Ray

There are certain places that I would like to visit before I die, Tokyo, Mumbai and Havana among them. But, like grilled cheese sandwiches, I don't travel very well and there are many more places that I would rather die than visit. And, for many years, the city that has topped this list has been Dubai.


http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/com...cle5267814.ece

Eva

Second line down:
'From The TimesDecember 2, 2008

Why I'd rather die than visit Dubai
Essentially it is Las Vegas without the sex and gambling........

Hardly investigative journo IMHO.

Roadking

Interesting piece...for a guy who has never been to Dubai. Many of his points are valid but most of his assumptions, IMO, are not.

Still, gives more ammo for a good winge.

W10

Which assumptions are wrong. I got this...

Dubai has no class or taste, is uncultured with most people spending time in malls, is discriminatory and unethical, deluded and intolerrent.

I think that can all be safely levelled at Dubai. It's just not very original...

Roadking

I would now say that British tourists and emigrants to Dubai also:

1. Have no taste; I consider myself and family to be rather tasteful. Just because we choose to live in Dubai does not mean we are tasteless ignorants.

2. Are deeply uncultured. Same point.

3. Are unethical; I have very strong work and personal ethics.

4. Are deluding themselves about the city's tolerance. No delusions here. I think we all know the reality, but that reality is somewhere between the Paradise portrayed in Holiday magazines and the nightmare put forward by the tabloids. His examples also ignore the fact that it's zero tolerance to drugs, something I have no issue with at all.

His comments about Dubai may be valid, but his assumptions about the people here are not.

The Dean

So if it did have sex and gambling, he would rather visit Dubai than die???

So - he's a sex and gambling addict............ non?

W10

Wow...thats pretty literal of you.

I don't think he was attempting to claim that every single person in Dubai fitted this description to a tee. If you take personal exception to it, then you must spend a lot of time being angry at newspaper articles...

I'd say - in my humble opinion - that he is spot on about Dubai, and about more than 70% of its residents.

NorthernLad

Dubai is far from perfect, but he'd rather go on a cycling tour of Sunderland than visit here? Crackers.

Eva

No. I think he doesn't know the real DXB.
imho:

1.There is a sex industry

2. Most of the murders in the Labour Camps are attributed to gambling

Both in the main go unreported because of press sanitization ergo its unsurprising he doesn't know of these things if his research is limited to
Verbatim only reading every article blah blah.
It follows therefore from the content of his report he believes everything he reads and is incapable of objectivity.
He also has a preference for cycling in Sunderland!!!!!

W10

It's an op/ed piece. Not a piece of investigative journalism...

Eva

Its a slow news day piece and tedious.

W10

No. It's a comment piece. He is a regular columnist. This just happens to be about his opinion about Dubai

It's his opinion. It's not supposed to be a piece of investigative reporting.

I think the clue is in the URL and the crumbtrail...

Home...Comment...Columnists...Sathnam Sanghera

Blue Cat

was just going to say that NL!!! Jesus she must be a right thicket

Eva

Shouldn't facts still factor into that.Doesn't his credibility matter?
he's wrong about some of his detail.He's entitled to think as you do his piece
applies to 70% of Dxb residents.Tell me,please, are you one of that 70?

Eva

She???