Genevieve said:
When you look at the other monarchies the Crown Princes do a lot of work. Look at the schedule that the Prince and Princess of Asturias keep and the amount of abroad trips Crown Princess Victoria and the Prince of Wales make each year. Granted Abdullah and Rania are younger than the Kings and Queens of the other monarchies but the role of the Crown Princes is very valuable and is important and integral in the passing of the torch.
I think it's not even a fair comparison to cite the examples of European C.P.s because, as you noted earlier, they aren't living in countries where the monarchs are autocrats. So, in many regards, their roles are less significant, less critical to the functioning of the country and to the well being of the citizenry. The youth excuse doesn't really fly with me because, young or not, KA is the ruler, the one and only for Jordan right now, so he has to find a way to make it work. And, anyway, he's in his mid 40s now. Although inexperienced in the job, he is middle aged and should be able to exercise at least a respectable caliber of judgment.
Is one really supposed to believe that as the default Crown Prince, an elementary school aged boy who hasn't even hit puberty yet is the second in command and is responsible for the sorts of sensitive business his great uncle Hassan used to do? What a joke!
Well, officially, constitutionally, P. Hussein is the second in command, even if he's not yet doing the job. Obviously, no one is carrying on the day-to-day responsibilities of C.P., and KA is often out of the country, so a whole lot of important matters must be falling through the cracks. And, given this, one has to wonder why KA is running around accepting awards and honorary degrees in the States. Is that really a good use of his time, considering there's a large leadership vacuum when he's out of the country? Who's thinking about Jordan's strategic plan? Who's looking out for Jordan's long-term interests and future?
Whatever else was going on in the region and whatever poverty was being experienced and endured in the country on a daily basis you could at least count on Hussein and Hassan.
They formed a true partnership. P. Hassan could run the country while KH traveled. . .there was continuity, and people had more confidence in this team than they have in KA going the lone wolf route.
Such instablity is not good for any country and is fertile for unrest.
Which is probably why KA has felt the need to clamp down on freedoms and spend so much of the aid money that pours into Jordan on security.
