A Thousand Princes in the Sand

How can the Government of Saudi Arabia be both supporting terrorism and the careers of the Bu$h family?

I think there's some confusion among those equating a Government to the Rule of Law.

In some societies, Government means Who Has the Strongest Arms.

Oligarchy is a government in which a small group exercises control, especially for corrupt and selfish purposes. In Saudi Arabia, the few are the royal princes who are descendents of the founder of the modern Saudi Kingdom, King Abd Al-Aziz bin Sa'ud who, upon his death in 1953, left behind 44 sons (and an uncounted number of daughters) by 17 wives.

The Saudi royal oligarchy is a unique and unprecedented form of oligarchy, whose members are connected through a bloodline to Saudi Arabia's polygamous founder. The ruling princes have treated the country's wealth of oil as their personal domain and some have made themselves famous, or notorious, for their extravagant life style and uncontrolled squandering of national assets...

Th seven brothers still hold the majority of political power. However, six of the brothers are in their 70s and King Fahd himself is 82. It stands to reason that in the not too distant future, a new generation of princes, including Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the Saudi Ambassador to the United States, will compete for the top positions of power, and the competition could be destabilizing and, perhaps, even brutal...

...fewer than six dozen princes, accountable only to themselves, control the lives and well-being of 22 million Saudis.

What happens when so many Princes have a line on controlling a quarter of the world's oil?

There's Chaos.

And Corruption.

And Hubris.

And Intrigue .

And Disaster for those caught up in the game.