Universal building a new park in Dubai

Weird. What is it with this place?

Trying to be the greatest place in the world and a place I want to relocate to. That is if they build a record breaking airtime machine.

^^ It's your gas dollars at work.

From what I've heard, it's basically that the leader of the country has so much money (from oil) that he's just looking for ways to lavishly spend it and build Dubai up to be a major world destination or whatever. Kinda sad, considering he could be helping prevent world hunger or something like that instead.

I think you guys need to do a little research. Dubai's wealth doesn't come from oil, it comes from being a central hub for business and tourism in the Middle East.

It's also one of a handful of long haul destinations I can fly to non-stop from here - on a low fare airline no less. I think a trip out that way will be in order in 2010... :)

Jeff, I think oil is what gave them the money to fund the development into a hub for business and tourism in the Middle East.

Doesn't hurt that they actually have quite a stable government and the country doesn't suffer from all the unrest that populates other areas of the region, though.

Revenues from Petroleum and Natural Gas contribute to less than 3% of Dubai's US $46 billion economy. -Wiki/Dubai Government

Here is another link that I read today while not-so-busy working at the airport today.

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2007-05-01-universal-studios-dubai_N.htm

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Dubai's wealth doesn't come from oil, it comes from being a central hub for business and tourism in the Middle East.

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And what do you think made the Middle East a destination to begin with? It sure wasn't camels and holy war.

Spoken like a true American.

That's because I am an American. It's also because I'm certain that wildlife and religious fighting didn't help to make the Middle East a destination.

Since you're obviously thinking on a higher level, what is it that led to the rise of the Middle East in the business world, Jeff? What created the wealth that made the place the target of business people and tourists?

My comment was with regard to your stereotypical and ignorant comment about "camels and holy war." Dubai isn't even anywhere in the neighborhood if Israel, where the majority of religious conflict is today.

The Middle East, aside from places in Israel, and Mecca in Saudi Arabia, is hardly a destination for anyone. Dubai is quickly becoming a vacation spot, as Richard mentioned above. And if you'd take a minute to read the Wikipedia entry on the city, you'd see that the bulk of Dubai's development occurred during British residency. You'd also see that half of the people living there are in fact from India.

I guess it's easier to just write off the region as sand, oil and camels.

Dubai's wealth did come from oil, and they understand that they cannot rely on oil alone, so they are focusing on tourism ,and being a premier tourist destination in the Middle East.

You should be more concerned that Dubai is using up a lot of resources on frivolous(sp) amenities for the super rich. A indoor ski hill in the desert is insane.

Read, read, read... 3% from oil and natural gas. And can you explain what resources are being used in the desert?

One really positive thing about this story is that at least we have an American company who realizes the value of exporting its product. Surprising since Hollywood is so backward at everything else.

I've got news for you, Jeff... camels and holy wars are hardly contained to Israel. Take a better look at the entire Middle East- chances are you'll find four-legged desert-dwelling mammals and a history of religious fighting just about everywhere.

Anyway, I'm not sure how my comment was stereotypical. I insinuated that the Middle East didn't become a tourist destination and business epicenter because of the things that people often associate with the region, so perhaps you'll want to read a little better next time you feel the need to act all goody-goody with a comment that proves how righteous and politically correct you are? But getting back to my point, the Middle East is a region of the world that people have interest in because of oil. It was oil that caused modern society to turn its eyes to it, way before things like exporting and tourism could be associated with the region, so I'm not sure how you can argue otherwise.

And where are those warring factions? If most of the Middle East is Muslim, except for Israel where we have Christians and Jews, where is it? If you've got news, show me the headlines.

The Middle East has been on the way of east-west trade routes for hundreds of years. In the bigger picture of world history, oil is a recent development.

Being righteous or politically correct has nothing to do with it. I just can't stand that Americans have zero clue about what goes on in other parts of the world, or what the culture is. Of course there are camels. So what? Is that the defining characteristic of the people in that region? No wonder people elsewhere around the world thing we're arrogant morons.

Right... I need to provide proof that the Middle East has been riddled with war throughout the years? Are you insane? Time to wake up and take a look at the headlines. There's a war going on in the Middle East right now.

My initial statement clearly stated that there is more to the region than camels and war, so maybe it's time you learned how to read a little better before telling people that their statements are ignorant and unfounded. You seem to give the majority of people very little credit most of the time, suggesting that you're the only one capable of seeing the big picture. But you're not. Most people aren't as stupid and as uneducated as you assume them to be.

I stated that modern society started paying attention to the Middle East when it was discovered the region had a huge untapped wealth of oil reserves. Up until recent years, people have not given any thought to the Middle East because of its architecture and culture... people have not given any thought to the Middle East because it seems like a great place to visit. The Middle East has long been a a place where women have been oppressed, religious and politcal wars have been fought and a safe haven for terrorists working against the free world. If it weren't for oil, no one except the people living there would give a damn about it. Seriously... how can you dispute any of that with a straight face... you know, being as smart as you are?

*** This post was edited by Rob Ascough 5/3/2007 11:54:30 PM ***

You said holy war. The war in Iraq we started, and not for any actual reason at that. So where else?

Stop telling me how to read or implying that I'm implying anything. Stick to what I say if you want to debate something.

"Modern society" implies that the Middle East is in some kind of time warp and hasn't evolved. The Middle East is a big place, and there's a lot more to it than scary guys who "hate freedom" hiding in caves and plotting to crash airplanes into buildings. I don't disagree that the culture in some countries is oppressive to women, but that has been changing quickly in the last decade. Let's not forget that it wasn't that long ago that we made people of color sit at the back of the bus and women still don't make as much money as men here in the U.S.

All I'm getting at here is that your view of the region is narrow-minded and you're discounting it as nothing but sand and oil. It's that fundamental perception that contributes to the reason no one likes Americans unless we're spending our tourist dollars (and even then the French don't particularly like us).

No, you're just reading what you want to read so you have a chance to prove how open-minded and liberal you are because it's very obvious you're taking what I said out of context. I specifically stated that the Middle East isn't on the radar because of camels and holy war. Here it is again:

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And what do you think made the Middle East a destination to begin with? It sure wasn't camels and holy war.

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Don't tell me to stick to what you say when you can't even stick to what I said. Don't be a hypocrite.

Using the term "modern society" doesn't imply the Middle East is stuck in a time warp, at least not the way I used the term. The modern society I am referring to is the society in which we live... modern society, as in, people living and breathing at this very moment. Modern society has an interest in the Middle East primarily because of oil reserves, and everything else is simply collateral. It's not like the Middle East region has anything else that you can't fine elsewhere in the world where things are a lot more stable. What else aside from huge amounts of oil can you find in the Middle East that you can't find in North America, Europe or Asia?

And if you don't know by now that the history of the Middle East has been riddled with battles and wars stemming from differences in religious beliefs (among other things), you've been living in a cave... much like those people plotting to crash planes into buildings. Check this out if you don't believe me.