Quote Originally Posted by AdrianII


Saudi dress codes forbid any display of nudity
Actually, Canadian and American "dress codes" also forbid any display of nudity.

Quote Originally Posted by AdrianII
Notice any difference with Afghanistan? I don't.
That's because you've never been there. Showing a couple of women wearing veils doesn't mean that all Saudi women wear burqas.

I will acknowledge however, that my experience may be a little dated since I haven't been there since about 1989. I can say that when I lived there, women were not required to cover their faces in public. The ones who did either did so by choice or (more likely) because their husbands made them.

Again, I am not trying to hold the Saudis up as paragons of female empowerment, but they are (or were) very far from the Taliban regime in Afghanistan when I lived there.

As far as the story about the schoolgirls goes it sounds like somebody is in a bit of shit over that one, but it also sounds like the country has taken a decidedly more conservative (and crazy) stance since my time there.

Quote Originally Posted by Proletariat
Your anecdotal evidence is just excoriating with insight, really it is.
And you really should understand what big words like "excoriating" mean before you try to use them in a sentence. Using a $5 word incorrectly is just a waste of money.

Quote Originally Posted by Proletariat
But when you get done sharing your life experiences could you comment on the Amnesty link?
Erm...

Psst...

*whispers*

Hey, Prole, you know what kind of evidence your Amnesty story is?

I'll give you a hint:

It starts with "a" and ends with "necdotal."

The only difference is that my anecdotes were the result of firsthand experience, and yours was the result of sitting at your computer and Googling for tales of other peoples' experiences.

At any rate, you're missing my point. Women in Saudi Arabia are definitely not treated as equals. But they can (or could) wear western clothing and show their faces on the street when I lived there. Yes, they had to make sure their arms and legs were covered, and that no cleavage was showing, but they were not forced to wear burqas. You can argue that with me all day, but it won't make a bit of difference.

And you know why?

Because I've seen it firsthand and you haven't, so Google away my friend...