You know, ignorance is a beautiful thing. People can make mistakes on their own, but it takes a group to be REALLY ignorant. For instance, look at how al-Qaeda in Iraq wants to make a Muslim utopia by ******* civilians and bombing mosques. Do you remember seeing the footage of the Pakistani mob burning the US-based KFC franchise because of the cartoon in a DANISH newspaper? That seemed to be the pinnacle of ignorance, that is, until the news came out about the pending Dubai Ports World (DPW) acquisition. Never before have I seen people so irate over what, in any other circumstance, would be a routine business maneuver. Now, before everyone collectively clutches their chests, gasps, and starts calling me “Osama,” I would like to say that I have researched both sides of this argument, and there are some very important facts that should be stated and understood- even in the lofty heights of government.
The United Arab Emirates is NOT a terrorist state. Yes, they did recognize the Taliban, as did the Saudis and our new friends in Pakistan, but was the UAE a major funding source or direct supporter of the Taliban? No. We also know that there were 2 Sept. 11th hijackers from the UAE; however, using that as a reason for blocking business dealings is like saying that you won’t do business with anyone in California because that’s where the John Walker Lindh (i.e. the American Taliban) is from. Speaking of this, how are we handling business deals with Saudi Arabia, who cultivated 15 of the hijackers? Just keep the oil flowing boys….
As far as port security is concerned, I would like to point out that the majority of port security is handled by the Coast Guard, other various federal agencies, and the collaborated efforts of the private sector. Furthermore, Dubai Ports World operates ports in Europe, Asia, The Middle East, and Latin America, as well as hosting more than 3800 companies. Face facts, as far as business is concerned, they can’t afford to be linked to terrorism, and if there were any links, I believe it is safe to say that terrorists would’ve already been very eager to “showcase their abilities.” So, I’m sorry, there won’t be ships filled with suicide bombers heading up the Mississippi River to **** us all.
Finally, let’s not forget the patriotic argument that these are American Ports and they should be operated by Americans. Sure it makes sense, when there’s no sensible, logical, or economic reason to restrict the sale of port management, let’s rely on pure and blind patriotism. In a way, I guess that it is inspiring to see that Americans want to see our ports controlled by our companies; unfortunately, we’re about 25-30 years too late. Quoting Jessica Holzer of Forbes.com, ”Hamstrung by higher taxes, regulation and a law that requires all U.S. flag-carriers to be manned by American crews, the American merchant marine gave way to its foreign rivals. Powerful unions and strict labor laws ensure that American crewmen cost several times their foreign counterparts. While foreign flag-carriers go largely untaxed, U.S. shippers were levied at the 35% corporate tax rate until two years ago.” In essence, the only reason that this is a problem for us is because we made this problem ourselves.
So, all that being said, can we finally start to be honest with ourselves? This wasn’t an issue when a British company was operating the ports nor would this be an issue if it was any other of our non-Arab allies; however, the majority of Americans have become xenophobic about anything involving an Arab country, even those with whom we’re allied. Regardless of how many Americans, British, or Australians work for DPW’s management team (an American is their COO as well) and the fact that DPW’s only financial link to the UAE government was on their initial start-up (there has been virtually no interaction between the two for the last 20+ years), the majority of our people and government, remaining scared and uninformed, are putting forth any reason to undermine this deal. The DPW/Peninsular and Oriental deal has had more to do with public opinion, unwarranted fear, and unnecessary government intrusion, than with the dealings of businesses, which is the only basic motive behind the deal. A potentially beneficial business decision in free-market capitalistic economy that is being hamstrung by an emotion and blatantly blocked by an over-bearing government who is pandering to people’s fear for the sole purpose of votes….now that’s REAL ignorance.
-Well, there it is..I hope that you enjoy it. :wave2: :crash:
The United Arab Emirates is NOT a terrorist state. Yes, they did recognize the Taliban, as did the Saudis and our new friends in Pakistan, but was the UAE a major funding source or direct supporter of the Taliban? No. We also know that there were 2 Sept. 11th hijackers from the UAE; however, using that as a reason for blocking business dealings is like saying that you won’t do business with anyone in California because that’s where the John Walker Lindh (i.e. the American Taliban) is from. Speaking of this, how are we handling business deals with Saudi Arabia, who cultivated 15 of the hijackers? Just keep the oil flowing boys….
As far as port security is concerned, I would like to point out that the majority of port security is handled by the Coast Guard, other various federal agencies, and the collaborated efforts of the private sector. Furthermore, Dubai Ports World operates ports in Europe, Asia, The Middle East, and Latin America, as well as hosting more than 3800 companies. Face facts, as far as business is concerned, they can’t afford to be linked to terrorism, and if there were any links, I believe it is safe to say that terrorists would’ve already been very eager to “showcase their abilities.” So, I’m sorry, there won’t be ships filled with suicide bombers heading up the Mississippi River to **** us all.
Finally, let’s not forget the patriotic argument that these are American Ports and they should be operated by Americans. Sure it makes sense, when there’s no sensible, logical, or economic reason to restrict the sale of port management, let’s rely on pure and blind patriotism. In a way, I guess that it is inspiring to see that Americans want to see our ports controlled by our companies; unfortunately, we’re about 25-30 years too late. Quoting Jessica Holzer of Forbes.com, ”Hamstrung by higher taxes, regulation and a law that requires all U.S. flag-carriers to be manned by American crews, the American merchant marine gave way to its foreign rivals. Powerful unions and strict labor laws ensure that American crewmen cost several times their foreign counterparts. While foreign flag-carriers go largely untaxed, U.S. shippers were levied at the 35% corporate tax rate until two years ago.” In essence, the only reason that this is a problem for us is because we made this problem ourselves.
So, all that being said, can we finally start to be honest with ourselves? This wasn’t an issue when a British company was operating the ports nor would this be an issue if it was any other of our non-Arab allies; however, the majority of Americans have become xenophobic about anything involving an Arab country, even those with whom we’re allied. Regardless of how many Americans, British, or Australians work for DPW’s management team (an American is their COO as well) and the fact that DPW’s only financial link to the UAE government was on their initial start-up (there has been virtually no interaction between the two for the last 20+ years), the majority of our people and government, remaining scared and uninformed, are putting forth any reason to undermine this deal. The DPW/Peninsular and Oriental deal has had more to do with public opinion, unwarranted fear, and unnecessary government intrusion, than with the dealings of businesses, which is the only basic motive behind the deal. A potentially beneficial business decision in free-market capitalistic economy that is being hamstrung by an emotion and blatantly blocked by an over-bearing government who is pandering to people’s fear for the sole purpose of votes….now that’s REAL ignorance.
-Well, there it is..I hope that you enjoy it. :wave2: :crash:
