Tag Archives: UAE

July 14, 2024 · 07:21

The Iranian ploy

I saw the article (at https://www.newarab.com/news/houthis-threaten-riyadh-aerial-footage-key-airports) stating ‘Yemen’s Houthis threaten Saudi Arabia with aerial footage of key airports’, the New Arab with the text “The video, titled “Just try it”, contained images of King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, King Fahd International Airport in Damman as well as the ports in Ras Tanura, Jizan and Jeddah” is a possible ploy. I do not doubt that the Houthi’s (with generous support from Iran) is adding a ploy of threats to their limited tactics. It is clear that Houthi forces can bring something to the table, but I believe that this is nothing more than a ploy. A ploy that could have teeth, but I do not have the required contacts or information to see how serious this is. We see an additional setting with “The threat to Saudi Arabia by the Houthis comes amid reports that the government and Houthis failed to strike a fresh prisoner exchange deal”, which is fun because this was a deal between Houthis and the legitimate Yemen government. So this is all about posturing, or is it?

You see, a few hours later I was given through Arab News (at https://arab.news/6p5tn) ‘Iran’s new president vows balance with all countries, warns US his country won’t be pressured’ where Iran apparently made the claim “He looks forward to engaging in constructive dialogue with European countries”, so there is the carrot. Iran needs Saudi Arabia in a holding pattern, whilst Iran ‘appeases’ European nations. So as I see it Houthi forces are still the barking dogs of Iran and Iran needs this, because their support of Hamas will have secondary contemplations by any nation thinking that talking with Iran is a good idea. It has not now or yesterday worked and it will not work tomorrow either. 

As Iran is hiding their hands behind terrorist organisations like Hamas or Houthi forces, we need to be weary that stability in the Middle East requires both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, they have the growing economies, the larger setting for tourism and the options of uniting Arab nations. The problem is that Iran is a problem. They are crying like little girls as they are denied a larger seat at the Arab table. The only small friend that Iran can rely on is Qatar and they have growing issues with Hamas. How that plays out is beyond me but in this setting we have Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Bahrain, Jordan, Oman and Iraq. They are all playing nice and as I see it, there is not to much love for Iran in this. Qatar is the one successful nation that has been playing a dangerous game, so what happens with them is up in the air. I reckon that the Houthi’s are set to the threat to Saudi Arabia. In this my feelings are that if one attack on a civilian target is done, the might of the Saudi forces will bluntly retaliate against Houthi forces. This has the one complication that Iran has to either commit or desert Houthi forces. This is the ploy as I see it. Iran cries loudly towards Europeans that they are so willing to discuss peace, but they are under the hammer. It will be something like that. So the Iranian ploy is unlikely to work. Europe has enough problems with Russia and Russia could be of little use to Iran. Russia has only one carrier left and they need it in their Ukrainian tactics. But this is about Iran. They are losing ‘useful’ friends a lot faster than they are happy with. It is in that setting that the Houthi threat is (as I personally see it) an Iranian tactic. 

They have to play nice with some people because they are about to learn the lesson Hector Malot taught us with ‘Sans Famille’ and Iran is rightfully worried. You see when the coins come down Iran will have to put up or shut up and they will lose a lot of face in the entire Middle East, sitting at a table where the stabilising points come from Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. That is why (my personal point of view) Iran need Houthi, Hamas and any other player that Iran can place in the field with deniability. It is why I said that whatever Palestine comes through, it will require the eradication of Hamas. Because it will be them who will terrorise the building projects in Saudi Arabia. 

So how can I prove any of this? Well the history of Iran is one. Their actions towards Houthi forces is another and the Iranian actions are right after the threats from Houthi forces. I feel that one ploy is enabling other actions. 

But for the most in this, I am merely speculating. So enjoy this Sunday.

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July 6, 2024 · 12:15

Taking a step to the left

Something just hit me (ouch). I was wondering about people learning Arabic. I have been contemplating this. However I do not have a job requiring me to learn it. Still, the idea was in my brains and I contemplated things that would help me (without taking classes). You see we can always to some extent revert to books.

