Chess forbidden in Islam, rules Saudi mufti, but issue not black and white

[galdur]

Seven things Saudi Arabia should definitely ban instead of banning chess

1. Lashing pensioners

Sentencing 74-year-old pensioner Karl Andree to 360 lashes for possessing alcohol is probably a tiny bit more immoral than chess, but that might just be us.

2. Beheading

Top tip: if you're trying to reduce "enmity and hatred between people", not beheading people as a form of justice is a good place to start.

3. Child jockeys

Although the annual King's camel race sounds fun, the fact that children are frequently injured taking part really isn't.

4. Human rights violations

Saudi Arabia is one of very few countries in the world that don't accept the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Considering it was established in 1948, it's probably about time to take a look.

5. Discriminating against women

The list of injustices Saudi women face is colossal, ranging from not being allowed to drive, to extreme difficulty obtaining divorce.

Although domestic violence against women was criminalised in 2013, the Grand Mufti has a lot left to work on before he should be allowed to tackle the tricky issue of chess.

6. Inequality

Despite having one of the world's most powerful economies, a quarter of Saudis live in poverty. Hey, King Salman, fancy sharing some of that multi-billion dollar personal fortune?

7. Monopoly

Way, way more immoral than chess.

http://i100.independent.co.uk/article/seven-things-saudi-arabia-should-definitely-ban-instead-of-banning-chess--b12TM6wA3l

[bryant.coleman]

BTW if you take a look at the Youtube vids shot by the Houthi rebels in Yemen, you can see the results . Saudi soldiers sitting in their tanks on a rocky plain (with a bunch of big boulders everywhere around) a hill behind them. Houthis snaking between the boulders and playing a turkey shoot with RPG-7s. No saudis had the brain to send a mg team to the hilltop behind themselves or at least make some sort of infantry screen around the tanks. Perhaps if the officers could play chess...

The lesson here is that buying hundreds of billions of USD worth of advanced weaponry from the United States, Germany and Canada will be of no use, if you don't have intelligent and well-trained soldiers. The NATO nations are profiting enormously by selling their over-priced gadgets to the stupid Saudis. And in the meantime, the Houthis, armed with just AK-47s and RPGs are kicking the Saudis in the butt.

[Spendulus]

Seven things Saudi Arabia should definitely ban instead of banning chess...

If you don't ban chess, then someone might find out those mullahs are dumber than a tic on a goat.

[Snail2]

They are "trained" and "advised" by people whose grasp of military procedure is very limited as has been very very very well demonstrated in one failed war adventure after the other. So, no surprises there.

Actually americans are good on training, tactics and strategy. Crappy politics and the dependence on unreliable local resources make them losing wars. It appears, US decision makers have no idea or viable plans about what to do when the army defeated the enemy.

[alberthendriks]

Now they need to invent a secret notation and play blindfold chess.

[galdur]

They are "trained" and "advised" by people whose grasp of military procedure is very limited as has been very very very well demonstrated in one failed war adventure after the other. So, no surprises there.

Actually americans are good on training, tactics and strategy. Crappy politics and the dependence on unreliable local resources make them losing wars. It appears, US decision makers have no idea or viable plans about what to do when the army defeated the enemy.

Well, I have my doubts about the officer cadre. And the doctrine. It´s good to think about minimizing your losses but not so good to make it an obsession. Then you may become convinced that the enemy has the same idea, which can be a costly mistake.

The best wars are ruthless, brutal and short. This saves lives in the long term. But it may not be so profitable for armaments manufacturers.