Tag Archives: Islam

The way of the dodo

Yes, that is a path that I am walking at present. You see, I am (originally) a Catholic. As such I tend to miss the Islamic markers around me. And this year I was aware of Ramadan, even though I do not practice it. So the news given by Morocco World News (at https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2026/02/279298/impossible-moon-saudi-arabia-faces-scrutiny-after-declaring-wednesday-as-1st-day-of-ramadan/) caught me unaware for two reasons. The first setting is that the accusation that Saudi Arabia made an Islamic booboo (as expressions go) is out of the realm of my conception of Islam. In this I am biased. I see Shia Islam (Iran) as evil and Sunni Islam (Saudi Arabia) as good. As such I see Islam of the UAE on the same footing as Saudi Arabia. If people want to convict me of these thoughts, that’s fair (as long as they are Muslim)

So the news given to me was ‘Impossible Moon: Saudi Arabia Faces Scrutiny After Declaring Wednesday as 1st Day of Ramadan’, I was own a different footing. I got that it was Ramadan as Google informed me it was, nothing complex about this. But then I tend to rely on Google on many matters, like the Horoscope, Chinese days and a few more like this and Ramadan fits in that setting for me. So a the News from Rabat is given to me In the form of “Another year, another controversy as experts and observers across the world are surprised and nearly shocked over Saudi Arabia’s decision to declare Wednesday as the first day of Ramadan 2026.

The Gulf country aligns with other nations in the region and beyond, who are facing scrutiny over their decision, with experts and astronomy centers stressing that the crescent moon, called the “hilal”, was impossible to sight last night.” This kinda caught me unaware. I am not a Muslim and as such I am in the dark of these matters. I for one (with my scientific mind) was thinking that as the world is almost a sphere that some will not see what some do see. So, what is visible from Mecca (or Riyadh) might be out of view for Rabat , Casablanca and a few more places. But that is thrown upside down as we are given “Critics say the declaration is against all available data contradicting declarations from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and beyond, which started fasting for Ramadan today. Astronomers had warned prior that highly unfavorable celestial conditions would make it impossible to sight the moon yesterday, February 17. Astronomy calculations suggest the moon sat before or simultaneously with the sun in most Islamic countries. This would serve as an obstacle to leave an observable crescent above the horizon, with both the moon’s age and angular separation from the sun also far below globally accepted visibility thresholds.” I am merely posting what Morocco World News is giving me, because in the first I am not Muslim, I am also neither a astronomer and I wouldn’t be able to do these calculations without an additional 4 years of University level of mathematics and calculus. So I lose out three times. And when we get to the setting of “According to Evrim Agaci, a Turkish science and education organization, the moon was supposed to disappear a mere 42 seconds ahead of the sun’s descent last night” it seems a matter of less than a minute and that is the slimmest of all astronomical settings as I personally see it. And my lack of knowledge and insight into science (as given above) I heralded with “The same source detailed how the moon will set before the sun in many cities, including in Abu Dhabi, where the moon sets one minute before sunset. “In Riyadh, it will set 37 seconds earlier,” Gulf News reported. Several other countries like Jordan, Oman, and Egypt announced Thursday as the first day of Ramadan, acknowledging the impossibility of sighting the moon. Saudi Arabia’s controversy is not limited to this single incident, especially as the Gulf country has long been treated as a reference point by many Muslim countries that model their own calendar decisions on Saudi announcements.” And my comical setting of a town proclamatory walking through Yas Mall (in Abu Dhabi), ringing a bell proclaiming ‘Ramadan has started’ brings a small grin to my mind knowing that the sin goes down a mine later and everyone can enjoy their foods until sunrise. But that is me, always trying to see the bright spot on the moon (its right between Ptolemaeus and Mare Nectaris) And yet, this article gives us another setting, one that I had no knowledge of and no expectation of. It is seen in “Observational data consistently show Morocco is among the most accurate in determining the start of lunar months, as they base their Islamic calendar on actually sighting the crescent moon with the naked eye. This approach relies on different methods, including engaging clerics, astronomers, and armed forces units in a coordinated effort.” I did not expect that to be a strength of Morocco. As such we might say ‘Calculate it again, Sam’ with a small wink at Casablanca. So even as I go the way of the Dodo, I do see that we are all fallible and we all come to conclusions. I am not judging Saudi Arabia, the UAE or even Morocco. But a setting of this magnitude happens. We might think bad, good or anywhere between there and uncaring. But the fact that this happens brings a smile to my face. Because we are all fallible and someone wanting to enter Ramadan a day early should be heralded into doing the best for his or her faith. It is seemingly that simple, at least that Is what I think.

You all have a lovely day and abstain from offering any Elderly Muslim water between dawn (Suhoor) to sunset (Iftar), I would want to do this for humanitarian reasons, but apparently it is not an option to Muslims, knowing this makes my heart hurt a little more than I am comfortable with.

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What is true?

