Tag Archives: Saudi Arabia

Where the coins are

Yup, there it is, I said it. The article (at https://ara.tv/4eecj) gives us ‘US, Saudi Arabia hold high-level defense meeting at the Pentagon’ and right of the bat, we are ‘fed’ a lie (as I see it). We are given “The Pentagon’s top policy chief called Saudi Arabia a “critical, longstanding defense partner” working to become more capable and self-reliant.” Why is it a lie? Well, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been waiting for inclusion into the F-35 program. So, even as Belgium is included into that program, they are still awaiting delivery. Belgium a European nation that was overrun by the German army in 18 days (it took so long as most German soldiers were on foot or on bicycle) that country is more prestigious than Saudi Arabia? #JustSaying

I reckon it is the reason that China is making massive headways into the Arabic nations. And there it is, the additional quote ““The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a critical, longstanding defense partner for the United States that seeks to grow more capable and self-reliant in its defense. We are working hard to partner with Saudi Arabia to enable it to do so,” Colby said in a post on X.” I wonder when the defense department relies on X instead of the world wide news to disperse that information. It is a hard thing to comprehend.

I reckon that America is so desperate for cash (now that they damaged their tourism industry) that they can only turn to China and Saudi Arabia for additional funds. As Saudi Arabia has a lot more oil, the UAE was overlooked. But the setting is here America needs coins and as such I would have thought that someone in the Pentagon (it is rumored that this is managed by people at 1690 Air Force Pentagon, Washington, DC 20330-1670)

That being said, someone should have whispered to them to include Saudi Arabia to the F-35 list, but who am I saying this? I am still happy to get a nice bonus from the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) (at No. 88, Weiyi Road, Huang Tianba, Qingyang District, Chengdu City, Sichuan, China, postal code 610091) If you can’t beat them, join them I say. And I was always happy to get a nice (optionally fat) check. The new apartment will set me back $7M and there is the need to get some cash to the UAE (my optional Yas Island retirement location), as such bringing a customer the size of Saudi Arabia might get me my dream retirement.

As such you might wonder why this byline? That is easy as we are given “Colby welcomed Saudi efforts to build up its self-defense capabilities and “to make greater contributions toward achieving shared regional objectives,” Parnell added. The meeting came amid a series of recent US arms sales to the Kingdom. Earlier this year, the Trump administration approved a $3.5 billion weapons deal that included 1,000 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) and 50 AIM-120C-8 guidance sections.” I say that either Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby has a doofus (aka dodo) as a personal assistant, or he has been missing briefs for years. Saudi Arabia steered to self reliance in several fields (including defense) even before 2019, so the response you read before might be seen as nothing less than a joke. As for the ‘funds’ already spend, as I see it, Chan is just as willing to receive such payment for its abilities for Saudi Arabia to defend itself. I get that there is one stronger and one weaker. But I do not know who that is between these two. As such it might be anyones guess. I suggest you ask someone at Raytheon who has the better equipment and why.

So it is nice to see this article and there is no blame on AlArabiya, but until it refers to America seeing Saudi Arabia as a full fledged partner in global defense by selling them the F-35, these stories come across like that moment in Oliver Twist asking for some more. Charles Dickens wrote about that little orphan in 1838, so it might have been a while. Still the setting of America bothers me, not the meeting with Saudi Arabia, but the building of not-so-good moments in several areas in America going from tariffs to tourism. America is bleeding and through their own actions they are bleeding allies just as quickly as anything else. Not even the penguins on McDonald Island are happy to see President Trump.

So as we are given the final quote ““Both leaders recognized US-Saudi defense cooperation as a force multiplier for regional security, and reviewed opportunities to deepen cooperation,” said Parnell, the Pentagon spokesman.” Well, as a non-Pentagon source might I suggest including Saudi Arabia as another party for the F-35? That should deepen cooperation by a lot. #JustSaying

It is moments like these that I wholly embrace the old saying “Sarcasm is great, when it backfires it become irony” and that is important too, so just in case AlArabiya is hungry for more stories, the address of the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation can be found in the story. 

Have a great day this Tuesday, it’s still Monday in Vancouver, so they get this article in about 14 hours.

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Saudization

A term I got introduced to last week. It stands for “the Saudi nationalization scheme and also known as Nitaqat, is a policy that is implemented in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by the Ministry of Labor and Social Development, which requires companies and enterprises to fill their workforce with Saudi nationals up to certain levels” I think it is a great idea. I think more countries need to embrace such a scheme for a few reasons. I believe it is essential that skills are moved locally to avoid being at the massive risk of an American need and that is a bad idea on a few levels. Now, this is not an anti-America sentiment, but the media (America too) have left us with the notion that we cannot be certain of almost anything and there is the larger setting that it goes to other countries too. Perhaps there is an Emiratization, an optional Indonesization (these two words might not exist) and several others (Pakistan, Bangladesh) and so on. So why is there not an open video channel with options on both YouTube and TikTok handing these skills? If I merely push this to myself. There is the option to train people (non-Arabic) in IBM Statistics (formerly known as SPSS) I trained people for over a decade and that is a skill that can be taught. Edit the movie with a localised soundtrack and you have a solution to optionally train dozens of people.

If we create a few hundred videos we could optionally train a whole legion of people and as the elder generation (including me) could leave a footprint handing this knowledge out to others we continue training people after we are gone. I also worked in call centers and whilst the world is filled with silliness and chases after AI, the skills that are out there will be lost soon enough. As such we (read: some)  need to create the stages for the next generation. Whilst all are on the AI train we might see a setting of dwindling down sources and in a decade when AI misses its target the world will suddenly see that they lost more than they bargained for. As such a video station that allows Saudization to grow into the people who cannot see what they need and can freely learn to grow their own future is a proper way to harvest talents where they freely grow.

So you might think that this comes for free and that might be the case. Yet the older generations feels that they can contribute to any setting that will listen. As such these skills will require verification so that quality will prevail. Yet is it such a hardship on the older generation? They contribute to all kinds of non profit organisations. Is it so hard to believe that they would assist in creating the future generations? The world is not what big corporations believe it to be, it is what the next generation wants it to be and as such this idea stands a chance. In the setting we see now it might benefit Saudi Arabia. Yet when these movies get a larger setting in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Uruguay and other places, we grow the knowledge in all kinds of directions and as it should be offered free knowledge will emboss all people, not just the ones who can afford it. 

