At a loss with the Middle East
Saudi Arabia is a Sunni nation, and Iran is primarily Shiite. The Islamic State group, in quest of a caliphate of Sunni proportion, is significant in light of my recollection of former President George W. Bush holding hands with the Saudi king. The execution of a Shiite holy man by the Saudis has angered Iranian Shiites, among others, and I am at a loss to know whose side the U.S. is on in its fight against ISIS.
Iraq and Afghanistan are Muslim nations and always will be — a lesson other nations learned the hard way, which we should have known before committing to a dream that will not die.
Seventh-century Islam morphed into being via Mohammad, whose will is a matter of dispute that is the cause of what separates Sunnis and Shiites to this day. Saudi Arabia tipped the scale in favor of a past, and now the world waits. Perhaps the free world should let them settle their differences in their own way.
The money saved would go a long way domestically to restore facilities and build new projects that are sorely needed by all to build a better and peaceful world, hopefully to include Muslims, too.
Kenneth Ramey, Paso Robles
This story was originally published January 24, 2016 at 8:16 PM with the headline "At a loss with the Middle East."