I live in Saudi Arabia. AMA!

[Shmithecat]

I still hear so many daft claims about certain aspects of living in KSA. Happy to confirm or deny what you've been told!

Smith

Huh? Why are the laws of supply and demand funny? Supply is reduced because lots of people don’t want to work in Saudi Arabia. There are lots of reasons for that but the human rights issues is definitely one of them. As a result those who are willing can demand a higher price.

@Mumoftwoyoungkids any source or links to quantify your assumptions? You see to know an awful lot about the workings of recruitment in a country you've never been to.

It’s basic economics really.

No I don't confused i didn't watch public executions growing up in ME but I did learn about cultures outside the UK and I hope my children are able to look outside the box too.
They were fascinated by double decker trains in Switzerland and how precise the timetables are- nobody's preaching about anything but they certainly absorb the idea that there's more to the world than the Home Counties.

That’s good. It didn’t sound a very happy holiday activity. Switzerland is pretty good for human rights the last time I checked - definitely abolished the death penalty long ago. A good example as to how I can show the children more to the world than the Home Counties (although we are Northern - not sure the kids have ever actually been to the Home Counties - oh dear - bad mother!) without having to give money to countries that have the death penalty.

We've been here 6 years, dh has worked across 2 industries, has recruited in both, as have many of his peers - there are no shortage of CVs when recruiting. The salaries tend to be higher here to compensate for being away from home, and the rather restrictive lifestyle. Not because there aren't enough people applying. Just recently, a subcontractor company were recruiting for a skilled position, and received 200 more applicants than there were positions available. Yes, there's a lot of demand here for skilled people, but there's also a lot of demand for the jobs.

It’s basic economics really.

This. It really is a fundamental part of Economics. About the only economics I can remember.

It is not at all specific to Saudi Arabia.

Same argument can be used for the price of widgets. If most people don’t want to make widgets - not because widgets are unprofitable but because widgets are purple and everyone hates purple - then the price of widgets will go up. As a result those who can get over the purple-hatred and are willing to make widgets will be able to command a higher price than they would if everyone was willing to make them.

when asked if she visits the place where they perform public dismemberment live on conscious people as a form of punishment she dismisses this barbaric obscenity with 'it's not my thing but hey ho it's a great deterrent, there's hardly any crime here and that's really good for us'

By 'she', I'm assuming you're referring to me @hearhere. So I'll cut and paste my earlier reply about 'my sort of thing' as you obviously missed it.

As for 'not my sort of thing' - I'm sorry, would you prefer me to express my displeasure about viewing public executions with a little more drama? If so, you'll be disappointed I'm afraid.

Or are you just looking for an argument?

Wow op- this has been a really interesting thread. I’ve read it the whole way through. I picked it up when it was showing in “active” and tbh didn’t notice the start date. I’ve NEVER in all my time on MN read a thread with as many pages all the way through. I was going to do an annoying “ not rtft but....” I’ve read it over a few days. I have a few points/questions if that’s ok?

1. do you ever have water/ power shortages. I read you’re understandably using air on - is the service reliable?

2)you’ve mentioned things you miss from home food etc wise but when/ if you do go back to the uk what would you like to take with you( people and animals excluded!)

3. can you get MN to highlight your posts in green again! 🤪 just makes for easier reading- particularly if there are some posters I’d rather scroll past. I know you prob can’t but hey ho!

Thanks for the thread op. It’s clarified misconceptions and emphasised the walk a mile in someone else’s shoes feeling we should all have before we judge.

@Orchidflower1
Wow op- this has been a really interesting thread. I’ve read it the whole way through. I picked it up when it was showing in “active” and tbh didn’t notice the start date. I’ve NEVER in all my time on MN read a thread with as many pages all the way through. I was going to do an annoying “ not rtft but....” I’ve read it over a few days. I have a few points/questions if that’s ok?

Yep!
1) do you ever have water/ power shortages. I read you’re understandably using air on - is the service reliable?

No, never suffered any shortages for either, only through planned maintenance in the compound.

2)you’ve mentioned things you miss from home food etc wise but when/ if you do go back to the uk what would you like to take with you( people and animals excluded!)

