King of Saudi Arabia
by J.D.
I spend a lot of time whiling away the hours, playing online poker in my bathrobe, thinking about the role of luck and chance in life. Do we make our own way in the world through hard work and skill, with success going to those who earn it? Or is Deuteronomy right that “the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, [blah blah blah,] but time and chance happeneth to them all.”
Obviously, the bible is right. If you don’t believe me, and you don’t believe God, then maybe you’ll believe the man whose jowly visage is currently peering at you through the ether. This, of course, is King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. Like a lot of people, Abdullah had advantages in life purely because his father had been pretty successful. But some advantages are greater than others, because some fathers are more successful than others. Abdullah’s father, unlike my (lazy) father, rounded up a band of horsemen and conquered a landmass the size of Western Europe. My father, in stark and embarrassing contrast, tried and failed to conquer Western Europe during an awkward midlife crisis that resulted in his arrest and deportation.
Abdullah’s father’s gumption and sticktoitiveness mean that Abdullah has had a lot of luck in life. For one thing, he was born in a country that is – literally – named after his family. As in “no, officer, I don’t know how fast I was driving, but did I mention that my last name is al-Saud? You know, like our country?” Also, he inherited personal control of about a quarter of the world’s oil. This makes him extremely powerful now, but not as powerful as he is going to be in twenty years or so when the world has (presumably) descended into a Mad Max-style leather-clad battle for survival between highway gangs over dwindling supplies of precious, precious gasoline.
To be fair, it hasn’t all been wine and roses for Abdullah. First, medieval social structures being what they are, he had 37 (!) brothers with whom to fight over the regal succession. Second, he apparently suffers from the delusion that anyone is buying that facial hair dye-job. Third…well, actually, that’s it. That’s all the bad luck he’s had.
He is 88 years old man. unfair for this list to let him compete with younger.
If he is ugly you should consider he did not creat himself;)
[...] Abdullah King of Saudi Arabia – [...]
Check that picture again… I think that might be the late Captain Lou Albano, who is no longer a head of state.
I’m interesting in saudi’s government and life for long time.
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I think this man is great. He is trying to make the world better place. He wants the world live in peace. He helps, on behalf of his people, to avoid world financial crisis. So Obama bowed to him.
I know littel Arabic. His people likes him.
He is very kind man, open minded, and visionary. He fights terrorism. He defeated Al-Qaeda. He focuses in medical field. He built international health care program called “Kingdom of humanity” anyone has illness could not be recovered in his country and the program can help him, they will do their best to ,….
He is trying to make middle east peaceful. He tried many times to resolve the problems and issues in Middle east.
I would like to say we should be fair
after that the world is lucky to have this man rather than most radical man
rate 164th for him is to high.he must be in end of list
rate 164th for him is to high
King Abdullah is a nice and kind man. People of Saudi Arabia love hem.
you forgot his glasses! it’s bad luck that he was born with weak eyes and now he has to wear lame old glasses. king nothing, to me he’s just some weedy little bookworm nerd who deserves to get pushed into a pile of horse poop for having such stupid eyes.