Monday, June 27: Travel Troubles & Hajj Headaches
The Saudi government gotta be top 5 worst governments in the world
The last nine months have been a nightmare for air travel. Millions of people have been affected by grounded and canceled flights, the ongoing airline worker strike, and higher prices for flights that take off as expected. This has led to long lines in airports across Europe and the problem is growing every day.
Separately, but extremely related, every year millions of Muslims make arrangements and travel to Mecca, Saudi Arabia to fulfill their religious duty and make a pilgrimage, what we refer to as Hajj. For decades the travel arrangement process was done through local Muslim organizations, allowing families and community members to plan to make the journey together. This year, the Saudi government (the same bright minds who literally put Jamal Khashoggi in a wood chipper), decided to change the entire booking format, moving everything online and canceling any existing travel arrangements. Needless to say this has had negative consequences, as hundreds of thousands of travelers are left with their plans up in the air (hate myself for that pun usage). Hajj takes place in less than 3 weeks, so it will be interesting to see how this fiasco shakes out, but if one thing is for certain, the Saudi government will paint it as an overwhelming success regardless.
Side Items
Protests continue across the country against the recent supreme court decisions
Russia dropped heavy ordinance on Ukraine’s capital for the first time in weeks
The future of policing is happening right now in China
Indigenous groups in Ecuador continue to protest rising costs of food and fuel