Cows, Pigs & Human Dung: The City Stands Tall

Tuesday, 17 March 2026

The City Stands Tall

Thank you, UAE. Thank you, Dubai. For the excellent job in protecting us from the missiles, and drones for the past weeks. For keeping us safe, and letting us go about our normal life as much as possible. For your sacrifice, restraint and wisdom, despite the destruction around the country, in not getting us dragged further into this ridiculous, unnecessary war, started by outsiders who have no regard at all for the people living here. I stand with you and salute you. I pray that there will be no more deaths, no more injuries, no more destruction and that this war will soon end.

I wish and pray that some wisdom will come to that President who started this stupid war (yes, the same one who covets the Nobel PEACE Prize. He can shove it up his arse now). May he go back to MAGA, and not poke his finger where it doesn’t belong, and cause misery for the thousands affected. May the world have mercy on the poor, normal Americans who suddenly find themselves to be the ‘enemies’ of so many people in the world, just because of some daft act of their MAGA-leaders.

I wish and pray that Iran’s leaders will have a change of heart, and a realization, that they are not going to ‘win’ anything, with those outdated revolutionary ways of the theirs. May they realize that without the support of their populace, no regime can stand in this modern age. May they channel their resources and efforts into enriching their people’s lives to ‘buy’ back their loyalty, instead of putting money and resources into silly weapons and militias that do nothing for their people, or their country. (C’mon be real, how can your ragtag, under sanctions since forever country-machinery compete with 2 of the most technologically-advanced and rich countries in the world in terms of weapons. Look at the world now, the way ahead is intellectual and economic strength, which is where your people are important, and Iranians aren’t stupid).

I wish and pray that Israel will get benevolent leaders of unity and reconciliation (like Mandela or Gandhi), not hate-spewing bigots like Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir, Smotrich, Katz, …and who else? Who makes things worse, not better. Or, make these hardliners have a change of heart. Don’t they know that this Mafia mentality of eliminating all your rivals, will only breed a new generation of rivals who will take you down when you are off-guard, and continue this vicious cycle of hate and vengeance? May Israel learn to live in peace and harmony with its neighbours, and help build a separate and independent Palestinian state that is free from terrorists, insurgents and extremists. And may all its neighbours, and detractors across the world accept and embrace Israel, and forgive it for the wrongs that it has done.

I wish and pray that International Law will prevail, to prevent the fiasco that has been going on for the past few years from happening ever again. I don’t want the world to go back to the age of empires, when the powerful could do as they like at the expense of the weaker countries without any fear of retribution (yes, that includes Russia). May the perpetrators of the war and its atrocities be brought to justice, and may there be help and hope for the countless people affected.

I have so many wishes and prayers for this region and the world, for Palestine, for Lebanon, etc, but I can’t put them all down in this post (I have work to do as well, OK?) Ultimately, I pray that the warring parties in this stupid war will find a way to deescalate and return the region back to its peaceful norm, as soon as possible, and let diplomacy take over to make this region a haven of peace and cooperation.

Ending this post with pictures of the resilient city of Dubai, my home, our home. Stand strong, stay strong. Happy Eid Al Fitr everyone! Eid Mubarak. Selamat Hari Raya.

Dubai Business Bay, from the Paramount Midtown Hotel’s infinity pool deck, Aug 2025

That deliberately misshapen building in the middle of this photo is the Opus Building, which was one of the many offices yours truly happened to work in… Sadly, this ‘office-hopping’ routine still hasn’t stopped, sigh…

A street view inside Business Bay – This one features the UBora Tower on the right (yeah, I found that out, now, when doing this post), Feb 2024

The Burj Khalifa on a cloudy night, Jan 2024

An aircraft takes off from Dubai’s International Airport, Jan 2025 – I sure hope normal flight schedules resume – so many people’s travelling plans were disrupted!