The New York Times reports that the Group of 8 countries has pledged up to $20 billion to assist the development of democracies in Egypt and Tunisia and to further encourage the "Arab Spring" in other countries. I wonder if their funds would be better spent shoring up the cratering economies of Greece, Spain, Ireland, and other already-developed democracies that are on the verge of economic disaster. Might be a better chance of a decent return on their investment.
Interestingly, while the U.S. and its allies are encouraging springtime in Arabia, the "moderate" Saudis seem to have decided that they've had enough spring for a while. As the New York Times reported, the Saudis are investing billions and making diplomatic moves to bolster the monarchies of the region and to deter anymore changes in leadership, despots included. So our close "allies" in the Gulf are adopting a policy directly contrary to ours.
It's hard to decide what is more outrageous: the fact that our close"ally" in the Gulf has adopted a policy directly contrary to ours, or the fact that much of the media and Western leaders often label as "moderate" countries in the Middle East where power is passed down from father to son, women are second-class citizens at best, gays are treated like criminals, and other religions are often merely tolerated, at best.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
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The US has had a bad history of seeking out friends and allies similar to the Gulf State monarchies. The US government takes for granted the friends they already have who have proven their friendship, such as the countries you mention (including Israel) and always gets disappointed in the end. I agree- the money is better spent in those democracies where their economies are hanging on by a thread.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog, I enjoyed reading it
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