Vietnam War experiences traumatized nurses

Tiffany Moore

Transcript Correspondent

tpmoore@owu.edu

Claymore mines and booby traps blanketed South Vietnam during the war and wreaked havoc on U.S. soldiers.

Many of those young men who suffered horrifying wounds were treated in emergency setups by some of the nearly 10,000 women, a majority of them nurses, who also served in uniform. It was traumatizing for the wounded soldiers and those who treated them, said former Army nurse Mary Powell.

Powell, a Vietnam veteran, shared her storiesTuesday in the Bayley Room at a lecture titled “Our War in Vietnam,” sponsored by Ohio Wesleyan’s College of Republicans and Young Democratic Socialists of America.

Powell said she became an Army nurse when she was 23. As a native New Yorker, Powell attended Columbia University School of Nursing and graduated in 1969. During her senior year, she was unable to pay tuition. At that time, the Army needed nurses and offered to provide financial assistance with a two-year commitment to serve after graduation.

Powell became an internal medicine nurse and was stationed at the 24th Evacuation Hospital at Long Binh for a year beginning in November 1970.

Powell said she can speak about her experiences today only because she worked in internal medicine, not in emergency medicine.

“Every nurse I knew in Vietnam who worked in surgery … is on 100% disability for PTSD,” Powell said, “One of the nurses who is on 100% PTSD, my friend Nancy, was in the room next to me. The first day she was assigned to neurosurgery, she took care of a 19-year-old without a face.”

Only two percent of the soldiers admitted to emergency treatment died, but the rest were in horrifying conditions, Powell said. It was routine for nurses to avoid admitting feelings toward the soldiers and about the war.

“When we say goodbye to the guys we would say goodbye, good luck, and we’d shut down on feelings,” Powell said.

About 15 students and staff members attended the lecture. Powell avoided speaking to the audience with a traditional mic and podium and instead herded everyone into a circle to engage in a more personal conversation.

Sophomore Jacob Delight said, “I came to this event because I was interested in joining YDSA. I hadn’t heard about Vietnam on a personal level. So it was interesting to be able to put a face to it.”

Senior Amanda Hays, played a big role in planning the event.

“It was great, she was a wonderful speaker. It’s important to hear these people’s stories while they’re still around,” Hays said.

YDSA meets at 7 p.m. Saturday in Stuyvesant Hall’s Fishbowl; College Republicans meet at 8 p.m. Wednesday in Welch Hall.

Elizabeth Warren makes history at OWU’s Mock Convention

Connor Severino and Hailey de la Vara

Transcript correspondents

cmseveri@owu.edu

hhdelava@owu.edu

Ohio Wesleyan students elected the first-ever woman president Saturday at their Democratic Mock Convention.

Voters elected Elizabeth Warren as president and Stacey Abrams as vice president. Warren secured the election after a run-off vote with Bernie Sanders and was the first woman president elected since the beginning of the convention in 1884.

Abrams secured the vice presidency following a passionate endorsement from Sally Leber, OWU’s director of Service Learning, who highlighted her record defending voter’s rights and racial equality.

OWU alumna Valorie Schwarzmann, permanent chair of the convention’s committee, said, “Hoping as a country we have a sense of whom to be and who we want to lead us, I hope we can figure it out.”

The convention, begun Friday, always focuses on a political party and this year’s event simulated a Democratic Party nominating convention, with the theme “The Future is Ours.”

William Louthan, a politics and government professor, led the invocation for the event, animating the crowd with his introduction of “Welcome to the party of the people.”

David Pepper, chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party, presented the opening message, encouraging students to get involved in the upcoming presidential election and to register to vote.

Alaina Shearer, a candidate from Ohio’s 12th Congressional District, rallied the crowd by stressing the importance of this year’s election. Proceeding her speech was a performance by the acapella group OWtsiders, who set the mood for the remainder of the convention.

Also speaking was Alex Moscou, a senior and survivor from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida in 2018, addressed the crowd about gun violence, earning enthusiastic recognition for his courageousness and leadership.

The convention’s atmosphere was filled with energy and optimism throughout both days and seemed to unify students.

“There was a higher level of energy and a deeper engagement of issues, compared to the last Mock Convention,” OWU President Rock Jones said.

