Reply #83: Those nations are not democracies

[el_chalupa]

and It's extremely difficult to figure out how to moderate those societies. Saudi Arabia and Egypt are hotbeds of anti-americanism and extremism. I have no idea how our government will deal with them in the future. I understand that Egypt is the #1 recipient of US foreign aid in the middle east though. I hope it's being used well.

I remember seeing an interview with the royal family of Qatar on Dateline or 60 minutes or something a year or 2 ago. They are pursuing a gradual transfer away from the monarchy to a democratic state over time. They built government-funded universities and made agreements with US universities to send staff there to educate the population. They are investing billions into the national infrastructure. They are shifting their economy towards capitalism and away from a command economy. They are giving women more and more rights and slowly moderating their society to give more and more rights.

Now get this. They built a massive base for the US for protection and a launchpad. The vast majority of US operations in the middle east are conducted from bases in Qatar. Why would they do this? In this instance, did all of these changes come about because we are secretly controlling the royal family??? Are the changes they are instituting an illusion? Are the royal family not actual inhabitants? Are they really CIA operatives?