The Yemeni food place we frequent! Some friends that I've made here (and that ds had made). Part of the desert for quad biking...

3) can you get MN to highlight your posts in green again! 🤪 just makes for easier reading- particularly if there are some posters I’d rather scroll past. I know you prob can’t but hey ho!

No, I don't think I can!

Thanks for the thread op. It’s clarified misconceptions and emphasised the walk a mile in someone else’s shoes feeling we should all have before we judge.

You're welcome. Thanks for taking it in the spirit it was intended

@shm, I apologise for referring to you as 'she', it is rude and dismissive, I should be better than that.
So to answer your question no, its not that I expect you to express your displeasure with more drama, it's more that your 'shrug' response to this obscene barbarity strikes me as glaringly inappropriate.

For instance I might say that strawberry ice cream isn't my thing but I like chocolate ice cream, because ice cream is a trivial sort of thing it would not feel appropriate to express my displeasure about strawberry ice cream in strong terms.

When it comes to torture and public dismemberment I feel a visceral sense of horror, shock and disgust and it seems natural to condemn these things in strong terms.
It seems that for you it feels completely natural and normal to respond in casual 'whatever' sort of way

I can only conclude that you must be inurred to it, your moral compass has been reset.

I hope I never become a person who just shrugs in the face of public dismemberment and torture.

I'm not trying to sell it. Just answer some questions. At least here, apart from the sexism, racism and dirt, there's no stabbings, gang culture, acid attacks etc 🤷‍♀️ I make the most of my situation.

Well not in your expat compound, I bet your opinion would be different if you were a maid in another setting.

@hearhere
I can only conclude that you must be inurred to it, your moral compass has been reset.

This, I emphatically shrug at this.

@sashh
Well not in your expat compound, I bet your opinion would be different if you were a maid in another setting.

Possibly. That could be said about different people from different walks of life in different countries the world over. I'm not going to apologise for being born into certain privileges. Why does it have to be a race to the bottom? My personal experience of maids/nannies though, the ones that I see, socialise with every day, is pretty pleasant. Nice ladies who have been with their families for 2,3,4 years or more, happy to be earning money to feed their own families back home.

@Shmithecat2 how closely monitored are westerners to make sure they’re sticking to the rules and not spreading dissent or criticising the regime? Is there a feeling of having to watch what you say and who you socialise/associate with? Or are you pretty much left to your own devices? Do you socialise much with Saudis?

good grief, the number of people who are out to get on some moral high ground here ..... hopefully it keeps them happy [hm]

..... hopefully it keeps them happy

Hopefully, it shows support to the people in KSA who are being repressed, persecuted, tortured and then murdered.

Nice ladies who have been with their families for 2,3,4 years or more, happy to be earning money to feed their own families back home.

And so well treated that some African countries, alongside Indonesia have banned their citizens from working in SA.

uk.reuters.com/article/us-rights-domesticworkers-kenya-idUKKBN0OC02K20150527

BTW where is your passport? Do you have it or does your husband's employer have it?

@sashh that article is 4 years old, and the ban was lifted in 2017.

Yes, I have my passport. And my husbands. And my sons... DHs employer has never held them.

Do you have kids? If so, what if they turn out to be gay? Would you happy for them to be whipped publicly? Or for your daughter to be punished for reporting rape?

That article may be 4 years old but the Saudi's have found new ways to oppress women.

Saudi Arabia on Saturday defended a mobile app that allows men in the kingdom to track female relatives after rights groups and a US lawmaker criticised tech giants for offering it
The Absher app provides services for "all members of the society ... including women, the elderly, and people with special needs," the interior ministry said

I'm sure they are just 'looking after' their women...

No, I consider myself and decent and loving mother who certainly wouldn't be happy if my child was whipped in public or punished for reporting a rape. What an odd question

What an odd question

No it's not odd when you chose to live in a country that does whip women for reporting rape.

shmith you aren't going to get anywhere, they aren't actually interested in what it's really like to live out there

@SeaEagleFeather

I know. But I'm fairly tenacious..