Saudi Arabia is Building a Two-Kilometer Skyscraper (Because Everything Else is Going Well)

[@megaprojects9649]

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[@PLMassTahh]

HAX! This comment is 2 days old but video is only 40minutes up. ;)

[@jasonbull6560]

I like cheese on toast. 😊

[@JoséFerIzaparraga]

i think the ceo of DC is in charge of Saudi Arabia

[@jennyanydots2389]

Thank you Squarespace for sponsoring my childhood emotional abuse.

[@Hitlo-fd2gy]

Masjid Al haram is sooooooo funny. It translation is mosque of the infedel 😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@bioLarzen]

Newsflash 2026: The Line has once again been scaled back - from now on the project is referred to as "the Dot".

[@charlesrovira5707]

😉

[@VengeanceN7]

.

[@gramma677]

Or more accurately the sand pit.

[@op4000exe]

Eventually it will be rebranded into the attempt to build the worlds biggest earthscraber (a skyscraber going downwards).

[@4thalt]

The Cube (3D) -> The Square (2D) -> The Line (1D) -> The Dot (0D)

[@geneharrogate6911]

The Saudis are like giving a nine year old whos never been told 'no' and open chequebook.

[@pablosskates7067]

And knowing full well this 9 year old is going to run out of money before they turn 18.

[@artificialgravitas8954]

They've been told no, but then they killed that guy

[@BillWoodillustrator]

With ADHD

[@bjw4859]

🤣

[@etienne8110]

I ve seen wiser nine year olds... 😅

[@TheWombat2012]

I used to sell irrigation pumps and equipment for a living many years ago. Now every time I see a tall building, I try to imagine the pumps needed to send water all the way up to the top floors, or what system of stages of pumps and reservoirs on the way it would need. For instance a calculation that had stuck in my head ever since those days back in the eighties is “One PSI will lift a column of water 2.31 feet high”. A two kilometre tall building would need a hell of a lot of pressure in the system.

[@zachary3777]

2970 psi. It just can't be worth it to build this high. I guess like you say it would get pumped in stages every 10 stories or so.

[@haslahali746]

Yep, one of the many problems where material strength starts to be a problem when going over 1km.. not to mention 2km!

[@RedEyeification]

They wait for the rain..

[@natehill8069]

@@zachary3777 They just about have to; otherwise the water pressure at the faucets 60 stories below the reservoir would be biblical.

[@sifergy8412]

Yep building upwards make total sense when you have a very small land footprint available! If however you have a freaking massive amount of unused and largely economically useless land (like desert land) then building closer to the ground is a no brainer!

[@patricioiasielski8816]

-What happened to the one kilometer high tower? -We've replaced it with the two kilometers tower. -What if it fails too? -We build a 3km tower.

[@smalltime0]

LINE MUST GO UP

[@no-cv4dx]

Next to an international airport too.

[@JoséFerIzaparraga]

i think the ceo of the DC universe is in charge of Saudi Arabia

[@EstamosDe]

2025: Lets make it a space elevator

[@oFaisalo]

The 1km tower is a private project not government 👍

[@Alex-mw1uu]

The Saudis start megaprojects like I start remodeling projects around my house.

[@pauldench1299]

Probably your better at it

[@hagdore]

Do you claim your expenses as a tax write-off?

[@Shadow__133]

They certainly complete them the way I do with my projects 😂

[@shannonalaminski2619]

Ditto.

[@shannonalaminski2619]

At least my wife hounds me about completing what I start.

[@snowysnowyriver]

Fire Chief O'Halloran (Steve McQueen): "You know, one of these days, you're gonna kill 10,000 in one of these firetraps, and I'm gonna keep eating smoke and bringing out bodies until somebody asks us how to build them.". Towering Inferno.

[@claycassin8437]

"Where's a safe place to build it, since it is 2 kilometers tall?" "By the airport".

[@LisaAnn777]

They are used to buildings being in the way of aircraft.

[@Ainar86]

@@LisaAnn777 cheap shot but somehow still funny XD

[@SantiSomchay]

Lol That's crazy.

[@abu_muhammad]

😂

[@Secret_Takodachi]

It's not like Saudi Arabia has been implicated in the training of terrorists who crashed jet liners into skyscrapers before. And BESIDES what are the odds someone uses that tactic against THEM? 😂

[@1970DAH]

Ah, yes, put it near the airport. Pilots love an obstacle course.

[@jonahfalcon1970]

When I'm working in a skyscraper, the first thing I want to hear are airplane engines near my office.

