Well, just when we thought the world was at last struggling out of the economic mire, the Kingdom of Dubai looks set to drop us right back in it!

I've got two reasons to be interested/concerned in what's going on over there - 1) it puts into perspective the financial challenges and massive risks for even the very richest of nations in attempting to make the desert bloom, and 2) could this be the start of the financial disintegration of international horse racing?

When Sheikh Mohammed started out on creating his dream of making Dubai the centre of world leisure and tourism, as well as for the super-rich jet-set, it all seemed very much pie in the sky. But with his seemingly limitless wealth the Dubaians have built an astounding array of hotels, resorts, attractions and luxury homes, making their country the place to go and be seen.

Now, it seems that much of that building and development was done on the back of bank of loans that the state institutions are seriously struggling to repay. The 3% fall in world stock markets yesterday may just be an entree ahead of a highly unpalatable main course. Looks like the Brits are going to 'cop it' once again as well, with the cursed Royal Bank of Scotland (sadly now owned by the British taxpayer) owed more than $5 billion dollars. Frightening!

Watching the boom in Dubai from Israel, many people were asking the government and banks here why Israelis were not trying to compete and do the same thing. I think we now have our answer.

As for horse racing, well, there is absolutely no doubt that the huge sums of money invested by the Sheikh in British and international racing and breeding over the last 20 years have kept the sport buoyant and have employed many thousands of people; both directly and indirectly.

If the funds are now running out, there is every reason to expect that the Sheikh will cut back drastically, forcing an already plummeting bloodstock market to its knees and leaving many racehorse trainers and staff without a patron. The worst fear seems to be that there is no-one to obviously step up to the mark and fill the Sheiks shoes.

In two months time the Meydan Racecourse is due to open in Dubai, the most expensive sporting project in history which has so far cost no less than a staggering $2 billion. The facility is truly out of this world, but now, maybe, it will be out of business before it even has a chance to be seen for all it is worth.

Worrying times indeed.

I've been very busy the last few weeks and haven't had much time to keep you updated on the latest news. Apologies.

So, just in case you hadn't heard, Hamid Karzai has sneaked back in as president of Afghanistan, Tony Blair is out of the running for the EU top job, Obama's health care reforms passed the first big vote, Zenyatta bolted up in the Breeders' Cup, and, most importantly (after many years of doing it wrong), I learned to toss properly!

Now, just before Miss 'Horrified' of Halesham writes in to say I'm being overtly vulgar, I should explain that the toss in question is one of the tennis variety. After decades of battling with my balls invariably tossed  into the wrong position at the point of contact, I've finally found out where I've been going wrong for so long. And, believe it or not,  it took a female doctor to show me how to do it properly.

The doctor in question is one Catherine Harrison, a friend of many years standing who I happened upon in a dormitory in Singapore back in the mid-1990's. That's another story. Anyway, Cath, her husband Tony, and baby boy Ben, came to stay with us for a week and seemed suitably impressed with my whistlestop tour of some of the best places in Israel.

In amongst our galavanting, we found time to take in a game of tennis - that's me, Cath, and my good friend Arnold (erstwhile husband of Yael, who regular readers of this blurb might recall had a contratand with a growling manageress at a local car wash some weeks ago). Arnold and I regularly play tennis at the local 'mucinipal' courts (that's an old favourite schoolboy term), where we amaze the locals with tennis of a calibre, the like of which has rarely, if ever, been seen in these parts. In other words, we're rubbish!

So, Dr Cath pops up, having been a particularly decent player in her time, and now very much on the comeback trail after bringing forth the aforementioned child some 16 months ago. When the good doctor mentioned that she has been having lessons from a professional tennis coach back in England, my ears pricked up in an instant. I suggested that maybe 'herself' would be prepared to pass on some of the gems imparted by her teacher to me and my near 2 metre tall 'partner-in-crime'.

So, onto the court we strolled to be battered by Cath on one side of the net, with Arnold and I on the other. After the the first two points we knew we were fighting a losing battle. Then came the moment of revelation. After inviting me to serve, she immediately saw where I have been going wrong for so long.