Drama was on hand, too, when security escorted out sophomore Hamzah Malik, the state chair for Ohio, after he refused to leave the microphone in defense of Vermin Supreme for vice president. Supreme is a performance artist and perennial Democratic candidate.

Malik had collected enough signatures to nominate Supreme, but the executive committee ruled the move invalid on the grounds Supreme is actually an Independent candidate.

Throughout, students delivered addresses about issues such as climate change, student loan debt, equality and healthcare. A vision for an equal and ecological friendly economy coincides with the interests of Warren and runner up Sanders.

Students represented their home states and with their votes, Warren surpassed runner up Sanders 111-to-52. The remaining candidates came in a close third place, with each having around 30 votes.

“It was so exciting because not only is this OWU history but country history being the first time we’ve had all women,” junior Alexis Greene said.

The convention concluded with scores of balloons and cheers.

Transcript correspondent Meg Edwards contributed to this report.

OWU helping to get out the vote

Katie Cantrell

Transcript Correspondent

kmcantre@owu.edu

The deadline looms.

Ohio’s presidential primary election is March 17 and Ohio Wesleyan officials have made efforts to ensure all students eligible to vote in this year’s election can register in time by the Feb. 18 deadline.

OWU promotes voter registration every election year and it has created registration opportunities on campus for both the primary and general elections.  Now, students can register at the OWU Campus Store or Beeghly Library.

And today and Monday, Feb. 10 organizers will set up a table in the Hamilton Williams Campus Center with information about voter registration. Students can also follow the link here if they have questions or are looking for information on registering to vote.

Freshman Elizabeth Dickey said this election is important so she was sure to register.

“This is the first election where I can vote so I’m actually paying attention to the candidates and what’s going on,” Dickey said.

Sophomore Danielle Black said she thinks this election is going to be a tipping point.

“We have gay men running, we have women running, we have diverse candidates running for one of the first times in history, so I’m really interested to see what the outcome’s going to be and how it’s going to affect the future,” she said.

Junior Fatima Iqbal is an international student and unable to participate in U.S. elections, but she said she believes it is important for people to be registered to vote.

“Especially people 18-25, because the current data shows that 30% of those people are registered to vote and that’s very low,” she said. “They’re the upcoming generation and if they don’t vote for the correct person who’s actually working for them then you know it’s not good news for them.”

Senior Ahmed Hamed said he believes many key issues are at stake for the future of the United States and the direction we move in as a country.

“As important as I think this election is, I also think every election is important, even the local elections,” he said. “I vote in every single election that I can and I try to vote on every issue that’s on the ballot.”

Club pushing students to take action

By Alex Emerson

Transcript Correspondent

A three-year old club at Ohio Wesleyan University still pushes for action on issues of justice on the basis of class, race and gender.

The Young Democratic Socialist Association meets on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. to discuss and take action on social and political issues, said Carl DeScott, the current co-chair.

“Our mission is to educate and organize students and the community in order to promote movements for social justice on campus, in our community, and nationwide,” DeScott said. “Our vision of socialism is built on democratic, feminist and anti-racist ideals.”

The club was founded on the basis of democratic socialism, but it has become a melting pot of left-wing ideals where everyone is open to a range of opinions, said John Bowman, the co-founder of the club.

“There were a few major things holding us together like anti-fascism, but our members were a whole spectrum of left-wing students with differing opinions,” Bowman said. “One of the greatest parts of the organization is playing to the skills of different people, creating discourse and moving away from a power dynamic.”

Both DeScott and Bowman emphasized the importance of not only discussion but action as a part of the organization’s goals.

“What one should expect if they were to join the YDSA is that we are a club that doesn’t just talk about politics, we act,” DeScott said. “We choose to fight so that we can live in a more equitable and just society.”

Bowman said, “our chapter of the YDSA isn’t like other political organizations that act like a book club where everyone just talks about what’s wrong with the world. It provides a place where we can come together, organize and then act.”

Quoting U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Bowman said, “I don’t want to watch the polls, I want to change the polls.”

During the fall semester, the YDSA hosted “Rock the Vote,” a concert with registering to vote being the price of admission. The organization has been preparing events for next semester, DeScott said, including hosting a veteran to talk about war and the treatment of veterans, which is will be in March. Also, the YDSA plans to collaborate with the Democrat and Republican organizations on campus to inform students about the candidates for the national primaries.