And as you see there is a a way to do this (might not be the most efficient way). As I was contemplating this I remember something from my Japanese lessons (years ago). They had a card  set they had two half (like a domino stone) there was an image of something at the top. And the beginning letter at the bottom. It looked something like the image at the bottom. 

The Japanese version is slightly different, but the idea stands (if this translation is in error, I apologise, my knowledge of Arab is is zilch, zero, rien, non-existent). Still, the thought was there Arabic has 28 letters, it could be supplemented with cards stating the days of the week, the months in a year and so on. It could be a set up to 75 to 100 cards and sold at a bundle. Now considering that there are plenty of Chinese people trying to learn the language at present. Added to that is the premise (given by pro-literacy) that 50,000,000 within the 22 Arabic speaking nations that cannot read of write. A tool like that could be useful. If the literacy needs to be evolved, having tools that empower such a setting needs to be spread more rapidly. Now I have no idea if such a card set exists, the fact that I never seen one is no indication. The internet does not give one either. So there are indications that this is an idea that someone in Saudi Arabia or the UAE could use to optionally make someone rich. There is nothing I can do because I do not know any Arabic. But with all the people that Saudi Arabia is trying to get for jobs. This is merely a tool that enables these people to learn Arabic faster, it is merely a thought I am having. 

Have a great weekend.

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July 1, 2024 · 10:51

The changes to a Digital Currency

I was alerted to a story on https://www.cointribune.com/en/saudi-arabia-joins-the-wrong-blockchain/ stating ‘Saudi Arabia joins the wrong Blockchain…’, well that is merely a matter of opinion. You see the CBDC (aka mBridge) is a digital currency that is controlled by banks. It is under control by China (read Tencent) and is a system that runs next to swift. It could rival it over the next few years and moreover could overtake swift too (speculative view by the writer, aka me). The involvement of Saudi Arabia implies “The kingdom’s integration into the BRICS club is far from trivial. Member countries are clearly expressing their intention to purge the dollar from their exchanges. The arrival of the Saudis could mean that Saudi oil exports to China could one day be conducted via the mBridge blockchain, in yuan”, implies is as I word it, but the implications as quoted is the first major dent into the ‘settings’ that could take a lot of Wall Street out of the frame, again this is purely speculative. Another source, Forbes gives us (at https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2023/08/24/bitcoin-vs-cbdcs-analyzing-universal-access-in-digital-currency/) ‘Bitcoin Vs. CBDCs: Analyzing Universal Access In Digital Currency’, which they gave us last August. They also give us “The digital cash revolution was spearheaded first by bitcoin and then by other cryptocurrencies, which has led to the birth of Central Bank Digital Currencies.” This is followed up by “it’s the rise of CBDCs and cryptocurrencies that may represent the most transformative phase in this evolution.” I think that is the larger issue. I don’t trust Bitcoin, not because of the digital setting, but the picture that it is not supported by any coins, or gold make it a virtual currency. ‘Everyone’ is on board for what they think it will bring. But the larger picture becomes that a virtual setting could from today ($62,730.9037) and when it goes to $50,184.7258 tomorrow (worst case scenario) there is nothing stopping it, moreover I reckon that all these pensioners hoping to get rich of this, this downfall will result in lots of pensioners ending with nothing. That was the fear I alway had. This is why I do not trust it. The CBDC (mBridge) is as said cemented in “the country’s central bank.” Forbes also gives us on the of the 23rd of June (at https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2024/06/23/cross-border-cbdc-focused-project-mbridge-moves-forward/) “For more than three years, the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) and the central banks of China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been working on a cross-border central bank digital currency (CBDC) project known as mBridge. In a nutshell, the project aims to improve efficiency, speed and transparency in cross-border payments.” It is the transparency that matters and the fact that it is under control of a nations central bank. This implies that banks are ultimately responsible for issues, with Bitcoin this is anyones guess. The text “MBridge recently took an important step forward with the completion of its minimal viable product (MVP) stage and the decision by Saudi Arabia to join the project.” You see this means that mBridge would be getting support from places like Aramco and China with their Yuan. This puts the USA on a slippery slope (commercial wise) if the oil dollar pushed to nowhere, the Yuan will gain strides of upgrades. Additional we get “According to China’s Digital Currency Research Institute (DCRI), mBridge transactions take seven seconds and cut cross-border payment costs by 50%.” I believe that the 7 second delay is only applicable to cross border issues and I do believe that this is a temporary delay (before the first upgrade a time upgrade), the reducing of cost by 50% would be cheered by all sides of the equation (probable with the exception of Wall Street). The article ends with “but risks to the initiative will rise sharply if it becomes seen as part of broader U.S.-China competition” a political setting, but as that rises the USA (and optionally the EU) will lose a lot more. For the most the people are fed up with the American bully tactics. It is hurting their pocket. Consider that a decade ago where everyone copied the narrative “Washington officials began warning of Huawei’s ability to embed spying capabilities in its gear” but never was any EVIDENCE presented by anyone. We get setting like ‘could’ and ‘the possibility arises’’. The former director of German intelligence stated to Deutsche Welle that they didn’t understand that technology. So where is the evidence? America presented a case that was settled a decade earlier. China has issues with the US and EU. This is their shot across the bough. And it is one that matters. With billions in revenue gained, with the BRICS setting and with a setting that could replace the oil dollar with the Yuan, Wall Street would lose a lot. So whilst the American administration begs for cheaper oil, all whilst they pretty much shot themselves in the foot. 2025 and 2026 might prove disastrous for both the US and EU. The EU will accept the mBridge solution a lot earlier than the US would and when the Bitcoin loses 20% or more in value. Many pensions will be reduced to zero. It was the risk of a decentralised system with no foundation in any bank or in a commodity like gold, but that is merely my point of view.

