Tag Archives: Sweden

When one domino falls

That is always the case, isn’t it? For completely unrelated settings, one tends to dump over the other one. It isn’t fair, it doesn’t always make sense, but there you have it and whilst several players reported on it, I was pushed into motion by the Army Recognition story giving us “Canada is reexamining its plan to buy 88 F-35A fighters after Sweden used a royal state visit to promote a Gripen E or F production and R&D hub in Canada. The debate now pits industrial and political incentives against warnings from former RCAF leaders that a mixed fleet could dilute combat power and strain a tight defense budget.” It comes from the article ‘Canada Reconsiders Full U.S. F-35A Fleet As Swedish Gripen-E Fighter Offer Gains Ground’ which we see (at https://www.armyrecognition.com/news/aerospace-news/2025/canada-reconsiders-full-us-f-35a-fleet-as-swedish-gripen-e-fighter-offer-gains-ground) it isn’t merely about Swedish precision (Hasselblad is a great example), but the American administration is rearing its ugly head in a few nasty ways. There was the massive setting on the Ukraine peace plan, which according to some (unreliable sources) was delivered in Russian on a napkin, then there is the Epstein files, which first never existed, then it was a Dem Socratic hoax and now (source: the guardian) ‘US justice department renews request to unseal Epstein grand jury materials’, so the DoJ had to renew its request? This happens with “The justice department has renewed its request to unseal grand jury materials from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation that led to the disgraced financier’s federal indictment on sex-trafficking charges in 2019.” And with the actions of Ambassador Pete Hoekstra  actions in Canada. These matters all influence what is happening and with ‘Hoekstra hints F-35 deal could impact stalled U.S.-Canada trade talks’ (source: CBC) the Canadians have had enough and with the lingering ‘51st state’ comments from all over the place (mostly from America)  the entire setting of $20.2 billion is about to be thrown out of the window. And would you know it, the Gripen is cheaper, has a better Arctic track record (it tends to get really cold in Calgary and Winnipeg) and it is NON-AMERICAN and whilst PM Carney is making deals all over the globe and the 2 deals with the UAE and India setting the investment score for Canada at 125 billion. That is money not going to America, merely Canada and now they also lose out on 20 billion to their defense industry. Loss upon loss upon loss. How long can America pretend that it was no big deal? 

So while we read “Canada’s fighter replacement program, long anchored on an order for 88 F-35A Lightning II jets under the Future Fighter Capability Project, has entered a new and politically charged phase, as reported by Newsweek. During a state visit to Ottawa by King Carl XVI Gustaf, Swedish officials and Saab executives pressed a structured proposal to meet part of Canada’s requirement with Gripen E or F aircraft assembled in the country, tied to sizable job-creation and technology transfer promises. According to those familiar with the discussions, the idea of a dual fleet is now being floated just as former Royal Canadian Air Force officers publicly urge Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government not to trim the F-35 buy or introduce a second fighter type that would require separate training, infrastructure, and logistics.” This makes me wonder the ‘financial position’ of these FORMER officers. Wouldn’t ask that question? I am also wondering why they became former officers, but that is me because I do not know these people and I question everything. I reckon that Lockheed Martin might be worried when they lose 20 billion, making the deal with Saudi Arabia almost essential to make a living (an exaggeration for sure).

But the story from the Canadian side is whether the Gripen can uphold keeping the Canadian air-force competitive enough over Canadian sky. I tend to think yes, but then I am not a pilot and I never flown a jet, I merely watched Tom Cruise do so. My biggest flight setting was using the bar on a jet from Amsterdam of JFK international, so there, not entirely a noob. ;-P

And as Defence Industry Europe gives us ‘Canada considers shifting F-35 order toward Sweden’s Gripen as Ottawa reviews jet procurement’ (at https://defence-industry.eu/canada-considers-shifting-f-35-order-toward-swedens-gripen-as-ottawa-reviews-jet-procurement/) with “Canada has already selected the F-35A to renew its Royal Canadian Air Force fleet and has committed to buying 88 aircraft to replace its Boeing F/A-18 Hornets. Ottawa has allocated funds for 16 F-35s now being built in Fort Worth, Texas, but the remainder of the order appears uncertain amid worsening relations between Canada and the Trump administration”, so Lockheed Martin won’t lose all the dineros, but a large amount is seemingly move towards Sweden and as I see it, Sweden now needs to properly fund two Christmas baskets (nuts that time again). One for President Trump and one for Ambassador Pete Hoekstra for making this possible, expected Hamper shown below.

You see, this all seems clear cut, but I am wondering what this domino will throw over, because that is almost certain happening, especially with the American Ambassador throwing his accusations in the air. He might be claiming that Canadians are meddling in American politics, but they started the ‘51st state’ claims and the next Canadian step might be even less nice, Canada now have options especially when they are gaining so much ground in revenue, investments and manufacturing options (aka jobs). All these parts never involved America (other than making them no longer part of any equation), so what is next? I see options in possible ammunition replacements for the entire Defense industry. Jets and ships might make the news for the larger amounts, but the steady stream of revenue that ammunition brings could also fall to other places (like the UK), so what will that cost America?

Have a great day, I am now 83 minutes removed from the upcoming breakfast and there is a subtle hint hidden in that part too.

Leave a comment

Filed under Finance, Media, Military, Politics

The Rock of stars

That is the setting we see and it matters. The BBC gives us (at https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2ek2d9y61o) ‘Carney says trade talks with Trump to resume ‘when it matters’’ with the underlying “Asked when he last spoke to Trump, Carney responded: “Who cares? It’s a detail. I’ll speak to him again when it matters.” The prime minister’s remarks come after trade talks were derailed last month when Trump took offence at an anti-tariff advertisement featuring Ronald Reagan, which was aired by the province of Ontario.” It is the “Who cares?” That mattered. It had the Canadians in stitches, but the underlying truth is also there. America is done for under this administration. We all have heard how ‘Canada’ does not mean anything to President Trump except as a 51st state. And the Canadians are pissed and that is merely the beginning. But as the American administration thought that they had an upcoming minion and under Prime Minister Mark Carney Canada is showing itself to be the one nightmare you do not want to mess with and It is costing America nearly everything they have to stop this doom-setting from unfolding. 

