Originally Posted by
Typhoonpilot
I'll ask you again, have you ever visited any of the cities that you are discussing here? Have you dealt with the citizens on a daily basis? or do you just get your news from CNN and Fox?
Originally Posted by
Typhoonpilot
Indeed, might answer my first question above. Google is so much better than actually going somewhere in person and living there for 11 years
Nope, never been to UAE yet. Yes, I get my news from CNN and FOX and MSNBC and BBC and Al Jazeera and books and magazines and the internet. I trust no one source because every single source I read or watch is biased. But I like to think I'm reasonably intelligent enough to take those pieces and make a tapestry.
Westerners who visit Pyongyang (North Korea) and who deal with North Korean citizens are treated pretty well, too. I've never been to Pyongyang. I only know what I read, Google, and see on TV. When one sees interviews of North Korean citizens on Western TV, for example, the North Korean citizens will tell you how happy they are and how wonderful their leadership is with a big, fat smile on their faces. And I read that the North Korean citizens who live in Pyongyang are treated very well- 3 squares a day, modern amenities, jobs, entertainment (parades!), etc. So I guess if I didn't "Google" and went by what those Western Pyongyang visitors say, and what the country's own citizens say, I'd think being a North Korean ain't that bad!
Originally Posted by
Typhoonpilot
Because there were Iranian infiltrators trying to stir up a Shia versus Sunni revolt to destabilize the country. Would you rather have had Bahrain go the way of Libya, Syria, and Egypt? That's been working out really well for those countries and their citizens so far, hasn't it?
He-he. Probably major thread drift. My fault. I think your friends in the UAE (and Saudi Arabia) sent those forces in because they were afraid of not being able to "keep their heads" if the Spring kept rolling- not for altruistic reasons. Perhaps a discussion for another thread.
Originally Posted by
Typhoonpilot
Americans, like yourself, who have not travelled extensively tend to be quite narrow in their view of how the world actually works. It takes quite a few years of living outside of the USA to break out of the sheltered concepts that we grew up with. Sure America is great, so is western Europe in large part. Sadly, the rest of the world is not that way. It is a really nasty world and 5/6th of the population has to deal with political, security, economic, religious, hunger, sanitation, etc, issues on a daily basis.
Yikes, I haven't traveled extensively? Hmmm......My APC username isn't enough for you?
I do agree with you that most Americans who haven't traveled outside the US do have quite sheltered views. How many times have we heard, "What if you get sick in
(insert country here)?" and we have to tell that (disbelieving) person that I might very well get better medical care in China (for example) than I may get in the US? I don't hold my views of the UAE because I've lived a sheltered life.
Originally Posted by
Typhoonpilot
Forced democracy or democracy attempts by populaces that are not ready for it are proving to be far worse than other alternatives.
A valid point IMO. However, if you were a Shiite in Iraq, would you rather Sadaam have lived, or would you take your chances and let the West give Sadaam the boot so you could try your own form of governance, even if its roots turn out less than perfect?
Originally Posted by
Typhoonpilot
Again, the danger for U.S. airline pilots is not so much these competitors it is that the USA is becoming an increasingly smaller percentage of the global travel market...........
You're fighting the wrong battle and that is the reason for my posts.
Nah, I'm fighting the right battle.