huggybear wrote:that is most certainly true with saudi arabia.
however the UAE is making significant strides in advancing / furthering their society. they are a productive member of the global economy and i believe the queen is extremely liberal and has a lot of power in shaping the UAE we know today.
as for pulling out of the region completely and letting them sort it out...seems that will never happen as long as isreal exists...and that's kinda what happened with the 8 year iran / iraq war that ended with everyone losing.
i have no idea what the next step is but i hope that the countries look to the UAE for inspiration...
The UAE I am familar with for a very long time, long before Dubai was put on the map, I often travelledd across the desert from Sharjah to Abu Dhabi before the roads were built, on occassion getting bogged down or stuck in a sand storm, it was an experience of cross country driving I will never forget, and we were very lucky that I was a capable mechanic at that time, I have fond memories of the dessert nights under the stars, and the coca cola signs and tin sheds, stuck at the top of a relief station wadi, were one would find a sole attendant of a 45 gallon drum of fuel, got lost one or two times, while learning the route! Now what a change!
They used to call the place Trucial Oman States before it was renamed UAE, back in those days it was also quite liberal, I recall a couple of night clubs in Dubai at that time, although too expensive. I only saw one woman in 9 months at that time! But hundreds of Tennant beer cans with models on them!
