What a lot of folks may not even be aware of is, that Saudi Arabia wasn’t even allowing or holding municipal elections at all until just very recently in April as part of the Family’s concern over the “Arab Spring”. There were Municipal polls for municipal councils in 2005, but that was the first time in over 40 years, and from 2005 until now nothing.
At the time of consideration for such polls, there was some discussion about allowing women to vote in the polls.
So this is all part of concerns and reforms to stem any possible activism in the Kingdom from Baathist types (Arab Socialists like Iraq had) and such.
However, one of the concerns some Saudi men have regarding the moves to begin opening up voting rights to women is, even though women wear the Hijab – in “conservative” black and covering most of their body except the upper nose, eyes, and eye brows – that their same wives (and yes girl friends) really like to wear “beads” (necklace of various beads like used in New Orleans, and also other types of jewelry including of course gold) under the garb … that way one can “hear the beads click” just showing “you’re cool” … And the concern express by some Saudi men is, opening up the vote to them will only mean that “they (women) will simply vote themselves beads …. Selfish and dangerous …”
Good points. Regarding the jingly jewelry, I think there’s an injunction against that sort of thing in the Qur’an, if I recall correctly.
Just goes to show you, that outward displays of piety only serve to mask the hypocrisy in the heart.