In other news we are given (by CBC at https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ottawa-alberta-mou-energy-pipeline-9.6990768) ‘Ottawa, Alberta agree to broad outlines of energy deal, including support for pipeline’ where we see “Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith have agreed to the broad outlines of a memorandum of understanding that would give Alberta special exemptions from federal environmental laws and offer political support to a new oil pipeline to the B.C. coast, CBC News has learned. The deal is set to be formally announced at a joint Carney-Smith news conference in Calgary on Thursday.” In this setting there is no America and with this there is an additional setting that gives Vancouver additional revenue streams and none of it is going to America. And hours ago CBC gives us ‘Carney, Modi agree to launch negotiations on new Canada-India trade deal’ with the text “In a social media post published Sunday afternoon, Carney said a trade deal could double Canada-India trade to $70 billion.” This comes after the UAE deal made and that puts Canada as the front runner for a massive revenue gain in several ways and whilst the Canadian Conservative Party gives us (via CTV) “Conservative MPs slammed Prime Minister Mark Carney Monday over dismissive comments he made recently when asked about stalled trade talks with U.S. President Donald Trump. While taking questions from reporters in Johannesburg on Sunday, Carney was asked when he last spoke with Trump and replied, “Who cares?” “I look forward to speaking with the president soon, but I don’t have a burning issue to speak with the president about right now,” he said. “When America wants to come back and have conversations on the trade side, we will have those discussions.”” This comes even as the latest information is given that another impeachment trial is awaiting President Trump before Christmas. As such the ‘who Cares’ seems spot on, whatever deal can be made will not happen this year and in the meantime Prime Minister Carney has already two victories and whilst the Star (that one from Toronto) gives us (at https://www.thestar.com/business/opinion/while-an-erratic-trump-ignores-canada-carney-quietly-cements-international-investments-elbows-up-indeed/article_bdbeeb99-7691-4118-8c09-dff12fa0927e.html) ‘While an erratic Trump ignores Canada, Carney quietly cements international investments. Elbows up, indeed’ where we see “It’s been about 10 months since U.S. President Donald Trump declared economic war on Canada, and there has been no progress in ending the debacle. That failure is not Canada’s fault. Trump is playing another of his games with us, this time giving us the silent treatment.” In the meantime Canada and its Prime Minister got to work (elbows up they call it) and made deals with world leaders attending the G20, that is that trade show that President Trump ignored, or he misplaced his invitation. But he is not there, as such Canada is making deals. So whilst the haters and devoted ‘Conservative Party members’ call ‘Wasting money’ This PM is making deals that will push new boundaries in revenue for Canada, making it a profitable country for its citizens. So whilst the the Trump administration is currently keen to scrap the trilateral trade deal among the U.S., Canada and Mexico, Canada is making new deals with Mexico that makes America (kinda) irrelevant. Its all in a days work for the formerly known Marky Mark of the British bank. And as a former Governor of the British Bank he knows who is guarding the coffers of their respective nations and Canada is making headway to nearly all of them. Another loss for America.

And the Financial Post (at https://financialpost.com/news/carney-world-us-stresses-new-ties) gives us ‘Carney says world can move on without U.S., stresses new ties’ with the supporting text “Prime Minister Mark Carney said the world can make progress on a range of issues without the U.S., and that consensus reached at a Group of 20 leaders’ meeting in Johannesburg this weekend carries weight despite a boycott by United States President Donald Trump’s administration.” And as I personally see it, the G20 that could have ‘saved’ America in more than one way is now the stage where America is made irrelevant. OK, irrelevant is perhaps a bit strong, but the setting that these 18 world leaders are happy not having to dance with President Trump is almost the centre stage as the media gives this to us. As such we are given “After a Nov. 20 meeting in Abu Dhabi with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, the Gulf country committed to investing $70 billion in Canada, Carney said, without providing specific details. That’s the biggest investment pledge Canada has ever received. “We’re signing new deals and finding new investors to fuel our plans for Canada’s economic ambition,” he said. “We’ll expand trade and catalyze investment in increased partnerships across a range of areas from AI to energy in the Indo-Pacific and Europe.”” As I see it, it is the better part of a $140 billion deal that America missed out on, and they could really afford losing this much (that part was sarcasm for those who fail to recognise it). As I personally see it, Mark Carney came at the right time and now Canada is the frontrunner as an investment partner. As investments I can see one other place. Oracle, as I see it Oracle has only 2 data centers and they will need a third one if I understand the settings from America correctly. Microsoft has to open its data-gates to Federal authority and when that really happens many will scream and seek other venues outside of the US and Oracle might be the better solution there too. So as I see it, there is plenty of investment to come and that would never have happened under Pierre Poilievre, so he can campaign all he wants, but the Canadian people are on to him and he doesn’t stand a chance against Mark Carney. So there is a larger setting where America is becoming irrelevant and mostly done by there own actions and Mark Carney saw the opportunity for Canadians and he is grabbing that with both hands. 

So the haters can throw whatever they want on social media, but we all know better (even the Commonwealthian people outside of Canada) Carney is gold, he is the Rockstar of Canada, even Stevie Nicks and Celine Dion agree (my presumption) and as we see this, he is also becoming the Rock of Stars in the global political community, they all want their selfie with him.

Have a great day, I am closing in on the midweek, a mere 11 hours to go.

Leave a comment

Filed under Finance, Media, Politics

The view over a distance

That is what I see, at a distance my old country (the Netherlands) is setting a new premise of pressure. In the BBC article (at https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn40y9yxkgvo) we are given ‘Netherlands’ renewables drive putting pressure on its power grid’ and that is fine. For me (my intake) is that the setting is that when there is no renewable energy, they will have to resort to the old setting (like gas or oil) and there is ample reason for this. Yet we are given “In a Dutch government TV campaign called “Flip the Switch” an actress warns viewers about their electricity usage. “When we all use electricity at the same time, our power grid gets overloaded,” she says. “This can cause malfunctions. So, use as little electricity as possible between four and nine.”” A setting we comprehend, the other option is that we are ‘handed’ the setting of “Renewable energy prices in the Netherlands are not a separate category but are included in the overall electricity price, which currently averages around €0.33 per kWh” so we could end the setting that renewable energy above a certain usage is delivered at €0.99 per kWh, the rest can either adhere to the additional prices or accept that oil is the other party in the mix (at €0.33 per kWh), a simple solution for the Dutch to increase what they have going in renewable settings. And there is no blame on the Dutch admittedly we are given “it leads the way in Europe for the number of solar panels per person. In fact, more than one third of Dutch homes have solar panels fitted.

