----- Original Message -----
From: "Tim May" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "wayne clerke" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, February 08, 2000 10:45 PM
Subject: Re: United Arab Emirates - trade free zone for e-commerce.
>
> At 9:30 AM -0800 2/8/00, wayne clerke wrote:
> >I thought this was worthy of cypherpunks' attention. Islam may be
> >able to come up with something worthwhile yet ...
> >
> >I particularly liked the attitude:
> >Q10. Have you allocated a budget for the Dubai Internet City?
> >A10. We will invest as much as necessary. But the total outlay will run
into
> >a couple of hundred million dollars over the next couple of years.
> >
> >Hype aside, I think they are serious about this.
> >You'd probably only need one person on site to run a business from here.
> >
>
> Sounds like just the place to run my Internet Porn site out of. With a
> sideline of selling Salman Rushdie's books.
>
> Oh, you mean Islam and Islamic nations have a very, very long list of
> things they don't allow, things they execute people for selling?
>
> Never mind.
Heh. Tim is always so damn quick to jump down my throat. I guess it's
the 'rag-head' address :-)
I thought the site was interesting anyway. I'm not proposing anyone set up
a porn site (though I don't see why you wouldn't set up, say, the money side
of it there). These free zones (there are another two which have been
operating for some time in the UAE already) get preferential treatment.
An Internet version of the existing physical ones seems quite useful.
I had in mind something more like off-shore/internet banking and other
businesses where one would rather not be in a 'Western' jurisdiction,
or pay 'Western' taxes, or jump through 'Western' regulatory hoops for.
Sure, there will be regulations, but in the usual style of these places,
it would be easy to stay a step ahead of them.
There would be no shortage of skilled people to run your 'box' on-site
for you anyway.
I doubt if the UAE would ever invade the shores of your country to come get
you either. Or do you think maybe the USA govt. would send you off to a
trial
in the UAE? If worse came to worst, you may wish to avoid travelling to the
UAE, but I don't think it's on the top of anyone's list anyway.
I don't know the statistics (hard to get from these countries anyway) but I
think there's a lower chance of people getting executed in the UAE than in
the USA. Perhaps you're thinking of Saudi Arabia? Not the same place
you know. Keep your eye on Dubai, I think it might impress even you
sometime rather soon, given your free-market ideals. It already stands
out in this respect in this region of the world.
I won't be making an argument out of this. My purpose was merely to
bring it to the attention of a group who might have an interest, theoretical
or otherwise.
> --Tim May
regards,
Mail: wayne clerke <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Voice: +971 506 43 4853
PGP key id: AEB2546D F/P: D663D11EDA19D74F5032DC7EE001B702
PGP key id: 57AA1C10 F/P: 9926BF8918B7EB3623A7 AFA46572C5B857AA1C10
If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much space.
