Tag Archives: Tourism

June 26, 2025 · 00:51

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.

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June 22, 2025 · 05:44

The dress is wrong

It seems correct to use this expression when this is a follow up to ‘All Dressed up’ which you can find (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2025/05/31/all-dressed-up/) in my blog and written a little over 3 weeks ago. I saw the impending fallout and now there is too much to ignore. You see, we now see (less than an hour ago) a story from Travel and Tour world giving us (at https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/trumps-impact-on-u-s-tourism-a-crisis-thats-becoming-hard-to-ignore/) ‘Trump’s Impact on U.S. Tourism: A Crisis That’s Becoming Hard to Ignore’ and it has off springs in this matter. You see as we are given “For years, the United States has been a top destination for international travelers, drawing millions from across the globe, particularly from countries like Germany, the U.K., and Canada. However, since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, a noticeable decline in international tourists has emerged, signaling the onset of what could be a long-term tourism crisis. As the U.S. struggles to regain its footing as a global tourism hub, several regions across the country are starting to feel the economic impact.” This statement is putting it mildly. One source even gives us “The United States, once the undisputed leader in global tourism, is witnessing a seismic shift in traveler preferences. Over the past eight years, a cocktail of restrictive visa policies, trade wars, and polarizing rhetoric has driven a 9% annual decline in international arrivals since 2017. This exodus of tourists—projected to cost the U.S. economy $22 billion in 2025—has created a rare opportunity for investors to capitalize on emerging tourism hotspots in competitor nations.” With the limelight caught with “a rare opportunity for investors to capitalize on emerging tourism hotspots in competitor nations” and the UAE and Saudi Arabia will be profiting from this setting. As will Japan, China and Europe. In an age where America is bleeding interest over a debt of 36 trillion, a loss of 22 billion will be felt through and through. Oh, and that 500 billion investment that is called Stargate (an odd thing to do, name an IT project off an Sci-fi tV series that is founded on fantasy) is currently in the running to hit a few snags and that will have a longer lasting effect than anyone can gather. As such 2026/2027 will likely be the last year that the world speak of the United States of America. As soon as it is possible California will try to be the bear republic (something to do with the flag) and the Washington State will likely move mountains to become part of Canada. In that setting as America’s social settings will collapse the American people will feel and see themselves and all their neighbors decline in a way America hasn’t seen since the great depression and this time it will be worse. 

And we get more “Stricter visa screenings, prolonged wait times, and high-profile detentions (e.g., a British tourist held for 12 days in 2024) have fueled fear among travelers. Canadian land crossings, once bustling, now see 44% fewer vehicles due to U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods. Meanwhile, 36% of Canadians who planned U.S. trips in 2025 canceled them, citing safety concerns.” This is not a simple setting. It is fueling fear that America is no longer the space to be and last week Australians were given ‘Australian tourist’s warning after being deported from US in ‘traumatic’ ordeal’ and it isn’t a nice setting (source: news.com.au) “Mr Kitchen said he had done a “superficial clean” to remove any potential red flags a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer may “uncover with three minutes of glancing”. But he did not prepare for CBP to have already looked at his online presence before he even made it to the long customs queue at LAX.” I would personally view this as a setting would only see in books, or FSB documentation. American policy is pushing tourism away. Which is fine by me, but I reckon that Universal will gain that back from tourists (what tourists?) They just invested 8 billion in their new Epic Theme park and it looks amazing. There is just one catch it needs people and YouTube showed you all yesterday a theme park absent of visitors. The most beautiful theme part America has ever seen, pretty much perfect in every way is seeing no people and queues for many rides that are seemingly less than 15 minutes. You think the economy of that setting can recover? The people will be much happier visiting Yas island in Abu Dhabi with 5 parks right there (and a mall that is amazing to behold) with a train connecting Abu Dhabi and Dubai in 35 minutes, I reckon that 2026 and 2027 the UAE will become the place to be which amounts to not only Europeans and Asians seeking a new holiday spot, but many Americans will join that queue in a heartbeat.

So as we are given “As the U.S. tourism industry suffers from a reduction in international visitors, the impact on local economies is becoming increasingly evident. For cities and regions that rely heavily on tourism dollars, the decline in foreign visitors means fewer hotel bookings, reduced spending in restaurants and shops, and a general downturn in the hospitality and entertainment sectors.” As such America created a place for themselves where no one wants to be. Not even Americans. And when that shift is completed, how will America pay for the annual interest of $1,620,000,000,000 because that is what 4.05% interest looks like and when the essential services collapse, the fallout will be EPIC (not like the empty theme park) and that is something the media was eager to hide as they have advertisement quota to fill. The problem is that this is short sighted as American businesses are about to no longer afford those. So where to next? China? Isn’t that what this American Administration was eager to prevent? 

