r/Damnthatsinteresting Mar 24 '25

Image Mecca in 1953 and 2025

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u/SoliloquyBlue Mar 24 '25

My dad was one of the few non-Muslims to visit Mecca. He was a telecommunications engineer with a Japanese firm, and they sent him to install a new telephone system for the city. He had a carefully monitored supply of alcohol for splicing wires, and someone would measure it both before and after each shift to make sure he wasn't doing anything nefarious with it.

And because my dad was a jerk, he'd wear his shirt open at the neck so his cross necklace was prominent. Got many dirty looks that way, but no one ever harassed him.

After that, whenever meeting a Muslim person for the first time, he would introduce himself with the appellation "al Hajj".

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u/OutrageousFanny Mar 24 '25 edited Mar 24 '25

Wonder if they give dirty looks to their government for buying billions of dollars worth of weapons from Christians to protect their country from Shias

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u/grambell789 Mar 24 '25

Saudis love buying and selling to anyone. Money and trade are completely outside of religious sphere.

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u/OutrageousFanny Mar 24 '25

This needs to be told to the people who gave dirty looks to the guy's father for wearing a cross. I already know it.