It is just a little idea I am playing with, but I reckon that some governments will embrace what hundreds of people could contribute to their national causes.

Have a great day

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An interesting morning

This morning I was given an article by Amway media (at https://amwaj.media/en/article/why-china-cannot-sway-saudi-arabia-to-shift-away-from-us-weapons). It took me a second to let it sink in, but as it did, it took me back to May 27, 2023 when I wrote ‘Ding Ding, the premise is set’ where I gave my view on the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group and the dangers to America as it would be able to get the Government of Saudi Arabia as a new customer. The story (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2023/05/27/ding-ding-the-premise-is-set/) was not the first one that I had set and here (two years later) we get the setting “if Chinese weapons are more or less on par with their western equivalent, why does Riyadh still spend billions on American weapons?” Was that really the case? I believe it was that Saudi Arabia wanted to play nice so that they could get the F-35 stealth fighter, it is beyond me that America took that card out of the deck and as I stated that the Chengdu version could be ready to get China as a customer for it would have been a massive hit for America, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, BAE Systems, Pratt & Whitney and Raytheon. It would have been a massive coup for China and the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group. So as I read “When Pakistan’s Chinese-made J-10 fighters reportedly downed India’s advanced French-made Rafales during dogfights in May—including one confirmed by US officials—it marked a turning point: Chinese weapons had proven themselves against western counterparts in real-life combat” I actually read a simpler setting. Are the sales teams of the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (and optionally Governmental China sales teams not hacking it? 

I am not a pilot (not even an aviator) as such I lack the knowledge to set the premise. But I would have given the setting of training one squadron of Saudi pilots in China on the grounds of Chengdu a very first priority. Getting pilots in the mindset of China would have been a first. Was that done? As such the quote ““One of the reasons why Saudi Arabia prefers western weapons over its Chinese equivalent is because Chinese weapons have not seen combat in recent years,” a researcher specializing in Middle East affairs at China’s Northwest University told Amwaj.media. “This may change now that the Chinese-made J-10 fighter jet has drawn its first blood”” I understand the premise, but I do not agree with it. As I see it, Russia and China are on decent par with America, They are always inching towards or ahead with each other. Don’t get me wrong, America has a great record, yet as I see it America has lately bungled a few fields. The first bungle is the USS Zumwalt, the ugliest ship in American navy (as I personally see it) and then there is issue with  key technologies, like specialized 155mm rounds, that are massively expensive. As such the Zumwalt class (that are set to just three vessels) for the grocery price of $8,000,000,000 per vessel. Making the destroyer decently more expensive than the USS Blue Ridge and a lot less operational, especially as ammunition of the Zumwalt is too expensive to afford (according to US Congress) that is a mere beginning. In 2021, I quoted (from ABC) “He said the combat jet currently had almost 900 design flaws, with seven considered critical.” This is in regards to the F35, as such China had options to get its foot in the front door (a bad manner sales technology) but at that point China gets the option to offer a solution to the Saudi government. It just occurred that this might be a reason. What if America isn’t keeping Saudi Arabia from the F35 for exclusivity, but to hide the fact that whatever Saudi Arabia gets will expose the flaws of the F35 to a much larger audience? I don’t know, I am merely postulating the thought of the reason why you want to keep an ally like Saudi Arabia away from a priced exclusive dinky toy (sorry, I just had to go there). 

The next setting is a decent one, Amwaj gives us “Yet, despite China offering cost-effective and no-strings attached alternatives, Saudi Arabia continues purchasing the majority of its weapons from the US. During President Donald Trump’s visit to the Kingdom in May, the two sides signed a historic 142B USD arms deal, the largest of its kind. This dynamic reveals the deeper truth in Saudi strategic thinking: purchasing weapons are more than commercial transactions, they are investments in a strategic partnership.” That could be the case, yet the way America treated Canada gives rise to the ‘strategic partnerships’ and that is on me, I could very well be seeing this wrong. But the flaws into America’s settings in design, in execution and in realism gives rise that Saudi Arabia needs to diversify beyond America. We are given “Eurofighter Typhoon, Rafale, and Gripen. While the Eurofighter Typhoon incorporates some low-observable features, it is not considered a true stealth aircraft like the F-35.” As such, as the Rafale was ‘defeated’, China becomes the one diversifying direction and most likely the better choice over the Sukhoi Su-57 (after all, NATO calls it a Felon). And there is a geopolitical setting against adopting the Russian variant, as such Chengdu wins. That is if America keeps on playing the F35 as a Trump card. 

I reckon that adapting Saudi pilots to the Chengdu solution is a first setting and if Saudi Arabia gets an $80B discount on overall purchases, over 3-4 years and I reckon that it would go a long way to get Saudi Arabia adapt to Chinese airplanes and that would be a massive win (for China), as it would set the stage for Egypt and Indonesia adapt the Chinese versions as well (an optional presumption). A stage where China goes from 1 to 3 customers might be very appealing to China (say: Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group) 

And this is the setting that Amwaj media exposed, well I set the premise at least 4 years earlier, but that is fine. Then we get the one true hard setting that Amwaj ‘exposes’. It is “Given Washington’s history of attaching political conditions to arms sales, Riyadh rightly fears that its predominantly American-made arsenal could become leverage to compel compliance. Most recently, this was seen in 2021, when the Joe Biden administration suspended offensive weapons sales in an effort to induce the Kingdom’s exit from Yemen.” The alternative, is that considered and correctly phased? If Saudi Arabia completely changes to Chinese weaponry, is that a hindrance or a opportunity? China will see it as a win, but it is not what China wants, it is what is preferred and what is best for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. That is the center stage and that is what matters. What is truly best for Saudi Arabia and that is up to the Saudi government. I have no idea because it requires several academic degrees and data that I have never had access to. Because if one domino topples, so will others. As such what is the Priceline and the cost of doing business. I might know some, but I have no idea on how the dominos are stacked. As such it is a bit of a minefield and whilst I would (as a commonwealthian) applaud the setting where Saudi Arabia adopts the Eurofighter Typhoon, there is a timeline to consider. It is not 5th generation and there is no real timeline for when the Eurofighter Typhoon gets to evolve into a 6th generation stealth fighter. And lets be clear, there are no clear timelines when its real enemy (the presumptuous Iran) becomes a real danger to Saudi Arabia and that is the flaw that is both a setting of hindrance and the optional danger block. These elements matter, but as I see it America needs to act, because the longer it delays, the larger the danger becomes that Saudi Arabia is forced to choice another direction and whatever direction Saudi Arabia selects would become a splinter in the board of toppling the America economy that America cannot undo, that much is clear and in this day and age, as America is alienating its allies, it needs to secure the settings it has. 

