DUBAI'S ICARUS

The world's tallest skyscraper opened today in Dubai, a perfect symbol of oil-drenched hubris. At 828 metres, or 2,717 feet, it cost around $1.5 billion to build and dwarfs Taiwan's former record-holder, the Taipei 101 (a mere 1,670 feet).

For years this hypodermic needle had been known as the Burj Dubai, but at the last minute it was renamed the Burj Khalifa in honour of the city's new sugardaddy, Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the president of Abu Dhabi and the man behind Dubai's big recent bailout.

This seems like a good time to revisit J.M. Ledgard's feature about the building in Intelligent Life last year in which he asked, "what is the point of the Burj Dubai? And does it even have a good view?"

~ EB