{"id":58232,"date":"2025-10-04T08:45:19","date_gmt":"2025-10-04T13:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=58232"},"modified":"2025-10-04T09:45:23","modified_gmt":"2025-10-04T14:45:23","slug":"riyadh-comedy-festival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=58232","title":{"rendered":"Riyadh Comedy Festival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\">\u201cIt is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.\u201d<br>&#8211; Upton Sinclair<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" data-id=\"58237\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58237\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What it is<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\"><strong>Dates\/venue:<\/strong> Sept 26\u2013Oct 9, 2025, at Boulevard City (ANB Arena) in Riyadh; organized under Saudi Arabia\u2019s <strong>General Entertainment Authority (GEA)<\/strong> and promoted as part of Riyadh Season.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><strong>Lineup:<\/strong> 50+ global comics; U.S. headliners include <strong>Dave Chappelle, Kevin Hart, Bill Burr, Pete Davidson, Louis C.K., Whitney Cummings, Tom Segura, Jo Koy,<\/strong> and more.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why it\u2019s controversial<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\"><strong>Human-rights backdrop:<\/strong> Human Rights Watch called the festival an attempt to \u201cwhitewash\u201d ongoing repression, noting the <strong>7th anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi\u2019s murder (Oct 2, 2018)<\/strong> falls during the fest and citing recent executions linked to speech. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/news\/2025\/09\/23\/saudi-arabia-riyadh-comedy-festival-whitewashes-abuses\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Human Rights Watch<\/a>)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><strong>Alleged content restrictions:<\/strong> A contract snippet shared by comedian <strong>Atsuko Okatsuka<\/strong> bars material that \u201cdenigrates the Kingdom\u2026 leadership\u2026 legal system,\u201d etc.\u2014raising free-speech concerns. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/culture\/2025\/sep\/30\/riyadh-comedy-festival-saudi-arabia\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Guardian<\/a>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Flashpoints this week<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\"><strong>Chappelle on free speech:<\/strong> Onstage in Riyadh, he quipped it\u2019s \u201c<strong>easier to talk<\/strong>\u201d there than in the U.S., which ignited backlash given Saudi censorship and rights issues. <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><strong>Peer criticism &amp; money talk:<\/strong> Comedians like <strong>Marc Maron<\/strong> and <strong>David Cross<\/strong> blasted participants; <strong>Tim Dillon<\/strong> said payouts were huge, then said he was <strong>dropped<\/strong> after jokes about Saudi abuses.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Jason K. Pargin &#8211; A Prophet for the New Millennium<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We manually transcribed, verbatim, a video essay of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/v\/1ZhVu3J2PF\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook post<\/a> by <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jason_Pargin\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jason K. Pargin<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>US Comedians Defend Decision to Play in Saudi Arabia.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>&#8220;They are paying me enough to look the other way.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"387\" height=\"685\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0068.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58233 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0068.jpg 387w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0068-169x300.jpg 169w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 387px) 100vw, 387px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Beyond this current controversy, there&#8217;s something really important that you need to understand, which is that, with very few exceptions, your favorite entertainers care <em>way more<\/em> about making money that what you think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And some of you are gonna say, &#8220;I already knew that. I&#8217;ve seen my favorite actor take terrible roles. They clearly just did it for a paycheck. And I&#8217;ve seen how much my favorite musician charges for merch.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And yet people seem genuinely shocked by the comedians who took part in this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And if you&#8217;re not aware of what&#8217;s going on, there&#8217;s a huge comedy festival happening in Saudi Arabia, where basically all of the most famous comedians went over there to perform specifically on behalf of people who have journalists and entertainers killed for speaking out against them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This includes free speech warriors like Dave Chappelle performing on behalf of a regime who specifically does not believe in free speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And they did it because they got gigantic paychecks to do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that includes guys like Bill Burr and Louis C.K. who, even if hate him, has always portrayed himself as having kind of a blue collar aesthetic. You know, he portrays himself as kind of a schlub who just eats junk food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And the part that really seems to surprise people is how ravenously these people will lunge at a chance to go from a net worth of $100,000,000 to $103,000,000. But I am telling you average entertainer, even if all of their work is about the evils of capitalism and greed, even if the have a punk-rock anti-corporate aesthetic, the probably spend more time and energy focusing on how to get richer than you can possibly imagine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There&#8217;s a reason why Hollywood superstars are constantly doing voice-over for TV commercials or launching liquor brands. See if you think of the hungriest people as being the ones living in their cars trying to get