“We are making pamphlets for each of the relevant candidates solely based on what their positions are on the issue, and collaboration will help remove any indication of bias,” DeScott said.

The club was founded in 2016 by Trevor Martin and John Bowman. “After the election in 2016, I wanted to try and make a change,” Martin said. “John and I met at the Columbus chapter of the YDSA agreed to organize a YDSA at Ohio Wesleyan.”

Bowman said during their time as co-chairs, the club organized a trip to Washington, D.C. for the Democratic Socialist Association convention, protested against Bret Kavanaugh in 2018, and laid the groundwork for the club so it could grow.

For more information on the YDSA, which has chapters in schools across America, look on the website here.

Pakistan Suffers from Terrorism

By Azmeh Talha

Transcript Reporter

Arts and Entertainment Editor

aatalha@owu.edu

Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) Pakistani Alumna returned for the Sagan National Colloquium to talk about the United States attempts to cut Pakistan’s resources off to decrease the number of militant groups in the country.

Sahar Khan (’06) discussed the bilateral relationship between The United States and Pakistan. She began her lecture by talking about President Donald Trump’s tweet about Pakistan in 2018: “The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools. They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!”

The Pakistani government responded by saying that the Trump administration was undermining all the things Pakistan has done for the U.S. and Afghanistan.

During her time at OWU, Sahar Khan (’06) was a student of Sean Kay, the director of the international studies program. In his introduction, Kay said Khan majored in international studies, politics and government and economics.

After graduation, Khan got her master’s degree in public policy from the University of Chicago. From there, she got her Ph.D. from The University of California Irvine. During this time, she was an associate editor of Washington Quarterly, a policy journal. Currently, Khan is working at the CATO Institute as an adjunct scholar.

“It is Pakistan who suffers from terrorism and the U.S. tends to overlook all of those safe havens that exist in Afghanistan that attack Pakistani citizens themselves,” Khan said.

In her lecture, Khan talked about Pakistan’s current Prime Minister, Imran Khan. They are not related. The Prime Minister Khan of Pakistan openly said that militant groups do not belong in Pakistan and in fact, Pakistan has gone after militant groups through various campaigns they have been waging since 2009.

Khan also discussed the war between the U.S. and Afghanistan. In 2015, Trump said he wanted to end this war and ensure that the U.S. does not get involved in any other unnecessary wars.

The United States, under the Trump administration has reduced the security aid to Pakistan which has reduced military financing. Foreign military financing (FMF), a grant that the U.S. gives to countries so that they can buy U.S. arms. Pakistan is no longer receiving this grant. It is now too expensive for Pakistan to buy U.S. arms.

The second major security aid cut is the Coalition Support Funds (CSF). This is a large program in which the U.S reimburses certain countries for using their military bases. In Pakistan’s case, due to U.S involvement in Afghanistan, the U.S has been using Pakistani air bases in the North Western Province. For use of this area, the U.S has been reimbursing Pakistan. However, this security aid has been cut in the past.

“Even under the Obama administration the CSF was reduced; even under George W. Bush it was reduced,” Khan said. “But under Trump it has been sort of the largest reduction in these months.”

The United States also has tried to get Pakistan on the Financial Action Taskforce (FATF), an intergovernmental agency. This agency is responsible for combatting money laundering and terrorist financing. The United States and FATF had concerns that leaders of prominent militant groups roam freely in Pakistan.

Out of these militant groups, some leaders run non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The FATF raised concerns about Pakistan not being able to control these militant-run NGOs.

The Trump administration also reduced military-to-military engagement. This occurs when there is combat between two forces in which each side has been either assigned or perceived a mission. Khan said this was considered to be a hallmark between the U.S. and Pakistan.

“This was something that was almost benign,” Khan said.

Last year the Trump administration suspended 66 Pakistani officials from the International Military Education and Training Program. This program has not been renewed, Khan said.

Khan said that one main thing that the Trump administration is hoping to do by sanctioning Pakistan and limiting security and military aid to stop sponsorship of militant groups.

Khan further questioned why Pakistan sponsors these military groups. She answered by saying the problem is the civil-military imbalance.

“The military is strong; the civilians’ side is weak. If the civilians side was strong somehow Pakistan would no longer sponsor the militant groups.” Khan said.

