, rescued from Serbian oppression after months of NATO bombing in 1999, has been known as a tolerant society. For centuries, the Muslim majority has followed the liberal Hanafi version of Islam, which is accepting of others. Since the war, that tradition has been threatened by Saudi-trained imams, their costs paid by Saudi-sponsored charities, preaching the primacy of Shariah law and fostering violent jihad and takfirism, which authorizes the killing of Muslims viewed as heretics.

And:

The Sunni Arab states still do not seem to understand the extent to which extreme versions of Islam imperil them as well. Although the Saudi royal family relies on the Wahhabi clerics for their political legitimacy, the Islamic State accuses the monarchy of corrupting the faith to preserve its power. Since 2014, there have been 20 terrorist attacks in the kingdom, many staged by ISIS.

Goats On A Wall

Amazing footage of goats on the wall of a dam in Italy. Click here for a video of the goats (alpine ibex) on BBC.

Larry Bird - Magic Johnson

Here's an hour-and-a-half documentary on the Larry Bird/Magic Johnson rivalry.

Tesla Exploits Foreign Workers

Click here for an article at CBC News entitled "Tesla vows to address labour issues after report alleges cheap and unsafe jobs for foreign workers."

The article states that a Slovenian named Gregor Lesnik was injured on the job at a Tesla painting facility. Reporters looking into the story found that Lesnik worked as a subcontractor on a B-1 (business) visa. He was supposedly hired into a supervisory position, but was actually doing a lot of hands-on work in unsafe conditions; he suffered two broken legs and a concussion after a three-storey fall.

It turns out that Lesnik was one of 140 Eastern Europeans hired not directly by Tesla, but by Tesla's contractors, for as little as $5 an hour, with no benefits or protections, often in unsafe conditions.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded to the report by saying he "will investigate" the story and "make it right."

A Foreign Opinion Of Obama

I've copied an article by Richard Roy from Quora Digest entitled "What do people who don't live in the US think of Obama?" I think it's a pretty good encapsulation of Obama's presidency.

Another Brit opinion.. Mine (although I know it is shared by many Brits).

When Obama entered the international political stage I was pleased to see the US breaking the stereotypical 'middle aged white man' mold (even though I am a middle aged white man). The mere fact that America would entertain the prospect of a Black president was seen around the world as a big step forward for the nation that is the global leader.

When we began to hear his speeches that positivism was multiplied to the power of 10.... A potential black president who was intelligent, articulate, thoughtful and who, with every word, gained respect around the world.

When Obama won his first term it felt to me as though the world rejoiced -not just for themselves but for America as well!

I don't think many people around the world have a true understanding of just how tough the financial and political legacy he was left with has been for the Obama presidency. Not only has he had to clean up a fiscal mess far larger than any over the last 80 years, he has had to do this while ending two wars and has had to achieve this in the face of the most disruptive and bitter Republican opposition ever seen, by any president, since the American Civil war. Through all of this he has complained very little, maintained his composure and talked about solutions far more than he talks about his political opponents. He has spoken clearly and with passion and has acted in line with his speeches. Sure there are things he has not achieved but everyone knew where he stood and had to respect his genuine efforts to achieve the things he believed in.

In the teeth of huge adversity he has shown a charm and a character quite rightly admired by billions around the world. It is that charm and character that people began to associate with America and you could hardly ask for a more positive model. His personal life is a positive reflection of his public life.

We are not all Americans. We are not directly affected by the domestic politics of the US. But we are all, ultimately, affected by those politics. But from where I sit eight years of President Obama has lifted the worldwide reputation of the US out of a very nasty hole, into which the US reputation was vanishing very quickly, and brought that reputation back to life.

Enemies of the US have been confounded by Obama, whose common sense, positive and inclusive approach has been very hard to criticize. Friends of the US have been able to point to Obama as a positive force in the world.

In actual fact I think the only negative about Obama is that the frustration of his enemies (usually the enemies of the western world) has grown so much over the last eight years that they are almost ready to explode. But I'd rather have it that way than any other.

I completely agree with the US policy (of maximum two terms for any president) but in Obama's case that is a real shame. One can only hope that the next president of the US can build on his legacy and achievements but it's going to be a very tough act to follow. The alternatives pale in comparison -though some very much more than others.

I completely agree with what others have said before, I believe history will be very kind to Mr Obama and quite right too.

Biden, Effective VP

Click here for an article in American Prospect by Paul Waldman entitled The Real Stakes in the Veepstakes. It was John Nance Garner, VP to FDR for eight years before he resigned over the president's proposal to pack the Supreme Court, who compared the office to "a bucket of warm piss." John Adams and Daniel Webster also had a derisory description of the vice presidency. Walter Mondale, before he became Carter's VP, submitted a list of demands; Carter accepted, and Mondale, with 12 year's experience in the Senate, was very helpful guiding Carter, who had no Washington experience; and the vice president has been more effective ever since (with the mind-boggling exception of the cipher Dan Quayle; Sarah Palin, thank God, didn't make it).

The article is about the selection of a vice president in 2016, but I like the description of Biden's effeciveness:

... one of the great unsung accomplishments of Obama’s tenure is the 2009 Recovery Act, in which the administration not only stopped the economy’s bleeding, but also successfully distributed $787 billion in a relatively short time with barely any of that famous “waste, fraud, and abuse” everyone talks about in Washington—not to mention no major corruption scandals. Biden oversaw and coordinated that implementation. As Michael Grunwald writes in his book about the law, The New New Deal, in the two years after it was passed, Biden “would convene twenty-two cabinet meetings on the Recovery Act, more than the president would convene on all topics, and visit fifty-six stimulus projects. He’d host fifty-seven conference calls with governors and mayors, and spend countless hours checking in, buttering up and banging heads to keep the cash flowing. He’d speak about the stimulus with every governor except Sarah Palin, who abruptly resigned to pursue a career in punditry and reality TV before he had a chance. He’d also block 260 Recovery Act projects that didn’t pass his smell test.”