And I only mentioned Universal. So how about Disney? Their largest success is about to become Disney Abu Dhabi (earliest in 2027). A side I didn’t consider in my initial calculations was given to me by Invest. They give us “Anti-immigrant policies and LGBTQ+ restrictions (e.g., biological sex mandates on visas) have alienated key markets. Western Europe’s unfavorable view of the U.S. hit record highs in 2025, with 50% of Britons and Germans now avoiding U.S. vacations.” I get that this would have an impact, but 50% britons and Germans was a little more then expected. I heard a saying in 1999. “First you get along then you go along” I personally see saw it as a BS expression. Something the greed driven say to get what they want. I never expected to see it in this light, I never did. But the signs are unmistakable. California is supposed to be the richest state, its economic offset is in the top 10 globally, now we get “A major factor is the projected 9.2% drop in international visitors” that is massive. Hotels and restaurants will see the hurt. Established places will likely survive, the rest becomes a debate for speculation. And if revenue goes down a mere 5% for the 10% loss of visitors, as I personally (speculatively) see it, we will see a 4%-5% of people losing their jobs. In a state the size of California that is big. A source stated “Los Angeles is experiencing a significant drop in tourism, particularly from Canada and Mexico, with some areas reporting a 25-30% decline in international visitors” and California is just starting to repair the fire damage it has had. As such the movie industry is likely to find places in Canada (like Vancouver) to see their productions get through and that is not all. A massive rewiring of streaming services might be required all these elements come with costs and in America that might be tax deductible, yet that puts the America administration is a massive bind. When revenue falls and taxable revenue falls too, the setting becomes a bit of a problem, especially when 1.6 trillion is due at end of every fiscal year. I wonder if the orchestrators of this revenue venue had seen this through. 

So whilst the theme part lovers are pushing for Tokyo and Abu Dhabi as their next destination, where does that leave America? They could ask Canada to help out, but that bridge was already burned. The penguins on McDonald Island don’t care and they will heartily repeat the message dolphins gave us, as such “So long and thanks for all the fish”

A lovely Douglas Adams setting, so as America is dragging its feet against Iran and the people of this world. They might be losing tourists now, but in a short time they are also losing allies and even people ready to listen to them. One leads to the other and as America has less and less money to spare, the people who were ready to listen to them will turn their ears to China and the Arabic nations. In less then three decades they lost what took more than a century to build. And Wall Street? Well, they will just move to London, Dubai, Tokyo and Paris. Although, when the dollar goes, the sight of Tokyo might become mighty grim soon enough.

Have a great day. 

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June 15, 2025 · 14:35

Chaotic order and orderly chaos

That is the setting and I could be wrong, let’s start with that. I could be wrong. But yesterday I saw  YouTubers hash up the large issues in tourism in America and in that same timeframe an article by Yahoo finance passed my by hashing up the same yada yada we see everywhere and at some point the idea flashed by “What if President Trump is actually a genius?” I know, you will call me mad and you will curse me into a dozen boxes, but what if this is a truth as the left is so upon the idiocy of Trump, but what if these people are merely howling the settings of ‘their’ stake holders? 

What if there is a deeper setting? Too many parts in this equation don’t make sense. You see, tourism is out in the open, yet the astute actions of the people behind it are not. And I am referring to the largest players Disney, Warner Brothers, Universal et al. What if the Trump administration sees the debt strangling the American administrations (as I saw it close to 12 years ago) and now acts are essential for America to survive at all. This requires a dangerous new mindset because the left does not want to fess up to the hardship that 340,000,000 Americans face. Admitted they did this to themselves but only in part. There is no way someone worth billions cannot see that. And there is a setting that we decently ignore. What if this is a mere deeper case of Apophenia? Seeing patterns in chaos? The cogs are clicking together in my setting and I reckon that Elon Musk was aware of this some time ago, at least he has the inside track to the American industry and to President Trump. 

So what happens when this track is set to a much larger game? Lets consider that Japan and China have really intelligent people and they see the weights they are holding, together almost 2 trillion dollars in US treasury bonds. As such I foresaw that they would dump their bonds unless there is a larger play around that sets America to skate away from the abyss and America has been on that edge slightly too long. So what would Trump be doing? The first step is to push tourism to the edge of whatever they think that they can survive and the inactions of the tour operators (Disney and others) could spell the actions of trump. In one instance he gets all the little people around these settings on his side as the operators suddenly would be seen as uncaring, caring merely for their own dimes. It is a dangerous play, but as I see it America doesn’t have that many moves left and this (mostly) radical move might be the one golden coin that sets the stage for America. As I see it, it is in line to America first and President Trump is allowed to make it, in that same instance he is dialing down immigration and showing Americans that this is what it is. He can repair fences later on, but he needs to get the debt down and taxing certain parties is nearly the only way to do this.

Feel free to call me mad and perhaps I am, but as certain patterns are evolving  we should be able to see that those shouting ‘idiot, idiot’ are suddenly thrown into the limelight. They are shown to be the bitches of the stakeholders. They are what is wrong with the media and the only way President Trump can make that case is for these stakeholders to be thrust into the limelight. 

I reckon that this play is closing in on the maturity date of actions and the play is slowly becoming a noose around the necks of the opportunity seekers in America. And some are feeling the pinch that they could accept a simple 1% setting for themselves whist the 19% will go straight into the pockets of America and its debt reduction. 

