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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the problem of the Saudi economy?

2. Whose intelligence reports described the supporters of the Chechen rebels, according to Baer?

3. What do Muslims feel about the Alawites, according to Baer?

4. What does Baer say was the CIA's response?

5. How does Baer characterize America's relationship with Saudi Arabia?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was the first event that convinced Baer that the CIA was out of touch with what was happening in the Middle East?

2. What problem was Saudi Arabia faced with when King Fahd suffered a stroke in 1995?

3. Who are the Alewites, and what is their role in Jordan?

4. How does Baer describe his night in Uzbekistan?

5. Who is the Muslim Brotherhood, and what is their role in the Middle East?

6. What is the role of it International Islamic Relief Organization in the Middle East?

7. How does Baer describe the importance of American arms in Saudi Arabia?

8. How did the fall of the Soviet Union change the importance of the Middle East for America?

9. What does Baer say is the effect of the Wahhabi government on Saudi culture?

10. According to Baer, what is the United States policy in the Middle East?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Evaluate the case for democracy in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East based on Baer's observations. What are the main challenges to democracy in the Middle East? What are the benefits it might offer? What problems might democracy solve?

Essay Topic 2

What are the key contradictions at the heart of the United States' involvement in the Middle East? What balances are struck between opposing trends or movements? For instance, how does the United States' desire for democracy in the Middle East apparently balance the United States' willingness to let countries like Saudi Arabia fund terrorist states?

Essay Topic 3

What proposals does Baer make in his book? Apparently, he wants to do things differently than they were done. How does his book propose that things be done in the future? If you feel that his book does not contain proposals, why do you think that this aspect of Baer's analysis was left out?

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