[@1970DAH]

@@jonahfalcon1970 Imagine living there. I don't recall if our host said it would be office space, residential, hotel, or mixed usage.

[@ambientoccluser]

@@1970DAH It would probably be an empty structural chimmney with fancy external glass, if they ever decide to make it. They already have way too much empty realastate with former megaprojects that are expensive non sustainable "office space, residental, hotels, amusement parks, shopping malls, subway, stadiums, theatres, museums, religious mosques..."

[@coweatsman]

@@jonahfalcon1970 And that in the nation which pioneered the concept of airliner assisted demolition.

[@jrmckim]

​@@coweatsman😳

[@MobilMobil-kv5ke]

Monuments to Hubris Back when the Sears Tower was conceived, Sears purchased a city block in downtown Chicago and gave the architects a requirement for the amount of floor space needed to accommodate all the administrative functions of Sears. Form follows function. These new projects seem to be pen-is extensions.

[@CrazyBear65]

And Sears is now defunct. Imagine that!

[@firecatskylar]

Dummy​@@CrazyBear65

[@haslahali746]

Yep, soon these skyscrapers wont have anything in them except elevators, wiring, air shafts and structural beams.. I mean if they don't collapse under their own weight! 2km tall building would need to be something like 500m wide at its basement! :D

[@Will-fk2dk]

​@CrazyBear65 What does that have to do with anything? Please... explain. What exactly does Sears going out of business DECADES AFTER it built the Tower in Chicago have to do with this discussion? The building is still there, a work of engineering and architectural art.

[@TommyCrosby]

With that size, it will require it's own poop train instead of truck lines.

[@asandax6]

It be better if they just make a processing plant near it.

[@nf3959]

Maybe some poop helicopters?

[@nemesis7774]

I was thinking of a poop channel for some real civil engineering

[@SciFiMangaGamesAnime]

Confused Adam Something.

[@johnjanssens8998]

Better a pipeline...the poop chute

[@ReubenAStern]

Saudi Arabia will be a very interesting post apocalyptic desert. Imagine searching the grand ruins wondering how such a great nation could fall... then you slowly realize most of it was just bravado.

[@JasonReborn-hc6lx]

People mock Saudi now, but they won't for long. I can't stand them, but I actually think they will end up pulling NEOM off for the most part . Saudi Arabia isn't as backwards are the other muslim nations. Plus they can pay westerners to design all the hard stuff, and use Indians as basically sl@v$ labor.

[@JasonReborn-hc6lx]

The western world is 100% on it's way down. China and Saudi Arabia are going to be the power players in the future. Mock now, but it's very clear America and Europe are not what they used to be lol.

[@jorgdahn3736]

There is a computer game about that scenario and it is called: Spec Ops - THE LINE. Situated in Dubai, though.

[@NightMystique13]

Mad Max scenario.

[@razor1uk610]

...so typical of the indoctrinated mindsets infused from that religion there; full of... egotistical bravado, mysogenistic posturing and total donkey-excrement. ...and senlaverd foreign 'house maids'

[@lorenzoblum868]

Megalomania is a common denominator shared by all dictators.

[@astrumrimor2450]

Imagine if they spent that money on charity instead. This world is deranged.

[@DaVinci368]

And being men, they all have to compete to build the biggest erection. It’s SO clear that humans have not really evolved very far from our primordial beginnings.

[@lorenzoblum868]

@@astrumrimor2450 imagine a world without corruption, with an efficient education system, health and social care, hence no need for charity?

[@darklordofsword]

Saudi Arabia's architecture projects are the "this is fine" dog on fire meme in real life.

[@1TakoyakiStore]

I know what meme you're referring to but the video where the cat's tail catches on fire while the dog is very concerned about what's happening is what's coming to mind.

[@JoséFerIzaparraga]

i think the ceo of DC is in charge of Saudi Arabia

[@wonfor14]

​@@VoteScientistor human rights, or freedom of the press

[@solarissv777]

​@@wonfor14or OSHA

[@gramma677]

@@VoteScientist They haven't built anything. I mean I agree DEI is horrifically racist and gross, but they won't ever finish this project, just like the line and that last skyscraper they didn't finish. Same reason nobility faded in the west. Random rich idiots aren't very useful or effective.

[@mace2055]

Re: the concept art. There was a very interesting comment on reddit a while back from someone that worked in a design team pitching ideas to the Saudi royals. They only get a few minutes to pitch the concepts to some very uninterested princes. Making them big and flashy means there is more of a chance that they will get looked at or possibly get approved. The companies pitching the ideas don't care if they are possible or not, they just want a slice of the money being thrown around.

