In several Arab countries, most notably Saudi Arabia, rulers have sought to quell popular discontent by providing a combination of cash, subsidies, guaranteed jobs, and free goods and services. Such largesse betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of the causes of today’s discontent, because it assumes that these causes are purely material.
在以沙特为代表的几个阿拉伯国家，统治者们试图用提供一揽子现金、补贴、工作，免费商品和服务的方式来消解人民的不满。这种慷慨之举暴露出这些统治者其实误判了当今这场动乱的成因，因为他们以为这些都是由物质上的因素所引起的。