No, Dubai will probably not become a start-up hub: "The Top 20 Reasons Not to Move to Dubai"

http://www.escapeartist.com/efam/94/art_20_Reasons_Not_Move_to_Dubai.html

by falsestprophet • 18 years ago

43 17 18 years ago

escapeartist.com

fiaz• 18 years ago

I find it interesting that there is no mention of the Dubai "Free Zones"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_economic_zone#United_Arab_...

Most notably:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai_Internet_City

I will always maintain that because of the internet, it should have very little impact where you are physically, unless you absolutely have to network with people like pg in person. In this case, the only place to be is on an airplane jetting between locations chasing after such important people because they are not always in one place (but most likely all are somehow connected to San Fran).

falsestprophet• 18 years ago

I did not know about the free zones. They are really interesting. Thanks for sharing that.

However attractive they are, the cost of flying a team out to Dubai probably equals the cost of the average web application beta.

mwerty• 18 years ago

You'll know stuff there that you won't know here and possibly cater to a different market.

jdavid• 18 years ago

crazy awesome response post.

i do however think that if dubai wanted to fix anything on the list, it would happen with dictators speed.

Tichy• 18 years ago

Thing is, it sounds like the classic dictator problems: bureaucrats try to solve problems of complex systems top down (like traffic, urban development), which is just not possible. So I doubt a dictator would come up with a good solution.

delackner• 18 years ago

Despite the old saying that the trains always run on time, just about everything else seems to go to hell.

Note Singapore is one of the few modern examples I can think of of a dictatorship that turned out pretty well. Of course the plain-clothes police everywhere probably have something to do with why in two solid days of counting I never saw a single person laugh or grin. I didn't even notice that it had been happening until crossing over to Kuala Lumpur I was struck by seeing laughing and smiling people.

r7000• 18 years ago

Martin Newland is "starting up" a new well-financed (naturally) English-language newspaper in the Emirates (http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/dec/23/1).

Web-startups probably don't mop enough cash fast enough to be interesting yet. ??

jawngee• 18 years ago

No weed. No move.

avinashv2• 18 years ago

There's weed everywhere. Here, too.

daniel-cussen• 18 years ago

The ad at the end was a little off.

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avinashv2• 18 years ago

I spent 20 years in Dubai, and when this article came up on other sites months ago, it urked me how many mistakes there were. I'll address the glaring ones.

1. No, that's not true. Taxi drivers usually have a <i>great</i> sense of direction and locations. It takes time to get used to giving directions by landmarks, but that isn't always necessary. Houses are usually in areas where it is easy to reference the community, street, house number etc. Apartment buildings have names, and if you name the location, street and building you're fine. I've never been "expected to draw a map". Mail delivery to your door is not impossible.

2. Got nothing here, unfortunately. Etisalat (the oldest and primary ISP) does do this, but mine (my parents still live there) does not. I speak to my parents using Skype, I can play poker online and since the ISP is privatized (Etisalat is not), they aren't bound to obey the Islamic laws that make Etisalat filter content through a proxy.

3. There isn't sand everywhere. It is in a desert, but if you walk around you won't get covered in sand. It is incredibly hot though, yes. But so is Texas.

4. First, the author complains that there aren't enough plants. When the government solves this problem, then it becomes an issue of water consumption. All water is desalinated, and the government foots the bill. By the way, Dubai has more greenery than Manhattan.

5. I don't know where this author went, but of course there is poverty and so there are going to be poorly maintained toilets. In 20 years in Dubai, I never had to use anything that wasn't a proper, Western-style toilet. Oh, and Burj Al-Arab is a 5-star hotel.

6. There were issues with labor exploitation, and I can't argue that this isn't a problem. Unless you're working in construction or something along those lines, this isn't going to affect you. I have never met anybody (neither has anybody I know) that has had their passport taken from them for a decade.

7. That is true. Dubai is very expensive. But this isn't a secret: http://www.citymayors.com/economics/expensive_cities2.html

8. This is just idiocy: break the law and you will be fined. I actually find the way the city of Dubai manages intersections very well. Everything is clearly marked out, if you can turn on red then there will be a separate lane to do so that will actually turn off. Cops are much more ubiquitous than claimed; "weeks" driving around without seeing one? Bah, maybe in your driveway.

9. And now we're insulting people on their religious beliefs? If someone wants to dress like that, let them. You are under no obligation to do so. In the summer, I walk around in shorts and sandals. 15% or so of the population is local, and I guarantee you not everyone dresses like that.