That is at time the question. You see there are settings where we see accusations and at times I wonder what is true. The setting given to us is given by Memri (at https://www.memri.org/reports/saudi-arabia-draws-closer-pro-muslim-brotherhood-axis-terror-–-and-wages-intensive-media) and we see:

Now, I have questions, because as much as I understand the given settings from Saudi Arabia and the Muslim Brotherhood. And some sources give me “As of 2015, it is considered a terrorist organization by the governments of Bahrain, Egypt, Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.” As such I have doubt that this is the settings that Saudi Arabia is embracing. It makes much more sense (in light of what we see here) that the quote “Saudi Arabia has recently made a sharp turn in policy. While drawing closer to Qatar and Turkey – the patrons of the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization some of whose branches are designated as terrorist in the U.S. –  it is simultaneously waging an unprecedented media campaign against the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which is leading a determined global campaign against the Muslim Brotherhood axis of terrorism.” Is a misleading one. There is the definite chance that it is the intention of 

Saudi Arabia for guide Qatar and Turkey away from the Muslim brotherhood as there is much to be gained for all three to see the Muslim brotherhood lose sources of their enablement. Now, I am not Muslim and I don’t see any merit in questioning these settings, but when I look at the critics on Memri, I am given “Critics argue that MEMRI often provides selective, out-of-context translations to portray the Arab and Muslim world negatively, functioning as a pro-Israel propaganda machine.” And as such we would never see any pro-israeli source misrepresent Saudi needs would it? (In case you missed this, the previous part was sarcasm) there are a few settings that don’t ring true (or non-authentic). You see, this was about the Muslim brotherhood as such why do we get “Al-Tuwaijri accused Abu Dhabi of assisting Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza by spying against this organization, providing the location of its rocket launchers, and supplying equipment and ammunition to Israel via bases in Yemen, Eritrea, and Somalia. Finally, he claimed that Abu Dhabi is involved in combating the Muslims and Islamic organizations in the West, which apparently refers to the UAE’s campaign against the Muslim Brotherhood and similar extremist Islamic groups.” It is out of context and to that setting I say ‘Where is the evidence that this is happening?’ I for one do not believe this because the oldest ‘premise’ is that Israel only trusts what Israel can find themselves and they would never ‘rely’ in Arabic intelligence and even if that was the case, no journalist or think tank would ever have that kind of intelligence and from that setting the article sounds another degree of untrue. And whilst some might ‘trust’ the Muslim Brotherhood. To me it comes at a price no one would ever want to pay, not Saudi Arabia and not the UAE. This sounds like an Iranian ploy to drive people asunder and not in a nice way. And at present Iran cannot do anything because the Americans are breathing down there necks and with Hamas out of commission the dubious honor is given to the Muslim Brotherhood. As such there is optional debate on a lot of things, not in the least regarding Y. Yehoshua who in 2026 is said to be working on “As of January 2026, he has been reporting on the aftermath of the October 7, 2023, attacks, including investigations into failures, leadership changes within the IDF, and operations against Hamas leaders.” As I personally see it Hamas and the MB are as much a threat to Saudi Arabia as any enemy they currently have and as such things ring untrue. So when we look at H. Varulkar I get more questions than answers, mainly because I am not Muslim and I do not look at Muslim issues, as such there is a lot I do not know, but the news here does not sound correct. As I see it, at present the ‘job’ of Memri seems to be to create a larger rift between Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Is this true? What is true? I believe it to be the essential repair of the rift between Saudi Arabia and the UAE. And the time is essential for those who want to create a rift between Saudi Arabia and the UAE need to strike now, because as I see it Iran cannot make any moves in the near future and as such they got an Israeli journalist to do their dirty work (it is seemingly the case, whether this is correct is beyond me), but the entire setting comes across as untrue and hollow. And me for one wonders about the article, there is a certain lack off evidence. We merely get the alleged ‘stopgap’ “Bin Bakhit cited the Quranic verse which states that “Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but rather a Muslim monotheist” (Quran 3:67), and emphasized that these two narratives cannot be reconciled.” Perhaps this is an explanation, but if it was, it would be a lot more ‘fattened’ with reason as to why it was an explanation. But here my non-Muslim side comes rearing its head as the meaning by me is diminished to some extent. And for these ‘journalists’ to merely ‘assume’ that one direction is in play is another failing of the article. The fact that the interests of Saudi Arabia was to diminish the hold the Muslim Brotherhood has on Qatar and Turkey is not even contemplated in the article (perhaps it wasn’t needed) and then there is the third setting, Egypt has 120 million people and they regard the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organisation and recently we were given “In January 2026, the U.S. and Egypt recognized the group as a threat due to its alleged continued involvement in extremist ideologies, terror, and links to organizations like Hamas.” As such I see more reasons why there is a debatable setting to this article and it pushes Saudi Arabia in a setting of distrust by too many ‘allies’ Saudi Arabia has. As such the article comes across as untrue, but then I have been wrong before and I am not Muslim, as such I might not see the elements that matter, but that is my view and as the Western media is currently not to be trusted there are a few settings that allow certain people and organisations to play the cards they have to seed mistrust in too many eyes. 

So am I right? Am I wrong? I reckon it is anyones guess. Have a great day today.

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Your Faithful travel

That sounds like quite the statement, but it applies to this. We all have faith and some are more convinced then others and as I saw the news of registering for the Hajj 2026 (which is not until May 2026) I took a little gander. I found it essential as I wrote last year ‘About the setting of prayers’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2025/06/04/about-the-setting-of-prayers/) which I wrote on June 5th 2025. I covered (a little) “Last year, 1,301 pilgrims, most of them unregistered and lacking access to air-conditioned tents and buses, died as temperatures soared to 51.8 degrees Celsius (125.2 degrees Fahrenheit)” but the setting that some were unregistered didn’t sit well with me. So I wanted to know what was going on. As such I saw today a sight I never expected to see. I saw this mention in Al Arabiya and I took a small gander through the Nusuk Hajj screen and I was blown away, so I reveal a little to you all now. To be honest this is so much better then any travel agent ever gave me (my normal holidays as I am not Muslim) 

We are welcomed and you can register or just browse and I was not afraid to browse. As said this is so much better than any travel agent. You have got to be insane not to register here. And we start with 

I didn’t browse deeper, but the 10 steps as I see them show me much more than I have ever seen for any travel setting. And the Hajj pilgrims is taken trough these 10 steps The first 4 are shown and you can enter any setting at any times, having a clear required setting bestowed upon you. So as we start we get the option to create your account, uploading your document, fill the application and application verification. 