their first big break, but I&#8217;m telling you Ryan Reynolds is just as hungry to go from having $900,000,000 to having $1,000,000,000. Most of them know that it&#8217;s just not cool to talk about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But it has always been like this. It was a formative experience of my youth that my favorite band as a kid, Nirvana, a band that always had a punk-rock anti-corporate aesthetic, almost tore themselves apart the moment the money started rolling in, because they started out splitting everything equally three ways like a commune. But their albums started selling millions of copies and immediately Kurt Cabain started maneuvering to get a bigger cut &#8211; a guy who <em>was<\/em> living in his car just a few years earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I&#8217;m not even here to condemn these people or call them hypocrites. Other people have done that. I&#8217;m just saying that it is nearly universal that once you start getting money, you only want more. It is so incredibly addictive that very, very few people are immune to it.<\/p>\n<cite>Jason K. Pargin \/ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/v\/1ZhVu3J2PF\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook Video Post<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fahad al-Butairi and Loujain al-Hathloul<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Fahad al-Butairi<\/strong> and <strong>Loujain al-Hathloul<\/strong>: The well-known Saudi comedian Fahad al-Butairi and his ex-wife, activist Loujain al-Hathloul, were arrested in 2018 in what was widely seen as a government crackdown on dissidents. Al-Butairi was reportedly forcibly returned to Saudi Arabia from Jordan and pressured to divorce al-Hathloul, who was later imprisoned. Al-Hathloul was not killed, but her case drew significant international attention.<\/p>\n<cite>Gemini<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can watch the video of Loujain driving into Saudi Arabia on this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/watch\/?v=10154434175164060\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook video<\/a>. Note that this video was recorded two years before the Jamal Khashoggi murder, when people had hopes for reform thru the Crown Prince. But no.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251004_0074.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"903\" height=\"705\" data-id=\"58243\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251004_0074.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58243\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251004_0074.jpg 903w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251004_0074-300x234.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251004_0074-768x600.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 903px) 100vw, 903px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Loujain al-Hathlou<\/strong>l (Arabic: \u0644\u062c\u064a\u0646 \u0627\u0644\u0647\u0630\u0644\u0648\u0644 Lujjayn al-Hadhl\u016bl; born 31 July 1989) is a Saudi women&#8217;s rights activist, social media figure, and political prisoner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\" style=\"grid-template-columns:45% auto\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"723\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Loujain_Alhathloul.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58248 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Loujain_Alhathloul.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Loujain_Alhathloul-266x300.jpg 266w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She was arrested on several occasions for defying the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia. In May 2018, she and several prominent women&#8217;s rights activists were kidnapped in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and deported to Saudi Arabia where they were charged with &#8220;attempting to destabilise the kingdom.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her ex-husband, Saudi stand-up comedian Fahad al-Butairi, was forcibly returned from Jordan to the Kingdom and placed under arrest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In December 2021, al-Hathloul announced she and the Electronic Frontier Foundation would be suing <strong>three former American intelligence officers<\/strong>, Marc Baier, Ryan Adams, and Daniel Gericke, for hacking her communications devices, <strong>leading to her kidnapping<\/strong> in the UAE and deportation to Saudi Arabia. The three officers had already admitted to providing the UAE with hacking services and equipment in a separate case.<\/p>\n<cite><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Loujain_al-Hathloul\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Wikipedia<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Saudi Activist Loujain al Hathloul is Out of Jail. But Justice Remains a Distant Hope<\/strong><br>In July 2019, American human rights researcher Bethany Alhaidari was on the receiving end of a decision taken by members of that establishment. In a custody hearing after she had sought a divorce from her Saudi Arabian husband, judges pored over social media photographs of her wearing a bikini and determined that her Western values made her unfit to parent, she told TIME last year. The courts awarded custody of the pair\u2019s then four-year-old daughter Zaina to her husband\u2019s mother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The only way to see Zaina, al-Haidari says, was to pretend to reconcile with her husband. They lived together for three months until he gave al-Haidari permission to visit her family in the U.S. with Zaina, where they have remained since. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1439\" height=\"1800\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/loujain-al-hathloul-time-100-2019-073-1.webp?fit=580%2C725&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58256 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/loujain-al-hathloul-time-100-2019-073-1.webp 1439w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/loujain-al-hathloul-time-100-2019-073-1-240x300.webp 240w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/loujain-al-hathloul-time-100-2019-073-1-819x1024.webp 819w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/loujain-al-hathloul-time-100-2019-073-1-768x961.webp 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/loujain-al-hathloul-time-100-2019-073-1-1228x1536.webp 1228w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/loujain-al-hathloul-time-100-2019-073-1-1200x1501.