Comments on: Kuwait: A harbinger of Mideast deficits to come http://www.creditwritedowns.com/2008/12/kuwait-a-harbinger-of-mideast-deficits-to-come.html Finance, Economics and Markets Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:37:00 +0000 hourly 1 By: tokyo joe http://www.creditwritedowns.com/2008/12/kuwait-a-harbinger-of-mideast-deficits-to-come.html#comment-1592 tokyo joe Tue, 23 Dec 2008 21:43:33 +0000 http://www.creditwritedowns.com/?p=2900#comment-1592 The Saudi population in 1982 was about 4.5 million. Today it is over 20 million. That means lots of young people. Lots. And they do not have meaningful work, which in Saudi Arabia means being able to sit behind a desk and keep your thobe crisp the whole day. Labor is for Yemeni or Sudanese or Pakistani imports. And in a land where the term 'conspiracy' reigns supreme (mughamarah), whom do you think all the young shebabs will blame for the collapse of the oil economy? The second concern, wholly different, is how will the decline of ME economies impact the funding of the US deficit? Already massive numbers of migrant workers from SE Asia are being sent home from the construction sites of once cash rich countries such as Qatar and the UAE (Dubai and Abu Dhabi). With China spending on its own stimulus, and the resource countries now short of cash (Russia and the ME), funding the US deficit will be problematic. The Saudi population in 1982 was about 4.5 million. Today it is over 20 million. That means lots of young people. Lots. And they do not have meaningful work, which in Saudi Arabia means being able to sit behind a desk and keep your thobe crisp the whole day. Labor is for Yemeni or Sudanese or Pakistani imports. And in a land where the term ‘conspiracy’ reigns supreme (mughamarah), whom do you think all the young shebabs will blame for the collapse of the oil economy?

The second concern, wholly different, is how will the decline of ME economies impact the funding of the US deficit? Already massive numbers of migrant workers from SE Asia are being sent home from the construction sites of once cash rich countries such as Qatar and the UAE (Dubai and Abu Dhabi). With China spending on its own stimulus, and the resource countries now short of cash (Russia and the ME), funding the US deficit will be problematic.

]]> By: Edward Harrison http://www.creditwritedowns.com/2008/12/kuwait-a-harbinger-of-mideast-deficits-to-come.html#comment-1561 Edward Harrison Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:24:22 +0000 http://www.creditwritedowns.com/?p=2900#comment-1561 @Nick von Mises, long time no hear! Well, Nick, I wouldn't dare hazard a guess because the volatility of the situation renders any guess/prediction useless. Saudi Arabia is the prime example. They have an enormous population of young men who need work. With oil prices at 4 1/2 year lows, many of these individuals are unemployed or soon to be so. Were I to guess, I would say that a bunch of unemployed 25-year old viral men sitting around twiddling their thumbs is NOT good for Saudi Arabia. It is probably not good in terms of Peak Terrorism either. How that plays out on the streets of Cairo or Ryadh is anyone's guess. I say it won't be good. What is your thinking? @Nick von Mises, long time no hear! Well, Nick, I wouldn’t dare hazard a guess because the volatility of the situation renders any guess/prediction useless. Saudi Arabia is the prime example. They have an enormous population of young men who need work. With oil prices at 4 1/2 year lows, many of these individuals are unemployed or soon to be so.

Were I to guess, I would say that a bunch of unemployed 25-year old viral men sitting around twiddling their thumbs is NOT good for Saudi Arabia. It is probably not good in terms of Peak Terrorism either. How that plays out on the streets of Cairo or Ryadh is anyone’s guess. I say it won’t be good.

What is your thinking?

]]> By: Nick von Mises http://www.creditwritedowns.com/2008/12/kuwait-a-harbinger-of-mideast-deficits-to-come.html#comment-1535 Nick von Mises Tue, 23 Dec 2008 09:54:39 +0000 http://www.creditwritedowns.com/?p=2900#comment-1535 Care to draw conclusions on what this means for the global jihad and a possible Peak Islam / Peak Terrorism? Care to draw conclusions on what this means for the global jihad and a possible Peak Islam / Peak Terrorism?

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