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"These 'stay home, small town, never been out of state' types really get me. They look down on guys like us who work in some foreign shithole desert or swamp, but they soon bellyache when their gas goes up one cent or they can't get the favorite brand of bean in their laatte. They make me sick."
You make wild assumptions with no basis in posts. Also, no one even mentioned any of you "guys" much less looked down on you. Obviously you dislike working there [q.v. "shithole"] as much as we suspect we would. So we seem to be in agreement on that. I can't stand adulterated coffee either. Why do you look down on people who don't want to do what you do? We don't look down on you. You have made a lot of assertions, but not a one is accurate.
"Tell them that Bob Hernandez of Parsippany, NJ, will be home on leave in June and would be glad to meet them anywhere they choose so he can explain to them where their friggin gas comes from."
Thanks for the offer Bob, but I have a close friend who is a Chemical Engineer who used to work for ARCO before he went out as a consultant. We have discussed the petrochemical industry for years from both a technical aspect as well as the business end. But again, we have never commented on that in any posts. All we say is why is there no blame put on the actual killers by people like Chris in his posts? What's wrong with that? And what is "friggin gas?" I know of regular and premium, I understand the octane rating based on pure heptane, but that's a new one on me. [kidding]
"Don't these guys have real names. Like, are they ashamed of their families or something. Did they ever have families? SurveyGay rhymes better "
We use "handles" here much like on CB radio. We have had nasty people use personal information to cause trouble at our jobs or possible spread untrue rumors. I suggest that you only use your initials in the future, or you could find some idiot sending the FBI to your door in Parsippany claiming you are doing something criminal or evil, for example or do something even more annoying. We keep the handles consistent so that the conversation thread can be followed -- at least most of us do. By the way, one of our rules is no personal attacks against other posters. But since you are just being quoted by Chris, who knows the rules, you are forgiven.
"This surveyguy, (I wouldnlt work in Arabia any more than I'd work for the government), it must be good to have such fine principles and be able to choose where to work. Most working stiffs take what they can get. You go to college to study Petrochem, you don't get the chance to work in some fag advertising agency or be a fashion photographer. Maybe he's on welfare. Sits in front of TV all day eating chips and turns down offers from Wall St."
And here I thought that freedom of choice was one of the things that makes this country great. What I did was choose where not to work. Why does this annoy you so? I know that you must know all about hydrotreating, catalytic reforming, and the fluid catalytic cracking processes, but you seem to have forgotten much about manners.
"Chris, you always ask awkward questions and I usually disagree with your answers. But these people haven't begun to figure out what's going on in the world. Probably haven't figured out why they need to dump every morning."
Actually we have, much to our chagrin, on both points. I sincerely hope that you do too before it gets you hurt of killed. I am sure I speak for many of the rest of us.
"Small minds, mean spirits, a bad combination"
It seems that you guys are the mean-spirited ones. We never said a word about you. We criticized Chris for abusing the tragic deaths to make political points -- exactly what you accuse us of. If you will check, we never posted anything political about the bombings out of respect for the deceased but criticize Chris for doing so. So in a way, we are in total agreement, just not about Chris's judgement on this one item.
"JL is obviously an expert on Saudi Arabia, must be the Readers Digest article he read. Maybe he'd like to come with me on a 10-day geo survey in the Empty Quarter in 130-140 temps, and then tell me I'm really a Muslim. He’d better bring a compass."
I am glad it's all so "obvious." First of all JL is not a "he." Moreover, she never wrote what you claim. Re-read and try to show where you think that was written. You are mistaken on more than one count.
"I was down at Al Hamra this morning, helping out. Not a place you want to be. Makes you think. Last night they were still picking body parts out of the trees. There was a Chevy bent like a soda can. A kid’s bike wedged thru an upstairs door. Surveyguy has all the answers. Tell us why it really happened. Then tell the people who died. What a jerk."
Chris has all the answers -- it's all the US's fault -- so ask him. We just say that there are multiple causes, part of which is (1) the religious indoctrination to hate Americans in the mosques and wanting to kill us, (2) ignoring of the warnings to beef up security, (3) lack of protection by the Saudi authorities, and (4) that these western compounds have been a reputed sore spot. Why it happened is probably because you are living in the "Kingdom of Hate" together with (1) through (4) above. Perhaps you should read the book by that title. Maybe it will tell you some things that you don't know from another perspective. Just blaming it on US actions alone seems simplistic, but convenient. I am sure there are many causes beyond those I've listed. Why don't you tell us what you think the reason(s) are? At least we read many sources and acknowledge possible misinformation, but are far from being simplistic.
"Chris, why do you talk to these people? Newsgroups like this are the dark underbelly of American politics. Look how they immediately say you are anti-US, anti-American. Typical "Patriots". Drive around in a Suburban with a big flag out the window. Call their children Hank, even the girls. Hate government, taxes, Gun Control, homosexuals, Democrats, Jews, Blacks, Hispanics, and obviously Expats. Can be described as 'Festering pustules on America's butt". Who said that? Me probably."
