I find that NYT article a bit confusing. Based upon what I've seen in a few specials and documentaries I was operating under the impression that Dubai did produce oil but not nearly enough for its citizens to enjoy the same crazy chic sheik life as its oil soaked neighbors. I thought Dubai's mammoth efforts to attract foreign tourists and expatriates (as well as the push to make it a major financial center) was a long term strategy to provide some kind of industry & revenue once the oil wells eventually dried up.
Loved this paragraph...
Mmm mmmm! Some protein with your water sir?Now, many expatriates here talk about Dubai as though it were a con game all along. Lurid rumors spread quickly: the Palm Jumeira, an artificial island that is one of this city’s trademark developments, is said to be sinking, and when you turn the faucets in the hotels built atop it, only cockroaches come out.
No matter, I could care less about the fate of Dubai and all those who tied their futures to it. Que sera sera, such are the risks of capitalism. Had Dubai taken a more conservative approach to expansion then it might be in better shape now that the global economy is in free fall. I guess only time will tell whether all those hotels, office buildings and those ridiculously massive man made peninsulas and islands off the coast were worth the expense. Successful or not Dubai put itself firmly in the Wonders of the Modern World list when it created those coastal monstrosities.
Bookmarks