What did get big play in local newspapers was the extremely stark contrast of George W (Juniors) Bush’s visit to the visits of George (Senior) Herbert Walker Bush to Kuwait over the years.
In those time, Bush was king and God in Kuwait. This visit had hardly anyone in the street and it appears that the majority of Kuwaiti’s were more interested in talking about getting the few remaining Kuwaiti’s out of the Guantanamo Prison.
Meanwhile, no mention was made of the fact during W.’s visit to Kuwait that so many poor Asians are still the basic laborers for building US military bases (and running them) these days.
http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=12675
Likewise, no mention in local press was made till after Bush left of human rights issues in Kuwait. In this weeks Kuwait Times, though there are news conferences in Dubai being noted for condemning persecution of transvestites—who are languishing for over a year in Kuwaiti prisons.
http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=NzYxNTg2ODQ=
Before leaving the Middle East, Bush stopped in Egypt. Former Egyptian military officers here are still telling me that they have been surprised at how quickly the U.S.A. government has turned 180 degrees in terms of its former opposition to the development of nuclear energy—which everyone knows can be turned anywhere on the planet from peaceful to military usage rather quickly.
For 4 decades, Washington has opposed nuclear power and weaponry in Egypt. Now the W. Bush government is promoting this alternative energy source in a resource poor Egypt.
Obviously, Iran is seen as a greater threat by Washington than Israel is, but why open the door to nuclearized Egypt and Gulf states after forcing Libya to back down.
Apparently, though, everyone in Kuwait and other countries in the region are already concerned about the effects of nuclear waste, energy and more nuclear weapons in the region. This weekend’s Kuwaiti papers have lengthy pieces on the problems involved in handling nuclear waste—and the fact that nuclear waste technologies have improved so little since 3-Mile Island when Carter was President.
http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=NjcxMjUwMjU=
By the way, when Middle Easterners in 2008 recall USA presidents of the last century, Jimmy Carter ranks ahead of George W. Bush by a long-shot.
http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/6306
CURRENT KUWAITI ECONOMY STILL TIED TO USAKuwaiti investors, unlike people in America and Britain, are currently finding a great purchasing environment in the USA. (So, is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.)
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