'You're tossing in the wrong direction' she declared in her rather posh British doctory voice.
'Am I? It's never felt wrong to me!'
'Yes, you are. Definitely.'
'You need to throw the ball up higher and in front of you, not straight above your head' suggested Cath. 'That way you can see the ball when you hit it and you're not falling backwards on yourself losing power and momentum in the process.'

It all sounded very complicated. My first two attempts to toss properly ended in both balls failing to hit the mark by some margin. Then, as if temporarily touched by the wand of Nadal, Sampras, Federer (or for readers of a certain age, Roscoe Tanner), I began to serve hard and fast into my opponent's half court,  producing a succession of serves many, many leagues in advance of anything that has ever left my racket head before.

Unbelievable! After nearly 30 years, I've finally found out how to get my toss right, and the feeling is one of near indescribable ecstasy. You really should try it some time; I promise you won't be disappointed.

Thankyou doctor.

Sometimes, living in Israel feels like a constant, exhausting battle to paddle upstream against the flow.

I have been deeply troubled by the Goldstone Report to the UN and its terribly biased, one-sided judgement. Anyone that knows me will be aware that I am not an apologist for the Israeli government and its policies; quite the opposite, in fact. I can't see the sense in the building programs in the West Bank, am firmly of the opinion that there has to be a negotiated settlement with the Palestinians in order to establish peace in the region, and I strongly believe in the Palestinians right to have a land of their own.

Those compiling the Goldstone Report however had drawn their conclusions before they even started investigating the circumstances surrounding Israel's 'Cast Lead' operation in Gaza earlier this year, an incursion that followed five years and more than 5000 rockets that had been fired indiscriminately into southern Israel by Hamas and other militant Palestinian factions, from Gaza. A number of those involved in preparing the report had signed declarations condemning Israel before they had even started to look into the facts of the matter. In any court of law such 'experts' and their findings would be deemed inadmissible. But not at the UN.

Even when respected voices of reason did manage to break through the cordon surrounding the predetermined findings against Israel, these voices were rarely if ever heard on the mainstream media. Why? Could it possibly be that if these voices of reason were heard it would cause people to question the voracity of the reporting that had been pumped into their living rooms from most of the major media companies for the last few years?

The internationally respected British Army Colonel Richard Kemp stunned the UN by spelling out in vivid terms, his expert opinion (having been a commander in Afghanistan, the Gulf War, Bosnia and Northern Ireland). I urge you to listen to his stunning speech defending Israel's actions and the conduct of her army, in which he stated "The IDF (Israel Defence Force) did more to safeguard the rights of civilians in a combat zone than any other army in the history of warfare."

You can read or listen to his testimony at the following link: http://www.unwatch.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=bdKKISNqEmG&b=1313923&ct=7536409

In the last 24 hours we have learned that Mahmud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian Authority will not seek re-election in January. Who will appear to replace him, and will they be a voice of reason with a true wish for peace? Or, will they be like Abbas, a fumbling politician, like his good friend and mentor Yasser Arafat, terrified to take the final steps towards a peaceful resolution for fear of assassination by extremists on his own side, or of a popular revolt by the large Hamas-inspired minority.

In order to make peace you have to have a partner with whom you can sit down and make decisions, a partner who represents all of his people. Hamas and Fatah appear to hate each other only fractionally less than they hate Israel. Until the Palestinians can reach a common position it seems inevitable that we in Israel, the overwhelming majority of whom desperately wish for genuine, long-lasting peace, will have to continue paddling upstream against a tide of anti-Israeli, and often anti-Semitic media, championing the cause of the Palestinians, many of whom know only reason from behind the barrel of a gun.

I believe that ultimately the Goldstone Report will be revealed to be fatally flawed and unreasonably biased. It is nothing less than a disgrace and is another stain on the name of the UN. With such a massive Arab/Muslim voting block, it was always going to be approved, regardless of the need to promote a balanced view.

Let's forget about Goldstone, and turn instead to those on the Palestinian side who truly yearn for peace and stability to pressurize their leaders to appoint a person who will seriously have the best interests of his people, of the peace process, and ultimately the whole of the Middle East, at heart.