We then get select your preferred category, top up your wallet (I guess that family could top it up too from wherever they are), browse service providers and select your preferred package.

We then get the option to book your package and review your itinerary (I guess your could email that to yourself and family members. 

In a simple setting I see the most complete booking system ever viewed by me and there is reason for this. Over a million Hajj attendees from all over the world will come and this is be far the most complete setting I have ever seen. So I am amiss to see why anyone would want to go with some dodgy tour operator (I honestly do see that, and I’ll get to that) There are options to ask someone questions, there are frequently asked question and a whole range of other setting all in the right order as I see it, but the start ’10 steps closer to 1447 Hajj’ blew me away, this is a serious achievement and I get that was needed but I saw it with my own eyes. This is a serious achievement. In travel and it will help over a million get to the Hajj smoothly and I saw perhaps one thing that could be added:

I have this sling bag, which was from the video game ‘AC Shadows’, now imagine this bag in white with the green flag of Saudi Arabia and embroiled on this ‘Hajj 1447’ and perhaps a phrase from the Quran what might be the motto of the 1447 Hajj (if they have this), it has space for your Quran, a space for your mobile and space for perhaps a small bottle of water. Perhaps they have something like that, but I never saw this, so it came to me.

From what I can see Saudi Arabia is taking good care of the people coming to their Hajj or perhaps even Umrah. And let there be no doubt, those who attend unregistered did so for the clear reason to avoid registration and there should be nob doubt that this is done in a time where survival is unlikely to happen to those who are unregistered. 

But there is a second side and that is not on the organizers or on the government of Saudi Arabia. It was given to me by the Jakarta Globe (at https://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesian-muslims-face-40year-hajj-wait-nu-chairman-tells-saudi-forum) where we see ‘Indonesian Muslims Face 40-Year Hajj Wait, NU Chairman Tells Saudi Forum’ and I get that, the solution I created a few years was for pilgrims and doesn’t include Mecca, as a non-Muslim I thought it was not my place to offer this and as a non-Muslim, I don’t really get that part. As a christian I saw Lourdes, but not as a faithful pilgrim, and I never got that part either. I understand the of the faithful, but I was never one of them. So I left Mecca in the open and perhaps that could solve this, I saw the equations that 900 million people will never see Macca, most of them cannot afford that trip and they are given that the act of seeing Mecca in one’s lifetime is a central tenet fulfilled by performing the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage. It is one of the Five Pillars of Islam and is a mandatory religious duty for all adult Muslims who are physically and financially able to undertake the journey at least once in their lives. It is the ‘and financially able’ even in those days they understood that not everyone could afford such a trip. Even as it seems now more and more affordable, over 20% of the world population is now Muslim, a setting never considered 1447 years ago, I don’t think they ever considered that the worlds population would grow to 8 billion people.

But there is a worry for Saudi Arabia as Indonesian muslims have up to 40 years to wait. I don’t think there is ever an easy solution for this, at least not that I can see. And when we consider that the act of Hajj needs to be performed from 8th to 12th of Dhul Hijjah, which gives us starting with the Day of Tarwiyah (8th) in Mina, the Day of Arafah (9th) for standing at Arafat, Eid al-Adha (10th) with animal sacrifice (Qurbani), and concluding with further rites in Mina and circling the Ka’bah until the 12th or 13th, marking a period of intense spiritual devotion, prayer, and unity, concluding the Hajj rituals and celebrating Eid. This is the opening that is available for Muslims, as such some will miss out. 

So have a great day today and rejoice, some people will consider a proper digital experience to give rise to your Hajj 1447. At least the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah are doing their best on making the even smooth, all covering and as I personally see it, the best travel platform ever offered to anyone. 

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The lighting of a stage

That is what I am wondering about. You see, first we hear that Netflix is acquiring Warner Brothers and a few connected things too. A day later we hear “US president Donald Trump says the Netflix deal ‘could be a problem’” Next thing we hear that the son in law (Jared Kushner) is spearheading this hostile takeover. Of course all the conspiracy boys are in town blowing this up to an amazing extent. I think that there might be a setting where the boundaries of ethical borders could possibly have been trespassed on, but as I don’t know the clear picture, I will refrain from voicing them. There is of course the setting we can ‘debate’ on.

As the Business Insider has a more oiled version of what has happened. The story (at https://www.businessinsider.com/paramount-wbd-saudi-arabia-qatar-abu-dhabi-elllison-hostile-billions-2025-12) which comes with the headline ‘Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi want to put billions into Paramount/WBD. Why?’ It is after all a fair question and I am a little thrown by the setting that this is Qatar AND Saudi Arabia AND the UAE are working together on this. I can figure out the why, but about that later. You see, Business Insider has an additional gem to throw our way. It is “Those three nations won’t have any say over a combined Paramount-WBD, the Ellisons say. So what will they get?” And we are given “The governments of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi want to invest billions of dollars into a would-be mega media conglomerate made up of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery.” And there is a part missing, the gaming IP’s that is floating around there. But the end of the article gives us “If Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi are looking to put anything close to $24 billion into an enormously powerful media conglomerate — one with huge reach in both the US and ambitions for the rest of the world — will they be satisfied with purely financial returns? Or do they expect something else for their money?” I get that part, you see I had been working on IP doing that very same thing. There are 1.9 billion Muslims in the world and there is only so much the current studios can cater for and with this they have a firm hand towards places like Bangladesh, Pakistan and Indonesia which together with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE sets the handle to over 50% of the entire Muslim population. And as there is clear evidence to see real growth in both Saudi Arabia and the UAE for tourism and as that growth continues more is needed and with Paramount and Warner Bros. They have just that. I was fishing another angle, but that too was driven towards these 1.9 billion customers. Too bad Amazon never accepted this issue and the Saudi government (Sydney Consulate) did not accept it either, as such I was out of luck and Google had dropped their Stadia. So I was out of luck in that too. Still I considered other avenues as well. I got one Script done and offered it to Dubai Media, but they weren’t accepting any scripts at present (or my script was really bad, which is equally an option) 

