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Juan Carlos I is tolerated by the Spaniards, because he took a resolute pro-democracy stance
. Unless the 1981 coup was a Xanatos Gambit: the coup was a very dumb idea, and he benefited from it enormously. It seems he doesn't care so much that the Royal Family remains in power in an official capacity, as much as that they remain a Royal Family at all. They are still immensely rich and siphon a lot of money from the State. Many Spaniards resent that. Loudly. Especially the Catalan independentists and republicans.
I don't know about the King Of Jordan. The last point where they appear in my history datamind is when they sort of massacred the OLP and Plestinian Refugees (who are said to have been acting rather dickish). As for fictionland, their intelligence services have been portrayed rather favourably in Body Of Lies
. This is the extent of my ignorance on this subject.
^^The democracy business and «¿Por qué no te callas?» things resulted in me thinking of him as a Reasonable Authority Figure, so he's what came to mind, is all.
[1] This facsimile operated in part by synAC.My admiration for the King of Jordan comes from the statements he's made on the subject of resisting Islamists influencing the Government and caring about the general welfare of his people.
For me, that isn't so much that he supports America, so much as that I have a seething hatred of radical Islam that will follow me to any country I might decide to live in. From some of the interviews he's done and also his actions, I think he's a really good man who generally cares.
The problem with really good monarchs is that having an equally good successor is a true crapshoot.
Edit: Also, Jordanians have a zero tolerance policy for being fucked with, and I really respect that. No dancing around the issue, more like "You're making an ass of yourself and causing trouble. Stop it or we're going to kill you." I like ultimatums, and so do they.
^
Same on the Baradei issue.
edited 1st Feb '11 1:52:34 PM by Barkey
On a similar note, a guy just came into my clubspace and asked my friends and I for our opinions on various totalitarian states.
Hugging a Vanillite will give you frostbite.Uh, that's not stepping down. Like mctagg said, he wants to stay until the next election. Which is in September.
edited 1st Feb '11 2:36:26 PM by Tzetze
[1] This facsimile operated in part by synAC.What a disappointment. I was on the verge of humming this little popular tune...
[[youtube:KjpVWKS_I7M&feature=related]]
edited 1st Feb '11 2:54:46 PM by Ardiente
"Sweets are good. Sweets are justice."This is what I know about King Abdullah, I think it is enough
edited 1st Feb '11 3:11:20 PM by nnokwoodeye
This decision is not going to satisfy the protestors. Perhaps early on they would have been willing to make this concession but after days of being abused at the hands of their government, they will not be placated. The protests will likely not stop until Mubarak is out of office and out of the country.
I am afraid that this is not the end.

The group quoted in the article specifically said that they didn't want a regime change like Egypt's, and that they recognize the legitimacy of the ruling family. I just find it interesting how much this is spreading.
@Kino: That's what the article says.
edited 1st Feb '11 10:32:44 AM by Tzetze
[1] This facsimile operated in part by synAC.