MBS is transforming Saudi Arabia from retro-medieval Wahhabi despotism to a more modern totalitarian police state, modelled on Saddam-era Iraq. For most Saudis, that’s better-- there are cinemas, women can drive and have a wider range of jobs, the muttawa’a are on a tight leash. But any involvement of ordinary people in politics will get them killed, even more than under the previous kings. And the insane inequality and exploitation of the Saudi economy remains unchanged.
MBS is transforming Saudi Arabia from retro-medieval Wahhabi despotism to a more modern totalitarian police state, modelled on Saddam-era Iraq. For most Saudis, that’s better-- there are cinemas, women can drive and have a wider range of jobs, the muttawa’a are on a tight leash. But any involvement of ordinary people in politics will get them killed, even more than under the previous kings. And the insane inequality and exploitation of the Saudi economy remains unchanged.