That is merely my view on the matter. Have a great day, 95 minutes until my breakfast.

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Speculating about the day after tomorrow

That is the question that is overwhelming me. Most of us are aware that America is now a burning house. Plenty of people are running away. In 2025 the UAE is expected to get 8800 millionaires moving in (I expect most of them are Americans). 

That and the fact that some corporations are moving out of America, heading of to Canada is merely a second setting. You see that tourism and a hostile world based on tariffs is one, the setting that comes next is not the one I am clear on. I had to think deeply about what it coming next. And I think I have worked a few things out. Apple is already opening a much larger niche in Saudi Arabia, but then? This is what I saw:

STC had a revenue of $20,238,100,000 and they can do more. As we are also given that 92% of individuals aged 12 to 65 using cell phones. As such there is a larger thought that Apple is riding the waves of next week and I know that Huawei is there already, I do not know where Google is, but Saudi Arabia is setting the premise (via Neom) that millions will need servicing in the near future and for the Saudi Telecom Company there is an additional opening for more revenue. There is the call for the STC to bring in their own mobile phone. They can do it via another, or they can grow their own ‘budget’ phone. The setting makes sense. I guess that STC will go the way of Android, a presumption I give you that. But then Saudi Arabia has its own mobile, with Pakistan (247m) and Indonesia (280m) almost too eager to accept that setting and this will allow STC to grow its beachfronts in almost all directions and as these markets are filled, they will be able to offer a much stronger mobile to Europe. This will enable STC to grow into European carriers and markets. That is the growth that the next 5 years will bring. And as America is getting deeper and deeper into trouble. Those ‘advocating’ the American dream are now hiding for dear life and they are banking that another venue opens and that is the way in for Saudi Arabia. 

A larger setting that will be opening up and you can believe the spin that will be coming from the Trump administration, but the ‘donation’ to the Trump administration will enable Saudi Arabia get access to the American carriers too. The escalations that Saudi Arabia has been setting by increasing the stronger 5G was already in motion as per June 2021, so they were already moving in this way. So as America shot themself in the foot and broke their own glasses, the options are opening stronger and faster. I reckon that Apple opening markets in Saudi Arabia too a much larger degree is the last piece of grass that I needed to foretell the settings that are coming in the next iteration and America did this all to themselves. Saudi Arabia merely saw a tactical option to control a larger piece of the 5G settings and I reckon that they will be holding the upgrade of telecom centers in Pakistan and Indonesia as a juice bone whilst at the same time offering contracts including a STC 5G phone. Consider how many people took that setting with their local telecoms including Orange, KPN, Vodafone, Optus, Telstra and several others. STC is seeing the opening and Saudi Arabia is becoming a global player in telecom and 5G and all that comes with with newly build development centers in NEOM (I’m specifically considering Aquellum) a setting that allows Saudi Arabia to grow influence on a global scale. 

If only the American stakeholders had not been ‘filtering’ out news for years and that is the setting I saw evolving 4 years ago. If only the media had properly informed us from day one. So, as I see (read presume) certain evolutionary steps, others might have seen it if they were given access to the actual news. I had an advantage knowing a handful of languages beside English, so I had an advantage. 

Now Saudi Arabia gets a much bigger advantage and it is partially due to (as I personally see it) the evolution of the STC, which should give Al Arabiya and the MBC Group a much larger setting towards the half a billion people in 2 nations and that is before the influence in Egypt and Europe will be showing markers. That will be in the papers soon enough and whilst people will ‘doubt’ this and others will spin it as ridiculous, consider the impact that advertising to a population of 500,000,000 people will bring. When Pakistan and Indonesia will grow beyond certain markers (I know that there are markers, but I have no idea what numbers are set to these markers). Advertisers will seek new channels taking them out of the once they have (like YouTube, TikTok) and other advertising settings. The channels will not completely go away, but they will see dwindled revenue numbers. That is the second tier in this and this is another evolution branch for the STC (optionally the MBC group too). 

A setting that was almost chiseled in stone and I saw parts of this in 2021. There is a pride setting for Saudi Arabia, but to set the telecom of 5G to 700% of what America offers seems a little over the top. At that time I thought it was Huawei and China that were the driving parties, but with the settings I saw develop in the last few weeks I reckon that Saudi Arabia was ahead of the settings by a lot. I presume that the evolutions over the last month merely brought this all to the surface. 

So lets see what America does next. All have a great day and consider what damage will be done to America tomorrow, because that is still very much on the mind of many.

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More bad news?

