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The one detail I found most interesting is the historical point: "The executives I met all showed pictures of their youth, reminding me that just a few decades

by sammyo 17y ago

The one detail I found most interesting is the historical point: "The executives I met all showed pictures of their youth, reminding me that just a few decades ago, their country was nothing more than sand, tents, and simple stone." The idea the "capitalism/democracy/natural resources" is what make the USA a world power is a limited analysis. There are huge cultural and social forces that can not just be bought. He suggested 'human capital' would have been the best investment, but it is only princes that are provided with advanced education and it's likely only a few of those are interested in slogging through the trenches of starting a real business. Educate non-royal-family citizens and you will be financing some type of revolution, not something the Dubai power structure would ever allow I suspect.

garply 17y ago
This quote stuck out at me and I found myself revisiting the article just to find it. Here's the thing in full: "The executives I met all showed pictures of their youth, reminding me that just a few decades ago, their country was nothing more than sand, tents, and simple stone. Maybe they held on to the pictures to impress upon me the great progress Dubai has made, maybe they held on to them to reassure themselves that life would go on even if they had to return someday to their tents. Personally, I took the pictures as a reminder that the men running Dubai’s gargantuan companies had been given an upbringing that could not prepare them corporate management." I couldn't help but think that if he had built something comparably substantial in his life, he would know that the executives are showing him the pictures out of pride for their accomplishments. And what does it mean that their upbringing couldn't prepare them for corporate management? Why shouldn't the people who transformed their country from sand, tents, and stone into skyscrapers be able to manage corporations?

by sammyo 17y ago

garply 17y ago

This quote stuck out at me and I found myself revisiting the article just to find it. Here's the thing in full: "The executives I met all showed pictures of their youth, reminding me that just a few decades ago, their country was nothing more than sand, tents, and simple stone. Maybe they held on to the pictures to impress upon me the great progress Dubai has made, maybe they held on to them to reassure themselves that life would go on even if they had to return someday to their tents. Personally, I took the pictures as a reminder that the men running Dubai’s gargantuan companies had been given an upbringing that could not prepare them corporate management." I couldn't help but think that if he had built something comparably substantial in his life, he would know that the executives are showing him the pictures out of pride for their accomplishments. And what does it mean that their upbringing couldn't prepare them for corporate management? Why shouldn't the people who transformed their country from sand, tents, and stone into skyscrapers be able to manage corporations?