Critical thinking in Saudi education

This is a reasonable article but regarding this: "the education system which not only promotes religious intolerance but actively discourages critical thinking.".  What is this assumption about critical thinking? Writers in the West assume that there is much critical thinking in Western education.  I beg to differ and I have been teaching the US since 1988.  In fact, I find conformism is too prevalent in the US.  Also, why do Western (not to mention Arab) media take seriously any PR-generated announcement from Gulf potentates?  Why not wait until there is some implementation before we judge those PR-generated gimmicks.  Whatever happened to Yunbu` and Jubayl: there were the mega cities of the 1970s and 1980s.  Also, this is like when Western media were thrilled that the ruler of Dubai accounted that he created new cabinet positions for tolerance, happiness, and potatoes.  How did that change the political and social life in Dubai?