The country is also aiming for offshore wind farms to be its biggest source of energy by 2030.” And that is a time pressured setting and the Dutch political systems know this. There is no averting your eyes from the needs and the Dutch know this too well. The other nations face a similar setting, the Dutch were however a lot more hands on into finding these options and they have 18 million people in that nation, it is almost as much as the Australian population (27 million) but the area differences is that the Netherlands is only 0.54% of Australia, setting the premise that the Netherlands has the population pressure of Sydney on a national foundation, they needed a renewable energy policy in place. No one denies that. But the needs are not matching the availability. As such my solution at a premium (which might achieve the same setting) or accept that oil isn’t a thing of the past yet and perhaps in 2030 when there are the actual additional kWh available it will be possible and at that point the Dutch are still the first by a mile over all other European nations to be the first to get to a positive carbon setting, even above zero carbon (meaning that no carbon emissions are being produced from a product or service) and that is quite the achievement to have. Oh, and I reckon that these kids squandering energy as they mine for bitcoins will foot that bill as they are eager to get wealthy and those who do not, get to explain to their mummies and daddies why they need a RTX 5090 32gb AMD Ryzen 9 9900x3d to play Frogger (or Minecraft). I wonder how many excuses they will employ and in the meantime it will reduce the pressures as well, I just wonder how much as there is no real number on the number of bitcoin miners, but they do have a top100 in the Netherlands, so anything is possible.

The other part of the explanation is given to us by Kees-Jan Rameau, chief executive of Dutch energy producer and supplier Eneco. ““Nowadays we’re switching to renewables, and that means there’s a lot of power being injected into the grid in the outskirts of the network where there are only relatively small power lines.” And these small power lines are struggling to cope with all the electricity coming in from wind turbines and solar panels scattered around the country.” OK, that is a fair assessment, but those cases could be renewed or reviewed and separate cables could be set to whatever the renewable setting is to a clear hub (my lack of technical knowledge is optionally at fault here) and that could have been seen in advance to the renewable farms being designed (as I personally see it). 

We get all the excuses and not the simple setting that even as the Netherlands is already at 70% renewable, there was no way that they would be ready before 2035 and that is likely a decade ahead of several other EU nations, the only exception might be Sweden as it constructed Vattenfall some time ago, so they get to have a head start, and they only have 11 hungry mouths to supply and that is as it is 1 times larger, but the bulk of that nation is in the southern third of that country. So they are in a comfortable league to stay even with Dutch ingenuity as I personally see it. 

So whilst the BBC is correct in its article, I fail to see the applaud that the Dutch are due as they are one of the few EU nations that achieved what was needed to achieve (with Sweden in second place) I am missing that part in the article, no matter the laurels that are due Kees-Jan Rameau of Eneco. It is a side we should have been given in this all. So where do Germany, France and the United Kingdom stand in this, how far are they? Just simple questions that come to mind. 

Have a great Sunday (I am having mine with chocolate sprinkles) and enjoy the pre Monday bash you will enjoy, except Canada, they started the weekend a day early due to the Toronto Blue Jays giving the Dodgers (LA) a thrashing with their 11-4 victory. Lucky bastards, a long weekend where none was given.

Leave a comment

Filed under Media, Politics, Science

Military incompetence?

Consider the military, we all have them. Australia has theirs, Canada has theirs, apparently America has them and Russia have them. They all have their best of the best of the best of the best warrior style drafting. And some of them have a massive amount of tests, especially the top 3 in military and to get into their airfare you have to jump a massive amount of hoops. They are trained, dressed and drilled to a millimeter precision and they all have their own ways.

So when I saw (at https://www.highnorthnews.com/en/russias-violations-norwegian-and-allied-airspace-sign-desperation-says-professor) with the headline ‘Russia’s Violations of Norwegian and Allied Airspace: “Sign of Desperation,” Says Professor’ as such we have a new setting. We are given “Russia has violated Norway’s airspace in the North three times this year, as well as the airspace of several other NATO countries. This suggests that the war in Ukraine is going much worse than Moscow wants to admit, says Professor Tormod Heier at the Norwegian Defense University College.” And we all think that he might have a case. With the highlighting quote ““I interpret these violations as a sign of Russian frustration, desperation, and discouragement,” says Tormod Heier, Professor of military strategy and Operations at the Norwegian Defense University College, to High North News.  “After three and a half years of war in Ukraine, the Russians have only won 120,000 km2 of terrain. This nearly equals the total area of Finnmark, Troms, and Nordland [the three counties in Northern Norway, ed. note],” he points out and continues” He makes a fine point. The second/third largest army in the world and they are slapped around like a cheap crack whore by the 20th largest army (Ukraine). Russia is more than frustrated, it needs to be broken by NATO, or the usefulness of the Russian higher ranking officers is shown to be classified as useless (and their president with them) and that is a lot to be set on by the media. Even the Russian media can no longer tell the Russian people that the war is going their way. They’ve lost over 1.1 million troops and more are getting conscripted. They lost over 400 planes and now they are putting their most valuable stealth fighters into the mix, the SU-57 Felon. It is a war they are losing at present and it seems that the military needs to add NATO in the mix, so that they can gracefully exit the battlefield. They can claim that NATO was always the enemy they could not defeat, for that they need NATO to participate. And as we see others like Estonia report similar setting (at https://extra.ie/2025/09/19/news/russia-estonia-fighter-jets) where we see “NATO says it has responded after what it described as ‘Russian military jets’ violated Estonian airspace this afternoon (Friday). In a statement released this evening, the Estonian Government reported that the incident involved three Russian MiG-31 fighter aircraft, which flew over Vaindloo Island, off the coast of Finland, without permission.” As well as NPR who (at https://www.npr.org/2025/09/30/nx-s1-5557908/why-are-russian-aircraft-violating-nato-airspace) give us “NATO’s airspace is busy these days. And not in a good way. That’s especially true for member nations on the alliance’s eastern flank. It’s not supposed to be that way. In recent weeks, states like Poland, Estonia, Romania, and Denmark have seen drones or other aircraft violate their airspace. In some cases, these airborne craft clearly identify they’re Russian in origin. Multiple countries have called on NATO to consult about what to do next. So, what’s going on? What is Russia up to?” So, before we get the excuses we are likely to get, do you think that any government will let one of these young sprouts into any plane before they can properly read maps and navigate their Cessna’s over spaces that are not Russian? And these planes go for millions.

