Obama hails the late Saudi King Abdullah

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

Source: Politico

The White House on Thursday praised the late King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al Saud of Saudi Arabia, a longtime close ally of the United States — if sometimes a troublesome one.

“King Abdullah’s life spanned from before the birth of modern Saudi Arabia through its emergence as a critical force within the global economy and a leader among Arab and Islamic nations,” President Barack Obama said in a statement.

“He took bold steps in advancing the Arab Peace Initiative, an endeavor that will outlive him as an enduring contribution to the search for peace in the region. At home, King Abdullah’s vision was dedicated to the education of his people and to greater engagement with the world.”

Abdullah, who died at age 90 reportedly of pneumonia, collaborated closely with President George W. Bush’s administration after the 9/11 attacks, which temporarily heightened tensions between Saudi Arabia and the United States. Abdullah tangled with the Obama White House in recent years as disputes between Washington and Riyadh over how to handle events such as the Arab Spring, the Syrian civil war and the emergence of the Islamic State in Syria and the Levant spilled into public view.


Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/01/obama-king-abdullah-saudi-arabia-114522.html#ixzz3Pc0S2lEh

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/01/obama-king-abdullah-saudi-arabia-114522.html?hp=l1_3

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Ugh. How Bush-esque of him.

Reminds me of Clinton praising that rightwing, murderous Suharto as "our guy."

The bipartisan fawning over this brutal, repressive dictator just goes to show you the parties always agree on what's worst for the world (See also: Corporate "free" trade deals, coddling China, etc)

[GeorgeGist]

1. Oil is a favored lubricant among the elite.

[99th_Monkey]

2. I hope this doesn't mean O is kissing Bandar-Bush's Ring

Does it?

[BeanMusical]

8. Well, maybe not his ring.

[sabbat hunter]

22. What do you expect him to say

that the king was a bastard, who manipulated oil prices and suppressed his people?

[99th_Monkey]

24. I suppose

but he might have 'damned him with faint praise.'

but after all, he is dead, so I'm definitely cutting O some slack on this one.

[hibbing]

3. All hail the king!

Graciously bow down to his majesty.

Peace

[Demeter]

4. Moms Mabley: They say you shouldn't say nothin' about the dead unless it's good.

He's dead.

Good!

[densan]

5. 15 Sauidi's

Yeah, thanks for 9/11 - never forget... even if the truth is more complicated...

[Fred Sanders]

6. Sounds more like a dull eulogy and recitation of history than a "hailing".

I watch Game of Thrones, that is some poor hail for a dead King.

[Surya Gayatri]

14. Exactly, damned with faint praise...

On the international diplomatic stage, BHO could hardly have got away with any less.

Basic protocol remains de rigeur, whatever his personal feelings about the old fart.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

7. There's already conspiracy theorists claiming he was assassinated to raise the price of oil.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

9. I guess the illuminati and the freemasons magically aged him into his 90s first

after that, it was easy to pull of their scheme, which the stonecutters did the heavy lifting on.

[leftynyc]

17. It's not working

Price is down another 1.3% today (so far). Seriously? A conspiracy theory about a 90 year old who has been sick for so long?

[Spitfire of ATJ]

18. The Middle East is the home of Woo.

[leftynyc]

19. Probably showing my advanced age here

but I have no clue what that means. I'm going to guess that conspiracy theories are ubiquitous in the Middle East?

[Spitfire of ATJ]

20. It's based in part on Lou Costello....

There were several times when he would be in the clutches of some raving lunatic talking about all kinds of crazy stuff and he would do the "Woo" sound.

[leftynyc]

21. I vaguely remember that

woo woo woo thing that Costello did. But thanks for pointing me in the right direction.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

10. "Saudi man executed for 'witchcraft and sorcery' "

This is the regime Biden is going to fly over there to eulogize:

A Saudi man has been beheaded on charges of sorcery and witchcraft, the state news agency SPA says.

The man, Muree bin Ali bin Issa al-Asiri, was found in possession of books and talismans, SPA said. He had also admitted adultery with two women, it said.

The execution took place in the southern Najran province, SPA reported.

Human rights groups have repeatedly condemned executions for witchcraft in Saudi Arabia.

Last year, there were reports of at least two people being executed for sorcery.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-18503550

[AngryAmish]

11. .

[malthaussen]

12. Reminds me of the old joke about Queen Victoria

"How long did Abdullah reign?"
"TOO LONG!!!"

-- Mal

[treestar]

13. We don't know much about him personally

I don't like the way the Saudis run their country, but a lot of them seem to agree with it. Brutal dictator doesn't seem to apply.

[Lurks Often]

15. King Abdullah was a reformer and a moderate by Saudi standards

" He also gave women the right to vote and to compete in the Olympics"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdullah_of_Saudi_Arabia#King_of_Saudi_Arabia

Also see the section on philanthropy at the above link.


I'm not saying that King Abdullah is a saint or that I would want to live in Saudi Arabia or that there is room for drastic changes there. What I am saying is that the view that King Abdullah was all bad shows a superficial knowledge of him and his country and is typical of the arrogance so many Americans show when they decide they should have some say in how another country runs it's internal affairs.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

16. Too many people try to judge a country by it's leaders....

Historically, most people have no control over who is in charge of the country and DON'T CARE.

A good example of that would be if you lived in Tahiti. Would you even CARE if there is some symbolic monarch that's there for state functions?

[leveymg]

27. A real visionary. A King who brought his subjects from the 12th Century into the 17th.

And, a frenemy America.

[yurbud]

23. thanks for the contribution to the 9/11 hijackers including money, logistics, and intel agents...

shepherding the whole deal.



An overview of Saudi government support for terror (not updated to include ISIS).

[Stephen Retired]

25. NBC's Richard Engel: Obama Statement Ironic Because Abdullah 'Could Not Stand' Him

[leveymg]

26. Obama is consistently more gracious than his enemies and rivals. Abdullah was just another frenemy

His replacement is worse - one of the Sudairi Seven group of tyrants who have bankrolled the Taliban, Al Qaeda, ISIS and the rest of the cutthroat Sunni religious warriors.