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1439px) 100vw, 1439px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Feb. 8, a Washington court ruled against enforcing the Saudi custody order that would have forced al-Haidari and her daughter to return to the Kingdom where, the court noted last year, al-Haidari would be \u201csubject to imprisonment and possibly death.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span class=\"ed-note\">[ed. note: this Time Magazine article was written during Joe Biden&#8217;s presidency. tRump was a big fan of the murderer Salman.]<\/span> That signaled a marked departure from the approach of former President Trump, who boasted to veteran journalist Bob Woodward that he had \u201csaved\u201d bin Salman\u2019s \u201cass\u201d over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.<\/p>\n<cite><a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/5938331\/loujain-hathloul-saudi-arabia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Wikipedia<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Frontline Article and Video<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Loujain al-Hathloul<\/strong>, a prominent women\u2019s rights activist in Saudi Arabia whose story became an international rallying cry against alleged human rights abuses by the Saudi government, has been released from prison after nearly three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/LoujainAlHathloulReleasedSaudiArabia.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"568\" data-id=\"58258\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/LoujainAlHathloulReleasedSaudiArabia.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58258\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/LoujainAlHathloulReleasedSaudiArabia.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/LoujainAlHathloulReleasedSaudiArabia-300x166.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/LoujainAlHathloulReleasedSaudiArabia-768x426.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cLoujain is at home!,\u201d her sister Lina al-Hathloul tweeted on Feb. 10. The previous day, amid reports that Loujain\u2019s release was imminent, Lina tweeted: \u201cCan I kindly ask that we don\u2019t use the word \u2018free\u2019 or \u2018freed\u2019 in noting Loujain\u2019s potential release as it is not freedom. It is a potential release from prison and she is still under probation, travel ban and awaiting news of the appeal process.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Loujain, now 31, had pushed for an end to Saudi Arabia\u2019s ban on women driving, including filming herself trying to drive into Saudi Arabia from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2014.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-4 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wgbh\/frontline\/documentary\/the-crown-prince-of-saudi-arabia\/?\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\" noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1084\" height=\"653\" data-id=\"58260\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0070.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58260\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0070.jpg 1084w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0070-300x181.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0070-1024x617.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0070-768x463.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1084px) 100vw, 1084px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-caption wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wgbh\/frontline\/documentary\/the-crown-prince-of-saudi-arabia\/?\">Frontline Video<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Personae Comediettas<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>From Newsweek<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Who is Performing at the Saudi Arabia Comedy Festival?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span class=\"ed-note\">[ed. note: These performers have a lifetime ban from all <strong>WLBOTT <\/strong>festivities, but are welcome to our rehabilitation camps.]<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Mo Amer<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Aziz Ansari<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Wayne Brady<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Hannibal Buress<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Bill Burr<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Jimmy Carr<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Dave Chappelle<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Louis C.K.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Whitney Cummings<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Pete Davidson<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Chris Distefano<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Omid Djalili<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Zarna Garg<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Ben Hart<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Kevin Hart<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Gabriel Iglesias<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Jim Jefferies<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Jimeoin<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Maz Jobrani<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Jessica Kirson<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Jo Koy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Bobby Lee<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Sebastian Maniscalco<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Sam Morril<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Mark Normand<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Russell Peters<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Jeff Ross<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Sugar Sammy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Andrew Santino<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Andrew Schulz<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Tom Segura<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Ali Siddiq<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Aries Spears<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Chris Tucker<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Jack Whitehall<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Which Comedians Have Refused?