Like many developing countries, Pakistan has a civil-military imbalance. Pakistan has been independent for 71 years. It spent half its life under military rule through four coups. These coups led to the Pakistani military evolving into a unique organization. The Pakistani army, along with protecting the nation, also controls businesses in the country such as farms, fisheries and pharmaceutical companies.

“The Pakistani army makes cereal and cheese,” Khan said. “It’s delicious.”

The Pakistani navy owns large business conglomerates such as The Shaheen Foundation, which has an interest in real estate. It also owns the Bahria Foundation which has similar interests.

The other reason for the civil military imbalance is the United States. The root cause of this problem dates to the Cold War, Khan said.

In 1979 when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, the United States and Saudi Arabia created anti-Soviet forces. These forces were militant groups called the mujahideen. Their main goal was to fight the Soviets.

“The U.S. funded the mujahideen and they used the Pakistani army to do so and the Pakistani army essentially trained these mujahideen,” Khan said.

After the cold war ended, Pakistan and Afghanistan found themselves with well trained and well-armed unemployed militants. This led to the militant groups Pakistan has today.

“Sahar is always special for me because she was also my research assistant and helped me with books that I did,” Sean Kay said.

Kay and Khan co-authored an article on how to win the war in Afghanistan in 2006. They were the first people to write about NATO and counterinsurgency, he said.

“I loved this lecture because it took years of controversy, simplified it, and used years of research to take you from knowing minimal to excited to know more,” sophomore Maddy Miller said. “You could feel the passion that Sahar has for her research and it’s so prominent that you can’t help but get excited with her.”

Mock Convention Kicks Off

By Anna Edmiston

Staff Reporter

aledmist@owu.edu

Planning started Thursday for Ohio Wesleyan’s long-time tradition of holding a political convention leading to the presidential election in November 2020.

Next year, Mock Conventioneers will play the role of Democrats deciding on a candidate to represent the party in the general election. The Mock Convention always assumes the role of the party that doesn’t occupy the White House. It started in 1884.

Attendees meeting in Crider Lounge in Hamilton-Williams Student Center watched the third debate of Democratic candidates while eating catered food and learning about the roles students and the Delaware community will play in the Mock Convention, which will occur Feb. 21 and 22.

There were tables set up to help students register to vote, play interactive games, and ask questions of student leaders of the program.

“I’m pretty excited for the fact that (politics) will be in an attainable level and it will help with my understanding of how politics works,” said freshman S.K. Bulander.

Freshman Josie Fornara agreed. “I am excited about learning more about politics and participating in the American tradition,” said Fornara.

“Being able to be a part of something that only happens every four years and being able to work alongside such amazing people,” said sophomore ZannaLee Carling-Sprewell.

Danielle Black, vice president of Mock Convention, said, “I am most excited to be involved in the planning of it, to allow people to learn more about the politics of our country and expand their horizon.”

There is still time to sign up for Mock Convention. Also, if any person on campus is interested in registering to vote, contact Franchesca Nestor, an assistant professor of politics and government (fvnestor@owu.edu).

OWU students address racism head on

By Transcript Staff

owunews@owu.edu

Updated March 10, 2019

Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) students held a sit-in March 1 at University Hall to protest against the treatment of minority groups on campus.

The sit-in predominantly occupied the main hall of the ground floor of University Hall, as well as Slocum Hall for a brief period. Organized by senior Daniella Black, the event was held to not only raise awareness for unheard voices, but to also start a conversation about the University’s treatment of its minority students.

The morning of the protest, the student organizers sent out a letter to the campus. In the letter, students listed their complaints and solutions to campus-wide issues regarding race.  A survey was also attached, allowing others to say what they identify as an issue on campus.

“I hope that this protest starts conversations about diversity, inclusion and justice on campus and that they continue as the years go on,” senior Sarah Mattick said. “And result in changes for the better.”

Mattick said multiple recent incidents as causing the protest, including the vandalism of a diversity bulletin board in Hayes Hall and OWU Public Safety shutting down a House of Black Culture party an hour before it was registered to end.

“[Admission] tours were told to avoid entering University Hall, as some visitors might get the wrong idea involving the intentions of the protest,” said freshman Micaela Kreutzer, an admissions worker.

Senior Cindy Huynh said she loved that students and faculty passing through took the protest in stride and were open to having conversations with protestors about their perspectives.

