"Saudi Arabia is kinda interesting, because a lot of Middle Eastern terrorist groups consist of Saudis. But their 'government', as far as we know, works hard at fighting terror and does not support them. It's tough to single that country out, because there are active cells and recruitment throughout the world. But there's no doubt that people are watching that region after 9/11."
The thing is, I'm not sure the government is working all that hard, at all. The royal family is in a very, very unstable position right now, something that a lot of poeple don't seem to be aware of. The country is going through a HUGE population boom, with a huge percentage of their population under 20. The problem is, there's also an extremely high unemployment rate, and a very underdeveloped job market. A lot of the high paying jobs are done by ex-patriats brought into the country from other nations, and most of the lower paying, (paralleling out minimum waged jobs) are taken by immigrants from countries like the philipines. As well, the society puts a huge emphasis on religion, (most of the prominent members in that society are clerics), which prompts a huge number of younger people to study islam in universities. Most of these graduates have grown up in very wealthy families, and expect to continue that lifestyle once they get out on their own. The problem is, a degree in islamic studies doesn't provide for a whole lot of job opportunities, which creates a lot of frustration, and a lot of anger towards the government in seeing all the expats being given high paying jobs by government funded companies. That part only explains the upper class. On top of that, there's a major division of wealth. The oil boom in Saudi Arabia in the 30's created a very unstable economy; there's virtually no middle class (only extremely wealthy and extremely poor), and the entire economy is basically dependant on oil. Add this to the unemployment problem, and you get a lot of angry, frustrated young people, who see their government investing in foreign compainies, bringing in foreign workers and investors, and not doing a thing to help out the lower class. That in itself all sounds pretty scary, but I haven't even mentioned the education system. Most of the universities are run by clerics, and a large majority of them practice, and even more unsettling, teach fundamentalist islam to their students. Imagine a whole generation of poor, frustrated young people growing up with their entire education system run by islamic fundamentalist clerics.
So the government is in an extremely tough spot right now. Cater to the the wants and needs of their citizens, many of whom are very anti-western, very fundamentalist, and they'll jeopardize they're ties with the western world. Risking that could mean risking their entire economy, seeing as how it's entirely dependant on oil exports. On the flip side, continue to work in such close proximity with the western world, and allowing foreign countries such control over the economy and over the businesses, and they'll be dealing with a major crisis with their citizens. So far they've been able to keep it in balance, just barely, but it can't last forever, and I really dread how bad it could be when it does fall apart.
ok, that was long.
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What you've done becomes the judge of what you're going to do -- especially in other people's minds. When you're traveling, you are what you are right there and then. People don't have your past to hold against you. No yesterdays on the road.
William Least Heat Moon, Blue Highways
Your toughest competitor lives in your head. Some days his name is fear, or pain, or gravity. Stomp his ass.
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