PARAPLEXED

A friend tells me by email that the Paranormal Jockey's Pub is temporarily(?) closed. He too is out of the country and has no more information available. As this is an Important Matter, I thought I'd conduct my own investigation, by texting a couple of numbers that happened to be lodged in my mobile. My first respondent, from China, seemed a little vague: hello darling i do not bar when time open i miss u x x . Nevertheless, it appears to confirm bar closure. My second, from Kyrgyzstan, was a little more informative: hi honey yes closed 1 week ago. too much problems with the girl and the drunk man bollox . I should point out that Carina frequently appends bollox as an expletive, so a comma after drunk man may be safely assumed. So, it would appear that the Para is under some form of closure order, but of what duration, I still don't know. If anyone on the spot can fill in the details, please post a comment. Postscript: The closure was short-lived. Normal service was re...

A few of us were talking the other night about Qatar's long term game plan and the conclusion we came to was that it's certainly not obvious what it is. The city reconstruction goes on apace and for the next few years we'll all be putting up with the dust and noise that goes with it. But thinking ahead to when it is finished, who is it all for? Who's going to live here? The 180 thousand locals don't need a city big enough for 2 million. And the huge numbers of ex-pats won't be hanging around when the work is finished. They're not trying for Dubai-style tourism (or if they are, they need to try harder!) and no amount of museums and sports events will bring people in sufficient numbers. One almost wonders if the game plan is simply permanent demolition and reconstruction on a twenty year cycle. If so, it could just about work but the prospect could hardly be more depressing. I wonder if anyone knows what's really going on? Either way, one real Pantheon kno...