If this is the case, then the simple truth is that President Trump is a true genius and the steps make sense in several ways. But I could be wrong and I know that this is a realistic setting that I face. Don’t think I have the call of valor towards the Yin and Yang, to see order in chaos and chaos in the order of things. Others much more clever than me can make that claim, but not me. I merely saw an evolving set of orders and knowing what I know it makes sense, but that also requires the acceptance that President Trump might have been doing the right thing all along and that is what the media left doesn’t want you to think. They are actually the problem by filtering the news towards us. I have sad so several times over the last 13 years that the media considers the importance of the following

  1. Share holders
  2. Stakeholder
  3. Advertisers

As such the people are a distant fourth, I saw this for over a decade and as people agree or disagree is fine. The larger question is who are the stakeholders? Who do they really represent? The first setting are the greed driven in the second whatever it is that gives them coins. To some extent I pushed them in the Microsoft spin piles and not always the correct pile. It doesn’t matter if they support Microsoft or Apple. It stops the lawmakers from passing proper tax laws and that was the first setting that was required, almost for 20 years it was needed, but these stakeholders stoped that progress and lately they are on the ‘tax the rich’ scheme which is delusionally wrong as tax laws needed to be overhauled. A simple setting I saw to decades ago and I wrote about it frequently enough. As I see it stakeholders stopped this progress and now America is out of moves to make and these stakeholders and the people they represented will move too any tax haven outside of America. I reckon that President Trump is trying to stop these events from becoming ‘a truth seen to late’ and this is how he goes about it. The tariffs are setting the exploiters out of the gaming field and it might not reduce the heartache for too long, it is what comes next that President Trump is trying to prevent. The larger setting is not me, it is the media at large that failed to see this. Why couldn’t they see this? Ponder that question and the Stakeholders come into view and soon the media will have no option but to mention their stakeholders with name and nationality and at that point the coin will drop in the minds of hundreds of millions of Americans and that is what President Trump needs. The two hundred stakeholders and to push them out of the game. That is the first setting to push for better tax laws and that is what the media and larger businesses fear. To be held to account and for them to pay there fair share of taxation. Apple and Microsoft might seem the culprits and likely they are, but any of the FAANG members are, as I personally see it equally guilty and they are merely the beginning. The larger culprit is the media and they shouldn’t be ignored in this. How many people will accept that news media and entertainment media masking as news channels should be acceptable when the audience, the audience that they claim was first, is a mere distant fourth?

As I see it that is the larger question. So feel free to mull over that data and multiple over who has been trying to tell you the truth, all whilst the ‘entertainment news’ had been holding you at bay from the truth from the very beginning. 

Have a great day, I still have 9 hours to go until Monday.

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May 31, 2025 · 12:46

All dressed up

Yup, that is an old expression, I heard it somewhere in the 80’s and if you know, you know. If not, you might figure it out during this article. The setting has been revised before, but now (at https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/north-carolina-and-oregon-unite-with-florida-new-york-nevada-arizona-california-alaska-as-canadian-travel-to-the-us-plunges-this-april-amid-political-backlash-and-tourism-boycott/) we get a more direct setting. We are told ‘North Carolina and Oregon Unite with Florida, New York, Nevada, Arizona, California, Alaska as Canadian Travel to the US Plunges This April Amid Political Backlash and Tourism Boycott’ it seems trivial and that site is, but it is merely one side of this. We are given “Canadian travel to the United States has plunged this April as North Carolina and Oregon unite with Florida, New York, Nevada, Arizona, California, and Alaska in reporting steep declines in visitor numbers from their northern neighbor—an alarming shift fueled by mounting political backlash, a growing tourism boycott movement, and rising disillusionment among Canadian travelers over the current state of U.S. affairs”, as well as “Canadians are now increasingly choosing alternative destinations, citing concerns over the political climate, cultural discomfort, safety perceptions, and dissatisfaction with immigration experiences.” And this is merely the start. Travel Tour World gives assisting data. We are given “According to official data, land travel from Canada to the U.S. dropped by 35.2% in April 2025 compared to the same time last year, while air travel declined 19.9%, marking one of the most significant cross-border travel retreats in recent memory” And it gets to be worse, for that we look towards the story (at https://www.cubaenmiami.com/en/expertos-temen-por-las-perdidas-economicas-que-pueden-traer-la-reciente-disminucion-del-numero-de-turistas-internacionales-en-estados-unidos/) there we get “According to a report by Oxford Economics, unfavorable perceptions regarding trade and immigration policies are causing international tourists to choose other destinations, which could result in an $8.5 billion drop in foreign visitor spending in the United States this year. The decline in travel, which represents a roughly 5% drop compared to the previous year, is due to a decrease in foot traffic. According to Aran Ryan, head of industry research at Tourism Economics, an affiliate of Oxford Economics, international visits to the United States are expected to decline by nearly 9% this year, according to a report released last week.” This is not all, in addition we see “The United States could experience a loss of $21 billion in tourism-related revenue this year if current trends continue, according to estimates by the U.S. Travel Association. According to the trade group, every 1% reduction in international tourist spending represents an annual loss of $1.8 billion for the U.S. economy. Furthermore, experts indicated that a strong U.S. dollar could be driving away international visitors.” Even though only Canada is ‘sifted’ out, the European losses could be close to equally large. I saw this yesterday in a YouTube video on the Epic Universe. The literal quote was “There is no-one here” and this is in the opening month of one of the most desirable theme parks I have ever seen. The damage could be a little bigger than the news we are getting. I saw two restaurants where little to no people are seen and in one case they were the only customer. This is a sight I have never have seen before in any theme parks and this one looks a lot better then most I ever saw with my own eyes. I don’t wish this on anyone and where are the people going? Well, my bet is that Abu Dhabi in the UAE on Yas Island will be raking in the cash. The people decided on another place and as Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand decide to seek greener grounds the sands of the United Arab Emirates might be the greenest grass of all. Even as we get one source giving us that “Walt Disney secures future of Euro Disney with €1bn refinancing”, I am drawn to the setting that this is not the destination of many who abandoned the idea of getting theme park rushes in America. I guessed that these people might be going towards Tokyo and its Universal, but the drop of 4% gives me pause to dig deeper there and I am considering that most went to the UAE and the numbers from Gulf Business (kinda) prove me correctly with “International visits to the theme parks also saw significant growth, with a 40 per cent, rise, led by a substantial increase from key markets, including India, China, the UK and Russia” and there I wonder if they investigated the stream of Canadian and European visitors. Yet 40% increase is not nothing, it is huge, especially as America is looking to a drop of well over $21,000,000,000 in business and that is not including all the bed and breakfast and fast food locations that usually see a much larger interest during these days. The tariff and 51st state mentions will be taking its toll on America a lot sooner than they think. I reckon that European (Australians too) will decide that Canada is a much better place to be than America, as such this coming winter Aspen will dealing with a zero minutes queue time at the slopes. This means that America is looking towards a two dreadful seasons, summer and winter. We can speculate how large this becomes, but there is no real data on this and the bulk of the people will not see these results until springtime 2026. Anything earlier is loaded with inaccuracies as the data they have been training on was never captured to the degree it needed and some form of forecasting analysis (the process of using historical data, trends, and statistical methods to predict future outcomes) as it is based on achieved data and this has never happened before in America going back to the before the 80’s, as such there is no forecasting settings and it needs to be done on actual data captured now, and these results are not looking good. Even if it is a ‘mere’ 21 billion, over 8-9 states the impact is nothing short of disastrous and America was never in that great a shape anyway. This is propagated by the real time risk of two nations dumping their bonds before they have the value of toilet paper (yes, China and Japan) and even whilst Japan has the largest amount and they are hanging on, they do know that if China is pushed to dumping their bonds, Japan will be racing to get there as son as possible, merely to safe some of their value. Considering the escalations that the BBC reported on a mere 10 hours ago, there is a chance (a small one) that China will respond by dumping the US Treasury bonds they have and that is pretty much a sequential set in ending the American economy. This America Administration will not be able to recover from that and whilst the Chinese portfolio is set to US$765.4 billion, which is 20 billion than a month ago. They might be gambling that Japan tries to drop their $1.13 trillion ($1,300,000,000,000) bond, especially as their own debt is now a debt-to-GDP at 260% and the Bank of Japan already owning more than half of outstanding Japanese government bonds, as it seems (according to people with the economic knowledge and foresight) that Japan is boxed in. Should China dump their bonds they could gain America and Japan at the same time. A sight never seen before in our history. So what does this have to do with tourism? Everything. You see if America cannot pay its debts, America becomes the third world country no one wants to visit and that makes it a nasty place within months. America has around 22 million millionaires. I recon that at least 15 million will get out in time, the rest is not ‘rich’ enough and those with a jet (around 15,000 of them) will go to any country that will take them and they will move fast. The rest? That is anyones guess. It reminds me of that B-movie where the wealthy and refuge in a theme park as it is the only one with enough food and security to make it last. But that is an overly dark (and unrealistic) setting. What is a given that these people will seek a safer haven, because America won’t be one for decades to come. 

