Quartet in the Dock

This refers to your editorial on the Middle East crisis (Oct. 22). The so-called Quartet, especially the United States, will never be able to stand up for Palestinian rights even though doing so would be good foreign policy. That is because of an inescapable fact: The US foreign policy is driven by domestic politics. And the vast majority of politically active Americans are pro-Israel. They have been subjected by a very effective campaign of pro-Israel/anti-Arab propaganda for over 60 years.

Worse, Christian beliefs have been perverted into Christian Zionism by a well-run campaign orchestrated by televangelist Rev. John Hagee and his Christians United For Israel. And until Arabs and other Muslims find a way to engage with and earn the sympathy of the evangelical Christians in the US, they will not succeed in getting anywhere.

Ricky-Dale Calhoun, United States, published 25 October 2007

Where Are the Big Fish?

This is regarding the report, “Pervert Arrested at Amusement Park” (Oct. 22).

Good! You got one. But there’re hundreds and thousands of them. The Virtue Commission people should look for the source of these CDs. Who’s providing these CDs to the retailers? I’m sure the commission people wouldn’t be able to find who are responsible for providing these CDs to these vendors. It’s a big business in the Kingdom and big business always needs big fish to carry on. Can you get the big fish? I don’t think so. The big people behind this business would put a stop on this operation even before you name them. Good luck and keep arresting the small fish.

Salman Afridi, United States, published 25 October 2007

Karachi Blasts

Who benefited politically from the bombing at Benazir Bhutto’s procession last week? Just answer the question honestly and you would know the names of the people responsible for the blasts in Karachi.

Rizwan Hasnie, Riyadh, published 25 October 2007

Picking Up Children

This is regarding the report, “Parents Picking Up Children From School Create Turmoil in Streets” (Oct. 22). I think this problem could be easily solved by being less selfish and more thoughtful. If one should drop in a grocery shop or any joint, school or office, they would like to drive to the doorstep of the target, no matter whether they park in parallel, serial, or across or block roads. They give a damn to the fact that their irresponsible attitude is causing havoc to the other road users. Often, one sees this kind of menace anywhere on the roads, obviously caused by people who have great power and influence in the higher places! You can see their utter disregard for the other road users. At other times, one parks a vehicle and instantly widely opens out the door, not bothering to care if that gets in the way of an oncoming vehicle! This is critically dangerous on narrow roads.

If parking near or around the target is hard, why not park the vehicle at a convenient distance and walk the distance up and down the target? Won’t that give you some exercise, after all? On the other hand, the very same people drive to the Corniche or the gymnasium for workout! If everyone thought of parking his conveyance at a good distance and walk the distance, wouldn’t that be a healthy move too? And in that process, couldn’t the traffic congestion at the target spaces be greatly minimized? Wouldn’t this kind of practices be an example for the younger ones? When will people be more sensible and reasonable?

Laws and law enforcement alone will not solve daily problems. You also need a great deal of sensibility and willingness to persistently refine your perspectives and daily deeds. Let us hope that more sensibility will be thought about and practiced in the days to come.

Mohsin, Alkhobar, published 25 October 2007

Picking Up Children - 2

It is truly a nightmare to pick up your kids from the schools in all the big cities in the Kingdom. My daughter is seven years old and has attended only one year in public school in America. Now she hates everything about school here.

Abdul Rahman, Jeddah, published 25 October 2007

Picking Up Children - 3

Why don’t the police fine traffic violators? Why doesn’t the school track the route of the drivers?

It is sad to see the chaos on our streets, the aggressive driving and total lack of regard for rules. Meanwhile, the roads are getting worse every year, with the lack of proper lines being the least of the problem. Something needs to be done soon.

We should look at the way other countries have handled these problems. Driving in Sharjah is similar to that in Riyadh, but driving in Dubai is a lot more organized. We must find the reasons for this and try to make things better.

Rayan, Riyadh, published 25 October 2007

NRIs

Being, a non-resident Indian, I am very glad to know that our remittances have been playing a critical role in boosting the Indian economy. At the same time it’s very sad to tell that the government of India is not paying any attention to the problems of resettling the NRIs, particularly in the state of Andhra Pradesh that sends the largest number of overseas workers after Kerala. We hear a lot of horror stories about Indian workers abroad. The government should streamline the overseas recruitment process and monitor the living conditions of Indian workers. Indian political parties and government should not forget that the NRIs were the ones who bailed out India in those decades when the country was struggling with dwindling foreign reserves and oil crisis.

Mir Gazanfar Ali Zaki, Jeddah, published 25 October 2007

Airport Chaos

I am a senior resident of Jeddah. My family came to Jeddah for Eid holidays and returned on Oct. 19, 2007. I have not seen a situation similar to this in the last 32 years at Jeddah Airport. The departure time of the flight was 10 p.m. and the reporting time was 7 p.m. My family reached the airport at 3 p.m. to avoid the rush.

There were no trolleys at the airport and the porters were demanding unreasonably huge amounts of money for trolleys. My son had to drag all the luggage to the check-in counter. His left arm got fractured in the process. Just imagine how difficult it was.

It took my family five hours to reach the scanning terminal from the airport parking area.

It took another two hours from scanning terminal to the airline counter. The airport presented a picture of utter chaos and confusion.

Mohammed Aneesuddin, Jeddah, published 25 October 2007

Airport Chaos - 2

This problem has been going on for many days. Where are the authorities or the officials of the North Terminal at King Abdul Aziz International Airport? Are we waiting for more people to die before somebody made a decision?

Juan Dela Cruz, Jeddah, published 25 October 2007

Flirting Wives Too

What Haya Al-Manie’s article says is 100 percent correct, but you must know that it works both ways. Ask some wives who would tell you that they also have relationships outside the home, and especially when the husbands are away on business trips, or even when they are simply at work. It is a two-way street.

S. Farhan, Jeddah, published 25 October 2007

Prophet’s Mosque

This refers to the report, “Visitors Abuse 24/7 Rule at Prophet’s Mosque” (Oct. 21).

The system around the two holy mosques has been commercialized and human considerations have been banished. Hotels have become so very expensive that a common man cannot afford to rent a room. King Abdullah understood the situation. That was why he ordered the opening of the mosque throughout the day. I don’t see any problem in the worshippers taking a nap in the mosque as long as they don’t make the place dirty.

Pasha, Riyadh, published 25 October 2007

Engineered Panic

This refers to your editorial on the US economy (Oct. 11). There is no reason why US salaries and the real estate values they support should be higher than in the rest of the world; and yet there is an enormous differential.

Of course, the stock and bond markets are manipulated by and for insiders. That is why we have a ruling class with unprecedented wealth and numbers. They raped the corporate pension funds with the Internet bubble, they are holding health hostage through pharmaceuticals, they are profiting from the war.

I live in the US, so I see mainly laziness and fiscal irresponsibility. Real estate is mortgaged above the real value of a few years back, the mortgages are then securitized and purchased with debt leverage by unregulated hedge funds.

The world economic growth is based on US real estate rising at a nonsustainable rate fueled by fraudulent mortgage lending. The entire mortgage industry circumvents rules that are too lax; and phony inflation numbers do not describe the decline into poverty and hunger of the lower middle classes who have to choose between food, shelter and clothing.

Because far more people hold mortgages than can legitimately qualify, there will be a real estate crash that ripples to the ends of the world economy. As the US assumes international debt to pay for excess consumption and the oil wars (Iran is next), expect violent opposition to the collection of those debts.

Lawrence de Martin, United States, published 25 October 2007