What's up with Dubai?The recent World Economic Forum - Summit Of The Global Agenda seemed intent upon dividing and planning for our futures. Some of the more than fifty topics included; Future of Mobile Communications, Future of Media, Future of Entertainment, Future of the Internet, Geography of Innovation and Strategic Foresight. It seems that W. wanted at least a glimpse of what all of his selling of America would bring.
More than 750 US companies have their regional headquarters in the UAE, with former American based companies like security contractors Black Water Worldwide and Haliburton moving their headquarters beyond the reach of American courts to this (apparently) terrorist friendly state.
We should have seen it coming.
Everyone has access to a Bible and the story of Joseph and the Pharaoh. Joseph was given the ability to recognize the ecological (and eventual sociological and economical) cycle of the known world during a certain period.
When the market was up, it was time to build storehouses and save. When the market fell, it was time to buy and lend. The Pharaoh became wealthy following Joseph's advice.
Warren Buffet has used this same cycle to amass his enormous wealth.
Let the suckers spend and borrow in order to appear rich - while the truly rich wait and save until prices are so low that they can buy the same goods at pennies on the dollar.
Maybe today's bankers saw the hand-writing on the wall and knew that the market would eventually crash - they knew that they could buy everything at a deflated price and end up owning more while many of us just ended up owing more.
But back to Dubai and the United Arab Emerates.
Dubai World (owner of Dubai World Ports) created a stink when it was discovered that they would own many of the largest American ports after it had acquired British company P&O. (The US holdings of P&O were sold to failed American insurance company AIG. Since the bail-out, our government now owns parts of AIG.)
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority owns 4.9% of citigroup Inc. .
The UAE is America's largest exporter to the Middle East. Much of the goods sold to the UAE are re-sold to China, India and the rest of the Middle East.
Macy's Inc. is set to open it's first store (Bloomingdale's) outside of the US in the UAE.
Piracy was largely under control when the Union of Islamic Courts governed Mogadishu and much of Southern Somalia until 2006. (The same is the case with Iraq. Saddam may not have been our friend anymore, but he could control his country. Just as the Taliban could eliminate the Poppy Trade in Afghanistan - which largely funds the terrorists and insurgents. We're suffering from the same dilemma as Dr Moreau in trying to re-make people into ourselves ["No spill blood"]. Maybe we should stop trying to play God.) Their US backed defeat at the hands of the Ethiopians destabilized the area, creating an environment that is hospitable to pirates. Sugwe Dahir (owner of up-scale Somali clothing boutique Eyl) has even set up a lay-a-way program for the pirates. Pirates just take the items they want, the sales clerks list the items and when the pirates receive their ransoms (30 million dollars this year alone) they pay their tabs. In Mogadishu, pirates are building sprawling stone homes, cruising in the latest Lexus or Mercedes and marrying beautiful women.
Andrew Mwangura (Seafarer's Assistance Programme) states that most of the pirating is masterminded and controlled in Nairobi and Dubai - by men who monitor the shipping routes for lucrative targets. (Who wanted to control US Ports?)
In an effort to fight the pirates, we have companies like John Harris' Hallow Point Protective Services and Black Water vying to become the world leaders in privateering. The above photo is the latest acquisition by Black Water, it's a 153 ft decommissioned National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration ship that is docked in North Carolina. The ship (the Mc Arthur) will have state of the art navigation and communication systems, command and control labs, medical capabilities, a helicopter pad and up to 40 armed guards. Black Water already owns at least 20 aircraft and is trying to acquire a Brazilian built Emraer Soper Tucano light combat plane.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, privateers were financed by bankers and trade companies like the East India Trading Company. (A good comparison to read about then and now is; "Pirates, Privateers and the Contract Theories of Hobbes & Locke -Peter Hayes.)
As we sit back and worry about the hood-rats on the Real Housewives of the ATL and eat so much that we have to worry about diabetes and hypertension - the rest of the world is making plans for our future. Even Ayman al-Zawahri (referencing a Malcolm X speech) feels emboldened enough to call Barack Obama an "abeed al-beit" (house slave or house negro) while he himself is living in a field.
(Sources - Forbes.com, Bill Tieman/The Virginian Pilot, Kim Sengupta/The Independent, Rob Crilly/The Scotsman, Yahoo News - Photos - Mark Kostabi, PhotoSearch, unat.)
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