As such, I am with professor Tormod Heier on this. It is not an isolated case, and putting your fighter planes over someone else’s terrain tends to be seen as a sign of war. Russia needs more involvement from NATO as they at present are seen as the losing clowns of the global defense departments. You can blame losing a ground war on demoralized soldiers, even if you call for help from North Korea, but for them to let their ‘proud’ pilots taking the blame does not go over well and these generals are now desperate, and apparently too many have fallen out of windows. 

So as I see it, something has to change and I am all for Russia waving a white flag, but you know how Russian politicians are: better dead than dropping the red. And at present, this is how it looks, so it is better (for them) to get NATO involved. So they can cry that it was always NATO and they just weren’t ready. The Russian prostitutski’s will eat that like borsht with black bread. Besides that, there aren’t too many solutions out there for them at present. I reckon that the NATO card will be played more openly soon enough, because the NATO nations have figured out that play, as such the next step would be a larger incursion and an ‘accidental’ event of the “Oops” variety, but how large an event remains to be seen. I reckon that they will most likely target Tallinn for that, It is in view of Helsinki and too close to Stockholm, Oslo and Copenhagen for that to go unnoticed. And the NATO has been loading up their weapons for Russian bear in the last few months. Feel free to disagree and I am very willing to be seen as wrong, because this is not a happy moment for me, but that is seemingly how it sizes up to.

Oh, for the next story I will be loading up on Conspiracy Theory by a lot, so there is that to look forward to All that AI and not a predictive analytics mind in sight? I’m game. Have a great day today.

Leave a comment

Filed under Law, Media, Military, Politics

As Hogwarts expands

That is the setting. We are given ‘Miral extends deadline for tender to build Abu Dhabi’s ‘Harry Potter’ land’ (at https://blooloop.com/theme-park/news/miral-construction-tender-harry-potter-land-abu-dhabi/) the quote is that “Miral has extended a bid submission deadline for a tender to build the new Harry Potter-themed land at Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi on Yas Island. Per a report from Middle East media publishing company MEED, the deadline has been extended from 28 July to 4 August.” Implying that next week the Start of a  $545 million – $816m expansion is due to begin. And in addition we are given “Three new rides in Harry Potter land Miral announced the Middle East’s first Harry Potter-themed land in 2022. It will feature iconic locations from the Wizarding World, as well as three new rides, retail outlets, and F&B facilities. The 40,000 M2 addition to Warner Bros. World will join six existing zones in the park – Warner Bros. Plaza, Bedrock, Dynamite Gulch, Cartoon Junction, Gotham City and Metropolis.” As such The staff of Hogwarts will have to endure a rush of people howling “Yabadabadoo” whilst assaulting the death eaters. These death eaters are in a pincer setting as the other side will be shouting “Yibbity-Yabbity-Doo!”, those poor death eaters won’t know what hit them (nyuk, nyuk, nyuk)

And as I see it, the quote “Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of Miral, said: “This is yet another testament to our commitment to continue to position Yas Island as a top global destination for entertainment and leisure, and a great addition to Abu Dhabi’s tourism offerings, contributing to the growth and economic diversification of the emirate.”” Is not entirely accurate. It is that international tourism will see Abu Dhabi as a much more appealing destination and with the ‘idiocy’ (as I personally see it) settings that America is setting with immigration, the costly ‘visa integrity fee’ and several other settings. So as I see it, Universal just dished out $7.7 billion USD (Hogwarts is merely a part of it) and the other park in Orlando will have a rather large problem. With the Hogwarts expansion, Yas Island becomes the most appealing choice for a whole flock of tourists, now definitely deciding that there will be a viable alternative for Orlando, and when Disney arrives in 2027/2028 also on Yas Island, Florida will see the largest downfall in economy they have ever had. When millions of tourists will select Abu Dhabi over Florida, the rest will become a mere escalation of something you could have seen coming miles away. But not to worry, I had the setting in view even as the media seems to be coming up short. In addition Abu Dhabi has the Formula 1® Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 4-7 December 2025. I have no idea yet when the 2026 race is on, but for a lot of people combining the two would be preferable. Also there is a lot more around Yas Island. And the UAE has a much better visa setting where it is offered at a mere fraction of what America offers it. The setting was debatable (at best) when America was the only option, but that hasn’t been the case for almost 4 years. So now as America is bleeding money in almost every direction, the people in Europe, Canada, UK, India, Australia, New Zealand and China will consider Abu Dhabi and Yas Island as their destination in 2026, 2027 and 2028. So how many million of people will seek their preferred choice in EuroDisney (Paris), Efteling (Netherlands) and parks in Belgium, Sweden and several others. A setting that was there from the start. 

A setting that will also propel the UAE as a global tourist destination. They already were that, but the millions of Harry Potter fans had Florida, London and Tokyo in their sight, with Abu Dhabi added to the HP arsenal, I reckon that Florida (at present) is allegedly decently  much done for.

Have a great day and when in Abu Dhabi try the Emirati Chabab, it is a famous dish and decently yummy. 

1 Comment

Filed under Finance, Politics, Tourism

On the cheap

That is at times a worry, when things go on the cheap it tends to be the more expensive setting you are driven to select. But as I see it, it isn’t always bad. Abu Dhabi (capital of United Arab Emirates) have a few options here. So to show this lets take the ‘normal’ setting.

You would think that this will be the master of all bills, but you would be wrong. You see when you get into the Warner Brothers hotel you automatically get a ticket EVERY DAY to one of the theme parks for that day. There are more hotels on Yas Island that give that option. In case of the Warner Brothers hotel, its theme park is across the street (WaterWorld is its neighbour). Oh, and enjoy breakfast there is to be cherished. Don’t take my word for this, YouTube is filled with walkthrough videos of the Hotel and the Theme parks, see for yourself what you could be enjoying.

There is however more. Tourists have the option of buying a 4 Park Ticket for a mere $184 which allows you to visit any of the Yas Island theme parks within 6 days of activating your pass. You have to consider this setting as this implies hundreds of dollars saved per person and you get to select which park you will select. You could spend 4 days in the same park. To give you a comparison a Universal theme park ticket will set you back $600 and that is also per person. So that implies a saving of an easy $400, so what would you select? The added benefit is that the UAE is a zero tax country, so there is a decent reason to visit the Apple Store in Yas Mall and get yourself the apple extension you always wanted. 

