If you use social media, chances are you will have seen it before.
The five little words are often used in a tongue-in-cheek fashion, whether protesting an act of idiocy, deriding a public figure or ridiculing grand assertions of intellect.
Yes, we're talking about the "we live in a society" meme.
The seemingly profound phrase is, more often than not, accompanied by a photo of The Joker, one of Gotham City's most notorious villains, whether immortalised in cartoon form or taking the shape of one of the many actors who have portrayed him through the years.
However, the popular phrase has long been a misattribution – until now.
It actually stems back to a 1991 episode of Seinfeld, as spoken by George Costanza when he's pipped to the post at a payphone by a queue jumper.
Yet, in recent years, it has become intrinsically linked with the Joker, portrayed by the likes of Heath Ledger and Joaquin Phoenix on the big screen.
The character is believed by many to be behind the term, yet the antagonist has never uttered the words on film or in print.
However, a newly released trailer for Zack Snyder's cut of Justice League includes a meta, self-aware use of the phrase.
Towards the end of the two-minute clip, Jared Leto's Joker appears, before uttering: "We live in a society ... where honour is a distant memory."
The simple, blink-and-you'll-miss it inclusion sent fans into a tailspin.
"The entire development of Zack Snyder's Justice League was just a years-long prank to put 'We live in a society' into a trailer," one Twitter user joked.
Even actor Leto gave a nod to the in-joke, replying to the official teaser post on Sunday with the comment: "We live in a society."
The phrase had even sparked a petition in 2018, with more than 50,000 participants calling for Warner Bros to include the line in 2019's Joker, starring Phoenix as the tortured villain.
While the addition of the line may be new, Justice League is not, having debuted to disappointing reviews in 2017.
Snyder had worked on the production before stepping down after the death of his daughter. He was replaced by director Joss Whedon, who is credited with having significantly altered the tone of Snyder's original vision.
Following the film's box-office failings, fans have long petitioned for a version crafted by Snyder that is more faithful to his intentions, resulting in the new four-hour revamp, helmed by the director.
Actors including Ben Affleck, who plays Batman, and Amber Heard, who plays Hera, shot new scenes for the cut, while Leto, who wasn't even involved in the original production, now makes an appearance.
Zack Snyder's Justice League will be released on HBO Max on Thursday, March 18.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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RESULT
Shabab Al Ahli Dubai 0 Al Ain 6
Al Ain: Caio (5', 73'), El Shahat (10'), Berg (65'), Khalil (83'), Al Ahbabi (90' 2)
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- I would recommend writing out the text in the body
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
