“But for one New York co-op, a $31.5 million bid wasn’t even enticing enough to merit an interview with the potential tenant. The prospective buyer also happens to be the Prime Minister of Qatar, Sheik Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani. He made an offer to purchase and convert two apartments in the co-op belonging to the late heiress Huguette Clark……… His cousin, Qatar’s hereditary ruling leader Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, lives down the block. And the prime minister himself is also the owner of a 436-foot yacht, Al-Mirqab, which reportedly cost several hundred million dollars……….”
 
“But today, the New York Post puts the kibosh on those rumors. The Prime Minister’s bid for the apartments was rejected, largely because of his 15 children, two wives and large staff, the Post reported. But the kids weren’t the only thing that made the building’s co-op board squeamish….. In addition to the kid factor, the uptight co-op board put the kibosh on Hamad’s bid — which had been backed by Clark’s estate — because it was jittery about where his money was coming from, sources said. Board members were also concerned because, as a foreign head of state, the 52-year-old sheik couldn’t be held accountable for anything…………..”


Maybe it was nothing personal. After all, they probably would have rejected even Muammar Qaddafi as a close neighbor. Possibly even the Saudi mufti Shaikh Al Al Al Shaikh. But then again, these co-op, condo, or condom boards are finicky about who resides among them. I especially like that part about “because it was jittery about where his money was coming from….”, which tells me these co-op denizens in NYC know more about the Arab world, especially the Persian Gulf region, than we think. They all know these potentates get their money through very sticky fingers, that maybe possibly could be the money really belongs to the people of Qatar and not necessarily to the ruling Qumquats of Qatar. And this potentate will be moving in with fifteen kids? Which also means maybe three to four wives! Not exactly your normal NYC co-op family type where polygamy hasn’t been practiced legally since the Dutch purchased Manhattan four hundred years ago.
Imagine if a Bahrain ruling al-Khalifa potentate applied to live in that co-op? It’d be like having a hybrid of Al Capone and Heinrich Himmler moving in next door (and I am especially serious about the Reichsführer Himmler comparison). At least the Goldman Sachs guys don’t shoot and arrest and torture people. Come to think of it: imagine if any of our thieving Gulf potentates were to move in………
Cheers
mhg


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