But I saw these stages all over the Middle East happening and in that setting there is a growing chance. America with its valve setting is not a real option. Every script can only when the 15 middleman get a share of all that and I will much rather give it away to Canada and never get a penny. But the script was meant for a Muslim audience, so not much use in Canada. The other three optionally, but they are still being written. A have written megabytes of script, but it hasn’t been ironed out yet. I am relatively new to Final Draft. 

So am I correct? I believe so, Saudi Arabia and the UAE (I have no idea about Qatar) will need professionals that are decently up to speed and buying Paramount and Warner Bros. will do that. So, when all these professionals are directed towards new grounds with Saudi/Emirati directors and cast they can get a lot more done fast and I reckon they already have a set amount of scripts and screenings ready to get started the moment 2026 knocks on the front door. 

And with the media up and running the Saudi and Emirati media for all their venues is pretty much a given. Not just that, but the African nations are predominantly Muslim, so they can also capture the hearts of them too. Now add Egypt and Turkey and this media engine gets real global potential. Yes, the entire venue makes sense to me, but for me it was clear as I initially investigated that setting for my own IP, so I looked at the equation and I saw clarity, the fact that the price got upped makes perfect sense to me and in that setting Netflix merely loses. The west better start realising that on this planet Muslims are 1:4, 25% and that is a clear destination for the media centers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, so whilst we are so involved with individuality, they merely approached every Muslim asking “Would you like this” and all muslims will very likely make an affirmative sound. We all look at the stage and wonder what was going on and others look at what lighting it needs and they cater to that hand, Now I need to wonder if my script is really bad or do I talk to another media channel. Well, that is my worry and it is for today as it is 01:00 now. Have a great day.

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Social denial

The guardian brought me ‘up’ to speed on a matter, they did so a few days ago, but I had other matters to deal with. The story (at https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/nov/12/foreign-prisoners-killed-saudi-arabian-jail-tabuk-prison-egyptians-executed-non-violent-drug-crimes-mohammed-bin-salman) gives us ‘‘I’ll be executed on Tuesday’: families reveal panicked last calls from foreigners on Saudi’s death row’ and the text gives us “foreign nationals who have been sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia for non-violent drug crimes” there is no easy way to say this. “They entered the drug traffic setting of there own free will” some will say that there is no ‘free’ will here and I kinda accept that. But Saudi Arabia has a grim view on drugs and it has had this for years. Consider the alternative, America has had an annual US federal drug war budget that has reached $39 billion, with cumulative spending since 1971 estimated at $1 trillion. What sanity do you have with 1 trillion to hand out to nothing? As I see it, the drug trade has no winners, merely losers and perhaps 1-2 elevated people for the time it takes someone to over take them (violently) and the stage restarts. There is no winning this and as such Saudi Arabia and a few other places (I think Indonesia and Turkey) has little to no problems putting these people to death. And the Guardian is socially constructing this setting. 12 happy innocent looking faces. But those they ensnare in their drug trade through pushing drugs are a simple setting for them, the simple setting is “more money for me” and that is the stage Saudi Arabia is avoiding and putting to terminal sleep forever. So when we see “Many of those sentenced to death were probably innocent or forced into drug trafficking, say human rights groups. “They’re poor, they’re marginalised. No one listens to them,” says Jeed Basyouni from the charity Reprieve.” I am willing to consider that they were ‘forced’ into the drug trade, but they went along and for whatever reason the drug trade goes on. I get that these social charity places have to be and they do more then protect drug pusher, but the setting is that we see, all for “just a few hundred dollars”, yet the drug trade in Saudi Arabia is a target for these drug traders. In 2022 we were given “Experts say Saudi Arabia is one of the largest and most lucrative regional destinations for drugs, and that status is only intensifying.” Considering that America has had its beef since before 1971 implies that Saudi Arabia had an easy time an now as they see what it costs America, they are not about to hand over 1 trillion dollars to drug dealers. You can get a lot of Shawarmas for that with an additional side dish of Baklava. And anyone thinking that they can get away from capture in Saudi Arabia is fooling themselves. The larger setting is also ignored. It is all imported by hundreds of foreign nationals. And Saudi Arabia is having none of this. So when we are given the stage of people executed in Saudi Arabia from 1 Jan to 3 Nov 2025, we see 219 people, 400% of those guilty of murder and 7300% of those executed for sexual offenses. As I see it, Egypt (where nearly all convicted drug executions seem to come from) has a serious problem and as everyone wants to blame Saudi Arabia, the setting is that someone is pushing them to make this stupid setting, because Saudi Arabia never had any other consideration that Islam teaches that alcohol and other drugs are prohibited because they induce intoxication or a mind-altered state. And as we see that Islam prohibits all intoxicants, including narcotics, citing multiple texts in the Quran and Hadith (Unlu & Sahin, 2016). We need to consider that Egyptians knew this. 90% is islamic in Egypt, so I get the question what is the religion of these people? That number is not given, there is optionally the chance that these are Christians rolling the dice (speculation as I have no clear numbers on this) and that is the flaw in this setting. The word muslim appears in that tory merely once, at the very end when we see the names of these 12 people, so there is a chance that all 12 were muslims, but is that true for all 219 executions? 

