BLOGGERS ANTI SPAM BLOCK

Please someone tell me, how many of us are blocked for some anti spam nonsense.
Despite so many mails and filling out of authentication forms, not only has there been no change in BLOG status , but they have not even replied.

What next?

Just think about it...

Gulf News reports:


Trams to offer alternative transport
By Ashfaq Ahmed, Staff Reporter

Dubai: Trams will be run on Jumeirah Road to provide an alternate mode of public transport, said a senior official.

"We are planning to run trams on Jumeirah Road. It will be an extension of the tram system to be constructed on Al Sufouh Road," said Abdul Redha, Director of Planning and Design Department of the Dubai Metro at the Roads and Transport Authority.

Read it again. "Trams will run on Jumeirah Road".

That's the one we all know as Beach Road. The one that's been opened only a few weeks after the never-ending widening/beautification construction chaos.

Do they really mean "trams"?

Trams run on tracks...which are set into the road. So that must mean they're going to dig the road up again!

And we'll lose the new third lanes that were put in to cope with the increasing volume of traffic, because they'll take the trams.

The same will happen to the brand new Al Sufouh Road, which has been open only two or three months. Dig it up, lose a lane in either direction.

Hypothetical question to the authorities. Why didn't you finalise the plan a little earlier so that the tram lines could have been put in as part of the construction of the roads?

Read the full report in Gulf News

Now think about another aspect of this. Trams are on tracks and can only move in a straight line. We'll have them on the same road as Dubai's drivers. Not an ideal combination I'd have thought.

New forum

A new forum has been set up. It's called Discuss Dubai, and it's a place where people who live in, work in, or love Dubai can chat about anything from traffic to rents to where the coolest shisha tents are.

Check it out if you haven't already: www.discussdubai.com

Violent future?

Is this kind of targeted violence against expats the present or future here? Interesting the coppers had no comment. Being an expat he of course should pay his hospital bill in full immediately or face a fine and deportation.

Too much syndicated material?

Reading the Unwind insert in the Gulf News it struck me how much of the material is actually not written by Gulf News. In fact none of the articles in the insert is by Gulf News. Going through the articles we find: New York Times, The Telegraph Group, New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, New York Times, Los Angeles Times/Washington Post, Los Angeles Times/Washington Post, New York Times, Los Angeles Times/Washington Post, Christian Science Monitor, Los Angeles Times/Washington Post, New York Times, and New York Times. You get the picture ;-)

I can perhaps understand the benefit of using material from other sources once in a while, because perhaps they've covered something you couldn't, but isn't this a bit much? A whole section of a major newspaper not written by the newspaper...

Obesity - the fast-food link

A few weeks ago, I had pondered about obesity among GCC nationals. Some startling facts published today reassure me that one of the most important causes indeed is Diet.

Consider these:

- There are 315 fast food outlets in the UAE; 43 of these are McDonald’s alone!

- One single Hardee’s outlet sells 20,000 burgers per day!
- In 2004, total sales recorded for GCC fast-food market was US$ 600M! UAE’s fast food market is estimated at US$117M

- At least 26% of UAE residents eat at a fast-food joint once a week! This figure shoots up to 65% in case of Emiratis and Expat Arabs!

The facts raise a few questions which are worth pondering about:

1) Could there be a possibility of a “Food Law” that restricts the menus (or ingredients) of these fast-food joint? Knowing that obesity is high among Emiratis and fast food contribute largely to this menace, I feel this kind of law would be in best interest of all residents

2) Is there a possibility that Food companies and MNCs are requested to launch “good food habits” campaigns targeted primarily to the parents of school-going kids? Knowing the revenues generated from the Gulf food sector esp. during Ramadan and festival times, I feel it would be easier for Govt. lobbies to convince these companies.

3) Is there a possibility of restricting the growth of “unhealthy” fast-food joints in favour of “healthier” ones? Growth of Fast-food culture is fuelled by the growth of mall culture in GCC. Perhaps by looking at the menus and ingredients, a certification could be imposed as “necessary” to have a shop in the malls.

Any more ideas on this?

Cross posted here. Photo Courtesy: Gulf News

ADNOC Expands Natural Gas for Vehicles (NGV) Project

Following the successful opening of its first public Natural Gas Filling Station in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates, Adnoc Distribution has plans to expand its Natural Gas for Vehicles (NGV) project.

Today, operating natural gas vehicles typically costs 30 percent less than the same vehicle using gasoline. Engine maintenance costs for NGV’s are also significantly lower than traditional gasoline vehicles, and the life of motor oils and spark plugs is extended.

More ...

Read Also:
Adnoc Distribution is moving forward with its plans to expand the use of Natural Gas as a fuel for Vehicles (ADNOC News)
Al Emarat Alyoum Article

Culture of Void

It is a shame when an officials of - what some still - consider as first world country has nothing better to do other than deciding to lobby for and impose his own personal take on woman fashion and attire. Welcome to 1984.
It is also a shame the highest figure in a religious establishment with a checkered past publicly displays unprecedented level of ignorance and a huge and latent capacity to hate and despise other that do not share his believes. Even his lame and pathetic attempt to apologize amounted to nothing more than additional insult and a dribble of a few more ounces of ignorant and vile accusations.


