Gee, next thing you know, the House of Saud will stop funding terrorists and Jihadi schools.
Naaahhhh.
Category: House of Saud
Bush Begging People Who Sowed the Seeds of 911
Yep, this is the result of 6 years of failed Bush policies, he goes to the House of Saud to beg for help.
This must be some sort of definition of “returning honor and dignity to the White House” that I was unaware of:
……These days, President George W. Bush needs the world’s biggest exporter of crude more than it needs him.
With oil at about $90 a barrel, the U.S. economy at risk of sliding into recession and American banks trying to raise cash to ride out the subprime-mortgage crisis, Bush has become a supplicant for Saudi financial help.
….
Senator Hillary Clinton tried to turn it into an object of derision by describing Bush as “begging the Saudis” to cut the price of oil. “How pathetic,” she said.
I got your back on this statement, Hill.
Pathetic.
Militants Cultivated By Pakistani ISI Now Out of Control
The Pakistani intelligence service, the ISI, has for some time cultivated networks of militants, with the idea of being to control them.
Well, it appears now that these militants are saying, “So long and thanks for all the fish.”
As the military has moved against them, the militants have turned on their former handlers, the officials said. Joining with other extremist groups, they have battled Pakistani security forces and helped militants carry out a record number of suicide attacks last year, including some aimed directly at army and intelligence units as well as prominent political figures, possibly even Benazir Bhutto.
The growing strength of the militants, many of whom now express support for Al Qaeda’s global jihad, presents a grave threat to Pakistan’s security, as well as NATO efforts to push back the Taliban in Afghanistan. American officials have begun to weigh more robust covert operations to go after Al Qaeda in the lawless border areas because they are so concerned that the Pakistani government is unable to do so.
This was absolutely forseeable. It was a marriage of convenience on both sides.
In a very real way, it mirrors the US relationship with Pakistan….And the House of Saud….And the sh^%tty little oil monarchies all across the Gulf….etc.
Yes, Saddam Was a Tyrant, But He Had Nothing on the House of Saud
A 19 year old woman is gang raped. The court’s solution is 200 lashes and a six-month prison sentence for her.
The House of Saud has created a backward and evil society, and bribed most of the Arab and Islamic world int following their twisted view of the world and divine using found money in the form of oil revenues.
Most of the 911 hijackers were subjects of the House of Saud.
If there is a bright and shining center to the Arab or Islamic world, the House of Saud is at the place farthest from it.
UK Investigation of BAE-Saudi Bribes Back On
About a year ago, Tony Blair canceled a serious fraud investigation of a very large arms deal between BAE Systems* and the House of Saud under threat of cancellation of the order, and now two NGOs have been given permission to investigate an investigation of this decision under the OECD’s Anti-Bribery Convention.
It’s pretty clear that bribery was involved, I believe that Prince Bandar got over a billion dollars in “consulting fees”, for example, and the House of Saud was quite clear that any investigation of kickbacks would result in the cancellation of the contract for multi-billion dollar purchase of Eurofighter Typhoons.
*Full disclosure, I worked at a BAE Systems facility as a contractor from June 2005 (about, depends on when the sale went through) through Decmeber 2006 as a contractor. I had no involvement with this deal however.
September New Home Sales Up on Suspect Numbers
I remember when this was occurring routinely with the job reports. For a while, it seemed as regular as a ticking clock, the previous numbers were revised down, and the current numbers were a big gain over the revised numbers. This slight of hand that only convinces the truly dense and economics reporters* served primarily to boost Bush’s numbers.
Well, it appears to have happened again, this time with Housing. New home sales are reported to have 4.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 770,000 from a revised 735,000 (it was originally 795000) in August. Very convenient how all those revisions work.
So, we were down by 25,000 from the first reported number, but it’s an increase because the number was corrected downward.
Anyone want to guess if this happens next month?
*But I’m repeating myself.
Saudis Appear To Drop Dollar Peg on Riyal
The Saudis have been pegging the Riyal to the Dollar for years. One of the things that this requires is that the interest rates in the two countries remain the same, otherwise there are pressures for them to move relative to each other.
The Saudis have made it clear that they will not follow the recent Federal Reserve rate cuts.
This will place further downward pressure on the dollar, and make it more likely that other Arab oil Sheikdoms will follow suit. Kuwait actually preceded them on this action, breaking the peg in May.
Once Again, The Japanese Bomb Pearl Harbor, and We Attack New Zealand
There is an interesting story in the Los Angeles Times.
It appears that the bulk, if not the outright majority of the foreign fighters in Iraq killing our boys are Saudi.
Not Syrian. Not Iranian. Saudi.
About 45% of all foreign militants targeting U.S. troops and Iraqi civilians and security forces are from Saudi Arabia; 15% are from Syria and Lebanon; and 10% are from North Africa, according to official U.S. military figures made available to The Times by the senior officer. Nearly half of the 135 foreigners in U.S. detention facilities in Iraq are Saudis, he said.
Impeach Dick Cheney today. Impeach George W. Bush Tomorrow.