“...guys like Soros fund a lot of treachery too. So does that make the U. S. a pariah state in total? No.”
That is a good point -there are good and bad in every society. In the Middle East in particular, “frenemies” are the norm rather than the exception - work with you on a few things while against you on a few others, their guns facing the same enemy alongside you today, at you tomorrow.
Even though not everyone in those governments (Saudi, Qatari, Kuwaiti and the UAE) are supporters of terrorist jihadis, enough are to make them a center of gravity in the whole war on terror (AKA global jihad) - especially the Qataris and Saudis.
We used to joke that in Saudi intelligence offices, all the computers had fanboy pictures of Usama bin Laden as their screensavers. The Saudi royal family always sell themselves as the only group able to deal with the extremists in their society, due to their connections and deep understanding of the culture - the “good cops”, as opposed to the Wahabbi “bad cops”. It is the same Mutt and Jeff routine that the Iranians pull with their “moderate” candidates vs. the “hardliner”. They are all intermarried and have their fortunes made from total obedience to the same leaders. It is largely theater to manipulate foreigners and their own subjects.
But you know what they say, keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.
Thanks for your comments. They are reasoned.
In the Middle-East, the only thing worse than sordid working relationships is sordid non-working relationships.
We’ve had situations where Russia was very close to a nation. Syria was in the Russian circle of influence back in the 60s and 70s. Was that any better? No. And I think this is what we need to remember.
Things may be bad now, but they could be a lot worse.
Look at what we’re dealing with in Iran right now, due to Carter’s brilliant moves in the late 1970s. Four decades later, and Iran is still a thorn in our side.
The Shah’s family would never have sought nuclear weapons. And yet Carter still thinks he’s an international sage to this day. Now Obama is another sage along the same lines, only this idiot is screwing with tens of nations, not just one.