So whether you are in agreement or not of capital punishment, the larger story is that it had been known that Saudi Arabia executes people for these crimes and it has no intention to shell over a trillion dollars to the drug trade. As I see it, they feel comfortable sentencing them all to death. America might have considered that point decades ago and whilst we want to cry over these poor poor criminals. There are no non-violent drug crimes, the victims of these crimes become the puppet of violence and other transgressions and Saudi Arabia is having none of that. So I have to wonder when Europe and America are much more appealing targets, why are these people going to Saudi Arabia? That is the setting everyone is overlooking, because you can get from Egypt to Crete, Greece and Italy when you use a dinghy and steer roughly 310 degrees (an exaggeration for sure), but that seems more appealing then Saudi Arabia and seemingly no one is looking at the data that way.

Have a great day, it is 31 degrees here now, so I am seeking shades and icy cold water. Monday morning is a mere 8 house away for me now. 

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And for today

That is what I was thinking. I saw the news (at https://www.arabnews.com/node/2617052/saudi-arabia) where I saw ‘KSrelief undertakes new food and medical initiatives in Africa’ and I was off to the races. It is mostly because the western media refuses to give us anything on what they do. They think the boobies of Kim Kardashian are much more news worthy. So as I see that they “The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) has launched and concluded several major relief initiatives across Africa this week, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

In Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, KSrelief inaugurated a large-scale food security support project designed to help the country’s most vulnerable communities.” I will make space for this (especially as the news worthy media does not). And for that the “SPA reported that the program will distribute 38,900 food baskets, each weighing 40 kilograms and containing essential food items, reaching approximately 233,400 individuals across multiple regions. The initiative forms part of Saudi Arabia’s pledge to support the Lake Chad region, a commitment made during the 2024 Jeddah Donors’ Conference.”The idea that this touches over two hundred thousand people in multiple regions is nothing short if miraculous. I initially would like to think the massive amount of drivers that were needed to bring this to the people as that is my expectation, but I have no idea how many drivers this would take to these trips. And when we see in that same setting giving us “According to SPA, an 18-member volunteer medical team performed 28 open-heart surgeries, 95 cardiac catheterization procedures, and three transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) operations.” We need to see the massive amount of good that KSrelief does to the world and in this case to Africa. 

As for the other news, it is a little more questionable. Irani News (at https://www.iranintl.com/en/202509284910) gives us ‘Khamenei adviser urges joining Saudi-Pakistan defense pact’ I have issues here. It is nice that they want to sit under the Atomic Umbrella it provides, but Iran has been Thumbing the nose towards Saudi Arabia (and others) by setting channels of. Communication with terrorist organisation like Hamas, Houthi and Hezbollah, making them proxy members to say the least. My personal setting is that Iran at the very least will disavow these connections and stops fueling the wars that they have been. Any settings found in the future makes them automatically no longer eligible for this Saudi-Pakistani defense pact. And with the setting of “Major General Yahya Rahim Safavi told state television on Saturday night that the agreement between Riyadh and Islamabad was positive and proposed Iran, Iraq and others also take part. “Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Iraq can reach a collective defense pact,” he said, while acknowledging that US influence over Riyadh and Islamabad may limit such moves.” We should realise that there are off course stabilizing benefits to this, but the danger that Iran poses with its ‘three terrorist allies’ is no guarantee that they have the stabilizing issues that they are proclaiming that Iran could face. As I personally see it, Iran was a seat on the Muslim-majority Defense pact and it wants a bigger seat on the Islamic table and that should never be allowed before their have adjusted the points of communication they invoked through terrorism. 

The world (and in particular the Muslim setting) of a stabilizing setting with Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Pakistan are much better served with Iran on the outside of that equation. Iran did this to themselves and now that Israel has had enough of the setting that Iran provided, Iran wants to hide behind a nuclear umbrella whilst it keeps on setting fires to the middle east. I don’t think it is a good thing and it should not be allowed. As I see it Major General Yahya Rahim Safavi will have to remove the coal coals it dispensed over the middle east and in a first setting needs to remove Hamas, Houthi and Hezbollah channels of support from the table. 

OK, it is clear that I am no person of interest to Saudi Arabia and I do not think they would ever see me as a party of influence here, but that is what I believe. And whilst we are at it, how much support has Iran given to these three parties in the last 5 years? 

I reckon that removing these three from the ‘free oil wells’ of dollars is a absolute first in this setting and any support found from Iran will without any delay thrust them outside the Saudi-Pakistani defense pact. 

That it for today, time to enjoy a lovely coffee and perhaps a small pastry, have a a great day.

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The settings you never see

I got a little surprise yesterday, apparently Saudi Arabia is (at https://english.alarabiya.net/News/saudi-arabia/2025/09/11/saudi-fund-for-development-to-give-syria-165-million-barrels-of-crude-oil) handing Syria ‘Saudi Arabia to give Syria 1.65 million barrels of crude oil’ and we are given “Saudi Arabia will supply Damascus with 1.65 million barrels of crude oil to support the country’s economy and improve living conditions for its people, the Saudi Press Agency reported Thursday.” In addition we are given ““The grant aims to enhance the operations of Syrian refineries and achieve both operational and financial sustainability. Its goals include supporting economic development, addressing economic challenges, fostering the growth of vital sectors, and contributing to the achievement of sustainable development goals,” SPA reported.” I think it is a great setting that Saudi Arabia is helping its ‘neighbors’ in getting a more robust economy. It comes after we were given (at https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2025/09/07/saudi-arabia-launches-damascus-area-reconstruction-project- )“At an event Sunday in Damascus, the Kingdom’s King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) announced an aid package that includes a project to clear more than 75,000 cubic meters of rubble from the capital and its surroundings.” I took notice as KSrelief is doing a lot of good in the Arabic peninsula and Africa, news that doesn’t make it into the western press. You see, it doesn’t fuel the digital dollars of the western media. And as they think that Syria is old news, they basically don’t bother.

