Perks of penance for Saudi jihadis

[Lithos]

This is still a prison, run by the Ministry of Interior and housed inside secure premises with high perimeter walls and barbed wire, but the Saudi authorities prefer to call it a "care centre" and refer to prisoners as "beneficiaries".

This is not what you would imagine when you think of a typical Saudi jail.

-- more --

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7496375.stm

[Violet_Crumble]

1. Wouldn't it be great if that was all that was needed to change the mindset of extremists...

I think the last line of the article summed it up real well...

[bemildred]

2. Well, it ought to be an interesting experiment, anyway.

Will this work better than the usual whack-their-heads-off approach or not? What would "work" mean in this context? My guess would be that "work" in this context means "avoids insurrection, rebellion, and political revolt in Saudi Arabia", but that is just me speculating. Probably too many heads to whack off, and too many relatives of the prospective whackees.