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The Dubai Debt Trap

economist.com

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Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#31

Post by dirtyid »

retube wrote: post #5

All I ever hear is horror stories about this place: environmental destruction, structural racism, serious abuse of human rights, culturally hyper conservative, corrupt legal system, plus it's absurdly hot. I can't believe anyone would voluntarily go there, seems like hell on earth.

It's good place to be a comfortable service expat, Dubai in particular, relatively small city with world class accoutrements. Break neck change in development and culture. Life's fine for these folks if they behave and accept relatively privileged position on pecking order.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#32

Post by 4ggr0 »

retube wrote: post #5

All I ever hear is horror stories about this place: environmental destruction, structural racism, serious abuse of human rights, culturally hyper conservative, corrupt legal system, plus it's absurdly hot. I can't believe anyone would voluntarily go there, seems like hell on earth.

Sounds like Texas to be honest. wink wink.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#33

Post by Aspos »

retube wrote: post #5

All I ever hear is horror stories about this place: environmental destruction, structural racism, serious abuse of human rights, culturally hyper conservative, corrupt legal system, plus it's absurdly hot. I can't believe anyone would voluntarily go there, seems like hell on earth.

Those horror stories are mostly propaganda amplified in echo chambers of people who have never been to Dubai.

Take this "slavery" nonsense for example. There is literally no difference between migration regime of a low-skilled worker and a highly-paid "expat". Rules are the same and they are way softer than, for example, H1B.

Millions used to be spent on smearing Dubai, so we will be hearing echoes of those "horror stories" for many years.

Other horror stories, which are not propaganda, are coming from cultural deafness. A Brit gets drunk, engages in sex on a public beach and then cries about "savage laws" when gets arrested. When in Rome, do like Romans, but some people think their view is better than anyone else's. I've seen Brits who think British laws should apply to them wherever they go.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#34

Post by alistairSH »

throw3838 wrote: post #6

Quoted post unavailable.

Citation needed. My stepson's father rarely paid support. He owes my wife and son tens of thousands of dollars. The best the courts could do was wage garnishment, but then he'd just quit his job and move across state lines.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#35

Post by jevoten »

_hhkg wrote: post #25

As a Bay Area native who moved to Abu Dhabi / Dubai roughly four years ago, I have a lot of issues with the way the UAE is portrayed across sites like Hacker News and Reddit. A lot of them are in the comments for this story, focusing on all the negatives of the country, structural racism, human rights abuse, etc and we certainly have a right to raise these things (of which I actively fight against here every day). Th…

> not requiring a local partner for business

Are you sure this is a good thing? It opens the country to foreign economic exploitation. There's a reason China required it for so long.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#36

Post by bryanrasmussen »

thematrixturtle wrote: post #17
retube wrote: post #5

All I ever hear is horror stories about this place: environmental destruction, structural racism, serious abuse of human rights, culturally hyper conservative, corrupt legal system, plus it's absurdly hot. I can't believe anyone would voluntarily go there, seems like hell on earth.

Saudi Arabia is considerably worse on every aspect, it just gets even less press.

this is sort of like saying the second tier of hell on earth is really quite nice in comparison to the ninth tier.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#37

Post by moralestapia »

CydeWeys wrote: post #22
draugadrotten wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

ProTip: "Cornelius undoubtedly committed fraud", according to the article. Never commit fraud in the UAE.

I'd expand it to never do business in the Middle East. It's just not worth it.

I was studying in Saudi Arabia (at KAUST) and my daughter got kidnapped for two weeks when I refused to comply with some work conditions they were trying to impose on me. Granted, the guys that did this were not arabs, they were two professors from Australia and the US, but still, it was weird how everybody turned their back on this as it seemed like the standard procedure to follow when one does not cooperate. WTF.

Never do business in/with the Middle East.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#38

Post by MeinBlutIstBlau »

draugadrotten wrote: post #15
baybal2 wrote: post #10

ProTip: Never ever open a credit card in the UAE, or just never deal with anybody on credit here. Cash, cash, cash only.

ProTip: "Cornelius undoubtedly committed fraud", according to the article. Never commit fraud in the UAE.

No post body was provided.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#39

Post by brthsim »

_hhkg wrote: post #25

As a Bay Area native who moved to Abu Dhabi / Dubai roughly four years ago, I have a lot of issues with the way the UAE is portrayed across sites like Hacker News and Reddit. A lot of them are in the comments for this story, focusing on all the negatives of the country, structural racism, human rights abuse, etc and we certainly have a right to raise these things (of which I actively fight against here every day). Th…

Anyone who says "We certainly have a right to raise [...] (issues with) racism, human rights abuse, etc." and immediately follows with "That being said however", is automatically not entitled to an opinion. You're clearly biased and enfatuated with the richness of the country and easy access to slavery and are more than content of looking the other way.

Re: The Dubai Debt Trap

#40

Post by hgomersall »

Aspos wrote: post #33
retube wrote: post #5

All I ever hear is horror stories about this place: environmental destruction, structural racism, serious abuse of human rights, culturally hyper conservative, corrupt legal system, plus it's absurdly hot. I can't believe anyone would voluntarily go there, seems like hell on earth.

Those horror stories are mostly propaganda amplified in echo chambers of people who have never been to Dubai. Take this "slavery" nonsense for example. There is literally no difference between migration regime of a low-skilled worker and a highly-paid "expat". Rules are the same and they are way softer than, for example, H1B. Millions used to be spent on smearing Dubai, so we will be hearing echoes of those "horror s…

Ah yes, cultural relativism! Justifying barbaric behaviour since, well, the Barbarians.
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