But this shows Saudi Arabia to be a ring neighbour and their projects would benefit those millions of barrels of oil. A setting the western media also ignores. But we are informed by Al Arabiya as is the Arabic peninsula. We are also given that “Saleh said the rubble hinders humanitarian efforts and reconstruction, and that unexploded “war remnants threaten the lives of civilians.”” Ans this is the second setting that we are given after Riyadh informed the people in July that it pledged $6.4 billion in investment and partnership deals with Syria. Good for Saudi Arabia and good for Syria. Yes, we are never informed about the cleaning operations that others cause. But the UN keep on bitching about the diluted and misinformed focal points in the world. 

In other news
Yes, this also impact Saudi Arabia, but not in a way people care to know. We were informed about a month ago that Ubisoft is adding a DLC to AC Mirage. A game I enjoyed. What I didn’t know it that this involves Saudi Arabia. We are given in several ways “Ubisoft staff raised concerns with management over the company’s alleged dealings with Saudi Arabia.” As such does it matter? Ubisoft has done plenty of Dealings with America and their transgressions into all kinds of illegal operations are ignored. And when we get to “Game File reported that a representative from Ubisoft’s social and Economic Committee (CSE) directly questioned company management about whether “seeking a contract with a person accused of crimes against humanity for ordering the assassination (including his dismemberment and dissolution in acid) of a journalist, could contribute to the Ubi-bashing the company is currently suffering?”” I now say let these idiots of the Social and Economic Committee (CSE) come with actual and factual evidence. Enough is enough! So whilst we are given “While Ubisoft hasn’t confirmed a deal with the Savvy Games Group or Saudi Arabia generally, the company announced on August 23, 2025, that Assassin’s Creed Mirage will receive free DLC later this year, which will be set in ninth-century AlUla (a city in Saudi Arabia).” A setting that I presume is part of an ancient oasis city and governorate in the Medina Province of Saudi Arabia, but I am not the expert of that. This reminds me, could it be an idea to incorporate the works of Tusif Ahmad (I reported on that two days ago (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2025/09/10/outside-the-box-we-see/) the idea that the presumed bras or copper templates might open a setting or a door that opens a larger stage of the game. Consider that these copper shadows might be seen as the earliest Quranic verses in this case, a verse by Tafsir Surah (I hope I got that correct) and that could spark all kinds of fandoms by Islamic people. It is just an idea and I got there in less than a day. As such I say yay Ubisoft. I think it is high time that the western world gets of its seemingly high horse badgering American slogan devoid on facts or evidence. It will be some effort to leave alone AC Shadows as I am in the middle of it, but no one ignores a free DLC (only idiotic sycophants do) and lets be clear AC Mirage was a decent game, so I will like to revisit that game, but there is not doubt AC Shadows is likely the Ubisoft finest work, it is likely their sixteen chapel. (As christian expressions go). And the revisit of AC Mirage has a second effect on me. I still believe that Ubisoft with an expansion of the META Quest 3 (or equal device) might instill a global perception of languages. 

As schools are less and less able to fund their own settings. There is a setting that Ubisoft could inspire language skills and that is the next iteration of the AC games. Some tweaking is required, but at present we have

And at present there is a nagging need for linguistic skills and the larger setting that these games could in corporate linguistic skills and cultural knowledge. Take a look at the past. The Latin community (aka the Roman Empire) handed people skills through ‘Familia Romana’. So there is no real IP setting here, now translate this to all the other languages in a rosetta stone setting and now we have a new ball game. A setting that could be replicated through all manner of books that have been out there in numerous languages. Now set this to AC Mirage and suddenly all the AC fans want to learn these languages. I get that there is a need to seek reinforcements through all manner available. So why not these settings. I think Saudi Arabia does the right thing by giving people something to strive for, especially as the media is crying unsubstantiated allegations since at least February 27th 2021 when I wrote ‘That was easy’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2021/02/27/that-was-easy/) Where I blast to pieces the work of the United Nations and its essay writer Eggy Calamari. So there.

Have a great day and let that be a warning to the CSE hiding behind there ‘alleged’ and ‘accused’ parts. I reckon that they might get the limelight for impeding business though little to no founded accusations. This has been going on for 4 years and no factual evidence has ever been presented. In the mean time we can soon enjoy a new chapter in the AC Universe.

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Outside the box we see

That occurred to me, the Arab News (at https://www.arabnews.com/node/2614596/saudi-arabia) is giving me ‘Artist showcases Qur’anic verses with intricate paper cutting creations’ It caught me unaware, I never considered this and the image (source: Arab News) is showing us the amazing creations 

With the subtext “Australia-based Pakistani artist Tusif Ahmad visited Jeddah this week to showcase his intricate and colorful papercutting representations of Qur’anic verses.” In that same setting I am a little amazed that this is an Australian based artist. It is the first I ever heard of it (and here I am blaming the media yet again). And it is not impossible that I overlooked that setting, so I am willing to take part of the blame. Yet the setting should have been a lot more visible in Australia. Weirdly enough three thoughts penetrated my feeble brain.

  1. Does this technique work in English too?
  2. Is it possible to do this technique in braille, so that the blind could enjoy this?
  3. How can non-Arabic people enjoy the art for what it is?

