Bye Bye Dubai?

Pat – thank you for the timely comment. Some how, with Dubai and our housing financial mess here, I find pleasure in terms of being able to have fun with the grandchildren playing cards.

What a charade.

Hey Pat

To make matters worse, they’ve been having sewage problems. Seems they had to close off a lot of the beaches because raw sewage was being dumped into drainage that feed into those giant lakes or inland water ways. That was a week – may be two – ago on MSNBC?

Amazing. A shocking story. It’s actually a shame if you’re a fan of architecture. Dubai is a showcase for the types of fantasy buildings that can be contructed when money is literally no object.

I read an article somewhere that the airport can’t keep up with towing all the abandoned cars.

OT: Our new attorney general is already showing bad judgement.
He has an axe to grind with America, and has no business holding
that office.

It really doesn’t matter to them if you go Orlando or San Juan to waste your money. They know that in a small way that trip will cost you. And what will it cost you? They know that in a very small way, after your trip you will end up working for them ever more slightly from how much you are presently working for them now. Yes, Pat you are thinking of taking a trip and paying it with credit. And if so you would be a fool and Dubayans will love it and admire you too, even more than you admire them.

Slavery is working for others.

Yes Pat. Are expecting to have grandchildren in the future? How would you like them to work for Dubayans at least twice if not ten more times than you will?

No, don’t act surprised. You are a slave to the American government now for close to 50 percent of your working hours. And that’s okay, no? Yes that’s okay. And in so many little ways you are a slave to Dubayans, no? In so many little ways. And that’s okay too. Why? Because it is your choice. You can choose to become a slave for anyone. Is your choice. But… don’t you think it is immoral of you and the rest of us, including me, to indenture and throw down as slaves, ever more a greater period of their lives, your grandchildren and mine and the children of America’s future?

You may not want to think about that when you go to Orlando, or better yet, San Juan; specially if you are planning to pay for the trip with credit.

Credit. What is credit? Not what was credit but what is credit? And stimulus packages? And higher taxes? What are they? Respectfully.

Good thing you didn’t go Pat.

When I googled looking for the link, looks like they’ve had a problem for quite some time.

http://article.wn.com/view/2009/02/10/Lifes_a_beach_and_on_Dubais_shores_life_stinks_State_cracks_/

It may be a stretch to assume that anyone in that region other than Iranians know that Poop Doesn’t Flow Downhill, or that the tide moves both ways.

Nice work Pat!
The fish are lovely, but we are going to need a bigger dose of serenity!
I heard that Disney is doing a reassessment of all their facilities as well, so Orlando may be out.
By the way, didn’t Haliburton move to Dubai? Americans need to start minding their own business…anyday now please!

I am emjoying these comments. Truth is, I don’t use credit cards. If I don’t have it in hand or in my cheking account, it doesn’t get bought.

And, remember our game is just a conversation. The greatest pleasure is, indeed, driving down to the beach here (I live on the California coast) and playing games with the kids. No amount of money can buy that.

I read in some places in Dubai when they turn on the water faucets the only thing that comes out is roaches!

That wets your whistle eh???????

I wonder how Tiger Woods golf course is doing…….not.

My son-in-law is a pilot for Qatar airlines, so my daughter is going over there to live…ugh! He makes more money there than in the states, so I wonder how this recession is going to affect their lifestyle there. I sure am glad she is keeping the house here.

You are smart not to use credit cards, Pat. I got used to not having credit in 1974 when my first husband divorced me. Back then, women didn’t have credit in their own name because we stayed at home with the kids.
I had to earn my credit, and today I owe no one anything. I’m with you on free entertainment. Nothing takes the place of that.

You are smart not to use credit cards, Pat. I got used to not having credit in 1974 when my first husband divorced me. Back then, women didn’t have credit in their own name because we stayed at home with the kids.
I had to earn my credit, and today I owe no one anything. I’m with you on going to the beach or the park with the kids. Nothing takes the place of that.

Oh yuk! That link leads to a messy story alright. A wonderland turning into a nightmare.

Dubai is interesting to visit but has lost almost all of the feeling that you have gone overseas – mostly it reminds me of Houston. Not particularly charming, just very suburban. The British seem to love to head there to fry themselves on the beaches. They arrive sort of pasty-blue and leave like lobsters.

The only place to see an Emirati is at the shopping mall – no I am not kidding, everyone hangs out at the mall. I think of Dubai as “the most modern city in India” because frankly, most of the people you see are Indian. English is spoken much more commonly than Arabic to the degree that my driver from Beirut left because his English was too terrible.

I do admire the ruler, and his book is excellent. Highly recommend it. Since 1971 Dubai has gone from literally nothing to a modern city. They have lots of young women attending college and allow female judges – rare for an Islamic nation. All of these are major accomplishments no matter what difficulties they face going forward.

If you ever go absolutely check out The Al Maha Resort. It is a reserve for Arabian Oryx which were down to the sub-20 levels until the previous ruler flew them all to Arizona for a (successful) breeding program. Al Maha is not in downtown Dubai which is also a feature.

If we don’t get our financial house in order and do what it takes to retain the best on wall street it is my prediction that the center of finance will shift from New York city to Dubai.
New York is headed for the biggest implosion ever!

What an interesting comment. Thanks, The Real H C.

My best guess the way things are going would be Hong Kong. New York is so last century.

New York is so last century.

More like New York is so before Sept 15th 2008

I hope you were able to see Frontline the other night.

