The meaning of 'friendship' in Riyadh's case has been distorted beyond all reality.
I'm still trying to get used to conservatives that are anti war because they normally are very pro the establishment and their wars. Anyway, some good stuff in this article.
BTW, there was English right-winger on YouTube the other day who kept complaining about the elites, and he said he stood up for the ordinary guy, like the way Alex Jones says he does. I wrote underneath saying that most conservatives still want to support the aristocracy but what they don't like is that many of the elite have now become social liberals, or rather, neoliberals. But these neoliberal elites were still just as hawkish about war, the economy, and imperialism as the old aristocracy were.
It is difficult to imagine how a country that has spent billions of dollars both around the world and in America supporting a virulently anti-American jihadist ideology can be considered a friend. Adherents of this ideology, Saudis, comprised the leadership, the funders, the operatives, and 15 of the 19 hijackers who attacked us on September 11, 2001, killing 3,000 Americans. Yet Riyadh has not stopped funding madrassas overseas that teach extremism (despite a recent pledge to do just that), enabling these schools to breed and train new terrorists for the last five decades. America’s leadership has turned a blind eye in order to continue to protect their money flow.
Our national leaders also tell us that selling weapons to the Kingdom gives us the benefit of jobs in our country. This is somewhat deceptive. To paraphrase TAC columnist Doug Bandow: we do have people working to make the weapons, but we do not fully benefit from the export of arms because we do not benefit from them here. Instead, the products are sent overseas, often at our expense.
Also, due to this shortsighted practice, our technology and resources end up in dangerous and unstable regions where our own weapons are often used against our troops. The arms bonanza also raises serious questions about arming a bunch of nations that are hospitable to terrorist organizations. What is in it for America besides large sums of money for lobbyists and politicians?
The American Conservative$100 Billion in Weapons to the Saudis Buys a World Full of Hurt
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On 9 Aug 2018 the Saudis directed a laser-guided Lockheed Mk 82 bomb at a school bus full of children. The bus had stopped in Dahyan for refreshments after a picnic, and was heading back to the school. The Saudis murdered 20 adult civilians, plus 30 children, most of them 10 years old and younger. Another 48 civilians were wounded.
The Saudi Crown Prince declared the children a “legitimate military target.” A few days later the Saudis bombed a funeral for one of the victims, killing and maiming another dozen people. The Saudi Crown Prince said the civilian victims were “human shields.”
U.S. “Defense” (sic) Secretary James Mattis said the U.S. helps the Saudis to murder civilians to “prevent civilian casualties.”
In March 2016 the Saudis bombed the Kames Market in Mastaba, murdering 97 civilians, including 25 children. In Oct 2016 the Saudis bombed a funeral hall in Sanaa, killing 195 civilians.
In between those atrocities, the Saudis bombed hospitals, schools, power plants and water treatment facilities.
Trump blesses all this. So did Obama and Hillary and almost everyone else in Washington.
If I go to hell when I die, I won’t be lonely.
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