How do you Import the Bad Weather and Peevishness?

An Austrian real-estate developer is seeking a fortune with a set of European-themed islands in the Persian Gulf. The Vegas-style glitter of Dubai may have faded since the boom -- but not for everyone

It’s a kind of Busch Gardens for gullible Arabs and Iranians, possibly finding some unstated appeal to indulge in some Jew hating with a Teutonic flair, or maybe their famous emotionally distant self-abuse, or something like the apathy. Who knows:

Today, Josef Kleindienst is €200 million richer and far from Schrattenberg, on his own building plot covered in grey, shell-flecked sand. It's a deserted piece of property in the steaming water of the Persian Gulf, and Kleindienst calls it "Germany." Now a real estate broker, he bought the island outside Dubai together with "Austria," "St. Petersburg," "Sweden," "Switzerland," and "the Netherlands," which is destined to become a party island.

After all, the image of the Netherlands has long-since ceded any notion of cheap bastards, or hardworking farmers and fishermen, always willing to sell their grandmother for a nickel. Even an article in NRC Handelsblad rues over is:

Two utterly contradictory images of the Netherlands circulate in the international press. One is the idea of a wild, unruly place where policemen smoke marijuana, gay men dance in the streets, and euthanasia can be arranged in an instant,

The elite of Teheran should feel right at home.