First the Burj Khalifa elevator stalling, then the Dubai Mall aquarium leaking, then the freak storm flooding MoE and collapsing a Global Village pavilion, and now the Union Station fire ... this has been one jinxed DSF

Got evacuated from a smoky Union Station a few hours back, but the fire seems minor ... hoping Red Line is back tomorrow morning

Heavy rains, hail and strong winds lash UAE (Gulf News)

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/environment/heavy-rains-hail-and-strong-winds-lash-uae-1.589480
In other news, "Heavy Rain Banned in United Arab Emirates" (1UP)

Haruhi * Eva

It's great that someone put effort into making this awesome clip, but I'm still gonna have nightmares for a week.

Dubai Mall partly evacuated after aquarium leak (Reuters)

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61O28120100225
Dang, Emaar sure is having a crappy month. Oh well, I suppose it could be worse.

Male orders hymen (Mohamed Al Rahhal, The Guardian)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/oct/28/artificial-hymen

...

The introduction of the artificial hymen on the Egyptian market has been forewarned by alarmists as the demise of all morality, providing women with a free-for-all opportunity for sexual promiscuity.

Yet the opposite is truer. Instead, this product allows society to bury its head in the sand and continue to engage in the hypocritical game of the "three drops of blood". It can only perpetuate the national illusion of our sexless perfection.

...

Nix v. Hedden (or Botany v. Semantics)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nix_v._Hedden
(via Wikipedia)

"Nix has been cited in three Supreme Court decisions as a precedent for court interpretation of common meanings, especially dictionary definitions."

With one eye firmly on the past, new chapter begins for East India Company

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/retailing/article7018409.ece
(via Times Online)

Starting a multimillion-pound company brings its own risks, but when you are an Indian businessman reawakening a 400-year-old company linked inextricably to Britain’s colonial rule of your homeland, you are advised to tread carefully.

Dubai Jazz Festival 2010

Due to some emergency work spill-over, I could not attend my preferred night (Feb 14th, the all-pianist night) of Network Jazz Garden this DJF. I still made it to the last night, and had a good time of it. Lots of art to check out, lots of people milling around, and great venue at the Dubai Media City Amphitheatre. The first act, Gabriel Coburger's Quintet Jean-Paul from the Hamburg jazz scene, was not really my style, but others seemed to like their show. More to my liking was the last act, led by "sax-man" Jaared (by the way, the two A's in that name remind me of Bollywood's "auspicious" naming practices). A spontaneous, engaging chap with excellent form on the woodwind, his tunes are well worth a listen. And where else can you hear a composition entitled "No Nachos for Kittens"?

How spy technologies foil old-school political killings

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/19/AR2010021905335.html
(link: Washington Post) I was just at the Bustan Rotana again last week, after over a decade. It's still got a great buffet, and is overall a comfy, peaceful place. Unless you're a Hamas arms dealer getting electrocuted and suffocated to death by international assassins.

I miss my old coffee shop ... today's cuppa was thin and weak ... why, oh, why did they close?

Special Investigative Report: Parodies Are Actually Funny

Our dedicated staff here at News Inc. together with our intrepid correspondents in the field bring you this special in-depth analysis of the parody. We spit out some factoids to keep you interested, speak to those affected by this phenomenon, ominously hint at how it could be coming to your neighborhood, and delve deep into the evidence to uncover the truth that is hidden in plain sight.

Dubai court annuls marriage to 'bearded lady'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8508077.stm
The moral of the story: don't buy your chattel off a catalog.

Focus on the Fetus

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100222/pollitt

If the law compelled women like Sarah and Bristol Palin and Pam Tebow to continue problem pregnancies, there would be no heroism in doing so--you don't get much credit for taking the difficult path if that's your only option.

Faulty elevator to blame for Burj Khalifa skydeck shutdown

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gOucaFLpVovRMeZryOK9xjOePsqwD9DOOTUG0
With spokespeople like these, who needs enemies? Closed for "maintenance and upgrade," my foot. Did seriously believe that they could permanently cover up something like this, in such a major landmark and with so many witnesses? Elevator stalling is not entirely uncommon, but by hiding the real reason for the shutdown, they only made it look worse. As with the Dubai World debt restructuring and the metro completion, denying it until it becomes impossible to deny will only erode credibility, while not helping to solve the problem itself.

The Maktoum Meme?

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&rls=com.microsoft%3Aen-us&um=1&sa=1&q=%E8%BF%AA%E6%8B%9C+%E5%85%AC%E4%B8%BB+%E7%8E%8B%E5%AD%90&btnG=Search&aq=f&oq=&aqi=&start=0
Anyone have any idea why there are blog and forum posts full of pictures of crown prince Fazza3 and the Maktoum princesses ... in the Sinosphere?!!