So as America is setting the additional $250 visa cost, as such Abu Dhabi becomes the premiere location for people wanting the theme park experience. The news (up to recent) was that America is getting a $29,000,000,000 pain invoice from lost international tourists and as I was looking at the presented data from several sources pretty much anywhere, I reckon that by late September, the presented damage will be worse, much worse. 

So, why am I focussing on Abu Dhabi? Well, the theme parks are advertised by people who were there as top notch and when you consider the setting that the Diamond pass is annually AED 3,295 ($900) for a whole year with additional discounts all over Yas Island. A full year of access for $900? It is worth retiring there and cool down and soak twice a week in WaterWorld. Nearly all theme parks are indoors in air-conditioned settings and as I see it, next year we get the Harry Potter expansion and the year after that Disney will grace that setting too. In addition (at present) you also get a Unlimited Quick Pass Access, also there is the 25% discount on Dining (at places that support this and also the 25% Discount on Shopping and several other benefits. That implies that the price of the pass will be earned back in just over a week, as such you have 50 weeks of true profit. So what retirement setting offers that? The universal annual pass is seemingly set to $1,095 before taxes. As such Abu Dhabi is seemingly giving you a blast for your bucks. 

As I see it, Universal has blacked out dates, Abu Dhabi gives you 365 days of fun. Seems like the optimal saving.

So what is behind this? I am not paid by Miral Experiences (the operator on Yas Island), there is nothing in it for me. But this shows you the utter stupidity of the Trump administration adding a new $250 ‘visa integrity fee’ and when you consider that in 2023, Florida’s theme parks welcomed close to 77 million visitors, merely one state, so when you consider that a massive part of International tourists now have an alternative and a much bigger resentment of America, that are merely two of a bigger set of anti-America setting. Together with decreased rights of privacy at the border. To be clear, I am not anti America, I am merely anti-stupid and at present America is no longer worth it. This is beside America trying to push the 51st State into the face of Mark Carney (Prime Minister of Canada) and his 40,100,000 Canadian brothers and sisters. As such America is getting massive doses of hardship. So when Florida and California loses millions of tourists, what do you think will happen. I see the adjusted ‘videos’ that it will not get back to normal until 2026. Well, that time has gone. As I see it, as there are alternatives America will see this hardship in 2026, 2027 and 2028. There might be some revival in 2028, yet I doubt it, as America sees hardship beyond 2026, crime numbers will accelerate and the quality of life in America is unlikely to see any bright spots before 2029. And that is if America stops being stupid tomorrow morning before 03:00. After that the setting becomes near disastrous and that is merely the summer, at this point their winter seasons are not looking too great either. Winter is a different chicken, most ski and boarding fanatics have their slopes and that’s fine, but at present as places lose control over staff, infrastructures almost everywhere will be near collapse and without infrastructure the tourists will become absent. As a source gave me “Tourists, particularly from Australia and Canada, are increasingly rebooking or cancelling trips away from America due to concerns about border security, perceived political tensions, and a general sentiment of unease, leading to a significant drop in visitors to the US and a surge in interest for alternative destinations like Europe and Bermuda.” As such the setting for America looks grim, very grim. 

In an age and a stage of seeing the cheap route thee is a massive setting of people who will be resetting their vacation to the UAE and Abu Dhabi with Dubai a mere 35 minutes away per train. And when you consider that a 30-day tourist visa fee: AED 200 ($54). A 60-day tourist visa fee: AED 300 ($81), seems a lot less than the ‘added’ $250. So how was their ‘visa integrity fee’ a good idea? If my initial understanding is correct and America is utterly broke, then America stops being the place to go until far beyond 2030, but in the meantime the UAE and Saudi Arabia become places to go to. And that is not all, there is every chance that Europeans will return to places like Acorn Adventure (UK), as I see it, there are several places in Europe who will see a returning tourist option. 

For me there is this dish which I enjoyed in Ghent in the 11th century (before embarking on the Crusades) and that was possible as the Medieval times are set in the Archeon. They also have a Roman age (complete with gladiator arena and bathing house) and a prehistoric area. 

And the Netherlands has more. The Efteling, a theme park that won the biggest theme park award at least twice, making it the biggest contender for Disney parks. And it has its own charm. All places that will feel increased attention as America is slowly strangling its influx of tourists to death.

As such America is due a massive downturn, they forgot that they are not all powerful and other nations have alternatives to what they offer and as they are now raising prices by at least $250 the stage changes. Sweden, Netherlands, Belgium, France, London (UK), Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia are all in the running of welcoming the tourists who are now over the American BS (that stuff that makes grass grow in Texas). As I see it, $29 billion was a understated and that will go on for at least 3 years. With border controls impeding out privacy, the setting for business tourists will go down more and more as well. But not to fret, Canada has a welcoming position for these business vendors as well,  a visitor visa (single or multiple entry) costs CAD 100 ($72) per person, also a lot less than $250 and that setting will continue for some time. 

It is a shame for some, but if America prices itself out of the running, the impact is on themselves. Have a great day and feel free to dream yourself into the past with pastries, I am still dreaming of Dutch poffertjes. And I have an art work by Anton Pieck to assist me in this matter. 

Leave a comment

Filed under Finance, Media, Politics, Tourism

Forgotten greats

That is where I saw myself. Thinking of a near forgotten great. It was 1935 and a relatively unknown director (in those days) it was his second movie for a new firm and that movie, the setting have been burned into my memory for over half a century. It takes a lot for something to happen to anyone. I am talking about the 39 steps. Even in 1935 the dangers of industrial espionage were seen as monumental and today this is worse. So as I see it. Based on the book by John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir the movie by many that matter is seen as an absolute masterpiece (one of them is Orson Welles). As such I see a setting where someone can sort of rewrite the story to be more contemporary. The indication quote given in the movie is “The 39 Steps is an organization of spies collecting information on behalf of the foreign office of…” and we never heard the end because mr Memory was shot at that point in during the public performance. The act out of clear fear is a setting that should not be underestimated. Now, I would love to have a bite at that, but I already have three more running originals, one is a miniseries, one is a story in three seasons and one is an open endeavor spanning 3-4 seasons for now. As such my hands are full and the first work hasn’t even been sold yet. That one is a movie meant for Arabic streaming channels. As such, I need to hand it over to someone who feels frisky to go up against a great like Alfred Hitchcock. Trying to equal this masterpiece is already a herculean task, surpassing it will be close to impossible, but do try, I challenge you.

