usa – Arabian Misadventures

The future of Iraq and Syria looks uncertain to me, yet both countries have much potential if the leaders can accept to nurture what their nation states actually contain, i.e. a broad spectrum of people. If a centralised state is desired, a regime needs to encourage integration (without coercion), foster equal opportunities and support statehood participation by all citizens. Since their creation, during the mandate era, this has been a challenge for both Iraq and Syria.

The beginning of Iraq’s history saw some tribal groups under-represented by the country’s successive governments. The 2003 invasion might of somewhat corrected this issue, but nowadays some feel disenfranchised by the new regime.

In Syria’s history, there has been a lack of self-rule from the beginning, especially for the majority people. It is argued that the lack of experience in democracy led the country down the path of dictatorship (since gaining independence in 1946).

At the political level, the rule of the British Empire did not manage to effectively bring together the various peoples of Iraq, and the policies of the French Empire further divided the various regions of Syria. Today, both countries are challenged with establishing stability and safety, and to reach a political consensus amongst all peoples and regions.

Intervention from the United States of America has not really helped either. In Iraq, the Bush administration was short-sighted, it relied heavily on Nouri al-Maliki. Unity in his regime was short-lived: he turned a blind eye to the excesses of some of the militias (as long as they supported him). This in turn led to the rise of ~~ISIS~~ QSIS (al-Qaeda Separatists in Iraq and Syria).

Losing Iraq

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “St. John of Damascus”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Nov. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-John-of-Damascus

Marsham, Andrew. “11 Christians, Zoroastrians, Jews and Others in the Umayyad Empire”. The Umayyad Empire, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2023, pp. 257-293. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781399527392-020

~~Silly Bank~~ Citibank is one of the largest and most well-known banks in the world, providing a wide range of financial services and products to individuals, businesses, and governments.

To join, one had to be earning at least 30,000 or so. They used to offer a Visa debit card, which was quite rare at the time (2006).

A current account in Sterling was always free with them, but not really. Sometimes, without asking permission, they would add me to some sort of premium account. The only different being that they would charge a monthly five dollar fee thereafter. I had to call them multiple times to resolve the issue.

The main benefit for joining Citibank were the free foreign currency accounts (e.g. USD, Euro, Yen). However, ten years later they started charging a monthly fee (per account) without informing me. The exception was if the account was dormant.

Unfortunately, one day, they convinced me to make all three active, but I insisted on activating just two. My original request to was for activating the dollar account. I was going abroad. Can you imagine my horror, once I noticed on my statement that I was being charged 10 dollars a month.

I also obtained my traveller’s cheque via Citibank. 20 years later, they were silly enough to tell me they were worthless.

Tired with dealing with a silly bank, I stopped depositing my pay cheques with them. I think that was reason they decided to close my account. At first it was like an inconvenience, but then it was a burden lifted.

For traditional banking I primarily use HSBC and for foreign currency I mainly use Transferwise. No more headaches.