Yesterday I got some news from FTN News that might spell bad news for America. America is at this moment drowning in tourism ‘debts’ (for a lack of a better word). At present the downfall is set to 29 billion dollar and there are several sources who give us that there is all likelihood that this will not be reversed until 2029. And that is merely the reversal of income (if America does an about face basically today) the loss of income will continue. America will bleed tourism revenue for years to come. And the bad news that is added is seen (at https://ftnnews.com/travel-news/aviation/inside-saudi-arabias-bold-plan-for-a-low-cost-airline-with-45-planes-by-2030/) giving us ‘Inside Saudi Arabia’s Bold Plan for a Low-Cost Airline with 45 Planes by 2030’ where we see “Saudi Arabia’s bold plan for a low-cost airline with 45 planes by 2030 is the Kingdom’s latest move to transform its aviation sector and boost tourism and connectivity” Now don’t think this is a silly notion, but at present in Europe, Canada, Asia, Australia and a few more countries people can only afford one vacation a year and the sewing of cheap holidays to a place where many like to see it, it means that most will contemplate Saudi Arabia against the unwelcoming grounds of America. Considering that the bulk of Muslims (who are about 1.8 Billion, close to 20%) they all will consider Saudi Arabia over America, especially if that comes with lower costs. As such this is almost a slam dunk win for Saudi Arabia. So when we see “The new carrier will be operated by a consortium led by UAE-based Air Arabia, in partnership with Saudi companies Kun Investment and Nesma Group. According to the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation, this alliance was awarded the contract to launch the airline after a competitive bidding process that also included Jazeera Airways and other regional players.” It sets a setting that the UAE/Saudi Arabia connection could spell a lot more bad news for certain parties. As stated, base operations might be in Dammam, yet they are aiming to carry at least 10 million passengers per year once fully operational. Its 81-route network—comprising 24 domestic and 57 international destinations will set the fall to others up to 10,000,000 passengers annually and that is merely the beginning. As I see it, the 10,000,000 will grace Dammam, Riyadh, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Considering the simplest setting that many will now be able to afford a trip to Dubai with its 0% taxation and Apple growing there too I expect a boom of people trying to unite cheap vacation with cheap shopping and in that regards Abu Dhabi remains an option for these people. The could visit both with the High Speed train that takes you to the other UAE destination in a mere 35 minutes. So how interesting is that against any place in America? 

So is this a real threat against American revenue? I believe it is and after the bad setting that America pushed itself in, and the upcoming Vision 2030, I reckon that America might get a prolonged bad tourism time going through until 2032/2033, a few years after Disney and Harry Potter theme parks graced Yas Island totaling the amount of theme parks to 6 with the added Yas Island Mall and the F1 races there too. And Harry Potter to be expected to arrive late 2026 and as there is no date for the new Disney park, I expect that this will not happen before early 2027. But that sets a new danger for America getting relieve to its tourism downfall. 

The setting that SeaWorld is an unique place merely sets the premise towards a lot of tourists selecting Abu Dhabi over America and that is merely the start of this matter. So as I see it, whomever invested in the new airline (apparently The NESMA Group and Kun Investment Holding) seem to be riding an great profit venture and as this goes on the investment might turn out to be a golden one and that is before the impact is seen that Neom Bay airport will face and that means tourists will flock towards Trojena and its ski slopes. Yup, the Kun Investment Holding is looking towards the bright side of profits.

So could I be wrong? 
It is a fair question, but the reality is that nearly all people need a vacation and when the price goes down people can do more and as such these 10,000,000 annual places are 10,000,000 that America loses, pretty directly and that is after the losses it is already facing at the moment, as such I feel pretty confident that this will make it, even as it is not the only one in Saudi Arabia. There is also Flyadeal, Flynas and Air Arabia. The fact that Saudi Arabia is ready to expand the tourist game implies that they have been upgrading with a focus and I think it will drive people towards Trojena and Sindalah, which is besides the options that Abu Dhabi and Dubai offer. So as I see it, America will be facing several more hard years and that is if they do an about face on tourism as per today, when they do not, by 2028 Ski tourism will go towards Saudi Arabia as well. A nasty package is coming to the American shores. They did this to themselves, as such I feel it is their own fault. But to see this amount of damage due to the stupidity of America first is pretty laughable in any book you read.

As such have a great day and if you need a point of investment, I reckon having a better look at the Kun Investment Holding might not be a bad idea. Don’t ask me for advice, this is all I see and I am not the expert in investing, but there are good times ahead for Kun Investment Holding.

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The path of New Technology

That was the setting that I had in mind. You see, some time ago I saw the ‘idea’ that Elon Musk allegedly has. There is nothing wrong with the idea, but in this day and age, with all the settings going on, who is interested in going to New York? Been there, done that I say (in 1999), but the larger setting isn’t the place. There is nothing wrong with the place. Yet as I see it, like the HS2 (UK) the hyper-loop from London to New York seems to be a less then stellar idea. I know that allegedly Elon Musk is setting the stage so that he can get everything as much tested as possible before he is off to Mars (the planet, not the candy bar) and that is fine. Good luck to him.

Yet the setting of a hyper loop in NEOM makes a lot more sense. As I see it, three lines in NEOM seems to be the idea that could attract even more people and more advanced travel options.

Consider the first line connecting Sindalah, the Line and Aquellum (optionally more), the second line connecting Neon bay Airport, the line and Trojena. The third line would be over the length of the line itself allowing people to traverse west to east line in a little over 30 minutes. Optionally with a few stops. 

Basically allow the larger places in minutes. From Sindalah to Aquellum in less than an hour and that is just for starters. It would also allow the people in the line to go towards their destinations in mere minutes. There could be additional benefits too, consider that the people over the larger part in Neom could be off to the ski-resort in an hour, driving the desire to Trojena towards an all time high and the same could be said for Sindalah. 

This is not the easiest setting and perhaps that Elon Musk has the required equipment already as I reckon that these drills don’t grow on trees (I checked) the fabrication of these drills takes several months (if not longer) and we are in 2025, as such the creation of these lines might take more than  the 5 years required, so some haste is due. And with that setting Saudi Arabia will create a new worlds first. A hyper loop that connects these places would also push tourism to a larger degree, with additional connections that allow travel to Riyadh, Jeddah and Medina could grow tourism beyond anything they had expected and  considering that there are 1800 million Muslims, only 33 million living in Saudi Arabia could expand on expectations, desires and wonder and that would make it another first in the world. There are additional considerations as the hyper loop could transport the injured over a larger area, reducing the needs for a more equipped Hospital to the line and several smaller hospitals to other areas. That is, if the setting of a hyper loop would appeal to the Saudi government. 

There were some additional thought to combine lines one and two, but that is hat some would call the micro management (not meant for me) and the idea to live in the line, work in Aquellum and play in Trojena has massive appeal. I wonder how many Canadians might like the idea of skiing there. The setting seeing Neom would be great, if only I am still alive when these places were completed (five years with my butterfingers?) 