Enjoy today, it is still yesterday in Vancouver and Toronto. 

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June 29, 2024 · 12:00

As limits are reached

The Khaleej Times give us (at https://www.khaleejtimes.com/uae/uae-summer-switch-off-non-essential-appliances-for-one-hour-every-day-urges-sharjah-authority) ‘UAE summer: Switch off non-essential appliances during peak hour daily, urges Sharjah authority’ where it starts with “Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority said the Conservation Hour or Peak Hour initiative will start in July and last until September” with the additional “Along that line, the authority has called on those living in Sharjah to participate in an initiative called Conservation Hour or Peak Hour from July to September”, for those unaware Sharjah is directly North of Dubai. The addition given is “The initiative will require residents to switch off non-essential electrical appliances during peak hours, which is from 2:30pm to 3:30pm, every day”, this situation was going to happen and it will be a global problem. I raised the issue in January 2023. The first part was in ‘Inactivity by the overpaid‘(at https://lawlordtobe.com/2023/01/13/inactivity-by-the-overpaid/). There I raised “There will be a power shortage by 2030. Personally I think that he is overly optimistic. I would reckon that clear shortages will be visible no later than 2027 in the Netherlands” In this Article I raised the issue that I made in May 2022 and again in June 2022. There I looked at solutions. There were a few sides and Dubai would benefit from that solution. Part of that solution was given in ‘Will you feel frisky?’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2022/06/28/will-you-feel-frisky/). There you see that the concrete that sets the floors/ceilings have space in every building to leave a mica underground, with on top of that solar panels. Now ads I see it Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah all have hundreds of buildings that benefit from these panels (the sunny side of the building) In my case I illuminated London as well as Austin Texas the day before. However this is now a race. There is a limit on solar panels. First one in, the less limitations that place has. As we now see, Sharjah is at present the first to step on the breaks. 6 years before the NOS (Dutch news media), as such I believe that the limitations will be seen all over Europe in the next two years, depending on the summers. London, Paris, Orleans, Cannes, Nice, Munich, Berlin, Hamburg, and several other places. In my view I see the following solution:

The mat with the solar panel. That panel is set to be connectable to other mats, I envision a sort of Scalextric (that old racing game) connection on one side the can be connected to a wire, that connect the panels on the separate levels to a battery on top of the building. I just used the Tesla solution, but other solutions could be used. Depending on the size of the building it would be an expected 2 x 2 or 4 x 2. So that one side can be fully charged and the other set of batteries is used to fuel the net. 

Now this solution does not fully solve it (initially), but it will reduce the stress on the electricity net. As more buildings are fitted out with this solution, more stress on the electricity net is reduced. I reckon that two dozen buildings all over Sharjah might reduce the pressure enough for the peak pressure to go away. And it will push a zero carbon setting too. 

