Donald Trump inherited millions from his father and has done everything he can to make sure he doesn’t have to share the wealth. Carlos Osorio / AP Photo
Donald Trump inherited millions from his father and has done everything he can to make sure he doesn’t have to share the wealth. Carlos Osorio / AP Photo

Billionaire Trump is hardly a man of the people



I had a serious scare this month, when I was on holiday in New Jersey. For those of you who only know Jersey from time spent in that ring of hell known as Newark Airport, let me assure you that some of the beaches rank right up there with glitzier places. But what I saw at a petrol station made my blood run cold. Plastered across the back windscreen of a pickup truck was a sticker advertising a “dream ticket” for the next US presidential election: Palin/Coulter 2016.

Let’s pause for a moment to think about a Sarah Palin presidency. Gives you chills, right? Now add to that nightmare the thought of the professionally blonde and viperous conservative commentator Ann Coulter having executive power. Keep in mind the recent Coulter proclamation that “there is a cultural acceptance of child rape in Latino culture”.

This same pickup truck sported a Romney/Ryan 2012 bumper sticker and to top it all off, a whopping big Confederate flag sticker. It was such an over-the-top display of US conservatism that for a moment I thought maybe it was a joke. Sadly, however, I think the driver was completely serious. He roared out of the petrol station and left me reeling at his bumper crop of US political dysfunction: fear, racism and cartoonish demagoguery.

Does the driver really think that Sarah Palin and Ann Coulter would do a good job of running the country? And does he think that he’s being progressive because he’s willing to vote for women? Don’t get me wrong: if people want to have political opinions that are different from mine, so be it; they will, I hope, eventually come around to my more enlightened views.

But instead of having a healthy debate about the country’s priorities, the US seems to have those whom novelist Philip Roth called “the indigenous American berserk” in the driver’s seat – in this case, literally. Whether he knew it or not, the driver had plastered those bumper stickers to his truck with a smeary paste of anger and fear – fear of change, of difference, of the unknown. The Confederate flag symbolises one of the darkest periods in US history and can’t be displayed without calling to mind slavery and its legacy. To say otherwise is naive at best and, at worst, points directly to the racist violence that still plagues the country. And with their fury towards immigrants, Ms Coulter, Mrs Palin and her buddy Donald Trump pander to this legacy of racism; it’s become their raison d’être.

Ms Coulter's new book is titled Adios America and she's said that Mr Trump will continue to surge in the polls as long as he is seen as "strong" on immigration. Mrs Palin, Ms Coulter's fantasy running-mate, according to that New Jersey driver, says that Mr Trump is a "courageous truth teller" who will restore America. Restore it to what, exactly, I wonder? To a slave-based economy? To a country where only white male property owners can vote?

I can almost understand Mr Trump’s bombast: he inherited millions from his father, and has done everything he can to make sure he doesn’t have to share the wealth (other than with his several ex-wives, one of whom was an immigrant). The people who attend Mr Trump’s political rallies seem not to notice that “The Donald” is not what you’d call a man of the people. He has no interest in raising the minimum wage and by one ranking, his company’s retirement plan scores a 30 out of 100.

No, Mr Trump doesn't confuse me (although his success does). What confuses me are the women like Mrs Palin and Ms Coulter. Do they not understand that "restoring America" to some long-ago golden era would effectively dismantle their public platforms? The 1950s are not remembered as a heyday for women, unless you're thinking about June Cleaver from the TV comedy Leave It to Beaver, perpetually smiling in her apron and pearls.

I think that’s what was so scary about those bumper stickers. They suggest that the driver is hellbent on driving the US straight backwards, and neither he nor those who agree with him seem to care about who they’re going to run over in the process.

Deborah Lindsay Williams is a professor of literature at NYU Abu Dhabi who blogs at www.mannahattamamma.com

Cryopreservation: A timeline
  1. Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
  2. Ovarian tissue surgically removed
  3. Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
  4. Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
  5. Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The specs

Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 400hp

Torque: 475Nm

Transmission: 9-speed automatic

Price: From Dh215,900

On sale: Now

German intelligence warnings
  • 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
  • 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
  • 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250 

Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
THE LIGHT

Director: Tom Tykwer

Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger

Rating: 3/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Guide to intelligent investing
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Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

Info

What: 11th edition of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship

When: December 27-29, 2018

Confirmed: men: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Kevin Anderson, Dominic Thiem, Hyeon Chung, Karen Khachanov; women: Venus Williams

Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae, Virgin megastores or call 800 86 823

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20ASI%20(formerly%20DigestAI)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202017%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Quddus%20Pativada%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Artificial%20intelligence%2C%20education%20technology%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%243%20million-plus%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20GSV%20Ventures%2C%20Character%2C%20Mark%20Cuban%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Naga
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Apple product price list

iPad Pro

11" - $799 (64GB)
12.9" - $999 (64GB)

MacBook Air 

$1,199

Mac Mini

$799

Brief scoreline:

Manchester United 2

Rashford 28', Martial 72'

Watford 1

Doucoure 90'

Some of Darwish's last words

"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008

His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)

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In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter

Price: From Dh2,099

The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

Lampedusa: Gateway to Europe
Pietro Bartolo and Lidia Tilotta
Quercus

Chinese Grand Prix schedule (in UAE time)

Friday: First practice - 6am; Second practice - 10am

Saturday: Final practice - 7am; Qualifying - 10am

Sunday: Chinese Grand Prix - 10.10am

The biog:

From: Wimbledon, London, UK

Education: Medical doctor

Hobbies: Travelling, meeting new people and cultures 

Favourite animals: All of them 

The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor

Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000

Engine 3.5L V6

Transmission 10-speed automatic

Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm

Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm

Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km

Price, base / as tested From Dh173,775 (base model)
Engine 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo, AWD
Power 249hp at 5,500rpm
Torque 365Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm
Gearbox Nine-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined 7.9L/100km