Still, the thought of hyper loop trains in Neom should spark any person who enjoys trips on the train. Ill try to get other IP thoughts sorted out tomorrow. Have a great day.

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A powerhouse South of Davos

Yup, it seems like a founding setting as July usually is in the setting of Davos in the desert and the setting is ‘embossed’ as we are given by Arab News as ‘Riyadh emerging as global super hub amid economic boom: Knight Frank’ (at https://www.arabnews.com/node/2608260/business-economy) this is a super setting for several players but not in a good way. 

We are given “Saudi Arabia’s capital is rapidly transforming into a leading global wealth hub, fueled by the Kingdom’s successful economic diversification under Vision 2030, a recent Knight Frank report said. The Riyadh edition of the “Emerging Wealth Hub” series noted that the Saudi capital is transitioning from an oil-dependent economy to a powerhouse for finance, culture, and lifestyle, attracting multinational corporations, investors, and expatriates.” You see, the setting is a little more complicated than that. This is shown through the paragraph that follows “A key driver has been the Regional Headquarters Program, which has already exceeded its 2030 target, with 600 global firms, including Bechtel, PwC, and Northern Trust, setting up regional bases in Riyadh. 

This influx has pushed Grade-A office vacancy rates down to just 2 percent, while prime office rents have skyrocketed by 23 percent in the past year and 84 percent since 2020.” 

When we see the dots, there is a danger that we link the dots in the wrong direction, so we can see that there are 4 dots with at least 2 options, and the more dots we have, the clearer the image becomes. But at present we see that Saudi Arabia and the UAE are rising stars in money matters and rising economy stars, also rising stars in tourism, employments and technology. In the other corner there are the parties of America, the EU and the Commonwealth to a lesser degree. The massive inclination is that America cannot remain the nice party towards both Saudi Arabia and the UAE, then there is the UAE connection to BRICS and as they both are rocking the tourism industry, a setting where they are making the dozens of billions that America is losing. A second setting is that they have the cash to make the technology work, all whilst America is allegedly having power issues, issues that this technology cannot survive, as such the upside is clear for the Arabic worlds a little less for the other players. Some players are vying for the same defence contracts as America, as such we are all facing some version of what some might see as a civil war in the ranks. And as I personally see it, America will be pulling more and more drastic settings and it is one of the reasons that the Trump administration ‘requires’ Powell needs to be shown the door. It is a mere speculation on my side, but there is a chance that America becomes more and more desperate as the tariff setting was backfiring and it seems to be the leading cause for American tourism going back towards the stone age. The thing that also rings in my head is the setting that the millionaires and billionaires that are now investing and seeing the lucrative stages that Saudi Arabia and the UAE are ‘promising’ are all founding mergers that are now not investing and seeking these options in America. As such these players and the tourism setting where people can only spend their money once, they are now vacating to other shores. These are not connected issues, but they do become accumulative issues towards the American shores. As I see it, the America first movements is slowly but surely becoming the undoing of America. 

This reminds me of a Latin expression “Post hoc ergo propter hoc” meaning “after this, therefore because of this” it is an expression that dates back to ancient Greece where it was ‘accepted’ as a truth, but correlation does not equal causation. Apparently the Romans figured this out and as such I gave the example with four points. But the setting where the non-connected events can show that it does have a negative side towards other shores and as such we see the setting towards America. One can believe or debunk the setting that in economy, the entrepreneurial mind can only spend money once, and in a separate turn ‘we the people’ can for the most merely afford one holiday a year and that was in previous years a 20 billion dollars solely from Canadians towards America. But that milk was soured by an administration with State 51 on their mind, a setting that Canadians no longer accept, it made them reject America as a destination. Moreover, other events were also detested by others (Europeans) and as such they are also going to other places, not all, but enough to America seeing this as a massive problem. Only 10 hours ago we were given that Canadian tourism to America is now down 33% in June. In an age where tourism is banking on a near 90% full setting, Canada alone is giving America a tourism body blow and that is before the European sources are considered. So in an age where the financial situation is dire to say the least, the loss of billion will be a hardship station for the near entire industry. So, whilst some are looking towards Davos in the desert, that setting might show the new stations we see as the Future Investment Initiative (FII), which will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from October 29-31, 2025. Some will see a setting that shows for the first time just how desperate the sewing for America and Europe might be. I believe it the news will be bad (for the west), you see, over the last 5 years I have been trying to keep eyes on the Saudi Broadcast Authority (SBA) as I expected them to reach out towards Egypt and Europe, but the news has gone silent the last year. It is my believe that the world will hear news in these directions in October. It is highly speculative (on my side), but I believe that is what will happen this year. I personally believe that this is the ‘surprise’ Saudi Arabia and Huawei is getting ready for, but I have absolutely no evidence on this. So call it what you will but these elements together will show a new dot setting and we will hear it in Q4 this year. 

No matter what we will hear, it doesn’t frame well for the America First pamphlets and photo frames. But I will be the first adjusting my ‘wrongly’ seen connected dots. Because I honestly don’t know. It is more of a gut feeling towards the image that others seem to be showing us.

Have a great day.

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Two for two

That is the setting that I see overlapping. Now, if someone states that they have nothing to do with each other, I would disagree, but I see their point too. At times causality is as thin as the thread to a spiderweb. I just see that there is more then one thread connecting the two together. And those who disagree are allowed to do this. So it started with Kazinform International News Agency (a news agency in Kazakhstan) informing me of ‘Saudi Arabia retains top spot in MENA venture capital investment for first half of 2025’, in itself not terribly important to my scope of life, but it had mention of the MAGNiTT. I had not heard that term before and I get a lot of information, so I decided to check it out. It states “your go-to platform for verified Venture Capital & Private Equity data in Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, Türkiye and Pakistan” that I would have remembered, as such a new term came to me, from an unknown source. The part that got my intention was “Saudi Arabia maintained its first rank across MENA in terms of Venture Capital (VC) funding in the first half of 2025, witnessing a total VC deployment of $860 Million (SAR3.2 billion), surpassing the total VC funding of 2024 (full year)” as such, I am getting the impression that Saudi Arabia is stretching its financial influence in the world, when you see a near two for one deal spanning almost a billion, that ain’t hay (as the expression goes). 