All this is not a given, but I reckon that Chinese developers will see this as a way to come in as this path could see billion in revenue. Tesla has the battery advantage, I have no idea what China has in this area. You know what is the most striking one? I had in part the solution here in this blog two years before the rest had admitted that there is a power problem coming our way. The issue becomes that as time passes, not enough time will remain to implement the solution as well as the given that too many places at the point need this solution all at the same time and no one will be able to deliver this solution. To give a rough estimate Manhattan, Texas and Los Angeles will need a rough 12000 batteries. London is another 3500 batteries and I have no idea what the EU will need. Consider that one source gave the 2030 option, it would imply that at least 20,000-35,000 batteries are needed. I am certain that these numbers are hard to reach. So that leaves the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Australia and several other countries. Soon enough it will become a rat-race for the components. 

Enjoy Saturday, preferably with all appliances still getting power.

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June 14, 2024 · 12:30

The teeth that bite

It is a phase we see, the teeth are the realisation that issues are catching up with the world. They knew already, but they decided to keep you all in the dark. For this we need to go to ‘Will China Replace the US As Saudi Arabia’s Main Ally?’ (at https://thediplomat.com/2024/06/will-china-replace-the-us-as-saudi-arabias-main-ally/) there we are given the setting that China is ‘optionally’ replacing the United States as the main ally of Saudi Arabia. You might wonder what this is about. You see, I predicted this happening on June 3rd 2023, a little over a year ago (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2023/06/03/would-you-believe-that/) in ‘Would you believe that?’ I even inferred that earlier, but that was more speculation then the application of Business Intelligence. A year ago, Now lets be clear, I am nowhere near as gifted in analyses as the people in The Diplomat are (or should be) so this is where I got to ‘they decided to keep you all in the dark’, the writing as on the wall and it will become worse. Even as the United Stated is no playing nice to the Middle Eastern nations (Saudi Arabia and the UAE mainly). Their need for cheap oil, their need to keep involved but it is too little too late. Saudi Arabia is catching on and China is there to take up the slack. Brics was an element, but a small one. China was already catering to the needs of Saudi Arabia. 

And that is also my new setting of sales. You see I created the IP that could give Saudi Arabia (or the Kingdom Holding, owned by Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud) And it could give either 5 billion a year in phase one and continuing to 20 billion a year in a later stage. Billions deserted by Google and averted by Amazon and Tencent Technologies as well (Microsoft was not invited). It merely required them to open their eyes. And with this setting there is a clear showing of elements where these players are shown where they lost out. For the most they are all on the AI horse (which does not yet exist) and more importantly, as this IP matures, the moment LLM (Large Language Models) and Deeper Machine learnings grow up and interact, the setting will become even brighter. One pillar of this could cost Facebook a little over 10% in the beginning with around 20%-30% later on. All because the captains of industry were asleep at the wheel. 

And do they connect? Yes, when China wakes up to this revenue and they see that they can go after the treasure trove of Facebook, they will have a vindication of TikTok, more importantly, TikTok could become the main driver in the Middle East, which should partially hurt Google as well (an unintended side effect). Now that the ties between Saudi Arabia and Indonesia are strengthening, the game changes even more. When Bangladesh is reeled in the loss for America and Wall Street is nearly complete. Egypt is already on board, so 3 out of 4 are on the side of Saudi Arabia, all that because people are running after hypes and (more often then not) asleep at the wheel. 

Perhaps a little reminder is in order. Chasing hypes is the consequence of marketing, not sales. One is wishful, the other is an achievement. China seems to have it partially worked out, how far they have come is unknown to me, but the setting that the Diplomat needed to give credence to this stage implies that the controlling powers are now scared that the stage is taken away from them. I think it is already being taken away, but we need to see the news on that (if they even report on this). 

The stage is set to the discussion on China replacing the United States and the west, but the one part that they do not report on is the impact that this economically has. You see, this would push well over $135,000,000,000 from the US and EU towards China. It seems like it will be ‘regarded’ as small fry, but the lack of these funds will definitely hurt the EU and the US, should my IP have the larger impact than the stage changes even further. Consider the UK reporting on a loss of 4 billion, the EU on 65 billion and the US 66 billion loss, how much tighter will their belts end up being? In that same setting Beijing will get the extra revenue which will open door to second and third tier revenue. 

