I assume Thomas Friedman intentionally wrote
this sentence in his column today:
The issue for the Palestinians is no longer about how they resist the Israeli occupation in Gaza, but whether they build a decent mini-state there - a Dubai on the Mediterranean.
He suggests that the Palestinians attempt to emulate the U.A.E. If they succeed we should be seeing the tallest skyscraper in the world in Gaza in a few years. Maybe Andre Agassi would stop by to play tennis on a helipad on the most luxurious hotel in the world.
I know many of you may think this is a crazy idea. But optimists like Friedman and I refuse to listen to you pessimists and naysayers. We know Gaza can do it! I mean, just look at the numbers:
United Arab Emirates:
"The UAE has an open economy with a high per capita income and a sizable annual trade surplus. Its wealth is based on oil and gas output (about 33% of GDP), and the fortunes of the economy fluctuate with the prices of those commodities. Since 1973, the UAE has undergone a profound transformation from an impoverished region of small desert principalities to a modern state with a high standard of living. At present levels of production, oil and gas reserves should last for more than 100 years."
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $23,200 (2003 est.)
Oil - production: 2.566 million bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - proved reserves: 80.31 billion bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production: 44.94 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 5.892 trillion cu m (1 January 2002)
Exports: $56.73 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Exports - commodities: crude oil 45%, natural gas, reexports, dried fish, dates
Now I know what you're thinking. The U.A.E. is sitting on trillions of dollars of oil money, and Gaza is just a glorified fenced-in occupied refugee zone.
But what most people don't know is that Dubai was actually built on dried fish and date money. And if they can do it on dried fish and dates, there's no reason Gaza can't do it on citrus fruits and olive-wood carvings:
Gaza Strip:
"Including West Bank, the UN estimates that more than 100,000 Palestinians out of the 125,000 who used to work in Israel, in Israeli settlements, or in joint industrial zones have lost their jobs. In addition, about 80,000 Palestinian workers inside the Territories are losing their jobs. International aid of $2 billion in 2001-02 to the West Bank and Gaza Strip prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed Finance Minister Salam FAYYAD to implement several financial and economic reforms. Budgetary support, however, was not as forthcoming in 2003."
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $600 (2003 est.)
Industries: generally small family businesses that produce textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale modern industries in an industrial center
Electricity - production: NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Israel
Exports: $603 million f.o.b., includes West Bank
Exports - commodities: citrus, flowers
Can we officially vote Friedman off the "reality-based" island now? Let him build his own man-made island paradise off of Gaza City and play tennis with Andre Agassi on the helipad there.