Consider the settings we have now. NIP (Near Intelligent Parsing), ‘AI’ advertisements by Facebook (or Meta) and that is merely the start. We have woke ‘idiots’ and we have religious nuts, take in measure the settings of a political administration that shoots itself in the foot, the disability of acting out against Russia and everyone is considering the yellow peril (aka China) setting the new frontier. All elements that can make a massive impact in a storyline. 

So as we consider the IP that is starting to make waves (Hyper-loop, AI (aka NIP)) and that is intertwining in western, eastern and Arabic settings. If that doesn’t make for a compelling story, it is out of my hands. Oh, and before you think it is merely governments. Consider the settings that Google, Microsoft, Meta, TikTok and Huawei take on the global stage. And they all want the same thing whilst aiming for similar goals. 

I think there is enough space for a rewrite of the 39 steps, the politics, business and technology are setting the stage that all want to ‘enable’ empowering that setting. And even as the 1935 original was merely implying that setting. Consider that we were given this month “Chinese theft of American IP currently costs between $225 billion and $600 billion annually.” Yet that is a two way stream. As I see it, the west has close to nothing to counter the innovations of Huawei and there is more. So what happens when a ‘dedicated’ corporation merely sets the goals towards profits and become the axial of all this? A sort of SMERSH in real life (like Bond faced in the 60’s) but there is no need for Mr. Memory. So what happens when data sets are given to OpenAI (or ChatGPT) and that system links (falsely or not) the parts that matter? So what happens to the overseers of such a system? I am merely opening doors for someone to pick up the quill and parchment (a laptop is so passé) but the idea comes across I hope. And considering last week, news with the alleged hacks by Violet Typhoon, this movie plot could thicken.

So what happens when that is the setting towards the conclusion, the middle is the start and during the movie you get start to middle in segments and that goes towards the conclusion of someone getting to the end of the story. My idea is that this could make a magnificent movie with a woman in the lead. Perhaps Florence Pugh, Jenna Ortega, Sydney Sweeney, Anya Taylor-Joy, Saoirse Ronan, or Elle Fanning could be cast. You see, this needs to be a ‘younger’ actress. As I see it under 30. A side story would be that she is into climbing, a loner that is driven to succeed in her IT/Consultancy job. Oh and these are merely characters I know off, there are plenty of actresses that could apply. I am merely thinking of the type, not the exact character and I think that this is meant for the one taking up the baton. Would be great if a Canadian or Nordic picks up that challenge. And I got a few more ideas. It could be set against actual political events of 2025. As I see it, this movie makes a massive impact if the movie starts with:

This movie is entirely fictional, any resemblance to actual persons or events is purely coincidental

As a wink to the 1932 claim against MGM is entertaining enough, but when you base this on 2025 events it will gain traction by millions of conspiracy theorists who will drive the movie along making a lot more interested in seeing this work.

A simple setting that should make Alfred Hitchcock wink at the writer and director, in equal measure Orson Welles would applaud the setting as it is a wink towards The Night That Panicked America and the October 30 1938 broadcast it was based upon. It was one hell of a peekaboo. 

I reckon this can be done again and nicely on the bog screen. So if you reckon to be a script writer, here is your chance.

Have a great day. Another fine idea released before Monday morning.

Leave a comment

Filed under IT, movies, Politics, Science

Social tainting in America

That is the setting as I see it. It is not a nice setting, but it is a setting that is about to overwhelm the American people. You see MSNBC gives us (at https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/social-security-funding-shortfall-trump-rcna214505) less then 4 hours ago ‘Social Security’s crisis is a year closer — and Trump’s approach will make it worse’. Now before I go any further, this is an opinion piece. Not something that MSNBS journalists have ‘figured’ out. It does come from By James Downie, MSNBC Opinion Editor. As such it does seemingly been considered safe and true (whatever that means nowadays). I always saw this coming well over 5 years ago. But now we get “The Social Security Board of Trustees said last week that the program’s combined trust funds will run out of money in 2034 — one year earlier than was projected in 2024” I’ll be in my 70’s at that point and likely in a similar state. But the setting that this is coming is clear. I reckon that in 2-3 years it will be set to an end of funds mark of 2032. This is not presumption. It is mere speculation as tourism in America is taking a nosedive to losses in excess of 21 billion. Consider how many small businesses will be hurting around 2027 and these people will draining the social security finds even further. So, as we are given “Though Social Security counts over 73 million people as beneficiaries, the news went largely unremarked in Washington. And to be fair, there’s been a lot going on. But soon enough, Social Security will face a funding crisis — and President Donald Trump’s approach will only make matters worse.” You see, no matter what the turnaround will be. People in the Commonwealth and EU have had enough of American ego tripping as it comes without value for their travel tickets and they are now (read: next year and 2027) opting for Paris (Disney), Abu Dhabi (WB and Disney), Tokyo (Disney, WB) and a few other places. All theme parks in America will feel that impact, so staying in denial will not help. And it isn’t merely theme parks in this China is also making waves, as we are given “Yabuli’s ski tourism resort received over 1 million tourists by February 11, an 18% increase compared to 2024” 18% is a lot and it is getting stronger for China as many of the tourists shunning America will try Yabuli, China. In this even Canada will feel that pinch as the most common complain for Whistler has been long lines. People love British Columbia and they love the Canadians. It is just those massive waiting lines and that will need fixing (merely my view on the matter). I cannot say how good Yabuli is as I never been to China, but the food at the Chinese restaurants are delicious, as such I reckon they might be in China too.

And as we are given “When Trump and his allies do talk about Social Security, they say they’re going after “waste, fraud and abuse.” In his address to Congress this year, Trump repeated claims about Social Security going to “millions and millions of dead people” — claims debunked by his own Social Security Administration. The SSA’s acting inspector general reported in February that overpayment of benefits averaged $3.4 billion per year for the last four years. For context, the cost of the entire program in 2024 was nearly $1.5 trillion.” As such there is a lot wrong in this caper. As such we might see overspending in the wrong items, but the larger setting could be seen as “First, a bit of a background: Social Security is (primarily) a pay-as-you-go system — payroll taxes on today’s workers fund benefits for today’s retirees. From 1983 — the last time the program’s finances were overhauled — until 2021, Social Security took in more than it paid out.” This is as I see it in part due to the lack of overhauling the tax laws. Taxing the rich will not help here (it never did) but the tax systems needed an overhaul and that wasn’t done and as we see that this system is paying out more than it is bringing in shows that essential need. I predicted this (on other facts) close to twi decades ago and this was an element I never drilled into. So how were the lawmakers and the administrations that were active between 2001 and 2020 looking at? How did they miss this and gave the tax cuts to all the FAANG members and more? Because that is the essential coins that are missing at present. These lawmakers drove the American systems to bankruptcy (as I personally see it) and that is merely the start of a massive wave of mismanagement. It is nice to blame President Trump, but he is merely a factor, I agree a non-helping factor, but the people behind these laws have a rather nasty large responsibility here and as I wrote before. They were not doing the job they seemingly signed up for.