Because of the rivalry between Paulsen and Frum
Lehman bros was allowed to collapse changing our world forever.

Thanks for all the great artwork.

If you are looking for an “exotic holiday with a gulf arab feel” try Oman. It is much more quaint and interesting than Dubai and it has some nice hotels.

And if you are really out for arabs, adventure and fun with a mediterranean flair nothing beats Lebanon. Im not making a joke, Lebanon is great and the skiing this year is perfect. Such a shame the locals are so crazy.

I have no doubt this will happen. Patriot Act + Socialism = bad for business.

I swear, half of the movies I see these days feature businesspeople committing crimes and killing people. Being shot by a white collar worker should be a leading cause of death the way it is portrayed. “Well Jim, I have a board meeting. What do you think, Glock or Smith & Wesson?”.

The ruler of Dubai takes an active interest in promoting trade and commerce in his country. Bankers and other highly mobile professionals would be silly not to go as things stand right now.

Saw a story or two last week about how people can’t move fast enough so are abandoning rental and/or leased cars in order to walk to the ports to get out. A sorry situation to be sure.

Nice fantasy cartoon, Pat. Hard to believe the heavily hyped Dubai is losing its heavenly luster and turning into a piece of crap! Was this a house built on sand? No, I guess it was oil. If you like to watch fish, better just buy and stock an aquarium. Then all you have to worry about is an earthquake spilling the fish all over the place or the fish dying of some disease or neglect. These days, it is hard to find a beach that isn’t besieged with sewage spills from time to time. As for me, at almost 83, I find watching travelogs on TV, a nice safe substitute for the kinds of trips to distant lands I used to take.

As for credit cards, I do use several for convenience, but I always pay off the balance each month and NEVER make just the minimum payment…which is where people get in trouble. On the downside, I have twice been the victim of identity theft, once because someone stole and used a convenience check from my mailbox, causing months of pain while I cleared up my credit. Certainly, the use of credit cards can be deadly if one doesn’t have the self-discipline to pay off the balance each month. That is almost as foolish as buying a house with a mortgage you can’t afford to make the payments on. Spells big trouble ahead. And now, it appears, we all get to help bail out the people who have made foolish real estate investments who believed real estate values had only one direction to go…UP!

I agree also with all of the above. My take is that we are becoming completely untrustworthy. That should do it.

My gosh, Pat, I live in California too and why would you want to go to Orlando or Dubai. I haven’t explored half of what’s here.
My son was on a business trip to Dubai when I phoned him there to tell him about 9/11. He wasn’t thrilled with the place and never wants to return.

A beautiful cartoon for such a sad story. Just like a beautiful looking area that now tells such a very sad story. The story about Dubai probably has bust many peoples fantasy. The rules about debt and the reality of debtor’s prison, has always been there. The problem with building and maintaining artificial land mass has always been there. The separation between the rich and poor, with no real middle class has always been there. The problem with having only one or two major sources of income has always been there. The idea of building and building just for the rich and focusing on the rich for everything, without a good supporting middle class to maintain an economy, is once again proven itself to be a problem. This may be one reason we are having trouble in the U.S. is that our middle class numbers have gotten smaller and most of the middle class became poorer rather then richer.

Rich

Good points Rich!!!

I read Geitner was responsible for the failure of the government to bail out Lehamns, Seatle Moss. It’s one of the oldest banking houses in the US, so go figure. It’s the only stock we still own and it’s selling at about $.05. I also read it was purchased by Barkleys of London or maybe it was Barkleys of Delaware? Whatever, it hasn’t pushed the value of the stock up.

The toon is beautiful, Pat. I read yesterday OPEC is meeting to discuss the possibility of slowing down oil production in an attempt to push the price back up. The current situation has to be hurting the oil countries and what about all the futures based on the high prices just two months ago? Anyway, Dubai may recover faster than the US.

Pat,
Another of your charming pictures that seems perfect of the mood of my day. I have not traveled in that part of the world but a room with a wall view of underwater world sounds great. Thanks for your humorous outlook on life as it is.

Makes you feel better about not getting there. Beside your beautiful fish are so much more soothing. Seriously though, I think were going to see some crazy laws all over the place.

Ya Pat, I’d like a beautiful underwater world to look at. And that had nothing to maintain either.

Iranians are descendants of the ancient PERSIAN civilization. Trust me, they ain’t no fools. Or perhaps I’m wrong.

In l953, the democratically elected Iranian Government was overthrown by the CIA….and since then it’s been downhill, thanks to American foreign policy…

Remember Khatami, he was a very moderate conservative Iranian prime minister. Read on Madeline Albright and what she had to say in l997 about Iran.

Iran should be issued an apology and then the Iranians would throw Ahmadinejead out like a hot potato! The people there are waiting for some sign of “democratic promotion”. It seems they’ve been denied democracy for so long.
Read your history on Iran and CIA and WHY in l979 the goddam Aytollahs took over! Cause the CIA prepared the ground!

Lark

Did you mean “Dubbyans” as in Georgie Bush The Terrible?

If Obama didn’t provide the stimulus, Id’ like to see you out of a job collecting Dubbyan memorabilia….At least he is a moron with some brains, this Barry Boy in Washington. Thank God Dubbya’s Party of Catastrophe and Wall Street Deregulation is out of the picture!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Real HC

I’m not so sure the locals are the crazy ones. Who invaded Lebanon? Who condoned it? Whose CIA plot brought down in l953 the Iranian Democracy? Do some digging….