We can argue that I am not seeing this correctly and that would be fair. But I have been right for well over a year, the writing was on the walls on this one. And consider one little extra. I came up with the IP. Not Amazon and not Google, so when you realise that they were asleep how much revenue did they miss by chasing a non existing AI horse? And Apple? Not sure where they stand, they have been minding their own niche which is fair enough. Yet when we consider that they too left (for other reasons) billions in revenue. What learning should we take from that? I say learning because when you are focussed on a niche that is part of a market and you mind your store, you are not doing anything wrong. We need to also see this. But Amazon and Google should have picked up on this. They cannot hide that failure. Merely my point of view.

Have a great day.

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June 9, 2024 · 22:58

The unspoken call

There was a call in Reuters last week. I had seen it, however I was dealing with the intelligence I was able to lay my hands on. It seems like a simple exercise but it is not. The article (at https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/un-experts-urge-all-countries-recognise-palestinian-statehood-2024-06-03/) gives us ‘UN experts urge all countries to recognise Palestinian statehood’, it seems so simple. Yet it is more complex than you think. You see that setting might be acceptable AFTER Hamas has been eradicated and the west knows this. You see Hamas is a one trick pony, it resorts to violence only ad at present it does so through Iranian guidance. If Palestinian statehood is awarded whilst Hamas is still in charge, all bet are off. The west knows this and they don’t like the centrepiece of Arabian stability. There is Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). That one trick pony (Hamas) will come with its new rule. A bigger seat at the Arabian table. When they do not get it Saudi Projects will suffer. The Line, Oxagon, Trojena, Sindalah, Red Sea International Airport, Mukaab, Qiddiya and a few more will subtly be suffering set backs, optional outright sabotage. That would cost Saudi Arabia billions. In addition UAE locations like Dubai and Abu Dhabi will be hit. It will not be some case of speculation, Iran does not like the path Arabia is on. It does not allow any path where they are an inferior setting. And they now have their claws in Hamas and Houthi forces. 

As such Hamas needs to be eradicated. It is simplest if Israel does it. It could do with the win and Saudi hands will remain clean. When Saudi Arabia and the UAE are forced to act the result will be destabilisation for years to come. All what Saudi Arabia had achieved will be for naught. The UAE will likely get a hit on tourism and travel, but there too the impact will be felt. The west likes this. They are trying to rally against China and the Arabian players are part of Brics now, catering options for China. All options are largely lost to the west. So they are now calling to include Palestine into everything. A call that is too rash for words. 

We can think all we can on Palestine, but they let Hamas in and did not do anything about Hamas for 2 decades. Hamas is under their buildings, part of their infrastructure and they have grown the next generation of Palestines to be terrorists too. The west did little to nothing, they figured that Israel would deal with that problem. Now that Israel is, the anti semitic rhetoric is taking global proportions. And the media was quiet for too long on the 120 hostages and they trivialised matters. So now that the gloves come off there will be another setting. If Israel succeeds in eradicating Hamas, statehood for Palestine could follow, yet with a few clauses. Any new Hamas interference will result in economic sanctions. In support of this other economic means will be required. Also Egypt will have to show it hands and allow Palestinians through. You know, I do not think this will happen. Egypt had identified the threat that Hamas and Palestine sets. Why do you think that they put a wall there? No one is questioning that part. It is all about Israel. 

If Israel does not succeed and statehood is awarded to Palestine, Saudi and UAE intelligence will have to beef up operations. Saudi will have a lot more riding on this and whilst there are upsides for Saudi Arabia, the risks are a lot higher. In the mean time Hamas leadership is still comfortable in Qatar and Iran has lines out to them. I wonder what will come to a close first. Israeli patience, of Saudi patience after statehood is awarded. 

