Posted on 04/25/2005 11:24:28 AM PDT by Uncledave
when I watched the greeting live on tv yeterday, my first reaction was to be startled .. but then I remembered that the Saudi Royal family members often have very serious eye problems, and with the natural setting of the Crawford ranch, I think President Bush was afraid the Prince might not see shallow steps or something else that could trip him. I really think President Bush was just being courteous to a near-blind guest.
Bush is super gracious. Why should he compromise his natural graciousness for any reason.
Besides, if his culturally sensitive graciousness yields an extra XX,XXX,XXX barrels of oil or possibly does, would that be too big a price to pay--being his naturally gracious Bush?
I know. .....especially with U.S. taxpayer money.
Kisses don't yield extra barrels of oil, I assure you.
Yeah, but the President gave the Prince his left hand.
IN relationships, diplomacy,
every litter bit helps, imho.
Who knows, but God what straw won the game or broke the camel's back.
House of Saud falls. Al Qaeda takes over. Al Qaeda, now the rulers, begin to slaughter their opponents and accumulate weapons of mass destruction.
U.S. goes in just like Iraq. (Alternative scenario: U.S. gives Israel the green light to take out major threat) Whips their butts. Secures the oil fields. Establishes a democracy.
What's the down side?
My sons had plenty of healthily affectionate fathering. They're all family men and hard workers. They never saw me kiss and hold hands with foriegners either.
With foreigners is not the priority . . . for a father.
Great to hear they turned out wonderfully.
Social science studies deal in generalities, as you probably know.
"U.S. goes in just like Iraq. (Alternative scenario: U.S. gives Israel the green light to take out major threat) Whips their butts. Secures the oil fields. Establishes a democracy."
1. How can israel take out a major threat occupying a country like 100x their size? What are the targets? How does this result in military occupation of SA?
2. How long does it take for the US to mobilize resources and equipment from iraq and other places to go in 'just like iraq?'
3. What happens to the world petro market in this time frame? How does this affect the world economy, particularly if the saudi wells are taken off line or set on fire?
No battle plan survives contact with the enemy. The fall of the house of saud would be a major international event and it is unrealistic to expect the enemy and other interested nations (meaning all of them) to sit around while the US mobilized (how long would that take) without taking active rolls themselves. This would be a huge disaster.
Anathema!!!
Abdullah: "My dear friend...do you know how they separate the men from the boys in our lovely desert kingdom?"
GW:"Why no I don't"
Abduallah: "With crowbars my friend"
Is this a "Jeff Gannon" photo?
More correctly, I am not addressing the morality of war, pro or con. My comments are logistic and political in nature. I try not to moralize about politics, since invariably politicians often don't act in moral interests but rather in interests of realpolitik (their own personal or their country's, variably, clinton really bad about the former), particularly in the matter of who we are bombing or invading at any particular period in time. Note that subsequent to a decision to take military action for other reasons, 'moral' motivations are usually trotted out for public indoctrination/consumption, and some people believe them.
While morality can justify just about anything depending on one's views, and could be used to justify invading SA and deposing the royal family, what form of government is going to replace them? (this question assumes such an invasion doesn't start the fire that leads to world war three, which I think it could)
"Secures the oil fields. Establishes a democracy."
As an aside, what sort of government do you think saudi arabia would elect? The obvious concern is a wahabi-bent government that openly hates our guts, but is democratically elected.
No tongues!
I'm am American living in Morocco and, believe me, all men/boys who are friends hold hands: old men, young men, schoolchildren. It is utterly normal and unremarked upon -- except by visiting Americans. It's just a custom. I wish the reaction had been more muted and thoughtful in the US to the photograph of Bush and the prince; it certainly would help people in the US who saw it as shocking, weird, gay, etc. I recently met a news photographer who was visiting Morocco, and she said that the one thing the (typically young) American soldiers she met in Iraq couldn't get over was the fact that male friends in Iraq hold hands. She said it freaked them out. Doesn't the Armed Forces have cultural training courses? Geez.
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