I have always believed in half-jest/half-seriousness that the big mistake the US made in the first Gulf war was to attack Saddam instead of sending him a TomTom

I have always believed in half-jest/half-seriousness that the big mistake the US made in the first Gulf war was to attack Saddam instead of sending him a TomTom GPS with directions to Riyadh from Kuwait. Imagine, no 9/11, no ISIS. The Saudi regime is one of the worst things to happen in the history of the world to Muslims and the rest of the world. Middle Eastern culture threw up people like Averroes (father or modern rationalism), Avicenna and Ibn Khaldun. I speculate but pretty sure that the Middle East produce less scientific literature than Taiwan. Saudi Regime driven Wahabism has turned Islam back by centuries aspiring to a regressive state of the 6th century with about 20% of the population radicalized. Women recently got the right to drive in SA, we can just imagine the state of other rights. Wahabism other effect is on radicalization of other regimes like Turkey and Iran. The Turks were relatively progressive people but to compete with the Saudis for global leadership of all Muslims, Ergodan has pushed further and further towards conservative political Islam. The Islamic population of Indonesia and Malyasia was once moderate, tolerant and dynamic. Now after 20 years of Wahabi indoctrination they are bombing churches. For all of Elon's bizarre views, repugnant and quixotic, his contribution to the electrification of transport alone warrants a Nobel Peace Prize (and any other prize we can give him). The Al-Sauds are probably too entrenched in the political and economic fabric of the world to go anywhere for a couple of decades. The US establishment has enough of their skin in its own game to shield them and also in fear of what comes next. Oil Prices permanently collapsing to a sub $20 level will not end the Saudi regime but reduce its appetite for extra-curricular activities.