Chinese Circus at Festival City

Its well worth the visit. A good night's family entertainment. Though the young performers make it look oh, so simple, it's a highly skilled performance that I intend going to see a second time.

Check it out:

http://www.festivalcentre.com/news_eventdetails.aspx?event=2&eid=137

Dubai rising!

A few days back (Early February 2009) it seemed as though the Emirates Towers and the other buildings on Sheikh Zayed Road were simply rising out of the clouds. It was surreal.

Check out these pictures.

Out of the Box ...

On a recent visit to Lamcy Plaza I was looking at some watches when my neice pointed out that the signboard had the name of the shop misspelt. Ever ready to do a favour, I quickly pointed out to the salesman at the counter that the letter 'U' was missing from the signboard. He quickly pointed to me saying, "Sir, that's you! We are missing you."

A clever way of engaging the customer and establishing a harmonius bond. I was well and truly taken in. My compliments on a clever ploy drew an even quicker response, "The credit goes to my boss, he's a very clever guy." No doubt.

Rare creativity in Dubai's communications landscape.

Will we lose the most valuable assets due to the financial crisis?

The global financial crisis is taking a heavy toll on human resources. Sweeping job cuts across continents have become as much a lead for the media as ‘bleeding’ stories. The attacks in Mumbai dominated the headlines, but only as long as the drama unfolded, soon to be replaced by falling oil prices, record falls in the stock indices and of course, bailouts. Even the hijacking of one of the biggest oil tankers with over one hundred million tonnes of the black gold is already off the radar.

Men and women across the world who lose their jobs are reduced to mere numbers much like the ‘casualty’ figures in a terror attack. Shattered lives and families without roof over their heads or income source to sustain themselves are only ‘human interest’ stories.

In this de-humanizing crisis scenario, Dubai, as indeed the UAE and the entire Middle East, being dependent on expatriate skills, needs to retain the human resources already available. A programme should be in place to evaluate and where possible locate them in new placements. It would be the human thing to do. It would also be the most pragmatic; considering that significant costs in both money and time will have to be expended during this crisis situation to recruit new staff for those companies that need to. Food for thought …

Emirates Identity Pre-registration form can now be downloaded from the EIDA website

The pre-registration application for the Emirates Identity Card can now be downloaded in Arabic and English and completed offline. The website opens fast and contains instructions for Online Booking and Complaints and Suggestions. Pass on ...

The new President of America …

Some newscasters on international television channels were quick to point out that they would not be ‘calling’ the election until voting across the country had closed as it could deter voters in states where the polls close last, given that Americans across seven time zones are choosing their forty fourth president.

Given the intense competition among the various media entities, that would be a tough call indeed. Results on CNN.com at the time of writing show Senator Obama comfortably leading Senator McCain 174 to 69 electoral votes.

The 2008 election is keenly watched around the world for several reasons. Chief among them is a loss of credibility in American foreign policy during the current administration.

The invasion of Iraq began on the basis that there were weapons of mass destruction. None were found but the occupation and the suffering of the Iraqi people continues. The frosty relations that America has with Iran and North Korea have at various times given rise to the possibility of war. In Afghanistan, a half-hearted war continues against the Taliban and has recently angered the new administration in long time American-ally Pakistan for unauthorized attacks within the country and the killing of civilians. Inconsistency and double standards have been a common thread in American policy. Diplomacy appears to have been stifled by the American political dream of maintaining superpower status; to be the best economic resource, police, the judge and jury for the entire world. A challenge whether it be from China or India which have much larger populations is frowned upon.

Even though the relationship between man and his environment is better understood today, America failed to give leadership to the world by ratifying the Kyoto Protocols.

More recently, the financial crisis which began in the USA has gripped the entire world creating a very vulnerable situation for people everywhere. It was to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank that less developed countries made a pilgrimage with a begging bowl. Today the IMF is in such dire straits that the Prime Minister of Great Britain followed a senior US official this week to countries in the Middle East seeking funds for the IMF which has already bailed out some countries affected by the financial crisis.

The new President of the United States of America would have to urgently and concurrently address all these issues even as he juggles with domestic considerations which have propelled him to the Oval Office.

He will have to engage in a reordering of American foreign policy with an emphasis on diplomacy. He will have to give leadership to the setting up of a new institution to regulate global financial markets and relationships, perhaps on the lines of the International Telecommunication Union. Under his leadership, America will have to show its commitment to the protection of the global environment by throwing its weight behind international initiatives such as the Kyoto Protocols.

Right now, the CNN electoral map shows Barack Obama leading 207 to 135. May the better man win.

How she said, “Yes!”

We’ve read about it in the classics, in romantic novels and seen it happen in everyday life. But the way this woman said ‘yes’ is certainly unique. It’s rarely that you read about something in real life that seems like it was in the movies, so I’ll let you read the original story here. Enjoy!