Bad Guys

In the aftermath of 9-11, it became increasingly clear that influential Saudis, many connected directly or indirectly to the Saudi Royal Family, were instrumental in the funding (and possibly the planning) of the al Qaeda attack on the twin towers. Approximately 3,000 Americans died in the worst foreign attack on American soil, and yet, the George W. Bush administration essentially gave the Saudis a pass. No senior Saudi was indicted and few of the financiers were punished. The Obama administration did no better, although it appears they liked the mad Mullahs in Iran a bit better than they liked the Saudis. Obama and his team of 2s did kill Osama bin Ladin, but again, the Saudis behind bin Ladin walked away.

In the past week, we're seeing yet another example of the Saudis in action, peppered with a strong dose of sanctimonious hypocrisy from both the GOP and Democrats.

There is very strong evidence that a rabid supporter of the radical, American hating Islamist group, The Muslin Brotherhood (a group that is the sworn enemy of the Saudi Royal family) has been killed and dismembered in the Saudi embassy in Turkey. The purported "journalist" who was killed, Jamal Khashoggi, was hardly that, but he was an Islamist and a cohort of Osama bin Ladin. He hated the West and was violently against any of the reforms offered by another Saudi actor, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The Crown Prince is a reformer of a sort, but he isn't Mahatma Gandhi. Like all Saudi leaders he uses every means at his disposal to defeat his enemies and prevail in a political atmosphere where back-stabbing enemies are around every corner. To state it indelicately, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pissed off a lot of influential Saudis with his 'reforms' and with jailing and asset confiscation of more than a few influential members of the Royal Court.

What we have here is a bad guy who is somehow involved in the killing of another bad guy.

Watching this story evolve is interesting. You'd almost think that there is more to it that a simple murder of a political opponent. For example,

If Mohammed bin Salman ordered the death of Jamal Khashoggi, why on earth did he have it done in the Saudi Embassy? That's beyond stupid.

And if Jamal Khashoggi was convinced he was targeted (evidence seems to indicate he believed that), why on earth would he enter the embassy of a country that had targeted him (spare me the narrative of a wedding license)? That's also beyond stupid.

And why are politicians so worked up over all of this? There seems to be a lot more sanctimonious outrage over one bad guy killing another bad guy than there was over the deaths of thousands of American citizens on our own soil.

And why are the trained hamsters in the main stream media soft pedaling Jamal Khashoggi's Islamist background. Why is he referred to as a "journalist" rather than an active member of an extremist group that advocates the violent overthrow of the West?

Maybe this entire incident is an example of stupid is as stupid does, but I have the feeling that there are wheels within wheels.

The Trump administration is correct in proceeding cautiously here. The truth is not likely to come out. Our politicians will hyperventilate and the trained hamsters will blame Trump (it's already started with this piece), but in the end, the old saying "Countries don't have morals, they have interests" may very well be the guiding light for this sordid affair.

UPDATE:
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Apparently, I'm not the only one who thinks this whole affair is suspicious. Liz Shield comments:

Keep in mind we are getting much of our information about what happened to journalist Muslim Brother and friend of Osama bin Laden Jamal Khashoggi from Turkey. Erdogan is a bad hombre so believe his security apparatus at your own intellectual peril. The political backdrop of this "scandal" is Iran/Turkey/Qatar vs U.S./Israel/Saudi Arabia. Guess which side the media is on? Ben Rhodes' echo chamber is alive and kickin'. Always remember how the media is helping this story along.

The WaPo, where Khashoggi was allowed to share his propaganda under a "respectable" banner, has published his last dispatch.

One major question I have is why would the Saudis execute this operation the way they did if indeed they did what the media is accusing them of doing. Obviously, the Turks are no friends of theirs and their Turkish embassy was bugged just like every embassy in the world is bugged by the host country, so why whack him in the embassy rather than just quietly "handling it"?

This story has become such a big deal, with so much media pressure to punish Saudi Arabia, get rid of MBS, etc., it's suspicious.

Although this is a news story, the media obsession with it and their attempt to whitewash Khashoggi is odd. What exactly is going on here? It's absolutely not what it seems.

Could it be that powerful interests are somehow threatened by Mohammed bin Salman and want him gone. Could it be that the Iranians are threatened with Saudi pushback and are involved in all of this? Are the Turks to be believed in any of this? Lots of questions—no real answers.