Still, the first setting is tourism and that setting is under increasing pressures. And as I personally see it, it wasn’t President Trump who set this of, it was the short sighted views (my personal take on this) of Governor Ronald Dion DeSantis who chased away $1,000,000,000 in investment settings in Florida, that was the start. We saw a whole lot of anti woke and anti LGTBQ settings making Europeans (and likely Canadians) weary of safety issues in Florida, which would have impacted both Disney, Universal and Warner Brothers. That was as I saw it the start and the tariffs merely escalated that setting. The damage would have been horrific if Warner Brothers Abu Dhabi had started their Harry Potter park expansion a year earlier, yet as it stands it is now kinda set for a late 2026 opening. And as Disney is coming there too the bad news for Florida keeps on adding to the larger picture. That and as the UAE is one of the safest places in the world, the appeal of the UAE is easily spotted. That is besides the fact that Abu Dhabi has 4 theme parts and one of the largest luxurious malls in the world (right behind the Dubai Mall). The additional setting that you can travel from Abu Dhabi to Dubai in a mere 30 minutes by train, the appeal is close to complete. The zero tax setting that the UAE offers is a mere cherry on their yummy pie.

That is what American tourism was facing all along and now with the tariff wars the escalations are debilitating whatever was left of American tourism future, because if you are willing to fly to Florida, the idea that flying to the UAE for close to the same amount would be a desiring call for any tourist that wants something new.  So if you want to dress up, you might as well try an Emirati Kandura, looking good and looking different, having that real vacation feeling that you might never have had before.

Have a great day and consider where you might want to go and where you could go, especially for those who are sick of Americans referring to Canada as the 51st state and the Europeans who are not too happy on America annexing 2.166 million km².

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May 14, 2025 · 13:04

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. 

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February 3, 2025 · 22:05

The edge of imagination 

That where we are at times. We all are and some use it to fuel the idea they have. We can speculate all we want, but there are words that the Star Trek Communicator fueled the concept of the mobile phone (don’t know if it is). Then later on the Star Trek Pad (TNG) was the base for the Kindle and also the iPad. We can deny, we can be offended. But the truth of the matter is that any innovation required a group of people thinking in the same way, that is how innovation starts. When the thoughts of this are set to a base, the base grows and the concept becomes a real thing. I have always believed that to be true. So whilst we think that all inventions are in the trend of Oppenheimer that person is not completely wrong, because the imaginations comes from whomever employs it, but usually it take a nudge. The iPad and mobile phone being clear examples of that. There were some bad examples (losers trying to fraud their way through) but they get found out soon enough and now we see medical devices on the same Trent as the losers were, but these people imagined the solution though. They went the additional step.

