An absolute must read.

The power of the petro dollar is what this book is all about. Message - We need to move away from dependancy from foreign (arab) oil. They dont have anything to offer the world without it, and if not for a few US and British companies back in the 30's the Saudis would still be sitting on oil they wouldnt have any idea existed. Exporting hate in order to keep the masses focused away from their corruption is the countries policy, and unfortanatly we have and will continue to pay heavily for that. Posner has opened a can of worms and the princes must be feeling uneasy about it.

A Real Eye Opener

Our dependence on Saudi oil makes this book even more important than ever. Gerald Posner's extensively researched "Secrets Of The Kingdom" makes me want to start riding a bicycle to work. The amazing corruption of the Saudis as well as those in our own government and big business is, at the very least shameful as well as downright criminal. Face it, they (the Saudis) literally have us over a barrel. It's time to read a book that will make you angry enough to do something about the problem and "Secrets Of The Kingdom" is the book to read. Thank you, Gerald, for opening my eyes.

Interesting and Scary; More Government Fumbling

Posner begins by relating the outcome of capturing Abu Zubeydah, the highest-ranking al-Qaeda operative captured so far by the United States. The U.S. arranged to mislead their captive into thinking that he had been turned over to Saudi's. Zubeydah's reaction was one of relief, and he quickly spit out the phone #s of two Saudi royals, stating that "they would take care of the situation." Unsure what to make of this, the U.S. then informed Zubeydah that the phone #s were no good. He then provided several other Saudi names and that of the Chief of Pakistan's Air Force, adding that the Pakistani and one of the Saudis knew of 9/11 in advance.

Both Saudi Arabia and Pakistan denied Zubeydah's claims, as expected. However, three months later, all those named started dying under suspicious circumstances.

Posner then briefly summarizes how the Sauds came to power after WWI, defeating the Ottomans (prior ruling tribe) and others. He then goes on to cover how Saudi Arabia is much more religiously conservative than other branches of Islam, though it has relaxed somewhat in recent years. Nonetheless, one is horrified to read how 15 girls recently died in a fire at their school because authorities would not let them out without "proper" headgear.

Other sources have clearly identified hatred of Israel as a major motivator in the Islamic world. This is somewhat understandable in response to Israel's takeover of Palestinian land and subsequent mistreatment of those citizens. Posner, however, also points out that the Sauds had this hatred before WWI!

Posner also details how Saudi Arabia threatened to nationalize its oil industry in the early 1970s unless businesses lobbied for it. Shortly thereafter, Egypt attacked Israel, Nixon decided to resupply Israel, and the U.S. oil embargo followed. Eventually the embargo was lifted, but prices increased ten-fold, and the Saudis used their new wealth for conspicuous consumption and to engender support among other nations for a resolution condemning Israel.

At this point the "good news" is that eventually the Saudi's began to use their vast wealth to build public infrastructure; the "bad news" is that it was accompanied by lots of corruption.

King Faisal was assassinated in '75 by the nephew of a prince he had ordered killed while protesting (religious reasons) opening a TV station. Posner points out that the nephew had spent years in the U.s. - thus, it was concluded that the West had corrupted him, and general dislike of the U.S. again increased.

America's prolonged military presence on Saudi soil (considered a major affront to Islam) during the first Gulf War helped motivate Bin Laden. (President Clinton compounded the problem by allowing women to be stationed at the base.) At about this time, Saudis worried about others trying to take over their oil fields (President Carter had an official plan drawn up to do so) established a "scorched earth" policy - Semtex explosive was placed in key locations, and it is also rumored that mini "dirty-bombs" were additionally positioned.

As for the current war of terror - Posner points out that much terror-funding comes from the Sauds, and they have failed to cooperated with U.S. banking officials trying to stop the flow.

Overall - a very informative and alarming book.