Here at Ideas, Not Identity, I am a writer who believes that unfortunately, ideas are no longer separate from the individual saying them. This leaves many people fearful of raising questions or even mentioning topics deemed controversial.

I firmly believe that a writer or speaker should be judged based on the points they raise, and not on who they are as a person.

I have therefore set up this page to discuss topics that many feel too afraid to talk about. I hope by reading and responding to me, barriers can be broken down, discussions can begin, and progress can be made towards removing the taboo certain modern day issues possess.

Say Goodbye to Dubai: The Irony of Influencers.

-

Say Goodbye to Dubai.

The Irony of Influencers.


First of all, yes this Blog is still going! Stay tuned for lots more content, and thank you for reading!


Across the news recently, you will have seen that the world of influencers has come under strong criticism for their unnecessary travelling abroad. A swift scroll through any social media platform will see these, at a push, B-list celebrities, parading in their sponsored bikinis on private yachts, donning the international symbol of Middle-Eastern holidaying: a shisha pipe, whooping and cheering as a waitress brings forth a superfluously large bottle of vodka, sparkling in the darkened club (Grey Goose, of course). I fear that if I linger and rant any further about the behaviours of this kind, I will struggle to stop. My main issue here is not what they get up to, but where they decide to do so.

                A location check will see at least the majority, if not the entire influencer flock, lavishly living it up in the United Arab Emirates, mainly concentrated in Dubai. Why? Having briefly stopped there on a transfer, I do not understand the attraction to the place. This playground for the rich has apparently become what Monaco and St Tropez once were, only with better WiFi and a few more sparklers in the booze. And yet it feels like a hot and humid, slave-built Disneyland, with a Harrods in the middle, compacted to resemble a sandy Asgard.

So, it may not be to my taste, granted. Many people visit many ugly countries. However, not all of them are quite as outdated when it comes to the rules and regulations of the land. Not only is capital punishment a legal penalty in the UAE (through stoning, firing squad, or hanging, may I add), but homosexuality is one of the crimes that can carry the death penalty under Emirati Law. So, when they pose with their rainbow-embossed Starbucks cup in the hope to reach out to their LGBT+ followers, to literally influence their views, behaviours, hopes and dreams, is the irony not visible? Sorry, scratch that, this is no longer irony but sheer contradiction.

In a country with such awful laws, horrendous punishments, and degrading views on anyone who happens to be a woman, gay, or god forbid kissing someone they are not married to, I do not understand why such a large majority of left-wing, feminist, LGBT supporting, trans campaigning, generation-Woke influencers would even accept the idea that a place like this is tolerable, let alone turn it into a popular holiday destination. I laugh at how it is illegal to import pork products and pornography into the UAE, and yet at the moment, the UK’s largest export to Dubai is currently half-naked pigs. Not only is your ‘work’ unnecessary, but you are on holiday, you are taking pictures, and you are partying, all during lockdown, amidst a global pandemic. That does not constitute work. Throw some sand in your living room, get your kit off, chuck a firecracker in your Pornstar Martini and the job's done.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Genital Mutilation.

-
Genital Mutilation. Right, buckle in. I shall start with some good, actually great news, from the continent of controversy that is Africa. On May 1 st 2020, Sudan took a huge step away from their usual barbarism, and have finally made female genital mutilation, or FGM, a crime. At last, some sense was found and those in power have begun to realise that the forced removal of the labia minora and majora, clitoris, and final sewing up of a child’s vagina, is perhaps not something they should be advocating (the fact that it only warrants three years in prison and a fine is still utterly ridiculous, but small steps…). How this is even a practise, that occurs in twenty-seven countries in Africa, Asia and the middle east, is truly incomprehensible to me. And if this is not the case with you, reader, then take a long, hard look at yourself in the mirror, and throw yourself into it, please. The topic for this essay however is not the recent successes of female rights activists
Read more

Black Lives Matter.

-
Black Lives Matter. This blog supports [insert current topical issue here]. On June 2 nd 2020, like anyone else who happened to open any form of social media, I was met with a sea of black squares. Much to my confusion, I quickly became aware that a modernistic, peaceful protest had erupted across popular sites such as Facebook and Instagram. #BlackOutTuesday had begun. And this got me thinking. For as long as I can remember, I have always felt somewhat uneasy about large-scale mass showings of support for popular social movements that seem to come and go as the months pass by. There is always a feint feeling of falseness that taints them all, which I slowly grew wary of. Every year when June rolls around, and I look forwards to seeing anyone affiliated with the LGBTQ+ community parading their freedom to be who they truly are, matched with a celebration of how far society has come in finally accepting the fact that love is love. Again however, something never quite feels
Read more

Religion during coronavirus: It is time we came to our senses.

-
Religion During Coronavirus. It is time we came to our senses. My views on religion are well known to those who know me and who also read my work. I often flitter between agnostic, atheist and anti-theist. I believe that everyone is agnostic whether they like it or not; nobody has proof of any gods, yet nobody can disprove them either (although it isn’t our job to do so). However, I do strongly believe that they do not exist, in which I usually take my seat in the atheistic group. Recently though, my anti-theist thoughts and feelings have been growing, a few of which I thought I would share with you. During the weird and wonderful times of the Coronavirus pandemic, I saw a power shift between the scientific community paired with government officials, and religion as a whole. Witnessing such a change sparked a great interest in me. With Easter essentially cancelled, places of worship closed to members of their congregations, and the elderly forced to listen to their priest and paris
Read more