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The comedian <strong>Shane Gillis<\/strong> said on his podcast, Secret Podcast, that he had turned down an invitation and a significant appearance fee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Atsuko Okatsuka<\/strong> posted screenshots of what she said was her invite to the festival on the social media platform Threads. <strong>Mike Birbiglia<\/strong> and <strong>Leslie Liao<\/strong> responded to this and said that they too had rejected the offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Stavros Halkias<\/strong> said in a podcast episode that he had also refused to perform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Nimesh Patel<\/strong> was also slated to participate in the festival, but announced on social media that he would be dropping out on ethical grounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Comedians <strong>Marc Maron<\/strong> and <strong>David Cross<\/strong> have both come out and publicly criticized the comedians participating in the festival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Tim Dillon<\/strong> was originally slated to perform but was removed from the list of performers because of jokes that he made on his podcast about slavery in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>How Much Are Comedians Being Paid?<\/strong><br>Official figures for how much comedians are being paid for the Riyadh Comedy Festival have not been released to the public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a podcast appearance released on August 30, Dillon said that he was being paid <strong>$375,000<\/strong> and that other performers had been offered as much as <strong>$1.6 million<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<cite><a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/riyadh-comedy-festival-comedians-line-up-controversy-10805331\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Newsweek<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">And a Good Time was Had By All<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-5 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"512\" data-id=\"58264\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58264\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-1-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From <em>The Nation<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The Sad Spectacle of American Comedians Selling Out in Saudi Arabia<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It turns out that edgy free-speech warriors will scuttle their principles for a check from a brutal autocratic regime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[H]ired court jester to Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman (known familiarly as MBS), on his podcast Monday. \u201cEveryone was happy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s a relief, because the last people in Saudi Arabia you want unhappy with you is the Saudi royal family. Burr had just returned from the Riyadh Comedy Festival, which claims to be the biggest in the world. It\u2019s running from September 26 to October 5, in case you\u2019re in the neighborhood, and boasts Louis C.K., Pete Davidson, Dave Chappelle, Kevin Hart, and many others, who received significant pay bumps to play birthday-party clowns to a despot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThey\u2019re just like us!\u201d Burr assured his listeners. You can\u2019t get too mad at Burr for saying that about the hereditary monarchs of the House of Saud, <em>because that is what they paid for: a normalization of Saudi Arabia\u2019s abysmal image worldwide\u2014an image that is especially well-earned in the realm of human rights. The litany of abuses the Saudis have on their permanent record is staggering.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-6 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/W5XjNBbWcNv4QSrpijMq-0-qvvin.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"58267\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/W5XjNBbWcNv4QSrpijMq-0-qvvin.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58267\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/W5XjNBbWcNv4QSrpijMq-0-qvvin.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/W5XjNBbWcNv4QSrpijMq-0-qvvin-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/luoCiQGSD5D1Ll2yLZs9-0-xce6q.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"58266\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/luoCiQGSD5D1Ll2yLZs9-0-xce6q.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/luoCiQGSD5D1Ll2yLZs9-0-xce6q.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/luoCiQGSD5D1Ll2yLZs9-0-xce6q-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-9.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"768\" data-id=\"58268\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58268\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-9.jpg 512w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-9-200x300.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"512\" data-id=\"58269\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58269\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/download-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-caption wp-element-caption\">Images by Elder G<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Saudis understand that\u2014and the organizers of the Riyadh Comedy Festival took pains to ensure that none of the performers would allude to the daily horrors beneath the glitz. Each contract signed came with a list of prohibited topics not to mention onstage.<\/p>\n<cite><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenation.com\/article\/culture\/comedy-saudi-arabia-human-rights\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Nation<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Few Holdouts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From <em>Deadline<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\" style=\"grid-template-columns:72% auto\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"814\" height=\"739\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Atsuko-Okatsuka-Reveals-Riyadh-Comedy-Fest-s-Censorship-Rules-10-03-2025_04_08_PM.