10. Maybe people stare at her because she is hot. Or extremely ugly. Or because she is a white girl who for some reason thinks she should be wearing a full burkha. As I already mentioned, around 15% of are local, so it's not like they haven't seen a white girl before.

11. No, it isn't. Prostitutes are illegal. There are also prostitutes in New York, London, Tokyo, etc. etc.

12. No. Alcohol can only be sold for on-site consumption at bars and restaurants in hotels and some clubs. To buy it for yourself at home, you have to go to government-approved stores (African & Eastern is the company that has the distribution rights) and buy from them. Yes, it is expensive. Canada does this in much the same way (government stores that are more expensive than they would be in, for example, the United States). The liquor license isn't needed to consume alcohol in your house, it is needed to buy alcohol.

13. One by one: for rent: I've never heard of this, and I can't attest to it's accuracy, as my dad owns his own business. For telephones: I think this is wrong. I have friends who have walked into stores and gotten their own phones. In fact, there are special cheaper tourist packages that have shorter expiry dates etc. Satellite? Again, can't speak for sure, but I am going to say this is wrong, just as I've never heard it.

14. There is no road where the speed limit is 160 kmph (100 mph) in the United Arab Emirates. Kids are kids. Kids in Dubai aren't more prone to be stupid.

15. "Litte business"? No. Weekends are what they are for religious reasons--Friday has the religious signifance in Islam that Sunday does in Christianity.

16. Dubai has MBC2, which was, at conception, the world's only free-to-air movie channel. I've watched lots of big-name movies on there. As with all other channels. Television is syndicated late for the most part because American networks don't feel that the UAE is a market worth giving premiers to. As for commercials...come on. If a show is 42 minutes long and is put in an hour slot, the time has to come from somewhere. Commercials repeat regularly--this isn't a problem only with Dubai--because companies bought two slots. That's it.

17. This is because the author is unfamiliar. I've mentioned what I think about the roads already.

18. Are we back on taxi drivers again? There is some definite racism by a white person here against people who are normally from in and around India.

19. Speeding is a major problem, yes. I'll be the first to say that I won't be surprised if Sheikh Zayed Road has the highest per-capita death rate on the planet of any single road. 30% tinting is allowed to anyone, local women can get much higher because they can take off their burkhas in the car to drive with unhindered vision but with the security that their face won't be seen by a man that isn't their husband.

20. Touché.

There's about 50 words of <i>real</i> complaint spread into 20 link bait points. Hilariously enough, the author mentions "tax breaks, multi-cultural environments, and beautiful buildings" which to me, are incredible. There are few countries, nay, cities, in the Middle East that are as welcoming and appealing to expatriates. They should take her visa away.

jamescoops2• 18 years ago

>>6. There were issues with labor exploitation, and I can't argue that this isn't a problem. Unless you're working in construction or something along those lines, this isn't going to affect you. I have never met anybody (neither has anybody I know) that has had their passport taken from them for a decade.

Well hey unless you hang out with penniless migrant workers you're not likely to hear of it are you?!

kennon• 18 years ago

From my experience living abroad (a couple years in Central Asia), a lot of American expats try to take America with them when they move to a foreign country. Suffice to say, most, like this author, become incredibly cynical as a result. Yes, local culture can be infuriating. And it's true that the hypocrisy of the state can seem more glaring when it's backed by arbitrary religious fiat. But come on-- complaining about local dress, taxi driver hygiene, or the lack of sweet, sweet cable tv?

Yet the author's original message is actually a good one. Life in the US is pretty damn good, and that's why we all pay a premium for it. There's usually a reason why a given place has a lower cost of living-- you pay for it in other ways instead.

mynameishere• 18 years ago

I can't conceive of a single reason to move to Dubai. I would seriously rather live in a shanty in the middle of Appalachia.

rapind• 18 years ago

This is an advertisement for her ebook (insider's guide thingy). Trying to establish herself as an expert. Marketing huey. Annoys me that I'm voting simple by commenting.

jamescoops2• 18 years ago

here's another reason http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/arti...

you can get four years for 0.05 of a g of cannabis

domnit• 18 years ago

Thanks for the reply, avinashv--I almost took the article at face value. I should know by now to be wary of "Top n Xs" articles. Good to have both sides, anyhow.

George Saunders has a great study of Dubai in his essay collection, the Braindead Megaphone. He mostly focuses on the exaggerated class division between guest workers and the rich natives. The book is worth picking up for the other essays, too, but certainly if you're interested in an intelligent Western perspective on Dubai. He was there as a tourist and journalist, not a resident, though.

No, Dubai will probably not become a start-up hub: "The Top 20 Reasons Not to Move to Dubai"

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