What Dubai could teach the US about capitalism

The furore over the prospect of Dubai Ports World taking control of US ports is misguided, says investment banker J Henderson in the Ludwig von Mises Institute newsletter. The United Arab Emirates is exactly the kind of ally that the US should be cultivating, not alienating. In fact, Dubai could teach the US a thing or two about capitalism...

The uproar over Dubai Ports World's planned purchase of franchises at several American port facilities continues. Being owned by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is enough to make the company a subject of demagoguery in Washington, DC. The nation's capital is a place where people seem unable to comprehend the profit motive. And Dubai Ports could not possibly build a profitable global ports operation if it had a reputation for lax security.

The instigators of the current furor, captive to anti-Arab stereotypes, seem entirely ignorant of reality in the city of Dubai, the second largest emirate within the UAE. As I discovered on a recent trip to Dubai, the city is the furthest thing one could imagine from being a hotbed of Islamic extremism. Dubai is rapidly evolving into the leading financial and commercial center in the Middle East.

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