This is the foundation, now consider that DisneyWorld has the ride Rise of the resistance and galaxy’s edge. We know Star Wars and that is fine, but these two places in the eyes of a child will boost that child’s imagination and that is where the setting changes. That child could be there seeing the life sized version of a Tie fighter and that thought will remain with the child and in 15 years the concept of something he did not realize becomes reality, true innovation. What it is? I don’t know, not my thoughts. I merely thought of Newt Scamander in the series fantastic beasts and I came up with giggle water. A drink in the movie magic based, but the drink could be real. I set that out in a blog around when that movie came out. You see we have all kinds of fuzzy drinks. So what happens when you add Nitrogen (laughing gas) to the syrup that will contain the nitrous oxide and with the added liquid (most likely water, or fruit juice) we now have giggle water. Of course as it is ‘regulated’ all over the place someone in that field would have to tinker with my idea. But can you ignore a fan fleet of millions when it comes to any new drink? Only Coca Cola started with nothing. There is a whole fleet of people now in range and in the Harry Potter field everyone is going nuts about butter beer. Can you imagine having the one good no one else has? 

Did anyone else consider this? Possibly, but they might not have heard of laughing gas, it was discontinued when better alternatives were found, but that doesn’t make the idea useless, it can be applied to other fields. Innovation is the combination of thoughts and imagination and the one solving it has a future ahead. I think I had my fair share of innovations and more are coming. To get into a field I am not even qualified is folly. To be true, I was not qualified in the field of nuclear ‘solutions’ either. But someone had to deal with Iran (and now Russia as well). As such I started a thought that could be interesting. As such I figured that as Russia has 38 reactors, when half a dozen melt down they will end up having a massive energy problem. Simple problem, simple solution and when you consider that a snow globe drove this idea, you can see that innovation can be found anywhere. 

This led me to the setting that America gave us all. The trade wars. Now America has plenty but not all in America. You see Disney is also in Europe, Universal is also win the UAE. So if all people of the commonwealth denounce their visit to America and chose these two other locations America will soon have a new problem. So what if we all disregard America as a destination for the next two years? Disney reported an annual revenue of $88.898B, they beat expectations by a mere 7%, so what if all in the commonwealth and Europe select other places and now Disney falls short for 50%? and Universal is doing equally good, that is until President Trump pulled the rug from under them. You see I like Theme parks, but if I can enjoy another one I would like it to be outside of America. I am a member of the Commonwealth and be decided to blame Canada and Mexico for their own irresponsible spending. As such The Dutch has the Efteling, Harry Potter can be found in London, Japan and soon the UAE (Warner Brothers Theme park) and several other parks are there all over the world. Saudi Arabia will soon have the alternative to Aspen and Utah, Canada has Whistler and Blue Mountains in Ontario and a such there is every chance that they could all get more Mexicans. President Trump did not really consider that, did he? In that same setting Universal (before covid) had 5.5 million tourists, so what happens when that slows down to less then 3 million, how long until Orlando has a massive budget problem? How long until businesses collapse due to a stupid idea that seemingly only President Trump likes. How long until the America economy goes below sustainable (I believe it is on the line now) measures that collapses the larger companies is slicing whatever they have?

Innovation comes in all sizes and directions. So when will we see a webpage with a connected database mapping all theme parks on the world so that people from the Commonwealth and Europe can seek alternative travel arrangements? Consider that Saudi Arabia and the UAE have done nearly all to become the better solution for tourism. Their airports are top node and their theme parks are too. Warner Brothers will still syphon some funds to America, but it is meager pickings for the yanks as their theme parks are on the edge of shutting down. 

That is the other side of innovation, making sure that America dwindles down to nothing. You see, there is a down side to Trade Wars. This is merely one side of this, there are a few others but I reckon the Canadians are already on that part.

As I see it, the stupid side of this world can be found between Canada and Mexico. And they are finding out that there is a cost to electing the wrong president (not sure if the other party had a real contender)

So have a nice day and consider the chance that you yourself have an idea that could be innovative, there is 100% certainty that I am not the only one and innovations can be found in any field, it merely needs fuel and imagination is the best fuel.