I am not saying that this is a prerequisite, but there is a larger stage (there always is) and to propagate the setting to a larger audience is what we tend to focus on, especially as I am an absolute Arabic noob (a non Arabic literate person).

So when we see “Over the past 12 years, he has produced more than 500 pieces, exhibited globally, and won recognition for an art form he describes as “an invitation to reflect on the Qur’an.”” Making the ‘unheard’ of scene a lot more visible. I reckon that Australian Universities should invite his art form a larger audience (the young tend to be more accepting of new forms of art) and that is seemingly a starting point. I am of course considering that this was already done, there his no way that I am the starting point of anything that isn’t my concoction.

So as we are given ““Each artwork aims to create a bridge between tradition and modern expression, inspiring both Muslims and non-Muslims to connect with the spiritual essence of Islamic art,” he said.” That I might as a non-Muslim not see the whole picture (or image) and I get that, but I know of this art form for less than a day and that needs to be revisited.

Of course my brain goes into all kinds of side-roads, like “What happens when you take this idea and add lasers to this and project that form of art” that and a few other ideas I get from “During his Jeddah talk, Ahmad showcased works from a series inspired by the surahs Ar-Rahman, Yaseen, and Yusuf. He explained that small pieces may take weeks while larger ones require months of patience and spiritual focus.

A setting is that Ubisoft take this idea and add it as an achievement to AC Mirage (as they are creating a new addition to this game later this year) and create an entirely new following, giving this IP (owned by Tusif Ahmad) a interesting large following, giving himself a character in Bagdad at 862CE and letting this art form creating a wave of additional fabs and showing it to a larger audience. It is a way to get art the attention it needs and this merely happened as I combined two ideas in the same time. Timing is almost everything. You still need to cajoles to combine ideas and do this against the folly of time where people laugh at your ideas.

As such Yves Guillemot, I just gave you another setting that might have gone unnoticed in the larger grand scheme of things. And I reckon that Tusif Ahmad might never have considered showing his work to a population that is interested in video games. As such as his audience he would gain, I would wish him good fortune (artists tend to be a hungry lot at times)

Its all in a days work and as I just passed the mark of midweek (Wednesday 12:01pm) it is time to bid thee all a good day and have a great time wondering what comes next. I don’t know because New Zealand is ahead by three hours and they cannot tell me what happens at 15:00 (as they aren’t answering the phone). Time travel through telecom. Who would have thought it.

Write to you all later (in about 20 hours)

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Speculating about the day after tomorrow

That is the question that is overwhelming me. Most of us are aware that America is now a burning house. Plenty of people are running away. In 2025 the UAE is expected to get 8800 millionaires moving in (I expect most of them are Americans). 

That and the fact that some corporations are moving out of America, heading of to Canada is merely a second setting. You see that tourism and a hostile world based on tariffs is one, the setting that comes next is not the one I am clear on. I had to think deeply about what it coming next. And I think I have worked a few things out. Apple is already opening a much larger niche in Saudi Arabia, but then? This is what I saw:

STC had a revenue of $20,238,100,000 and they can do more. As we are also given that 92% of individuals aged 12 to 65 using cell phones. As such there is a larger thought that Apple is riding the waves of next week and I know that Huawei is there already, I do not know where Google is, but Saudi Arabia is setting the premise (via Neom) that millions will need servicing in the near future and for the Saudi Telecom Company there is an additional opening for more revenue. There is the call for the STC to bring in their own mobile phone. They can do it via another, or they can grow their own ‘budget’ phone. The setting makes sense. I guess that STC will go the way of Android, a presumption I give you that. But then Saudi Arabia has its own mobile, with Pakistan (247m) and Indonesia (280m) almost too eager to accept that setting and this will allow STC to grow its beachfronts in almost all directions and as these markets are filled, they will be able to offer a much stronger mobile to Europe. This will enable STC to grow into European carriers and markets. That is the growth that the next 5 years will bring. And as America is getting deeper and deeper into trouble. Those ‘advocating’ the American dream are now hiding for dear life and they are banking that another venue opens and that is the way in for Saudi Arabia. 

A larger setting that will be opening up and you can believe the spin that will be coming from the Trump administration, but the ‘donation’ to the Trump administration will enable Saudi Arabia get access to the American carriers too. The escalations that Saudi Arabia has been setting by increasing the stronger 5G was already in motion as per June 2021, so they were already moving in this way. So as America shot themself in the foot and broke their own glasses, the options are opening stronger and faster. I reckon that Apple opening markets in Saudi Arabia too a much larger degree is the last piece of grass that I needed to foretell the settings that are coming in the next iteration and America did this all to themselves. Saudi Arabia merely saw a tactical option to control a larger piece of the 5G settings and I reckon that they will be holding the upgrade of telecom centers in Pakistan and Indonesia as a juice bone whilst at the same time offering contracts including a STC 5G phone. Consider how many people took that setting with their local telecoms including Orange, KPN, Vodafone, Optus, Telstra and several others. STC is seeing the opening and Saudi Arabia is becoming a global player in telecom and 5G and all that comes with with newly build development centers in NEOM (I’m specifically considering Aquellum) a setting that allows Saudi Arabia to grow influence on a global scale. 

If only the American stakeholders had not been ‘filtering’ out news for years and that is the setting I saw evolving 4 years ago. If only the media had properly informed us from day one. So, as I see (read presume) certain evolutionary steps, others might have seen it if they were given access to the actual news. I had an advantage knowing a handful of languages beside English, so I had an advantage. 