In the end part of this is speculation, but the premise is sound and when Iran flexes its financial muscles towards Palestine, Saudi interests in Saudi Arabia will come under pressure, and it will resolved by giving a bigger seat to Hamas, the Iranian tool. A setting that we must avoid, the west especially. The west might no longer be a global strong power, but when chaos hit the Arabian peninsula, only the greed driven parties will see it as a plus point. The rest will suffer the consequences. And in this the media will shrug it off saying they merely reported on it. But the media will be every bit as guilty as anyone else. Even more so as they decided to not inform the public and filter events to what their stakeholders share holders and advertisers required. But the media will not report on that. I wonder why. 

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May 14, 2024 · 21:00

Bully tactics?

I know, I added a question mark, because the Reuters article leaves me (at https://www.reuters.com/technology/uae-releases-new-ai-model-compete-with-big-tech-2024-05-13/) with questions. It is nice to see that the UAE is going all in for the AI generation and the Abu Dhabi’s Technology Innovation Institute (TII) is releasing a Falcon 2 series: Falcon 2 11B, a text-based model, and Falcon 2 11B VLM based system. However the US gives them scrutiny with the statement “American or Chinese technology.” As such the US is drawing battle lines in the middle east. Considering that we see “Emirati AI firm G42 pulled out Chinese hardware and divested stakes in Chinese companies before securing a $1.5 billion investment from Microsoft that was coordinated with Washington”. The danger for the US is that so far Microsoft hasn’t been delivering anything other that mediocrity. As such should this fall over the US will lose a hell of a lot more. Considering that the UAE is now BRICS, there is a chance that Microsoft (and a decent one) that Microsoft will go into its Delay, Blame and Miscommunication protocols. On the other hand I know NOTHING about either the Chinese or the American chip in question. The better setting is that UAE’s Falcon and Meta’s Llama, have made their code publicly available for anyone to use. As such that would imply the better creation of traction with the population. We are also given “Al Bannai said he was optimistic about Falcon 2’s performance and that they were working on “Falcon 3 generation”” In the end this was the first I heard about the Falcon, so we will be getting a lot more soon enough and I should look into the TII and what else they have cooking. You see “a vision-to-language model that can generate a text description of an uploaded image” has added bonus regarding yesterday’s blog. A simple scan of the boarding pass, or luggage tag could imply that booking a new tourist could be done in seconds. I have never been able to check into a hotel in under 5-10 minutes. Take that amount and multiply it by 53 million. That is an annual saving of 505 years. And that is only one country. That and a few other blogs I have written about shows you the essential need to upgrade tourist systems. The question. Then becomes whether such a system will have an Arabic setting and the UAE will have a system that benefits the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Indonesia. All places with growing tourism at present. That is a setting not to be ignored. And the west? Well that remains the question, they will see the benefit of upgrading son enough and when Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt and others see that time benefit, they will all come on board regardless of where that chip originated. 

Time will tell who wins that caper in the end, because the $1.5 billion investment doesn’t last long when you are confronted with Delay, Blame and Miscommunication tactics (if that happens). 

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May 13, 2024 · 22:44

It’s a WOW.

There was something unreal about the news I saw in several sources. The Emirates have posted record revenue boosts. The article (source Reuters) gives us “Dubai’s Emirates airline on Monday reported full-year profit up more than 60% at 17.23 billion dirhams ($4.69 billion), comfortably beating the previous year’s 10.6 billion dirhams” 

We can ‘deduce’ from that that they almost beat their last year target by 60%, that amounts to something. Because of some options in Dubai and Abu Dhabi I tend to keep an eye on anything UAE, so this was a whopper of an achievement. Then we get the additional “The state-owned airline will pay its staff a bonus equivalent to 20 weeks’ salary” which is big. I never recall BA or KLM doing anything like it, or Air France for that matter. Good people is about keeping them happy and the prospect of 20 weeks of vacation does just that. Your quality of life goes up. Take that with a previous article I mentioned about the recruitment drive that they have going implies that the run on Emirati jobs will increase rather dramatically. Now in light of Dubai Airport where everything is large, smooth and well catered to implies that it should drive tourism even further. Dubai is already one of the largest airports in the world, currently number 2 after Atlanta Georgia, but that will not last long. There is a new wave happening and I reckon that when they upgrade their Customer Service Systems (my speculation) the formula changes even further. Consider that arrival in Dubai also triggers the Hotel, so they know that you are coming, taking one queue partially away from you. We see all these software vendor scream AI whilst bullying you into installing add-ons (Google), or Advertising you to death (Microsoft) and they probably never considered to look at the foundations of Customer Care in tourism and travel. Weird isn’t it? 