Maybe Chris is open-minded enough to read other thoughts and finds the articles we post on a variety of subjects interesting, although he seems to only respond to those related to the Middle East. He may enjoy disagreeing. Maybe he's good at it. Agreeing is entirely optional. Chris's postedopinions have been generally anti-US. We don't know what yours are since you've never posted. We don't even know if Chris is jerking our chain or not. We don't care. He has been civil and posts on-topic. However, you seem to have formed some bizzarre inconsistent stereotype in your mind. I wish you had posted what you think of something you know or read directly, rather than something you imagine or was read to you or what someone told you was said. At least quote what you are responding to. Your reactions are entirely inconsistent with the actual posts. Since you know all the answers, please fix things for us before you return home. All we are up to is trying to identify the real problems.
"JL is too fussy to work in rough old Saudi. He leaves that to suckers like me. He thinks that the gas in his tank comes from rat piss. He won’t go to foreign countries because they talk funny and you can't get a good burger. If everyone was like him, we would still be scratching beans out of the ground in Plymouth MA."
Again, you are gender-biased as well as biased against those who have made alternate choices. We never criticized you at all. You must be ultra-sensitive to misinterpret someone's concern for people working there as somehow criticizing. Besides, beans can be used to help produce methane -- an alternate fuel source [just kidding].
"What I find depressing about the JL reply is that he dismisses the human story just to attack the political point. Politics first, people last, just like a terrorist."
This board is about politics. We attack that which should have been a poignant statement but was abused by Chris to make HIS political point. Chris was criticized here for doing exactly what you accuse us of doing and yet we felt his comments were distasteful for the same reason that you give -- politics first-- and called him on it.
"What do you expect, they are from the Northeast. Like you, Chris."
Did Chris really show you all the posts verbatim? It is hard to tell. You seem to have a good sense of humor. You do not seem as filled with anger as your buddies.
"Surveygay wont work in Saudi, and neither will I, but I’m here. Shit happens."
I considered it many, many years ago -- tax breaks and all. Then I decided quality of life trumps dollars in the bank. We all make choices. Yours ended you up in the Saudi desert. Why are you offended that I don't want to be there? Apparently, neither do many of you from your discriptions. Just because I don't want to be there nor work for a bureaucracy doesn't mean I look down on any one else's choices or circumstances. Your choices are yours and are best for you. Mine are best for me. I do not understand your rancor at my expressing my own preferences. If I said liked pumpkin pie and you ordered apple pie, would you really think that my statement of preference demeaned yours? If so, please get some counselling.
"I was moved by the account, Chris, and we all have our own story to tell of that night. Your problem is your last para. Should of said “And they all lived happily ever after” ;-)"
The problem was, Chris should have ended with something like, "May God have mercy on their souls." Then made his political comment in a separate post or a reply to that post. We were moved as well and then offended at Chris's shallowness and politicization and said so.
"These people are all the same, they just expect us to keep the oil flowing but are not interested in the crap we have to put up with. We should send our oil to the Far East where they’re at least grateful, let the ingrates back home pay $10 a gallon and then they’ll start to think about the real cost."
I have no idea what posted comment this remark is reacting to. I also didn't know we were all the same. Here I thought each of us was unique. Ya learn something new every day.
"That JL is real ignorant. Because we live here, that makes us Muslims? So when we work in Nigeria, that makes us Witch-doctors? And Moose-worshippers in Alaska? Dream on, JL. We do the job, we get paid, we get laid. End of story."
I'd agree with you, IF anyone had written that. No one did, especially JL. Look again.
"Where does that guy get off, picking and choosing where he works? Like he’s always turning down big deals from Hollywood? Like he needs a secretary to stop headhunters bugging him? The man with the dream CV, I’m honored to have met him."
Umm, isn't this the United States of America with freedom of choice? That's what liberty means. I do not get assigned a career by the Politburo or the Kremlin. Actually I chose where I would NOT want to work. Big difference. I actually get to choose a career preference when younger, study for it and then hope to get employment in that field. Sure it doesn't work out sometimes. I am not working in the industry that I want to, but I am not working where I do have ended up doing something I didn't train for. If you studied skills needed in the petrochemical industry and applied for a job in it, did you not make your choice? Should I be angry at you because you made a choice different from mine? Very strange that expressing that my choices are different seems to be the most offensive thing somehow. In a way, saying that I would not want to work in Saudi Arabia is almost a compliment to you. That is, I would want to put up with the hardships, no matter what the financial rewards. Same thing for government bureaucracy -- I want no part of it.
"They sit on their asses next to the a/c and make smart-ass comments about how we’re like working for government and how we deserve the towel-heads as friends, and then come home to watch baseball on TV with a 6-pack. We pump oil out of the ground in heat you could broil a T-bone, and get blown up and shot at when we come home. Maybe they’re not as stupid as we are."
I much prefer a fan. And since you must sit on the same place as all of us, I can only be amused by your colorful remark. Your remarks don't even refer to anything that was written here. Who said anything like "we’re like working for government?" What I said was that I wouldn't want to work in Saudi Arabia any more than I'd want to work for the government. I also don't want to do roofing. Does that mean I just said that working in Saudi Arabia is like being a roofer? Of course not. Perhaps the heat and whatever else in your surroundings is affecting you guys and must somehow also be affecting your reading comprehension. Who said anything about "towel heads?" Oh, it was you. I have no idea what you were referring to and I don't even like baseball.