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1 hour ago, TheBrownBottle said:

Backwards in it’s true sense - a desire to live in the values of an imagined past.  Letting people go to cinemas doesn’t mean they’ve given up on Wahhabism 

 

Backwards in it's truest form means going backwards. Seems to me they are going forwards, albeit from a starting point which is probably a couple of centuries behind everyone else.

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54 minutes ago, McCormick said:


The country has changed so much in the last 5 years, almost to the point where it’s unrecognizable. Women’s rights, human rights, government transparency, non-umrah tourism, segregation laws, stripping power from the muttawa (religious police), technology, entertainment etc. have all undergone an immense amount of progress.
 

This is all due to MBS. Like I said, it’s a completely different country today to the one I was born in. Improvements are still needed and politically there’s a lot to criticize but, as a country, it’s moving in the right direction.

 

Yep. They wouldn't have been anywhere near a premier league club a decade ago.

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I remember reading an article, probably 6-7 years ago, and it was basically saying "The Saudi's want the biggest boats, the most expensive mansions, the most sought-after paintings, why are they leaving football to Abu Dhabi and Qatar?"

 

The answer was basically the opposite of sports washing - they wanted as little attention on them as possible.

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59 minutes ago, McCormick said:


The country has changed so much in the last 5 years, almost to the point where it’s unrecognizable. Women’s rights, human rights, government transparency, non-umrah tourism, segregation laws, stripping power from the muttawa (religious police), technology, entertainment etc. have all undergone an immense amount of progress.
 

This is all due to MBS. Like I said, it’s a completely different country today to the one I was born in. Improvements are still needed and politically there’s a lot to criticize but, as a country, it’s moving in the right direction.


I think you should post that on RTG, I'm sure you will get a load of enthusiasm to your experiences. 

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1 hour ago, McCormick said:


The country has changed so much in the last 5 years, almost to the point where it’s unrecognizable. Women’s rights, human rights, government transparency, non-umrah tourism, segregation laws, stripping power from the muttawa (religious police), technology, entertainment etc. have all undergone an immense amount of progress.
 

This is all due to MBS. Like I said, it’s a completely different country today to the one I was born in. Improvements are still needed and politically there’s a lot to criticize but, as a country, it’s moving in the right direction.

 

That is what I often say to people who shout out about us being part-owned by Saudi PIF . . . I also say that owning Newcastle United will help massively with this ongoing process.

 

Saudi Arabia, and their people, will gain a LOT from their involvement with us, that is why their ownership of us is A GREAT THING FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE WORLD.

 

It is the exact opposite of what some people scream about at us (not just Sunderland supporters . . but certainly them) for our links with Saudi Arabia. I say to these people that the exact opposite of what they say is the reality!

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19 minutes ago, manorpark said:

 

That is what I often say to people who shout out about us being part-owned by Saudi PIF . . . I also say that owning Newcastle United will help massively with this ongoing process.

 

Saudi Arabia, and their people, will gain a LOT from their involvement with us, that is why their ownership of us is A GREAT THING FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE WORLD.

 

It is the exact opposite of what some people scream about at us (not just Sunderland supporters . . but certainly them) for our links with Saudi Arabia. I say to these people that the exact opposite of what they say is the reality!


Love the optimism but it’s just football mate :lol:

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21 minutes ago, McCormick said:


Love the optimism but it’s just football mate :lol:

 

Not optimism, definitely not optimism, just the evidence of history (plus common sense).

 

Integration of countries with other countries and with the 'public' (not only the 'football public') of those countries is how we share good practice and knowledge and thus can mutually grow and develop.

 

Major sport is one sure way to speed up these processes. 

 

The one way to ensure that this does NOT happen is to cut countries off and demonise them.

 

So, definitely not 'optimism', - just realism.

 

(Where have I heard that before . . . )

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1 minute ago, manorpark said:

 

Not optimism, definitely not optimism, just the evidence of history (plus common sense).

 

Integration of countries with other countries and with the 'public' (not only the 'football public') of those countries is how we share good practice and knowledge and thus can mutually grow and develop.

 

Major sport is one sure way to speed up these processes. 

 

The one way to ensure that this does NOT happen is to cut countries off and demonise them.

 

So, definitely not 'optimism', - just realism.

 

(Where have I heard that before . . . )

Worked for black South Africans, tho. Same response should be the one taken against Israel. 

 

Back to the thread. Looking forward to what this fella brings to the table, or wheel as he describes. Mad how unproffesional an outfit we were before and no surprise it's taken some effort 

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You're out of your tree if you think the state that (allegedly) funded 9/11, killed a U.S journalist, and have the U.K on the hook for oil and weapons are going to take any culturally exchanged influence from owning one of its football clubs. If they progress, great, but it'll be nothing to do with our influence, not least when the overwhelming majority of our fans will be spending their time defending them, rather than making any naive attempts to positively influence them. 

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16 minutes ago, Kid Icarus said:

You're out of your tree if you think the state that (allegedly) funded 9/11, killed a U.S journalist, and have the U.K on the hook for oil and weapons are going to take any culturally exchanged influence from owning one of its football clubs. If they progress, great, but it'll be nothing to do with our influence, not least when the overwhelming majority of our fans will be spending their time defending them, rather than making any naive attempts to positively influence them. 

The Saudis banished OBL because he wanted to fight against the U.S because they were using SA as a staging area for their war against Iraq during the first gulf War. So no, they didn't fund 9/11, not even in a roundabout way.

 

The last thing the Saudis want is make an enemy of the West and the last thing the West should do is make enemies of the Saudis. We are in a marriage of convience and it isn't changing any time soon.

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3 hours ago, McCormick said:


The country has changed so much in the last 5 years, almost to the point where it’s unrecognizable. Women’s rights, human rights, government transparency, non-umrah tourism, segregation laws, stripping power from the muttawa (religious police), technology, entertainment etc. have all undergone an immense amount of progress.
 

This is all due to MBS. Like I said, it’s a completely different country today to the one I was born in. Improvements are still needed and politically there’s a lot to criticize but, as a country, it’s moving in the right direction.

 

This is so true. I mean obviously, you live there! But in case anyone doubts the words of someone inside the country itself, I've been going regularly from the UK for work for about 9 years now and it has come along immeasurably.

 

Actually looking forward to my next trip which should be to Jeddah next month. It really is a country which is modernising at quite a rate. Yes many things happen there that we'd still question in the UK, but you cannot doubt their desire to take their country in a new direction.

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