| Not a Moment Too Soon |
5 May 2003
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US to Quit Saudi
Shortly before he landed on the USS Abraham Lincoln in a staged event for the military-publicity complex, President Bush had his people let the world know that the US would be pulling out of Saudi Arabia. It is a prudent and strategically wise decision, not only because the job of destroying Iraq's Ba'athist regime is done but also because it gets the Americans out of the way of the mess Saudi will plunge itself into in the coming years.
It is not secret that the House of Saud runs one of the most troubled parts of the Middle East, and it does so largely by buying off the people who could bring down the monarchy. This will not last forever. The population is young, and that means growing. Meanwhile, the last thirty years of oil wealth have been squandered -- oil and oil-related products remain the center of the economy.
Religious fundamentalism thrives there, and since Mecca and Medina are in the kingdom, this should come as no surprise -- no more so than the fact that many Catholics live near Rome, and there are Jews in Israel. However, when the regime fails to deliver, and it will as oil prices drop and the population continues increasing, someone will offer a quick, easy, and religiously pleasing way out.
When that happens, things will be ugly. With American troops on the ground, the ugliness will spread beyond Saudi borders. With GI Joe, and Jane, leaving, the Bush administration has taken that trip-wire out. The only thing that remains is for the oil men in the White House to do is sit on their hands and let the Saudi regime find its own end. Whoever takes over there won't love Uncle Sam, but being able to come out of the coming troubles with clean hands will save a generation of hostilities.