At least he didn't get the dyslexic court clerk, he gave the bloke before him 350 strokes of Pubic lashing.

"One Nation Under God, has turned into One Nation Under the Influence of One Drug"
[Link]

As the saying goes...When in Rome ( or Saudi )

Call Me Dave insists the Saudis are our friends despite their terrible human rights record. But then this is a man who possibly lashed a dead pig's mouth 350 times with his todger so he looks at this from a different angle.

Hard to add more to this, assuming that the alcohol wasn't planted by their religious police.

I had friends who worked there as nurses for 12 months. Hated pretty much every moment of it but came back a hell of a lot richer than being a nurse here. No problem getting hold of alcohol within the ex-pat compound.

It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark... and we're wearing sunglasses.

I'm simply stating that he has recently said they are 'our friends', when they have a horrendous human rights record. I have no love for him or any other prime minister talking about them that way. They're 'our friends' because it's in our interests. Our country hasn't and doesn't care about the way the country treats its people. Yes that troubles me. Or rather, how we justify our actions across the region.

Also, please let me know how your sense of humour transplant goes.

Edited by oldcodger (13 Oct 2015 5.01pm)

I know a number of people who have gone out there to work, and have stayed for a long time. I think personal circumstances - and gender - have a lot to do with a person's ability to handle it. The money is an obvious draw and I can see how earning less and having half of that syphoned off by HMG is a huge impediment to coming home once you're used to your tax-free Saudi paychecks.

One mate had just got divorced when he went out there - he needed the money because the divorce left him tapped out. He is still there 15 years later. He gets tons of vacation, which he gets to spend with his daughter in fun places around the world - much longer and higher quality visitation than he would ever have got if he'd stayed in London. He can provide for her lifestyle and education as necessary and has filled his personal coffers to the point of nearing retirement before age 50. He also said (in his early years there) that he has never been as drunk, so often, as he was there; as there's eff-all to do, people brew their own hooch and make bathtub beer. Because there's no ability (or attempt) to control the alcohol content, it's all brain damage stuff.

Keeping it on the compound and not waiving it in the faces of the locals is the only way to go, of course. Another colleague told me a story that's quite frightening. It's not illegal to drink and drive over there, because it's already illegal to drink. So, after leaving a party (wasted) this guy decides that, instead of following the road as it meanders through the desert, he's going to flip his Range Rover into off-road and plow a straight line. This got the attention of the local plod who were presented with a clearly s***-faced westerner, and no real punishment to mete out. In such cases, they will typically beat the living s*** out of you.

My colleague was in a relatively public place, so the cops wanted him to get in their car (when he knew they would drive him somewhere and beat him severely). Despite protracted and very scary confrontation with the police, he steadfastly refused to let them get him in their car, and escaped with a warning.

Bottom line: there are a lot of plusses for a (male) westerner to go and work there. But you have to remain permanently aware of your circumstances because one stupid slip-up - that becomes statistically more likely the longer you stay there - can cost you dearly and permanently.

Edited by Ray in Houston (13 Oct 2015 5.09pm)

We don't do possession; we do defense and attack. Everything else is just wa**ing with a football.