Read The Rest

Creative Majlis invites applications for film, video and broadcast technology scholarships

Creative Majlis

invites applications for
100% Fee-Waiver Scholarships for

Onsite Vocational Training in Film, Video and Broadcast Technology

conducted by

Gulf Art Productions, Dubai

Purpose of the Training & Scholarships

The Creative Majlis 100% fee-waiver merit-cum-means training scholarship programme has been developed in collaboration with Gulf Art Productions to assist students and residents of UAE who are faced with financial difficulties in pursuing higher studies and acquiring vocational skills to join the workforce.

Five selected students who are unable to afford higher education in the UAE but demonstrate the right aptitude for the training course will be trained free of cost by Gulf Art Productions for a career in film, video and broadcast technology.

This initiative is a part of the 'Help Expats' project of Creative Majlis, a global network which brings together creative professionals and social service enthusiasts from around the world to contribute their skills and expertise for social causes.

The training idea was contributed in a Creative Majlis brainstorming session by members Sundaram Natarajan (from Gulf Art Productions), Ashok Kumar, Sunil Bhide, Deena Philip, Sandeep Ramanujam, Kusum Choppra and Anvar Basha.

Training Curriculum

Selected candidates will receive hands-on training in:

Professional broadcast videography

Professional sound recording and editing

Live event audio visual coverage using audio video mixer/switcher

Hardware/software system integration

Autodesk/Discreet Logic/Smoke high-end non linear editing and VFX system

Final Cut Pro on Apple Macintosh non-linear editing system

Training Duration

October 25 - December 25, 2006

Venue

Gulf Art Productions, Dubai Media City

Eligibility

XII Std, UAE resident visa

Number of Seats

Five scholarships available

Selection Criteria

Based on aptitude for film production technology, financial situation and personal interviews of applicants. Candidates facing financial hurdles in pursuing higher studies in the UAE will be given priority.

Placement

Placement assistance provided on completion of the course

How to Apply

Kindly send download the form by clicking the link below:
http://www.box.net/public/ak0ef407yf

Mail the form completely filled with all the necessary information to
Farrukh Naeem / Mayura Sandeep
Creative Majlis founders and moderators at

creativemajlis@yahoo.com

Last Date for Receiving Applications

12 October 2006, Thursday

To contribute your talent, skills and expertise to social causes visit Creative Majlis online at

http://www.creativemajlis.com

Join Creative Majlis and take part in our discussions and projects through our Ryze messageboard at:

http://creativemajlis-network.ryze.com

Dubai is soaking VAT

VAT is the new crusher soon to come on the expat population of Dubai and UAE. Although I never considered Dubai tax free as the indirect-tax list is long and lengthy. Some people might disagree with some of the things categorized as tax by me but TAX is very much alive in UAE.

Now turning to VAT; VAT always favors the corporations and piles up wealth in government safes. Now lets see, inflation is killing, rents are hiking, fuel and grocery prices sky rocketing do the authorities see any money in expat workforces' pockets to be squeezed out.

Even if there is money my question is why the tax??? What will be subsidized for the expats. Residence Visa? Medical Care? Education (which is insanely expensive)? Housing ? Unemployment Safeguards? .. What exactly??? Not to mention what ills will come with VAT if it is not properly installed with a system of check and balances as pointed out by this GN article.

Oily Quagmires

Sports Illustrated doesn't seem too happy about Dubai luring top tennis players with truck loads of cash, but more sensibly points out that players like Shahar Peer will not be permitted to play in Dubai because of her nationality.

Does it also mean an Israel-less Olympics in 2016 if Dubai or Qatar pull off an unlikely win?

Missing asterisks

Please find and bring back the missing asterisks that tell us when a new item's been posted.

That's one of the very best features of this brilliant site.

surf's up people!

hello from your israeli surfy member.. a while ago i asked what you guys knew of the surf conditions in your region.. well it seems things may be cooler than you realised..

to me this looks like very dreamy waters.. i strongly encourage you to check it out!

shalom from telaviv
and ramadan kareem

Affiliate scams

Affiliate programs can be great tools for webmasters and give us some extra cash each month. However, the affiliate programs which are offered by UAE companies have so far resulted in a) zero payments or b) have misteriously disappeared after a couple of months or even both.
Best example is Bayt.com. They had this affiliate program where they paid for every candidate you refer to their site and registers his CV there. First off, they never paid a single Dirham in commissions and now...the affiliate program is gone and their staff pretends they do not know anything about it.
Another great failure is Octopus travel in Dubai which have not paid me affiliate earnings for over a year. Yes, in both cases my earnings are well over the minimum pay-out amount!

Just wondering if anyone else is having such experiences with UAE companies??

The Scammer in Dubai

Read the story of how a scam-mail recepient replied to one of those emails that we usually send to the trash bin without a second look, constantly interacted with the sender and even paid a visit to trace the source, all the way here in Dubai.
So the Great Solomon Mupesa and his gang apparently is in business here judging by the email I received earlier. He is not picking up his mobile (+ 971 50 3434 372) though.