“I think it’s important to be here to show that we see them … there are people who want to make things better,” associate politics and government professor Ashley Biser said. Biser attended the protest because she considered it an opportunity to learn and listen to students who do not feel that their voices are being heard.

Benji Acuna, a sophomore and protestor, said all of the aforementioned events for the protest, as well as a speak out by the OWU Student Inclusion and Advocacy Committee involving unreported incidents against minority groups.
“The issues the students are bringing up are important and urgent and I think my office, because we primarily serve people of color, in particular, is a major stakeholder in supporting movements like this and trying to ensure that action happens as a result,” Charles Kellom, assistant dean of office of multicultural student affairs, said.

Rock Jones addressed the campus on multiple occasions, by sending an email and tweeting during the day. Jones also addressed the protesters multiple times during the day.

“I am grateful for the students’ work and for their desire to collaborate with me, the officers, their fellow students and the faculty and staff to explore where we are now, where we want to be, and how we get there together,” President Rock Jones said during the protest and a campus-wide email. “I am grateful to the members of the faculty and staff who stopped by to visit with the students today, listening to them as they shared their concerns and their suggestions.”

On March 7, Jones emailed the campus community, saying that he will meet with students again to discuss the issues raised at the sit-in. Jones also linked to a webpage for student recommendations on the school website.

 

Reality check or climate check?

By Claire Yetzer

Staff reporter

ceyetzer@owu.edu

The Ohio Wesleyan campus got a dose of climate change reality at the 30th annual John Kennedy Eddy Memorial Lecture on World Politics.

The title of the lecture was “Global Climate Change, Water Security and Ecosystem Disruption: Higher Scientific Confident Than You Might Think.”

This year’s speaker was professor Jonathan T. Overpeck, an interdisciplinary climate scientist. He has written over 210 published works on climate change and served as a Coordinating Lead Author for the Nobel prize-winning IPCC 4th Assessment in 2007.

The Eddy lecture series is hosted by the International Studies Program and the Department of Politics and Government. The series was established to honor John Kennard Eddy, a student who perished in a car accident when attending a seminar at Oberlin College.

Over 150 people attended the lecture, which was held in the Benes Rooms in the Hamilton-Williams Campus Center.

Professor Sean Kay, Professor James Franklin and Provost Charles Stinemetz gave introductions prior to Overpeck’s lecture.

“It was great to see all of the young people and especially all the great questions they had. They obviously know about this issue and are thinking about this issue and I am confident that they will be the ones that will solve this issue,” audience member Linda Diamond said.

Overpeck started the lecture by introducing it as the 21st-century challenge. He went on to describe the major problems the United States faces along with impacts around the world. Issues being faced are major droughts, sea level rise, lack of biodiversity and higher expenses for living.

After discussing the impacts that high emissions of greenhouse gases have on the environment. He impressed upon the audience the importance of starting the transition to clean energy immediately.

There are other concerns with starting the change as soon as possible, like preventing China from capturing the clean energy market. These major changes that need to occur are direct responsibilities of government involvement in climate change policies and involvement of major corporations dedicating research towards cheaper clean energy Overpeck said.

“A giant step that we need to take is electing people who believe in climate change, if we keep voting for people who push it away or don’t think of it as a major issue then we aren’t gonna get anywhere,” freshman Danielle Black said.

The lecture ended with questions from the audience. Most questions were posed by students who wanted more specific examples of solutions to the climate change problem. The last thing imparted upon the audience by Overpeck was a simple statement.

“We created the problem, solving the problem is the responsibility of the next generation or two,” Overpeck said.

OWU’s department of politics and government encouraging voter participation among students

By Garrick Bostwick, Transcript Correspondent

The Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) department of politics and government offer to help students vote early in the 2018 mid-terms despite historically low turnout among young voters.

OWU’s Arneson Institute for Practical Politics and Public Affairs will offer students transportation to voting locations in Delaware by way of shuttle service. This comes during a critical point in American politics as Congress could tip either way after this year’s mid-terms. Many political analysts believe that if more Americans aged 18-25 voted then Democrats would gain a significant advantage in Congress.

The manager of the Institute’s student involvement initiative for the 2018 mid-terms, Franchesca Nestor, hopes students will take advantage of the opportunity provided. According to Nestor, the Institute was not started due to the low turnout of young voters in previous elections.