As such a lot needs to be done and we might think it will be the border patrol barring people from entry as they have a Vance meme picture (a case of a Norwegian tourist) but that one tourist is making all of the Norwegian tourists resetting their vacation and that amounts to a lot. We might not have exact numbers, but the last setting was that 58% travel abroad, at least once a year and a massive amount of them will not be going to America. This might just be 3 million of them, but these millions affect millions of other Europeans and as the Swedes and Danes look at their Norwegian brethren it suddenly amounts to an additional 10 million seeking other destinations. And as such I reckon that before November we will be given a number that will look disastrous against the $21,000,000,000 predicted now. And these people will all tweet, X or tickets tock it all on social media and that amounts to a lot more than America will be comfortable with and as the ‘rigorous’ seeking social media of the arriving tourists continues, more nations will drop America for a better deal. As such as we see that still happen in Q4 2025 America will lose whatever tourists they thought they had and this is undeniable. As the media loses more and more credibility, the fake news spreaders will keep the American arrival halls even more empty. A setting that hasn’t ever happened. The dream location that used to be America will become another place. These two are connected. It isn’t merely what funds the SSA will be missing out on, the setting becomes that “More than four million people will turn 65 in 2025. It’s a phenomenon known as Peak 65. It also means a lot more people are getting ready to retire. Financial advisors said that makes saving for retirement an even bigger conversation.” And at present there is every indication that a lot of them will not be bringing in funds to the SSA, as such the shortfall for the SSA increases and that is only looking at tourism. All connected businesses will suffer. Theme parks, B&B, small businesses who rely on tourists and that list goes on. So, consider that 11% less tourists are taking taxi’s or public transport. How much will these two suffer? This isn’t merely a ripple effect, it is ripple upon ripple upon ripple. And that is showing to be waves of damage. It is a vicious circle that impacts all businesses in America. 

So as some might realise that the impact is a lot worse than expected, consider al the downfall it will bring to the SSA (Social Security Administration) and that might give you the show that the telling that the Sea runs out of money in 2034 might seem optimistic and that gets us to the loss of additional years. As such 2032 might still seem optimistic, and I could agree, but there are other factors. You see, whomever replaces him in 2028, might have other numbers but there is every chance that at that point it will be too late. For the simple reason that you cannot fuels the SSA in three years and that gets us to the prediction I made around 2015. I am not an economist, but I saw this happen at that point and that was before I knew what a dangerous situation the SSA was in. So, do you still think I saw it wrong? It’s OK if you do and if you do not agree with my assessment, that is fine too. You shouldn’t just trust me (or anyone else for that matter) as such you need to ‘rely’ on whomever you trust. I am merely telling you what I saw and when I reported it and that is a timeline you can use to rely on me, or to debunk me. Both are equally valid as I see it and I don’t make any claim of having the better truth. I can be show the wrong facts and I tend to use the media with links, so you can make up your own mind. I merely see (in this case) that MSNBC is giving me a similar setting that I predicted using very different facts. As such I feel validated, but the term validation is a stretch, I know that. So make up your own mind and as these facts are shown to be true and America could go from bad to worse, consider where you and your family are and where you might end up. 

Have a great day and consider having a lovely time today. As I personally see it, good days are seemingly becoming harder and harder to come by.

Leave a comment

Filed under Finance, Media, Politics, Tourism

No war, no politics

That is a mouthful and optionally a wrong frame of mind. Yet I have always been a massive supporter of keeping politics out of sports. I don’t mind that this stage could be used for politicians to meet ‘outside’ of the normal playing field but that is a side gig that does not need to involve sports. As such when I saw (in the wee hours of this morning) the CBC article ‘60% of Canadians say perception of women’s sport has improved over 3 years’ (at https://www.cbc.ca/sports/womens-sport-perception-improvement-report-1.7564670), my mind went slightly into overdrive. You see, as America is getting worse and worse. There is a rather large reason to get some of the sports out of America. And here I see the option of what could be the WGHL (Women’s Global Hockey League) to get set in (for example) Canada. It is be far the best solution. And in that trend consider the WGHL setting new stations in the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand for starters. These countries revere sports and women are a massive part of that. It could grow support in Germany, France, Sweden and Norway. In that trend as it grows, the United Kingdom (that is Albion for the really old people here) and from there it can grow in many directions, Including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

So as we see “New data on the explosive growth of women’s sport in Canada underscores its rising popularity, but also reveals that its structural supports still lag behind. Jessica Doherty, vice-president of strategy and growth at Torque Strategies, presented findings from a new national survey on Wednesday morning at the espnW Summit Canada at Toronto’s Evergreen Brick Works. One of the study’s main findings is that 60 per cent of Canadians believe perceptions of women’s sport have improved over the past three years.” Personally it is my believe that nothing gets the blood flowing than finding out that you are becoming part of something bigger, and as such I reckon that the ‘structural supports still lag behind’ is merely a temporary setting, but as such countries need to fuel this fire. And in this (as the viewing of America is seen) getting Canada to start driving this horse might be the better solution, the fact that Canada has a rising reputation among Female hockey players tends to make matters easier for some. And in this setting Saudi Arabia could be a larger setter. The stage of NEOM Trojena is supposed to be completed by 2026, so wouldn’t it be great is the first set of the WGHL is played there in 2031? 

