OxBlog

Thursday, January 05, 2006

# Posted 9:27 PM by Ariel David Adesnik  

LIBYA IS WAITING FOR YOU! Last week, Michael Totten published an account of his visit to Libya as a "tourist". Here's a few lines from one of the conversations he had:
“And Qaddafi is our president,” [the shopkeeper] said. “About him, no comment.” He laughed, but I don’t think he thought it was funny.

“Oh, come on,” I said. “Comment away. I don’t live here.”

He thought about that. For a long drawn-out moment, he calculated the odds and weighed the consequences. Then the dam burst.

“We hate that fucking bastard, we have nothing to do with him. Nothing. We keep our heads down and our mouths shut. We do our jobs, we go home. If I talk, they will take me out of my house in the night and put me in prison.

“Qaddafi steals,” he told me. “He steals from us.” He spoke rapidly now, twice as fast as before, as though he had been holding back all his life. He wiped sweat off his forehead with trembling hands. “The oil money goes to his friends. Tunisians next door are richer and they don’t even have any oil.”

“I know,” I said. “I’m sorry.”
Who wouldn't be?
(3) opinions -- Add your opinion

Comments:
Has this post been edited since cs's comment? I don't understand what he's getting at.
 
In response to Michael Totten writing "I'm sorry", I asked "Who wouldn't be?" Presumably, cs is suggesting that Forbes wouldn't be.

So, no, the post has not been edited. And my general policy is never to edit posts without letting everyone know.
 
I see, the point is that if you sympathize with the shopkeeper, then you should oppose tourism. Forbes supports tourism and so doesn't sympathize with the shopkeeper. And cs is also pro-tourism so he doesn't care about the shopkeeper either.

Thank you for clearing that up.
 
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