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October 23, 2024 · 06:14

The tightening belt

What I foresaw is now coming to pass in more than one way. ECNS China gives us ‘Saudi Arabia aims to attract up to 5 million Chinese tourists by 2030’ there was always a shift coming and as we see it, Saudi Arabia becomes more and more driven to see what the Chinese markets can deliver. We saw this last week in the Saudi Tourism Festival held in Beijing on Oct 17, 2024. We are given “Saudi Minister of Tourism and Chairman of the Saudi Tourism Authority Ahmed Al-Khateeb said that Saudi Arabia is China-ready and welcomes all Chinese travellers with increased connectivity, customised products and strategic partnerships.” Now some of you will respond with ‘so what?’ And that might be fair in one way. But this number represents a much larger issue. As I see it, one third is goal driven tourism. People will decide on Saudi Arabia as a destination for a job, or as a cheap tourism destination. Two third will go as tourist with optional goals, but these three million tourists will go to Saudi Arabia and not to their ‘normal’ destinations. That will show in diminished numbers all over Europe (France, England, Spain and Italy) and America. These people will also attract optional tourists who will change their initial destination. The other 2 million will optionally retrench their optional ‘cheap labor’ destination from Australia and places like the Netherlands, Belgium and the nordic countries. You will think that it does not matter, but consider all these coffee places that ‘allowed’ for these people, optionally in other areas too. They will come short of their usual numbers. These tourists also spend all they earn in that country. As such there will be a shift, an initial shift that seems small but could grow over time. These 5 million will spend their money somewhere else (in Saudi Arabia) and that facilitates to more, it always does. You might not think much of this, but the Saudi job market is booming. There are (allegedly) at present a little over 10,000 jobs outstanding. A fair deal are out reach of a lot of them, but consider this job “Digital Marketing Specialist. Average Salary: SAR 9,500-35,000 per month” and consider that they have the Beijing University of Technology and over a dozen more universities where these young crackers would like to see options in their first 2 years. They have just graduated University, they have spend almost every waking hour working on digital solutions like TikTok, broadcast experience and on the other hand we see places like Huawei making waves in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. These two places will see an increase of Chinese workers with an option to fulfil their dream a lot faster, so yes, Saudi Arabia will become a swing location for these people. All options that are shutting doors on Europe, Australia and America. 

We are also given “the country is preparing to launch its winter season tourism attractions, which will provide a range of experiences filled with entertainment, luxury, adventure and natural beauty, running from October to May”
Now consider that Oxagon, Trojena, Magna and Sindalah now suddenly will have a grasp of a thousand more affordable workers, bringing both a digitally active workforce as well as language skills to their regions. Yes, the cheaper groups will also infuse the wealth group from China to their shores because these people will encounter others with their language skills. As such the people who depend on these rich tourists will endure a lessened impact as they will all want to go to the newest places in Saudi Arabia. I reckon that in the 5,000,000 people will be at least 500,000 people who are beyond well-off and they will go to Saudi Arabia in the space of 2026-2028 (at least) and that is a kick to the heads of economy in the aforementioned countries. The top 1% of wealthy Chinese who are making over $80,000 are expected to spend that money in Saudi Arabia. And I am referring to the people who would have spend their cash in London, Paris and Orlando. Merely these three places will see a drop of income in the next few years. So how much more is needed? You might think that the small setting of “France is the most visited country within Europe, attracting an impressive 81,411,000 foreign sightseers each year”, but that would not be entirely correct. It includes all nations, including Europeans and a bunch of them will be attracted to Saudi luxury as well and consider that 1% is still 814,110, even if they merely lose 1%, that amounts to quite the drain on revenue and that is in part already heading towards Saudi Arabia. Already we are seeing messages on Free tourist visas, the one element that partially blocks choices is in the process of being removed. And all this is piling up against Europe and America. All whilst we were given ‘Tourism trips by residents of EU in 2023 up close to 6% y/y’ we ignore the drop that a mere 1% drop wouldn’t be much, but these tourists have beckoned billions in investments all over Europe and now I expect to see the Chinese drop as well as the ‘local’ tourists now dialling Saudi Arabia for their upcoming destination. Add to that whatever business bookings we see and you know these sales types, how they like to be known to go to new and luxurious destinations, the punch packing trips all over Saudi Arabia will be handing several body blows to Europe (America as well). We might merely see that the effort is on 5,000,000 Chinese tourists. But the overall impact will be a lot higher. That is the one part that everyone forgets about. The overly large population of tourists can only spend their money once or perhaps twice a year and the appeal of Saudi Arabia is overwhelming with at least three locations appealing to a lot of tourists. Add to this Riyadh and the impact of Saudi tourism will be felt in most of the tourist places of Europe and America. I reckon that if Disney and Universal sets a theme park in these places the damage will be near complete. Not a mere 2-3 years. But an impact over the next decade at least. Whatever we think of these parks in Orlando, they are overpacked and soon there will be an alternative of the same making. We see (at present) “With over 58 million annual tourist visits, Disney World averages approximately 159,000 visitors per day across all its parks” as well as “In 2023, 10 million tourists visited Islands of Adventure, a decrease of 9%” and consider that these two places could lose close to 15% more, people that have had enough of these massive queues and they want an alternative. Well Warner Brothers is already seeing an increasing populous enjoying Abu Dhabi and I reckon that these are all people contemplating Saudi Arabia as an optional destination.

Tourist destinations in Europe and America will see the need to tighten their belts. And this is not new. I floated the idea on September 27th 2023 in ‘As the belt tightens’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2023/09/27/as-the-belt-tightens/) so this is not news to me. I saw it coming a mile away (well, actually a year ago), and that is all before the glamour of Vision 2030 hits the tourists on the retina. I think I made my case 2 times over and the impact should be seen all over Europe in the time 2026-2028, after that? That depends how Saudi Arabia plays it cards. I made one other prediction (presumption) on what would be needed and that could put Europe and America in a bind, they either invest and make ready for 2025 or they might lose a lot more.

Have a great day and contemplate the view from the Aedas ski resort. Can America match that view? Now consider that Saudi Arabia could simultaneous hit 5-10 tourist attractions at the same time in 2026.