The additional quote goes “The Kingdom’s leading position in the VC scene in the region comes as a result of many governmental initiatives launched to stimulate the VC and startups ecosystem within the Saudi Vision 2030 programs. We at SVC are committed to continuing to lead the development of the ecosystem by stimulating private investors to provide support for startups and SMEs to be capable of fast and high growth, leading to diversifying the national economy and achieving the goals of the Saudi Vision 2030, CEO and Board Member at Saudi Venture Capital (SVC) Dr. Nabeel Koshak commented.” As such there is a lot to be said for being thorough and Saudi Arabia isn’t tinkering on the corner. Now considering that I didn’t get that news from the Financial Times or Reuters, I had an issue with this. So, consider that it is missing from the Financial Times, a said to be thorough news agency for all matters linked to the channel of a “Ka-Ching” nature. 

This is setting the second phase of the issue being a (what some call) AI setting. You see, I was looking as American Tourism (a daily event) as I keep my eyes on this. Here we see “Tourism in the United States is experiencing a decline in international visitor spending, with a projected $12.5 billion drop in 2025. This downturn is attributed to a combination of factors, including perceived negative impacts from Trump administration policies related to trade and borders, a strong dollar, and weaker global economic growth. While domestic tourism remains strong, the US is seeing fewer international tourists compared to other countries, and some experts predict it may not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2030.” (Source: claimed AI) what connects this is Forbes giving us ‘U.S. tourism will lose up to $29 billion as visitors plummet amid Trump policies’ a mere week ago (at https://www.forbes.com.au/life/travel/u-s-tourism-will-lose-up-to-29-billion-as-visitors-plummet-amid-trump-policies/) a mere week ago. So is this (non) AI a mere 240% off? You see, one part is the “strong dollar” but sources give me “the United States Dollar has strengthened 0.62%, but it’s down by 5.38% over the last 12 months.” As such the second part came to me. Can these sources which I define as NIP (Near Intelligent Parsing) be given programmed issues that as not taken into consideration? And that thought gets strengthened through “While domestic tourism remains strong, the US is seeing fewer international tourists compared to other countries, and some experts predict it may not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2030”, the issue is that the term before directly clashes with the Forbes quote, which is “the U.S. is a notable loser this year as tens of millions of international visitors are choosing to travel elsewhere—costing the economy up to $29 billion—and risking millions of jobs” and there is data supporting the Forbes view. I am also considering that Forbes might have missed a setting or two. The amount of bed and breakfast places that will lose close to everything as tourists stay away. Florida who just expanded is seeing less tourists from both Canada and overseas tourists. The Trump administration has made America less interesting in 2025 and likely 2026 as well. That and as we now see that Saudi Arabia, Europe, Canada and the UAE are cashing in on that negativity is giving a much larger confidence in the losses that Forbes predict. 

So, how are they connected?
There is a larger setting to the folly of NIP (or what some call AI), you see NIP is based on DML and that only works on predicted data that has occurred and the setting America faces, other has never faced before and certainly not in this global economy where preparation is king. Last month, merely one travel agent is giving us ‘Flight Centre is facing a $100m hit as a result’, that is merely one travel agent and some sources give us that there are an expected 571,541 operating in 2025. So how many losses will America face? It is the groundling of questions, because that also gives us the amount of Venture Capitalists that are turning towards Saudi Arabia and the UAE (to name but two). This matters as it explains why Saudi Arabia it self is leading the charge. Wouldn’t you turn to your own borders to cash in on ventures happening before 2030? So as we saw “some experts predict it may not return to pre-pandemic levels until 2030” and this is happening around that same time. With the Trump administration giving folly at nearly every corner, I wouldn’t put my money there, I would feel a lot more secure putting it in Canada to say the least. 

Kazinform gave me the setting that is playing now. Through these links there is a thought that the internet and its habitants are being spanned to through what some call AI (which it is not) by engineering markers that are ‘managed’ through some forces as to what constitutes NIP at best. Deeper Machine Learning (DML) even with LLM (Larger Language Machine) in place can only work with what is, what it has ad the world has never been given these markers of folly before. As such DML is kinda useless. They can pretend the core remains the same, but everything that this core fuels is off (by a lot) and that is setting the fake premise that it can never keep. And the end of the Kazinform story is pretty much the best, it gives us “As reported previously, Saudi Arabia ranked first globally in growth of international tourism receipts in Q1 of 2025 compared to Q1 of 2019, according to the World Tourism Barometer published by UN Tourism in May.” That makes sense as the people are turning away from America in tourism and Saudi Arabia has worked hard to buff up on being the next tourism spot to be. People tend to forget that 20% of the world is Muslim and they are done with the world treating them as a second best option. Taking into account that Saudi Arabia is growing in the tourism direction as well as all the NEOM projects completing one by one. So when winter sport season comes near, do you really want to go to America at the present setting, or will it become Mt. Whistler (BC, Canada) or Trojena (Saudi Arabia)? The choices are tough, I get it, but with the waiting lines at Mt. Whistler I wouldn’t be surprised if Trojena will have its first year with numerous Canadians there. As some say, Aspen is so passé. And that is merely one reason why Saudi Arabia will grown into a new tourism behemoth. All that before we get to actually see Aquellum, which could be a global first, a community where the architecture is inward set. I cannot give credence to any of that, but if Saudi Arabia pulls it off, it will become the next world wonder and it will show Saudi Arabia to be the next powerhouse in the world with the bulk of the Muslims world wanting to live and grow there. 20% of the population of the planet seeking growth is not to be underestimated and that is before other realise that the bulk of eager Americans want a piece of that life too. All elements in what the next decade is shaping up to be and that is the setting that neither AI (or NIP for that matter) saw coming, because the current settings are all given to us be engineers (remember builder.ai). It doesn’t adjust for something never done before and that is where the hard parts come around the corner, there is no AI (at present).