Now Saudi Arabia gets a much bigger advantage and it is partially due to (as I personally see it) the evolution of the STC, which should give Al Arabiya and the MBC Group a much larger setting towards the half a billion people in 2 nations and that is before the influence in Egypt and Europe will be showing markers. That will be in the papers soon enough and whilst people will ‘doubt’ this and others will spin it as ridiculous, consider the impact that advertising to a population of 500,000,000 people will bring. When Pakistan and Indonesia will grow beyond certain markers (I know that there are markers, but I have no idea what numbers are set to these markers). Advertisers will seek new channels taking them out of the once they have (like YouTube, TikTok) and other advertising settings. The channels will not completely go away, but they will see dwindled revenue numbers. That is the second tier in this and this is another evolution branch for the STC (optionally the MBC group too). 

A setting that was almost chiseled in stone and I saw parts of this in 2021. There is a pride setting for Saudi Arabia, but to set the telecom of 5G to 700% of what America offers seems a little over the top. At that time I thought it was Huawei and China that were the driving parties, but with the settings I saw develop in the last few weeks I reckon that Saudi Arabia was ahead of the settings by a lot. I presume that the evolutions over the last month merely brought this all to the surface. 

So lets see what America does next. All have a great day and consider what damage will be done to America tomorrow, because that is still very much on the mind of many.

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More bad news?

Yesterday I got some news from FTN News that might spell bad news for America. America is at this moment drowning in tourism ‘debts’ (for a lack of a better word). At present the downfall is set to 29 billion dollar and there are several sources who give us that there is all likelihood that this will not be reversed until 2029. And that is merely the reversal of income (if America does an about face basically today) the loss of income will continue. America will bleed tourism revenue for years to come. And the bad news that is added is seen (at https://ftnnews.com/travel-news/aviation/inside-saudi-arabias-bold-plan-for-a-low-cost-airline-with-45-planes-by-2030/) giving us ‘Inside Saudi Arabia’s Bold Plan for a Low-Cost Airline with 45 Planes by 2030’ where we see “Saudi Arabia’s bold plan for a low-cost airline with 45 planes by 2030 is the Kingdom’s latest move to transform its aviation sector and boost tourism and connectivity” Now don’t think this is a silly notion, but at present in Europe, Canada, Asia, Australia and a few more countries people can only afford one vacation a year and the sewing of cheap holidays to a place where many like to see it, it means that most will contemplate Saudi Arabia against the unwelcoming grounds of America. Considering that the bulk of Muslims (who are about 1.8 Billion, close to 20%) they all will consider Saudi Arabia over America, especially if that comes with lower costs. As such this is almost a slam dunk win for Saudi Arabia. So when we see “The new carrier will be operated by a consortium led by UAE-based Air Arabia, in partnership with Saudi companies Kun Investment and Nesma Group. According to the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation, this alliance was awarded the contract to launch the airline after a competitive bidding process that also included Jazeera Airways and other regional players.” It sets a setting that the UAE/Saudi Arabia connection could spell a lot more bad news for certain parties. As stated, base operations might be in Dammam, yet they are aiming to carry at least 10 million passengers per year once fully operational. Its 81-route network—comprising 24 domestic and 57 international destinations will set the fall to others up to 10,000,000 passengers annually and that is merely the beginning. As I see it, the 10,000,000 will grace Dammam, Riyadh, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Considering the simplest setting that many will now be able to afford a trip to Dubai with its 0% taxation and Apple growing there too I expect a boom of people trying to unite cheap vacation with cheap shopping and in that regards Abu Dhabi remains an option for these people. The could visit both with the High Speed train that takes you to the other UAE destination in a mere 35 minutes. So how interesting is that against any place in America? 

So is this a real threat against American revenue? I believe it is and after the bad setting that America pushed itself in, and the upcoming Vision 2030, I reckon that America might get a prolonged bad tourism time going through until 2032/2033, a few years after Disney and Harry Potter theme parks graced Yas Island totaling the amount of theme parks to 6 with the added Yas Island Mall and the F1 races there too. And Harry Potter to be expected to arrive late 2026 and as there is no date for the new Disney park, I expect that this will not happen before early 2027. But that sets a new danger for America getting relieve to its tourism downfall. 

The setting that SeaWorld is an unique place merely sets the premise towards a lot of tourists selecting Abu Dhabi over America and that is merely the start of this matter. So as I see it, whomever invested in the new airline (apparently The NESMA Group and Kun Investment Holding) seem to be riding an great profit venture and as this goes on the investment might turn out to be a golden one and that is before the impact is seen that Neom Bay airport will face and that means tourists will flock towards Trojena and its ski slopes. Yup, the Kun Investment Holding is looking towards the bright side of profits.

So could I be wrong? 
It is a fair question, but the reality is that nearly all people need a vacation and when the price goes down people can do more and as such these 10,000,000 annual places are 10,000,000 that America loses, pretty directly and that is after the losses it is already facing at the moment, as such I feel pretty confident that this will make it, even as it is not the only one in Saudi Arabia. There is also Flyadeal, Flynas and Air Arabia. The fact that Saudi Arabia is ready to expand the tourist game implies that they have been upgrading with a focus and I think it will drive people towards Trojena and Sindalah, which is besides the options that Abu Dhabi and Dubai offer. So as I see it, America will be facing several more hard years and that is if they do an about face on tourism as per today, when they do not, by 2028 Ski tourism will go towards Saudi Arabia as well. A nasty package is coming to the American shores. They did this to themselves, as such I feel it is their own fault. But to see this amount of damage due to the stupidity of America first is pretty laughable in any book you read.

As such have a great day and if you need a point of investment, I reckon having a better look at the Kun Investment Holding might not be a bad idea. Don’t ask me for advice, this is all I see and I am not the expert in investing, but there are good times ahead for Kun Investment Holding.

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