To think that the UK shouldn't be flying flags at half-mast because the Saudi king is dead?

[AllMimsyWereTheBorogoves]

This comes from the website of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Half-masting instructions
It is with great regret that we learn of the death of the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, King of Saudi Arabia.

It is requested that all flags be half-masted from 8am today until 8pm this evening.

Any other UK national flags flown alongside the Union Flag when it is at half-mast should also be at half-mast. If a flag of a foreign nation is normally flown on the same stand as the Union Flag, it should be removed.

Local authorities are not bound by this request but may wish to follow it for guidance. Devolved administrations are responsible for issuing instructions for the flying of the Union Flag on buildings in their estate and others as necessary.

Not in my name, thanks! If Saudi Arabia didn't have all that oil we would be treating it as a rogue state. A state that can sentence a man to 1000 lashes for simply expressing an opinion isn't fit to be treated as a civilized country.

If the Saudi royal family fell they'd very probably fall to people who are a whole lot worse. They might support ISIL. They might encourage the great mosques to preach jihad (imagine that message going out to all those on hajj - terrifying!).

It's just real politic that we have to buddy up with them.

Indeed he did. Can you imagine what Cabinet meetings would be like if that shower got into power? They wouldn't get as far as agreeing on whether to have digestives or rich tea biscuits.

as we do it for everyone else bar countries we consider beyond the pale, it would be a pointless provocation. if we dont want to be on friendly terms with ksa, there are better ways to start a fight

Grovel - Saudi donors already support ISIS et al.

wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/09STATE131801_a.html

See Sect. 7.

Remembering the arms deal bribery investigation that Blair ordered to be shut down, we know the relationship between the West and SA is corrupt. And don't even think about going to Hajj if you're Shia.

i dont like there treatment of gay people in fact its appalling .but its because they are a royal family .we always do this if a royal dies regardless of country i think

He's a foreign head of state, so he gets the treatment according to protocol. We'd have to do the same if Assad or Putin died.

I know why the UK are doing it but YADNBU

Well said Ruth Davidson the conservative MSP btw

Yanbu. This may well be the protocol but it sticks in my throat that we are affording this man this respect.

Did we lower flags for Kim Jong-Il? If so, why was the UN singled out for doing so?

Protocol's a funny thing.

When Hitler died in his bunker, Irish President de Valera put on his top hat and went to the German Embassy to express his condolences. I doubt many other Heads of State did the same.

seriously Piglet, that really happened? How disgusting.

it did cause comment at the time.

Apart from the horrific human rights abuses in Saudi itself, they use their oil money to export Wahabism. We turn a blind eye to their money funding organisations like Isis and Boko Haram.
But they're out bastards

Just wanted to point out it was not a UK thing. Flags in Scotland were not lowered, not sure about Wales/NI

I understand (and may be wrong) that Saudi Arabia was founded when a Mr Saud climbed into a Royal Palace one night with a bunch of thugs, murdered the king, queen, princes, princesses and anyone else with a claim to rule, and named the nation after himself.

In the same way that if I was that sort of person, with enough armed or corrupt supporters, I could murder HM the Q, Wills and Harry and all the others, and rename the UK "Pigland"

YANBU. Apparently cameron is flying out to "offer his condolances in person". Now I know nothing about the king but given their human rights record I don't see why our tax money should be funding this trip.
Apparently one word: Oil.

Former prime minister Tony Blair said he admired King Abdullah greatly
That is a good enough reason for me to feel we should have all been told to celebrate and party. King Abdullah is happy to see a man slowly killed by a 1000 lashes, happy to see people beheaded in public, why not celebrate the face that thee is one less despot i the world.

DC should not be going, I agree about that.

De Valera followed what he thought of as protocol and Ireland was neutral. It did Ireland no good in American opinion. I believe the other European neutral states (Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Portugal) sent polite messages to the German Embassies in their capitals.

As for flags not being lowered in Scotland, without opening wounds foreign policy is still a UK question and it was UK government buildings that mattered.

joanne1947 - One despot less - one despot more, unless you think his brother will be any better!

Here's an illuminating piece from the Guardian

de Valera also turned down his invitation to attend Churchill's funeral.

I don't know to what extent his version of neutrality and protocol were moulded to support his own view of the world.

The odd thing about that Piglet was that Churchill had supported Home Rule before the First World War and would probably have traded Irish unity for the Treaty Ports in 1940.

And still they go on with their fawning, cringeworthy tributes. I am trying so, so hard not to reply (old family friends) but am absolutely fascinated, especially as they've all lived in and been educated in the UK (with several still here) for long periods and are married to Brits. It just seems that there is obviously another side to living in/being Saudi that we don't realise. Am genuinely perplexed that someone, under whose regime there are regular beheadings, lashings etc, can be described as a 'liberal reformist'.

He is seen as a liberal reformist partly because more women are in higher education than ever before and women are also allowed to work in certain professions which in the past was unheard of.
He walks a very difficult line as custodian of the two holy mosques and leader of a country that wants to maintain ties to the West he has to keep two very different parties happy. And while we need them for the oil they also need us for the money.
The new king will be much of the same, but as Saudi is stable(ish) at present this is a good thing - the ME is in a state of turmoil and the bottom line whether we like it or not is that we need their oil. Thus it means protocol must be seen to be followed.

It's thoroughly unpleasant whichever way you look at it. Saudi Arabia backed Iraq in the iran-Iraq war then baulked when they entered Kuwait. Although the story about the Queen taking King Abdullah for a drive was great