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February 12, 2024 · 04:18

Wall, writing, you know

Before we go into details, you need to be aware of something. On the 19th of November 2023 I wrote “America has been in denial of too much we see that their ‘friends’ are reevaluating their options and there is now an optional case that Japan made the first move.” It was in the story ‘Speculating towards something?’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2023/11/19/speculating-towards-something/) it was not the first time and not the only time I warned of that danger and now, the Associated press gives us (at https://www.9news.com.au/world/donald-trump-american-allies-worry-us-growing-less-dependable-whether-trump-or-biden-wins/b29bc0ac-3d1a-47b4-89dc-dad1de8b6ec9) ‘American allies worry US growing less dependable, whether Trump or Biden wins’, so the Associated press came to the conclusion 90 minutes ago what I saw coming almost 3 months ago. And you think you are getting informed by the press? So when we are given a quote by Donald Trump “He said at a rally on Saturday that, as president, he’d warned NATO allies he would encourage Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to countries that didn’t pay their way in the alliance.” I feel decently certain that at least 2 European nations are contemplating an alliance with Beijing, if not to keep Russia out, it would be to save whatever they can from their economy. And the setting is not small. With STC (Saudi Telecom Company) now set to be the largest 5G player and since last year the largest shareholder of Telefonica (Spain), their markers are ready to show themselves as the primary force in the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt, southern Europe and soon the rest of Europe. This wasn’t news, it wasn’t groundbreaking it was meant to be and as America loses more and more ground, Huawei is about to get a lot more. In addition we now see ‘Saudi Arabia’s World Defense Show ends with 61 orders worth $6.9 bln’ this matters because several of these orders aren’t going to America. South Africa’s HENSOLDT GEW, Spain’s Rheinmetall Expal, Bosnia Igman Company, Korea’s Poongsan Corporation, Qudra Industrial Company, Fahad International Company were some of the lucky ones. Several are under wraps, so I have no idea where they ended, but I have a nagging feeling that China got some too. What I predicted is coming to fruition. America is losing more and more commercial deals. Now that the US debt has surpassed $34,000,000,000,000 they lose more and more contracts and the telecom one is the killer. It allows Huawei for its vindication all whilst those supporting America’s baseless accusations are now entering empty space, no deals in front, only a vague ‘we’ll get back to you’. So how is that adding up? Well those who were ready to smear the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will not be held on hold and that is a lot more than you think. The fact that BRICS nations are now also getting orders and the option to prove themselves implies that BRICS is about to become (or already is) the place to be between now and 2028. And all this could have been prevented for well over 5 years. 

So whilst Thomas Gift, director of the Centre on US Politics at University College London states that the world is about to become “a multipolar planet in which the United States is no longer “the indisputable world superpower”.” The truth is a lot less nice. The new powers are China, India,  Saudi Arabia and the UAE. These nations aren’t just carpeting on the side of the road. Both Saudi Arabia and the UAE are just about the hottest tickets in tourism. Another income stream dwindling down for America and Europe. As such the writing was on the walls and Rembrandt painted that one in 1635. 

So now we have a new setting (as I personally see it), is it because the associated press finally found out the setting I saw months ago, or is it because they can no longer get around this setting. And when you consider the  chance that it is option two, how useless has the press become? When was vying for the digital dollar journalism? 

And all that is before Donald Trump was foolish enough to piss of his NATO allies. It sets the stage of NATO abandoning America and that opens up other paths for President Xi. Not sure if he would act on them, but I feel certain that Khan Chen Yixin (you gotta respect the old titles) from the Ministry of State Security is probably seeing opportunities here. How this pans out? I reckon we can all make guesses, but Spain and Germany are most likely to fold first. France will definitely be one of the last players to leave America, but as the others gain economic options France might not have a choice in the matter. 

So how wrong am I?
Yes, that remains the setting. I was proven correct months ago, but that does not make it all true. Yet the telecom moves are out in the open and I wrote about that too and Huawei has options now and there Germany might seek unity (partnership) with STC sooner rather then later opening Europe to Saudi Arabian telecom options and all that gives Huawei an advantage (for now). The China part remains debatable, but there is enough out there to show I might not be completely wrong. Now add the predictions that some IT brand is losing chunks to Tencent as will some other players in social media and now see the redrawn map of nations with new streams all whilst American companies are losing out on ten to twenty billion taxable dollars and consider that America is facing between 68 and 136 billion in interest in 2024. In 2023 America collected $4.44 trillion and they couldn’t make the budget fit and now they are down an additional 100 billion and revenue streams are slowing down. When BRICS nations start selling the US bonds they have the damage is almost complete. This wasn’t rocket science, you could get there with an abacus, no silicon chip required.

Enjoy your day whilst I am heading towards Monday breakfast soon. 

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January 25, 2024 · 18:42

Those happy dreams

We all have them and I just had mine (not the one with Laura Vandervoort). The dream started with me attending some gameshow with Amazon bigwigs. I personally handed Phil Spencer a gold inlaid wooden spoon with the message that I try to keep my word. That morning Amazon with the Luna surpassed 75 million consoles (plus subscriptions) sold, Microsoft is now deal last in the gaming industry (nice achievement for the strongest console in the world), apparently big hardware isn’t everything. But the dream moved on, I was talking to His Excellency Ahmed Al-Khateeb, Minister of tourism for Saudi Arabia. 

