Supply your own punchline. One might be … “or are you just excited to be headed to Dubai?” Another wacky story out of our neck of the woods. And here it is, in the pages of The National: A man was arrested in New Delhi just ahead of boarding a flight headed for the UAE. […]

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Perhaps the craziest part of this story is … I know how it could happen. It is astonishing, on its face. The Dubai police write around 2,000 traffic tickets per month for “reckless backwards driving,” as noted in this story in The National. And, yes, that’s fairly nutty. About 70 tickets a day for people […]

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The story goes that the outlaw John Dillinger was asked why he robbed banks. He allegedly replied: “Because that’s where the money is.” That pretty much is the answer 7 million expatriates in the United Arab Emirates might give, if asked why they are in the UAE.

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Why am I doing this? It’s like the story a drug addict might tell. “I tried it once when I was young, and didn’t like it … and couldn’t afford it. Then I tried it again when I was older and, well, I guess I’m hooked.” Have you any met any serious fantasy football player […]

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Insults are a serious matter, here in the UAE. Walter Zenga can vouch for that. His wallet is 2,000 dirhams lighter because he indulged himself in a fit of pique aimed at a local reporter. The UAE is one of the handful of places in the world where a major sports figure can insult a […]

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The United Arab Emirates in many ways resembles another “United” country — the United States. And perhaps the most direct correlation is the Emirati preference for the same sort of fast food and rich food that many Americans also enjoy. To it: The Cheesecake Factory.

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This was a nice day in the realm of international sports for the UAE. An Emirati shooter won gold and a wheelchair sprinter won silver in the London Paralympic Games today. How big a deal is that?

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Beginning to think this guy is like chewing gum on the UAE sneaker. Impossible to get rid of. Diego Maradona, who fairly conclusively demonstrated, again, during the 2011-12 UAE Pro League season that he cannot effectively coach the game he played with such flair, was fired in June by the Dubai club Al Wasl … […]

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Every now and then I get on my marching band freak. I love marching bands. I may have mentioned that. Generally, I love the USC marching band. The Spirit of Troy, as the kids in sunglasses and plumed helmets prefer to be known. I would never say they are America’s best marching band. They are […]

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I cling to this memory. It isn’t a fantasy. It happened. In a country that always feels as if it is on the wrong side of the microwave door, I find myself indulging in this reverie. The day I wore a sweater.

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