TPM Reader DB reports in:
I would like to refer to the note about Saddamâs changing image in the Arab world. I have lived in the United Arab Emirates for 8 years. The other night I was taking a little run into Dubai for a bad burrito (for some strange reason the cooks in Dubai do appalling things to Mexican food) and a beer. My taxi driver, Amjed, a Pakistani who has been driving taxi in Sharjah and Dubai for 25 years, was unusually quiet on this trip. Finally, after we got going on the freeway, he asked me,
âSo, Saddam gone, eh?â
âYes,â I answered. âHe is dead. He was a bad man. But it wonât change the troubles in Iraq.â
âHe was bad man,â Amjed agreed. âYou see?â
âNo. I didnât see it.â
âI see on television. He was brave.â
âI heard that.â
âHe was bad man. In end, he was brave. He was not afraid. In end he was brave man. Was good.â
I couldnât think of anything to say to that. We drove on in silence. When we got to the bar, I thanked him, tipped him, walked in, and ordered a cold pint of Stella.