Now consider that we already have the Montreal Victoire, Ottawa Charge,Toronto Sceptres, Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, New York Sirens and in 2025 the teams from Vancouver and Seattle are being added. Now consider that Sweden has Brynäs IF, Djurgårdens IF, Frölunda HC, HV71, Leksands IF, Linköping HC, Luleå HF/MSSK, MoDo Hockey, Skellefteå AIK and SDE Hockey. Considering the number of teams there are as well in Norway and the Netherlands, uniting them in a global banner could drive the acceptance levels to an all time high. As there are teams in Australia and New Zealand as well, the mix to get acceptance levels to much higher settings is almost a given. If only Australian media would do something about them seemingly ignoring that branch of sports, would be nationally well received. And don’t forget Saudi Arabia. It apparently has the The Riyadh Wings, as such there is a start to giving women a global visibility stage and as plenty of Canadians can be seen all over the world, it makes sense for Canada to take the baton to give the world a larger view of Canada. So as the UAE and Saudi Arabia joins  this band of athletes, there will be global visibility and when you consider if a place like Trojena would be the global setting of women’s Hockey, I reckon that the even Canada will go nuts for these global plays. There is every indication that with Europe a critical mass will be achieved in gaming a better view for all Women Hockey players. As I see it, Europe might have a larger lead at this point, but as some see, teams from Saudi Arabia might grow close to faster. This is seen with “The hockey team includes all ages and the youngest member is a 10-year-old, Tolay Ahmad, who has been skating for two years” this was in 2018, implying that she might be seen as a seasoned veteran equal to any player in Sweden, Canada, or America. As such this might be an interesting match to say the least. Some of these players have been driven to such a chance for close to a decade and when you are driven to that degree, the outcome tends to be uncertain for anyone crossing them in a match.

As such have a great day and consider that some sports just fall in our viewport and it doesn’t need to be tracking or football games. 

Leave a comment

Filed under Media, sport

The price of stupidity

That is at the foundation of the severe conditioned setting of what can now laughingly called American stupidity. CBC reported yesterday ‘Conferences relocating to Canada over harsh new U.S. border measures’ (at https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.6758054) with the underlying text “As Canadian travel to the U.S. continues to drop, CBC News has found several professional conferences relocated to Canada to avoid harsh new U.S. border security measures. One sociologist describes being grilled by U.S. customs officers who searched his phone and wallet.” As such not only is there grilling (and no grilled sandwich), but searching the phone and wallet? I wonder what deeds custom officers have to copy this all to third and fourth party intelligence gathering settings. I get that a passport needs to be checked (read: validated), but a phone? I might agree that a wallet could be seen as reasonable. But consider this. Tourism already is down and now conferences are the new goal? Consider that the CES has over 100,000 attendees and the SEMA show over 150,000 attendees. Then there are the defence shows and IT shows. How many events will it take for these show runners to go to Vancouver, Toronto, or Ottawa? Is this the price of stupidity? How many millions will America lose in 2026? How long until the larger players will offer their shows in Abu Dhabi where the tourism spike is going on. How long until only gamblers will visit Las Vegas? Nevada have poured serious cash into Las Vegas and now that it is regarded as hostile terrain, what will they lose? There is little interest to move to London or Paris (too touristy saturated), but Dubai and Abu Dhabi have options. Soon so will Monte Carlo and now there is already space in Toronto among the 14 locations are Metro Toronto Convention Centre and Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel. Ottawa has the Ottawa Convention Centre and a few others. Basically should you consider the Mississauga location (Oracle) for a place to show the CES, America will have close to two dozen locations for people no longer interested in America violating their privacy and as the Canadian places (optionally the UAE too) show bang for their bucks. Plenty of organizers will relocate their shows. 

And there is data. CBC reported in late April that ‘Nearly 900,000 fewer people went to the U.S. in March as cross-border travel plummets’ so what damage will Florida with their Universal and Disney parks endure? Especially as their is a great alternative in Abu Dhabi. As such there is a larger case we see when we consider the Oracle CloudWorld. It was in Las Vegas, September 9–12, 2024. As such Oracle now has a larger case to present their 2025 show in Mississauga or even in Dubai (if the clientele is enticing enough). Dubai has a whole highway of entertainment structures. There is the option of renting a boat for their guests and make a presentation on the Alexandra Dhow Cruise in Dubai Marina. A setting that reeks of elegance and fine foods. America is no longer the place to be, their U.S. customs protocols made sure of that. And I only mention two locations. And after the Guardian reported last week that ‘Stockholm rejects ‘bizarre’ US letter urging city to scrap diversity initiatives’, I reckon that Stockholm would be willing to cater to American shows that now seek entertainment elsewhere. Don’t let the location fool you. Stockholm is magical and it has an amazing cuisine all over town. I reckon that soon enough the high chefs in America will seek their fortune elsewhere. So how much longer will America cater to the stupid minded? I reckon this might be the last year and anyone thinking they will be safe is likely to unknowingly handing their IP to U.S. customs (they might be in denial, as these costume officers will claim that it is protocol). So how long until that damage becomes completely non-reversible?

I will let you decide. And as I see it, Iceland, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France might have similar issues down the line. So how many tourists and conference dwellers will miss America out of from now on until December 2026? Oh and before I forget Saudi Arabia is about to set new settings in at least 3 locations, so there are these locations to consider too. 

So, good luck with the excuse of protocol and watch what the price of stupidity is about to cost America, as one source gives me “The index now sits just above the historical low of 50 in June 2022. Current Economic Conditions registered at 56.5, compared to 63.8 in March. The Index of Consumer Expectations was at 47.2, compared to 52.6 in March.” So economic expectations is at least 5 points down in about 2 months. So what more losses can we see? Canada looks forward to having a great year in catering to conferences and tourists. As is the UAE. But America is doing great (apparently), as Reuters gives us “Approval of Trump’s economic stewardship rose to 39% from 36%. Trump began his term with a 47% approval rating, and saw his popularity tick” as such how many more shocks to the system can America survive? As I personally see it: retail, tourism, and business have been hit and will be hit a few times more this year, so by the time high summer hits places like Venice beach and other tourist location will suffer the lack of tourist. But not to fret, you can find them in Canada and a few other places.

And as the larger places expand Mississauga and add a European location or one in the UAE, we will see a larger exodus to these safer places and that is a trend that is set to continue until deep into 2027, because conference are usually planned up to two years in advance. Oracle might be the most visible one but I reckon they are not alone. All these players (like Snowflake and Palantir) have customers very worried about their IP and they will press for change a lot louder than I am.

So have a great day and if you want to have fun, pass US customs with a box of 5.25” floppies and see the question marks on their eyes as they are uncertain how to proceed. 

Leave a comment

Filed under Finance, IT, Law, Media, Politics, Tourism