Tracy

Glad somebody had some facts!

As I recall, the greatest achievement of the UAE is not only "where it is at" but "where it came from". They've gone from tribal warlord/peasant to stable government/professor in just a couple of generations- a magnificent achievement when you think how long it took our countries. As I recall they have superb maternity leave provisions to ensure that motherhood does not disadvantage educated women- something we might learn from- and first class, practically free healthcare- ditto. A very large expat community thrives without being subject to suspicion or prejudice by the Muslim authorities or citizens. They've also shown that Islam is not about raping, repressing women and bombing. Acknowledging the latter might help reduce the growing tension in the Middle East.

Regards

JR