A stage where some think “it is part of the journey, part of the pain”, and no one considered that this pain could be dealt with. Should the UAE and optionally Saudi Arabia deal with that pain places like France, UK, EU and USA will have a much larger issue. It isn’t that their sights aren’t worth seeing. It becomes a setting where it takes a lot more effort to see them. The first hurdle for any tourist. And it is a simple setting of one hand feeding the other. In 5 years the tourist picture will look very different. I wonder when some will catch on to what Emirates is currently achieving. 

 

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February 21, 2024 · 23:44

Exit towards destabilisation

That is the setting that we see coming a mile away, or at least I am and that is how I see it. Today I am given ‘China condemns US veto of call for immediate ceasefire at UN’ (at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68355436) and I have a problem with this. You see, the problem with the article is that we see “China has sharply criticised the US for vetoing a United Nations (UN) Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.” Yet, the issue is more complex. There can not now, or will there ever be peace as long as Hamas exists. Hamas will never stop. Its commanders are safely in Qatar, a nation that has given Hamas almost $2,000,000,000 in financial support. Then there is Iran and they both are vying for destabilisation in the Arabian peninsula. It is a very personal view, but I believe that is the game that is being played with Hamas as puppets, right next to the Houthi forces. The problem is that we are given disinformation from nearly every side and that is hampering insight and optional progress. 

As I see it the two powers in the Middle East are the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This is not what either Qatar or Iran like. They want a much bigger seat at the table and as such there is an essential need to rely on Hamas and Houthi forces and in this Iran seems the only actor, but I am not convinced. There is no clear intelligence what Qatar is doing beside sheltering the top of Hamas, which is as far as I can tell not a crime, not even in the Arabian peninsula nations. As I stated a personal view is that it is much better that Israel deals with Hamas. You see when BRICS evolves and the table setting is clear Iran will not be happy. They want more and they will push Hamas (and others) to get a larger seat at the table of plenty and Hamas being the one trick pony they are will strike out at the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia first striking their projects. Lets be clear, I have no intelligence available that this will happen, but knowing what I do know. A one trick pony will resort to what it knows and for Hamas this is violence, and violence alone. At that point the KSA will either strike back in full or they will have to concede. Do you think that the KSA will concede against a terrorist organisation? It would be all the information that the Houthis would require to attack again and again, and Iran would show its clean hands stating “We had no hand in this” all whilst supplying weapons to both. 

This is the stage of destabilisation that China needs and that is at this point the wrong stance to have. As such my message to China’s UN ambassador Zhang Jun who gives us “Only by extinguishing the flames of war in Gaza can we prevent the fires of hell from engulfing the entire region” is “take Hamas out of the region and talks can begin”. You see the stage of Palestinian territory’s Hamas-run health ministry is the larger problem. Anything Hamas run is tainted and that needs to stop. We can cry all we want for the Palestinians, yet Hamas is part of the problem and it started on October 7th 2023. Too many are ducking that part and have been since day one of the IDF assaults. That is before we consider the larger stage that we are given that the UNRWA is accused of directly supporting Hamas. The Washington Post gave us an image of a Hamas data centre UNDER the UNRWA building. The problem is that all sides are engaged with disinformation. I cannot deny that there are voices that Israel is doing the same that Palestine are doing in that regard. Israel has had well over a week to publish all evidence via all newspapers, they did not do that, that must be considered as well. 

My largest fear is that Hamas is pushed to attack any of the KSA projects and that will start new stages of destabilisation, not to say what they will do given a chance to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. I believe that the risk is too high for any Arabian peninsula nation. In all this Hamas must go, preferably today and permanently. 

I truly believe that this is the only way that there is a future for the Palestinians and to remain with a stable middle east. The problem is that I am stating this based on information available to me and there could be issues with that. Yet there is no denying that Hamas is a problem for everyone and the sooner all others realise this, the better we all will be.

Enjoy the week. I might be away for a few days.

 

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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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