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58272 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Atsuko-Okatsuka-Reveals-Riyadh-Comedy-Fest-s-Censorship-Rules-10-03-2025_04_08_PM.jpg 814w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Atsuko-Okatsuka-Reveals-Riyadh-Comedy-Fest-s-Censorship-Rules-10-03-2025_04_08_PM-300x272.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Atsuko-Okatsuka-Reveals-Riyadh-Comedy-Fest-s-Censorship-Rules-10-03-2025_04_08_PM-768x697.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 814px) 100vw, 814px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With Saudi Arabia\u2019s star-studded debut comedy festival kicking off this weekend, comedian Atsuko Okatsuka has revealed some of the event\u2019s strict terms.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe money is coming straight from the Crown Prince, who actively executes journalists, ppl with nonlethal drug offenses, bloggers, etc without due process. A lot of the \u2018you can\u2019t say anything anymore!\u2019 comedians are doing the festival,\u201d added Okatsuka with screenshots of the contract. \u201cThey had to adhere to censorship rules about the types of jokes they can make.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Human Rights Watch researcher Joey Shea explained to CBS News, \u201cThe Saudi government has invested billions into high profile entertainment events like these in a deliberate effort to whitewash the country\u2019s human rights record and deflect from the egregious abuses that continue to happen inside of the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-7 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0071.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"725\" height=\"695\" data-id=\"58274\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0071.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58274\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0071.jpg 725w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/irl_251003_0071-300x288.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 725px) 100vw, 725px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThese investments are a part of the broader strategy to\u2026 have people thinking about a comedy event, for example, rather than the soaring number of executions that are happening inside of the country,\u201d added Shea.<\/p>\n<cite><a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2025\/09\/atsuko-okatsuka-reveals-riyadh-comedy-fest-censorship-rules-1236557912\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Deadline<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Make Us Laugh, American<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-8 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1280\" data-id=\"58282\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58282\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/goodTimes_mr-1200x1200.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Few Editorial Cartoons by Elder G<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-1 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-9 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0002.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" data-id=\"58276\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0002.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58276\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0002.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0002-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0002-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0002-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0009.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" data-id=\"58278\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0009.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58278\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0009.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0009-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0009-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0009-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" data-id=\"58277\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58277\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-1.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0006-1-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0020.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1200\" data-id=\"58279\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0020.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58279\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0020.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0020-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0020-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0020-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0020-768x768.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0018.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1200\" data-id=\"58280\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0018.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58280\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0018.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0018-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0018-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0018-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comedy_0018-768x768.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cIt is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.\u201d&#8211; Upton Sinclair What it is Why it\u2019s controversial Flashpoints this week Jason K. Pargin &#8211; A Prophet for the New Millennium We manually transcribed, verbatim, a video essay of a Facebook post by Jason K. Pargin. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[113,43,94],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-collapse-of-democracy-civilization-etc","category-heros-not","category-saudi-arabia"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58232","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58232"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58232\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58293,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58232\/revisions\/58293"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=58232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=58232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}