The Crown Prince has gone on a purge of high profile offenders ( or suspected offenders) and has turned one of the ritziest of the nation's hotels into the county jail.
Here are several hundred top business men, politicians, goat herders turned millionaires and oil sheiks all jostled together in five- star-luxury, awaiting trial. They are huddled with their lawyers while they are fed gourmet meals, given access to all sorts of entertainment and, at any time, can retire to their cells which are high quality suites.
This is a different sort of world folks. When I stopped off in the Gulf for an overnight stay, I found the place reeking with money. Late model cars, high rise towers, restaurants that would put the best eateries in America in the shade.
Here is an area where a hundred years ago there were Bedouin Arabs grazing their goats on scrub land.
Ah, but under all that sand was black gold: the stuff that a petrol hungry world needed to fuel their economy and power their war machines.
And so in 2017,as we start our engines and drive to work, spare a thought for the sheiks in prison, enjoying their gourmet meals and tipping their servants with your petro-dollars.
Jubilate.
Ian
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