So feel free to see me as incorrect, that is fine. But also adjust your views to views currently not given and there is an overlap of matters. What is and is filtered away for reasons ‘unknown’ and what is not given to us because some cannot see the impact. It is a two for two setting.

Have a great day, I entered the middle of the week, it is still yesterday lunchtime in Vancouver.

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Where is the exit?

That is a question that is more often than not a valid one. We went to exit any setting, but there is the ego to consider, America has skin in the game (as the expression goes). As the Guardian gives us (at https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jul/08/saudi-arabia-capital-punishment-executions-foreigners-drug-offences-crime-600-people-amnesty-international) last week, last Tuesday to be more exact, we are given ‘Saudi Arabia executing ‘horrifying’ number of foreigners for drug crimes’ with the byline “Hundreds put to death for non-violent drug offenses over past decade, with little scrutiny of Saudis, says Amnesty”, yup it is everyones favourite crybaby Amnesty International. I can’t really fault them here. They have a ‘strict’ setting and I get that, but the rest of the world needs to understand that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia takes a harsh views on any drug offense. So as we are given “Almost 600 people have been executed over the past decade for drug-related offenses, Amnesty International has found, three-quarters of whom were foreign nationals from countries including Pakistan, Syria, Yemen, Nigeria and Egypt.” It is like toddlers in a zoo. If you put your hand in the tiger cage, it will be bitten off. There is no ‘but’ or ‘why’ in this. It is the nature of the beast. Saudi Arabia is totally against drugs and they do not accept any other setting. You see, America might have started ‘the war on drugs’ around 1971 (optionally 1970) and for 50 years where we see that the setting should be seen as “at least $100 billion a year, and far from eliminating use, supply and production, as many as 300 million people now use drugs worldwide, contributing to a global market with a turnover of $330 billion a year” as such America has spend a generic $5,000,000,000,000 dollars on a war that has no exit strategy. Saudi Arabia isn’t falling for that trap and is not concerned for the 600 people who threw away their lives and is happy to end their seemingly pathetic lives. I am decently certain that their lives in Pakistan or Egypt would end in the same way. Although, I am certain that these two countries only give the death penalty on extreme cases (whatever that means), still the death penalty is in the cards there too. 

So, whilst every is calling the war on drug in America a lost cause and it is only in the eye of politicians who want to get coin out of this setting that they would ‘see’ an optional solution. I am of the mind that simply putting them all to death might have saved America $100,000,000,000 on an annual basis. That is the setting I personally see. 

So whilst we see “With little international scrutiny of what Amnesty describes as “grossly unfair trials” and a “chilling disregard for human life”, the rights organisation warned that the death toll would only increase.” We need to understand that Saudi Arabia sees drug use as a complete ‘no-no’ and they have strict laws in place. When we understand this, we should consider why these people go for drugs, and more important, how is this setting being supported? I think that most people in that ‘industry’ want their slice of a $330 billion cake and it is an annual cake, as such I wonder what is fueling this. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia isn’t wondering this at all. They merely execute the people who go for that dish and I get that. The American war on drugs is a stalemate for negotiations and a setting for delays and optionally some people get some out of this. Saudi Arabia sees them all as equally unworthy and treats them all to a one way ticket to the grim reaper, or towards Malak al-Maut as they call him. I reckon he is the American version of ‘Kill ‘em all, let god sort them out’ I have no real view on this. You see Saudi Arabia has capital punishment and the results are not unlike “Old Sparky,” who had been executing people since  1924 at the Huntsville Penitentiary. So is that any different? There is no setting of violent or non-violent. If you get caught with drugs in Saudi Arabia, they get a one way ticket to wherever they were supposed to go. It sounds harsh, but it is time that people realise that intentionally breaking the law in some countries has consequences and drugs have a finite consequence here. So when we see “Dana Ahmed, Amnesty International’s Middle East researcher, said: “We are witnessing a truly horrifying trend, with foreign nationals being put to death at a startling rate for crimes that should never carry the death penalty.” According to who? Is my question. You see “Saudi Arabia has a zero-tolerance policy regarding drugs and enforces its laws rigorously” as such I wonder where Dana Ahmed got her law degree. I kinda understand her. I am not in favor of the death penalty, but it is for every government to decide for themselves and as I see it, Saudi Arabia is not interested in wasting $100,000,000,000 a year on this problem. I get that too and I see that they decided to take ‘zero-tolerance’ to the next level and the people who cannot stay away from drugs, need to find a little burrow in America to see they lives through. As I see it Saudi Arabia said ‘not here’ and I get that too, I very well understand that. As such these people should have exited that country (preferably) before they got caught, they had the option between ‘leave now’ or ‘drugs now’ and they chose poorly. 

So whilst we see all parties cry their way into your hearts consider that it is well stated and openly documented that Saudi Arabia does not tolerate drugs of any kind, even as we might, we ned to learn that other countries have other values and they might not condone our recreational approach to drugs. That part I see missing here. There was a larger truth, it was there from day one and now we see that some are trying to seek other solutions, but the fact is that the other solution has proven to be a failure for over half a century and now that the funds are dwindling I reckon that America will get a new premise, it will go from ‘America first’ to ‘Healthy Americans first’ a setting we are likely to see before the years end. Especially when fentanyl is not only fueling political settings, America might take drastic steps to downsize that problem. So does that make Saudi Arabia a trendsetter?

Consider that and not merely the ‘bad’ feeling you get from a death penalty, consider what drugs and the drug market is doing to your economy. There are a few sides to this that Amnesty International does not want you to see, consider the impact of trillions on a war that never had anywhere to go. And you can afford this trillion, can’t you? 

Have a great day today.

