The weather is great in Qatar. Last time I was in pain from the heat: it was around 130 or so. The motto of architecture here is big and huge: and no attempt is made to reflect local or regional styles or taste. But the royal court is very nice (from the outisde that is, and I would not know about the inside). Malls are very "in" around Gulf: I was thinking that Malls (outdoor Malls as in Stanford or Beverly Hills or Monterety) may have started in the Middle East. I am thinking about Isfahan during the Safavid Dynasty: how there were those specialized stores and people would stroll and shop, etc. From what I have heard, things have not changed much since I left in US: Bush is still making progress in Iraq, and the wars on terrorism continue. Ralph Nader is really angering a lot of Democrats: but is there not an irony when you hear liberal democrats pleading with Nader to maintain and perpetuate the two-party system of the US? Now, I know the arguments, and with this election I for the first time will say that an alternative to Bush will make a difference, domestically and internationally, but I will not be casting a ballot, unless Homer Simpson runs for office (he ran a few times, my favorite: when he was in charge of sanitation in the city). Globalization is when you see the same channels in your hotel in Qatar, London, and in the US.