[mos6507]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mekrob', 'S')o it appears that Dubai is going from investing in short-term, illogical buildings and systems in the middle of a desert to investing in short-term, illogical buildings and systems in the middle of another desert.

Bloomberg

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'D')ubai agreed to pay as much as $5.1 billion for a 9.5 percent stake in MGM Mirage and half of the Las Vegas casino owner's biggest development, giving controlling shareholder Kirk Kerkorian a partner as MGM expands into real estate.

[Bas]

And probably the most unsustainable place in the world, none the less an intruiging phenemenon. Here's a very interesting article about the place that I enjoyed alot. (I'm only quoting a small part of it, but I assure you it's well worth to read the entire thing)

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Dubai: Sinister Paradise



The narration begins: As your jet starts its descent, you are glued to your window. The scene below is astonishing: a 24-square-mile archipelago of coral-colored islands in the shape of an almost finished puzzle of the world. In the shallow green waters between continents, the sunken shapes of the Pyramids of Giza and the Roman Coliseum are clearly visible.

In the distance are three other large island groups configured as palms within crescents and planted with high-rise resorts, amusement parks, and a thousand mansions built on stilts over the water. The "Palms" are connected by causeways to a Miami-like beachfront chock-a-block full of mega-hotels, apartment high-rises and yacht marinas.

As the plane slowly banks toward the desert mainland, you gasp at the even more improbable vision ahead. Out of a chrome forest of skyscrapers (nearly a dozen taller than 1000 feet) soars a new Tower of Babel. It is an impossible one-half-mile high: the equivalent of the Empire State Building stacked on top of itself.

You are still rubbing your eyes with wonderment and disbelief when the plane lands and you are welcomed into an airport emporium where hundreds of shops seduce you with Gucci bags, Cartier watches, and one-kilogram bars of solid gold. You make a mental note to pick up some duty-free gold on your way out.

The hotel driver is waiting for you in a Rolls Royce Silver Seraph. Friends have recommended the Armani Hotel in the 160-story tower or the seven-star hotel with an atrium so huge that the Statue of Liberty would fit inside, but instead you have opted to fulfill a childhood fantasy. You always have wanted to be Captain Nemo in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.

[Kingcoal]

Perhaps a vision of the future. Freehold "ownership," indentured servitude, all in the service of the rich. We've come a long way.

[emersonbiggins]

Dubai = Moon Base for the technologically inhibited civilization

There will be no interstellar travel for the rich & famous, so this dystopia will have to do.

[mekrob]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Kingcoal', 'P')erhaps a vision of the future. Freehold "ownership," indentured servitude, all in the service of the rich. We've come a long way.

[Kingcoal]

Slavery is a term generally used to describe people who are forced into the condition. Indentured Servitude is a term used to describe a form of voluntary slavery. People sign their rights away in a contract which has a time limit. After the contract expires, the person is free to go, however, during tenure of the contract; the person is under special jurisdiction which includes restricted freedoms, i.e., slavery. It was popular in the early days of the US.

The only difference between Dubai and the western world is that we in the west find slavery distasteful, so we buy from other countries who use it to produce cheap products. What's the difference?

[rockdoc123]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')f you were a multi-millionaire or billionaire, would you stay in this hell-hole or move to a "nicer" place, at least for vacations?

[mekrob]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'S')lavery is a term generally used to describe people who are forced into the condition. Indentured Servitude is a term used to describe a form of voluntary slavery.

[Bas]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'S')o if slavery is forced labor, then how can there be any form of voluntary slavery? Besides, aren't many, if not most, of these people that conduct such "contracts" "forced" into that situation anyway by external forces such as corrupt governments that are supported by large, consuming nations (US, China, Europe, India, etc) that push them into dire economic situations which essentially forces them to take the contract? It's not at the muzzle of a gun or blade of a knife, but starvation is just as good a weapon as either, if not better.

[Graeme]

Dubai Crude to Be Traded at $77 Next Year

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'D')ubai crude, a benchmark for Asian refiners, will likely be traded at an average price of $77.50 (roughly 72,811 won) per barrel next year, though the price could sporadically surge beyond the $100 mark, according to the country’s state-run oil firm Monday.

In a report on the outlook for 2008 oil prices, the Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) predicted that the price of Dubai crude would move between $70 and $85 in the first half of next year and between $70 and $80 in the latter half.

[Denny]

Well I guess this Korean agency has a lot of optimism, If they think they have the inside track on oil futures, they should be selling them! Unfortunately, the NYMEX doesn't share their optimism, it says in late 2008, oil will range between $89 and $90 a barrel.

Could it just be that an importing country finds it useful to create the illusion that oil prices will fall?

[joewp]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Denny', '
')Could it just be that an importing country finds it useful to create the illusion that oil prices will fall?

[pup55]

Note:

Dubai crude is now trading at about a $10 discount to WTI because it is heavier.

$77 is therefore the equivalent of about $87.

World Prices from EIA

[Tanada]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pup55', 'N')ote:

Dubai crude is now trading at about a $10 discount to WTI because it is heavier.

$77 is therefore the equivalent of about $87.

World Prices from EIA

[pup55]

http://europe.theoildrum.com/node/2247?nocomments

This post from The Oil Drum says that Maya is heavier than Dubai.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '7')2% of the crude oil produced in Mexico is heavy "Maya" with average API gravity of 22 degrees. Light crude has higher API gravity, and for example Brent Blend has API gravity of 38 degrees and Westexas Intermediate 39 degrees.

[Tanada]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pup55', 'h')ttp://europe.theoildrum.com/node/2247?nocomments

This post from The Oil Drum says that Maya is heavier than Dubai.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '7')2% of the crude oil produced in Mexico is heavy "Maya" with average API gravity of 22 degrees. Light crude has higher API gravity, and for example Brent Blend has API gravity of 38 degrees and Westexas Intermediate 39 degrees.

[pup55]

EIA World Prices

The Dubai is actually selling for a little more, typically, as we would expect based on gravity.

Dubai is 84.50 and Maya is 76.29. Subtract the shipping from the Dubai and that might be about right.

p.s. Hope this link is working, the feds are working on their website this morning.

[BigTex]

Dubai is like a hideous hood ornament on a car that is about to drive off the edge of a cliff.



For those who are familiar with the city, what exactly do they "do" in Dubai?



Also, how about public transportation in Dubai? It seems like a brand new cutting edge city ought to have cutting edge transportation infrastructure. Does it?

[vision-master]

The "new" tower of Babel?

[frankthetank]

I still think its being built for the rich and powerful to relocate to. On the ocean, near a shitload of oil (Iraq/Iran/Saudi) and never gets too cold.