For those promoting the "Dubai is the future" theory

Uh huh. Sounds pretty dreamy. I'm sure that every major Western business will rush to make this their new international headquarters. Let's see how things shake out after it's hit with this recession and then let's talk. Who could ever imagine the future going horribly wrong in such an environment? I hear the stock market and executive families like instability and cultural wars like this.

A Dubai judge on Thursday ordered a British couple jailed for three months for engaging in sex on a public beach this summer.

Judge Hamdi Mustafa Abu el-Khair sentenced Michelle Palmer and Vince Acors to three months in jail, a fine of $350 and deportation from Dubai after serving their sentence. The two defendants were not in court to hear the verdict their lawyer on Thursday vowed to appeal.

The clash of cultures between residents and the foreigners who flock here to work and play came to a head in the trial of Palmer and Acors, who were accused of having intercourse in public after meeting hours earlier at an all-you-can-drink champagne brunch.

I was shocked at how casual many foreign (especially British) visitors were in Egypt when I visited last year. Even in a Western society, going to a museum wearing beachwear (as I saw at the Egyptian Museum or tourist sites) is not proper attire, especially in a conservative society whether that's in the Middle East, Asia or anywhere else. It's ignorant and shows a complete lack of courtesy but it's hardly worthy of prison. In this Dubai case, obviously this couple lacked a lot of common sense but the sentence just might be a bit over the top. Nobody goes to Dubai thinking about the future though. It's a place to party, live excessively and get tax breaks for a year or two, not for a lifetime.

Remember this the next time the Republicans or Wall Street starts crying about how tough America is for business and how they're all going to leave if they don't get everything they want. That's what they had after decades of lobbying Washington, London, Paris and Frankfurt. If they want to go, fine. Halliburton is already there so you will have friends. Go ahead and live it up in Dubai but nobody is going to be interested in their stories like this when they get into trouble.