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Age of BS (Bill Sightseer)

That is the setting I was confronted with last night. We have all seen the US downturn in tourism and there is a certain justice in souring your own milk. This is what we saw in the last two weeks and last night the Independent gives us (at https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/us-tourism-decline-trump-policies-b2782820.html) the repeating ‘US is the only country facing tourism decline as Trump policies to cost $29 billion in visitor revenue: study’ and for the most I was all about “seen this before” so I was about to leave it next to me, but then something happened. Travel and Tour World gave me (at https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/united-states-tourism-soars-to-new-heights-with-20-million-canadian-tourists-contributing-a-staggering-20-5-billion-and-fueling-job-growth-across-140000-american-positions/) ‘United States Tourism Soars To New Heights With 20 Million Canadian Tourists, Contributing A Staggering $20.5 Billion And Fueling Job Growth Across 140,000 American Positions’ are the flipping kidding me? As we have been given from a multitude of places “Amid the president’s immigration crackdown, travel bans and sweeping global tariffs, the U.S. is expected to be the only one out of 184 countries to see foreign visitor spending fall in 2025, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council. The study suggests that the U.S. economy is on track to lose $12.5 billion in international spending this year alone – but the actual shortfall might be much greater.” (Independent, July 4th) and it matches what others have given me. But no, here comes the Travel and Tour World article giving us “A remarkable 20 million Canadian tourists visited the United States, contributing a massive $20.5 billion to the U.S.economy, while also sustaining around 140,000 jobs across the United States, as reported by the U.S.Travel Association. These figures highlight the essential role Canada plays in U.S. tourism, making it the largest source of international visitors for the country. With Canada’s population of about 40 million, this represents a significant proportion—half of all Canadians visited the U.S. last year. In fact, Canada accounted for 26% of all international tourists to the U.S., which saw a total of 77 million visitors in 2024.” And CBC on July 3rd gave us “The data shows there were 88,686 fewer recorded crossings at the Peach Arch, Pacific Highway, Lynden and Sumas points of entry throughout the month.” As such (apart from the confirming feeling), it seems that (as I personally see it) the U.S.Travel Association are beefing up numbers by the millions and no one reacts? How is this setting acceptable to anyone? As I see it, America might be in deeper waters than anyone thinks they are. It seems that Wall Street needs to be mismanaged so that they will give America the credits they desperately need. Apart from The deal that Canada now has with Aluminum provider Australia in stead of America, the setting is far worse then anyone is considering. The TTW article has a few other capers that makes for a weird setting “While Canada did not actively seek to “steal” American tourists, certain Canadian destinations are benefiting from a surge in European visitors. In fact, a recent study from Context Research Group highlights that Canada is experiencing an unexpected tourism boom, driven largely by European high-spenders who were previously considering U.S. destinations for their vacations. As the U.S. tourism sector struggles with internal challenges, Canada seems to be emerging as a viable and attractive alternative.” It is the word ‘steal’, you see, after the Florida setting where people seems to feel insecure and unsafe and there is the US customs setting where people are seemingly evicted by a owning a mere meme and then there are the numerous events that customs is scanning your social media, the land of the free now seemingly takes away free speech. I don’t care about the meme’s some other people send. I find it a waste of my time and as such any second hand meme might actually debunk the only vacation you can afford. That is a principle setting why people go somewhere else. And the internet is bustling with numbers of places that have a massive downturn, as such the TTW article isn’t even funny or actual in several settings. And as we have seen the amount of the 51st state mentions, the Canadians seemingly like Americans, their blood in particular. See what I did, I made an actual funny (TTW please take notice) The article has other things missing, the first quote didn’t give a timeline, whist other mentions do give a timeline, but these moments can be misread. So who is behind this? The TTW article doesn’t carry a name, neither does it state opinion piece, which might not be a setting that has weight as the TTW is not journalism, but in the B2B world the writer is often indicative of how serious you need to take an article. The Independent piece was written by James Liddell, a US News reporter and giving us (a little late) the facts we already had. The CBC article gives us the charts that show that as per February 2025 the numbers going to America started going down with 40K less visitors, in March the drop was over 80K and going on and on until June where it was a little over 80K as well, and this is merely the BC/Washington crossing. So where did they find these 20 million Canadian tourists? Did the TTW not vet the files they publish? Because as I see it, it is their name that comes up. 

Was it just the one?
So we can fret over this, but there was another reason to mention this. You see, I mentioned the Aluminum setting and as it was given to me yesterday, Canada is now in conversation with Rio Tinto as a new supplier of Aluminum, which might delight Coca Cola and a few others who are ‘diverting’ to Canada to avoid tariffs and other bad news towards their shareholders. The larger news was given to me by MSN (at https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/china-extends-visa-free-entry-to-more-than-70-countries-to-draw-tourists/ar-AA1I9PTl) there we see ‘China extends visa-free entry to more than 70 countries to draw tourists’, I have no idea what the impact will be, but there will be thoughts on many being interested in seeing Beijing and a few other places. The fact that China has its own theme parks, Disney has two in China, one in Shanghai and one in Hong Kong. As I see it, this might be massively bad news for America as well. I have no idea what the impact will be, but 70 countries imply a loss of thousands of tourists in a time America cannot have any more bad news. And the one thing we tend to forget, most people (as assumed 90%+) can only spend their money once and thousands going to China means that they cannot spend that money in America, more importantly, many Europeans are trying to find a place far away from America (optionally Canada too) and now China makes this move. A tactical move that could hurt America a few points more. And as I see it (through the graphics) the move will hit many in Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. And I think it matters, it is the Commonwealth nations, the Arabian countries and Europe that will wield the largest punch for China. So what the TTW article to dissuade people from going to China? I think that might have been a bad move as it only shows America to be more desperate than even before. And with the Rio Tinto move Canada is showing itself more than apt to counter whatever America throws at them, I reckon that yesterday’s threat on 10% addition for BRIC’s minded governments and as a bonus President Trump soured the well in both Saudi Arabia and the UAE, what a 24 hour score to make.

As I see it, I wouldn’t take the entire TTW article too seriously, but as a part in a larger setting it gives us (optionally wrong) that there is a larger setting in America, the cracks are seemingly showing and that presents a larger setting for multiple players, all stating the same thing. Doing business in America is starting to become a folly for anyone entertaining that thought. A setting that is merely the consequence of the last 12 months. For America a bad thing, for the business entrepreneurs a new horizon they haven’t see for a long time and what is new tends to be sexy and explorable for the eager greed driven minds.

Have a great day today.

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