Didn't these people know that Saudi Arabia is a really really shit place? That it's not torturing and killing Khashoggi, a regime critic, that's made them horrid? That it's horrible and has always been horrible? That whoever is leading it is always going to be a murderous brute?
Repression of women, killing of dissidents, sponsoring of terrorism, promoting violent Wahhabism throughout the world?
All these are par of the course for Saudi Arabia. And yet a nice little liberal like Richard Branson can take their money. He really needs their money?? Greed overtaking liberal morals.
And so into China's arms. Our motherland. Another nasty dictatorship only getting worse in its repressions. What can I say? They deserve each other. Sadly they won't be innocuous or without widespread influence. So the net effect of this murder may be spread of repression.
In recent days, a parade of Western business executives – including the bosses of JP Morgan, HSBC, Standard Chartered, the London Stock Exchange, Uber and Virgin – have pulled out of an investment conference in Riyadh this week dubbed "Davos in the desert". [From Khashoggi killing could drive Saudi Arabia into China's arms]
