Why Washington is always missing the point on the Middle East

Because they rely on wrong informations .
I was reading this article by Marc Lynch, trying to analyse why the Arab springs have not taken place yet, not in full swing at least, in the countries of the Gulf .
The reasoning evolves around the issue of absolute monarchies .
It goes completely off track .
I am sure, as I read on his biography, that he is a great academic, but I assume he has no experience on the ground .

First of all, we can't forget the role played by Western powers prior and during the springs, and so we need to consider the different type of relation, each European country and America had with the rulers and governments of Maghreb .
Different relations mean different impacts on their economies as well, other than the political level .
The monarchies of the Gulf have always been more independent in their alliances with the West .

Then there are different traditions and culture .
The tribal environment in the Gulf is pretty different than that of Northern Africa .
This turns also into different approaches toward life, which is one of the reasons why, there have been light revolts which up to now brought no real revolution .
The rulers in the Gulf area deeply know his people and always worked for them .
Never took away from them the wealth coming from the oil, and never gave it to them just as money .
But they always gave them the best in terms of services, such as schools, hospitals and benefits .
Contrary to what was happening in Africa, they did their best to empower their people .
This is something probably unknown here, due to negative reports from the press, but it is the reality .
And the religion as well, despite differences in sects, unites people with their rulers .

Monarchs in the Gulf never gave up on their relationships with the people .
They always worked for them but of course made mistakes .
This is why in any kind of rebellion from Oman to Bahrain, the rage of the people was mostly against corruption of the middle men without holding rulers responsible .
There is a small number of persons who think otherwise, but for now they are a minority .

This is the point that few in the rooms of power in the West, cannot understand .

Royals

I was reading about prince al Waleed bin Talal topping once again the list of the most important Arabs, in the Arabian business annual chart .
And that reminded me, that very many years ago, while chatting with a friend in Saudia, he spoke about him in quite raw terms : with all the money he has, yet cannot find the right cure to keep under control his Alzheimer, he said .
Back then I was pretty shocked, because this person is a very religious and moderate one, respectful of traditions and ranks .
Then when I started visiting the Gulf, I realised how complex, is the relation between the average citizen and the ruler or the entire family .

First of all, we must acknowledge that there is different generations nowadays, within the ruling families, and same as commoners they belong to tribes having their ethics and codes and their little rivalries .
Moreover they are human beings who are capable to make mistakes .
All this, is very well known to people ruled by them .

There are three generations of royals actually in place : the founding fathers, their sons and nephews, and of course the youngest one .
To the first category,belong personalities like Sheikh Zayed and King Fahd, who are not alive anymore .
But still we have King Abdullah and Sultan Qaboos.
This generation is a source of inspiration for their people, who are well aware of the fact that countries of those areas, were built by such great men .
If today the desert has left lot of its extension to houses, schools, industries, hospitals and much more, this is due to the wise government run and key alliances hold by the founding fathers .
There is a special relation between the people and these rulers, which goes beyond fear or respect .
It is something which shapes from the heart .
Then there is the middle generation, to which respect is due, depending on how much, they follow their fathers or uncles footsteps, or if and how, they keep themselves humble same as them .
And last, we have the rampant youth, who like their fathers, are western educated (Harvard or Sandhurst) and still must conquer their space on the main scene .
So for now they are known for their love affairs, marriages, entrepreneurial activities .

The reason why my friend was pretty harsh with prince al Waleed, is because he is not fully a Saudi, he is a pure businessman who according to some, was too much lucky , if true he started with only 30000 rials, and he is very Western oriented .
These are characteristics that a traditional Arab, considers as faults .

The Arab spring did not take place yet in the Gulf area, and I don't think it will, precisely because of the special bond between the people and their rulers, and because people know, that despite living in luxury, having extramarital affairs and not always being fair in their business, the main preoccupation of kings, sultans or emirs, is still their fellow citizens .
They are not providing jobs now because of the fear of revolts .
This is something they always did .
They are just adjusting schemes and pushing their people to be more responsible, by changing their mentality .
They want the best for them and people want to live in peace, for still long time .
So unlike us westerners, they are more inclined to search for dialogue and understanding despite differences .

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