I was explaining to him (and to myself) a new approach to customer service solutions and I called it the Complete Customer Service Solution System (C2S3 for short). The image is more for myself so I can recall it later. A complete system based on foundations of Nice CX One but with a massive difference, the organisations were no longer central here, they are still the centre or axial in it all, but the central setting becomes the tourist. A system no one ever considered (or off hand rejected), but in 2025-2030 the tourist, the customer needs to be the central hub in everything. Places like Saudi Arabia and the UAE need an evolved customer solution system because that is how they remain top player. The larger players (like Hilton and Marriott) will get on board fast, because they will see the benefit there, then the them parks and soon thereafter they all want to join such a system and in the cloud you can find a person fast. You see, the biggest drain on any vacation is time loss, people take it for granted, but what happens when one or two players throw that overboard and redo the whole thing? What happens when the total vacation has 0.1% logistics at best? You go through the mill in the Airport, at the hotel, at attractions, at resorts. So what if the airport is the start, but it is replicated to other places as soon as you go through gate one? What happens when you are in a new place and you do not get lost, because the tag you have tells you where you are and where you are supposed to go? Now consider that around the world, it is estimated that over one million young people are reported missing every year. Don’t be afraid, will over 95% is found within a day. Now consider this new system where a child is found within the hour, optionally quicker. The loss of stress in almost unimaginable. And it is not merely loss that is removed. It is that places will hand out badges with RFID, the RFID records your achievements and records what you have done, so the tourist will have a record on him that he can look at. 2 days of skiing, 12 slopes, they keep a progression record and a record of places. In Japan they have a booklet where you can stamp where you have been and every place has its own stamp. Now consider that digital record, connect that to a digital library and the tourist can make a small photo album with their own images and insert their digital records of places they have visited. They can make it anywhere in the world and it can remain private. A system where the foundation is Arrival and Departure, it does not matter where you go from there. You could visit as a family the Almasaa Cafe in Riyadh, wouldn’t it be nice to insert a digital sticker in your album when you were there with personal pictures? The list goes on and a system like that isn’t build overnight, but it has the merit that for once the tourist is the centrepiece of it all (some claim that, but it is their sales system). A setting where the customer solution is build and designed around the customer. In 43 years I have never seen such a system, have you? 

Now that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are about to be the pole position players in tourism, such a system would solve several items. They would also imply that they are about to stay at the top position until others catch on, and after the SEC blunder I saw yesterday some players will be behind these two players for years to come. 

Just a thought, enjoy Friday in 24 hours.

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January 9, 2024 · 06:59

Just a metric?

That is at times a question and it is also at times a recognition. You see, metrics are at times just that, metics. We can sing high and low, but metrics are most of the times in a vacuum, that is until someone uses it to weave a story. You, I, we all do that. Some are clearly shown to be related, others are less so. As such the story that we see in the Khaleej Times (at https://www.khaleejtimes.com/business/aviation/dubai-airport-could-join-100-million-passenger-club-this-year) could be either (initially). You see, the ‘Dubai airport could join ‘100 million passenger club’ this year’ and for the most will sing that it is just as meaningless as them joining the mile high club. But some comedians will point out that they were alone getting there. So as such it seemed like a nice thing to achieve. I saw the airport on YouTube and it does look impressive. 

So, when you consider it the numbers in a larger context it now implies that Dubai International Airport is about to become the busiest airport in the world. Leaving Heathrow far behind it and beating by a fair margin New York, Los Angeles and several other airports behind them which they should have been competing against. They are about to overtake them all. In 2022 they were fifth, they are about to get pole position in airport traffic. This implies that this airport deals with 11,415 passengers EVERY HOUR, that is some achievement, especially as Toronto Pearson International Airport (in 29th position) can’t seem to get anything right at the moment. These two metrics matter because this implies that Dubai is getting things done right and there is a connected metric. You see, I wrote about tourism (Saudi Arabia and UAE alike) and now we see a new metric. When you consider that many can only spend their holiday funds once, that a slice who are going to Dubai will not be able to go anywhere else. As such these other places will lose some visitors and that results in lower revenue in those places. I made mention of that a few days ago, but now you see a connected metric. For whatever reason these people have decided on Dubai (and the UAE) that is the underlying metric that should not be ignored. 

And the speeches are also setting the new stage that they are ready to receive 20% more. Yes, all nations will make presentations and the UAE is no different than other nations in that regard. Yet the larger station is that Dubai has a growing population for tourism. It has more options for tourism than many other nations and when you add Abu Dhabi and the sports they both hold, the appeal start making sense. People just want a nice time. They want a place where they can relax and Dubai is one of the places that delivers. Those who want to play hard go to a ditch (massively drunk) in Las Vegas, those who want to have a great time, are now deciding to give Dubai a try and the more it delivers the faster that tourism part grows. Now compare that to waiting lines. Escape from the Gringotts (Harry Potter Orlando) 45-120 minutes and some times at Disney (Orlando and Paris) are close to that horrendous. So when you can select a place with a lot less waiting times I could not see any clear numbers on Warner Brothers Abu Dhabi, but several sources claim you can see the entire WB park in a day. 

Now consider all the other places these two locations have and also consider Deep Dive Dubai (not really for the young tourists) and you end up going to a place with the most amazing and most unique diving experience that you cannot get anywhere else in the world. So others want to think this is a fab, a fashion moment? The world stood still and now others are taking charge to offer what people might like. I use the word ‘might’ because the consumer is a fickle person with no real destination in mind. Yet, as I see it. Dubai with its malls, its theme parks, even a skating rink and two Hockey teams (the real hockey on solid water) and now a growing football offering. It seems that they are doing everything right and the fact that they are about to break the 100,000,000 served passengers a year line is a pretty good indicator that they are doing it all very  right.

Enjoy the day and if you go to Deep Dive Dubai be nice to yourself and do not watch Jaws before the dive.

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