“One of us takes steps to make sure students are involved in politics” Nestor said when asked about other times the Institute was involved in getting students to the polls. This is in accordance with the Institute’s politically unbiased goal of encouraging students to vote, started by its founder, Professor Micheal Esler of OWU’s politics and government department.

“We aim to give as many people as possible the opportunity to vote and help those with absentee ballots” Nestor said.

Students such as Joe Antal are taking advantage of this opportunity as he is using an absentee ballot and will take a shuttle to deposit his ballot.

“I don’t have a car so if not for these shuttles I wouldn’t have voted like many people my age” Antal said.

While Nestor is concerned about the low turnout of younger voters in previous elections, she is more so concerned about voting on a national level. She claims that the introduction of voter identification cards and other such requirements for voting deterred people from it and hopes that early voting can counteract this.

Only in the past few years has early voting been offered in Ohio and Nestor hopes more students will go to the polls because of this. According to her, early voting opens the opportunity to vote as it is easier to fit in more peoples’ schedules.

That said, there are still requirements for voting in Ohio beyond registration to vote. At the polls one must provide a form of state-issued identification such as a driver’s license or an identification card issued by the state of Ohio. If either of those can’t be provided a copy of a utility bill from OWU can be used as well.

All of this was detailed in an e-mail sent out by Nestor to the student body, informing them the time when shuttles leave for the polls and what must be done with absentee ballots. The remaining shuttles will leave Nov. 6 at 8:10 a.m, 2:10 p.m and 4:10 p.m

Saudi Arabia remains in a state of transition

By Gopika Nair, Editor-in-Chief

If global warming becomes a major issue or alternate fuels are developed, Saudi Arabia’s economy will suffer, according to a former energy consultant.

To diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud drafted the Saudi Vision 2030, said Rand Guebert, a former Oilinvest B.V. consultant. The objective of the vision is for Saudi Arabia to be “a pioneering and successful global model of excellence,” according to the Vision 2030 website.

Guebert said Salman is trying to get Asian countries to invest in his country to diversify the Saudi economy, while helping Asian countries diversify as well. Guebert and Melinda McClimans discussed Saudi Arabia in transition as part of the Great Decisions lecture series March 3 at the William Street United Methodist Church.

Saudi Arabia faces many challenges, such as oil production, water scarcity and national defense issues, and has been in a state of transition for the past 60 years, according to Guebert.

Oil was discovered in Saudi Arabia in 1938, years after Iran (1908), Iraq (1924) and Bahrain (1932).

Before the 1960s, Saudi Arabia produced about 1 million barrels of oil a day because of low demand. But by the 1960s, the demand spiked. As a result, Saudi Arabia began producing 10 million barrels of oil a day, Guebert said.

In the early 1980s, Saudi Arabia competed with Russia and the U.S. and oil prices dropped dramatically.

“One of the things to remember about this production is it’s very cheap,” Guebert said. “Saudi Arabia is the lowest cost oil producer in the world and costs about $5 a barrel.”

In the 1980s, however, the price went up to nearly $40 per barrel.

“All of a sudden, [the Saudis] had huge amounts of money coming in,” Guebert said. “So this transformed what was still a desert society.”

Today, the price of oil per barrel is $53, but in the current economy, that price isn’t pro table but it is stable, according to Guebert.

Saudi Arabia spends almost 10 percent of its annual revenue budget on national defense, which is nearly twice what the U.S. spends, Guebert said.

McClimans, assistant director of the Middle East Studies Center at The Ohio State University, focused on Saudi Arabia’s religious perspective.

Saudi Arabia is the heart of Islam, McClimans said. Though Islam started as an Arab phenomenon, it has expanded to Persian and Turkish territories and is now a multicultural religion.

McClimans, who lived in Saudi Arabia for a few years, said the country’s government is grounded in “pure Sharia law.”

But there are caveats, McClimans said. For instance, during the holy month of Ramadan when Muslims are required to fast, if someone needs to take medication with food, that’s permissible.

“[What I found most interesting] is that Saudi Arabia’s under pressure to get into the modern world,” said Oluf Kongshaug, a local retired Presbyterian minister. “Now that the U.S. is producing more oil, what’s Saudi Arabia going to do if they don’t have us as a customer?”