[@LilDitBit]

Interesting!

[@bugaboo-bricks]

Exactly this, the architects don't care if any of these projects are possible, they just want to land the contract and get some of that fat cheddar.

[@z4zuse]

The Burj Kalifa has not (yet) connected to the sewer (waste is trucked out). Imagine making one twice as high. Going to be fun.

[@larrywest42]

Well, see, that problem solves itself, as the weight of 2km of waste water provides all the pressure needed to keep it flowing into the nearest drainage ditch.

[@dliggio12]

It’s connected now

[@crlewis6360]

Naw they will never get the engineering right, it will have to be carried in buckets out of the building every morning as the elevators will be down as well about half the time. This is not the west but Saudi Arabia and thus Allah will provide (or not, usually not) as he sees fit.

[@tsubadaikhan6332]

That part of the world is well known for having more money than brains. Slave Labour out of Pakistan and Bangladesh helps too. And don't look up the Dubai Porta Potty. Don't!

[@namesake-uv8ug]

Oh crap 😅

[@ichifish]

We COULD build a two-kilometer high building is not the same as we SHOULD build a two kilometer high building.

[@jimjones-pz1tt]

Saudi Arabia has run out of vacant land!

[@andrasbiro3007]

It's plenty enough reason.

[@wingsandash]

Or that they actually WOULD.

[@outlive001]

The funding from that tower could be used to update the current city. Upgrading the lives of all the citizens instead of wasting funding like Neom…..

[@personzorz]

​@outlive001 do you think some braindead Prince chose the name Neom because it sounds like a sports car going past?

[@The_real_Arovor]

If they cut it short the same percentage like Neom, i have calculated, that it will reach the amazing height of 38m, which is feasible. 😂😂😂

[@Norp-i7m]

Amazing.

[@larrywest42]

And only cost 10% of the original price tag!!

[@Bork_In_Volcanic]

4D checkers move

[@KaiSong-vv7wh]

It's great to read the comments and see everyone acknowledging the Saudis for their taste, modesty, foresight, ability, and leadership role ;)

[@bguzewi0]

Oh, another megaproject they’ll never finish? No way!

[@BlCKuT-nv8gv]

Well... to be fair... they DO have BIG ambitions... I'll give them that. Yet, they still are not even done with the Kingdom (Jeddah) Tower. That High-rise is supposed to be taller than the clouds itself. And at one Kilometer high (1.3 Miles Tall)... and with it not even at 20% COMPLETION... I'd say... probably, give these clowns a few more decades! They'll probably know how to spend their money responsibly! Like good children who get their allowances!

[@markusgorelli5278]

I worked at a 20 floor office building with 4 elevators. "Travelling" at peak time in the morning when everyone is trying to get to the office, lunch time and the afternoon when everyone is leaving are headaches. And because there were vips working in there, it was often the case that one of the elevators was on "reserve" to act like a private elevator leaving only 3. Then over time, it was common for one of the elevators to be down for repair. It was usually faster to walk downstairs in the afternoon instead of being in a crowded elevator stopping at every floor. To make it worse, the elevator was supposed to have a newfangled system so that when it was full, it was supposed to ignore pleas for it to stop and head straight to the ground floor to empty its load. We could never figure out how to tip it just right. We either had too many people - in which case the doors wouldn't close, or not enough so it would continue to stop at every floor on the way down. We hated people on the 2nd floor on the afternoon. And they knew it by the expression on our faces too. Use the steps dammit!

[@craiggillett5985]

This too is my experience working in Sydney Australia. I was on level 28. I ended up starting ridiculously early in the mornings to finish early, not to miss the morning and evening commute, but to avoid the wasted time and frustration using the elevators. And don’t mention the fire drills. We would collect our personal stuff, break the rules and basically go home for the rest of the day. Having thousands and thousands of people stacked up in the sky reaches a point of impracticality above a certain level. EDIT: the building had 18 elevators, in a circular pattern around the central core, the volumes of people coming off the trains and buses meant the were just huge queues between 730-830 am and again 4.30 -6 pm people traffic just banked up. Mind you this was in the early years of this century and was before flexible working and work from home so maybe that’s made a difference

[@corgrapes]

they'll use fireman's poles with a few mattresses at the bottom to make descending quick and easy

[@petiteange08]

I work in a 30 floor office building, but with 12 elevators. It's really great. The building for my previous job had less elevators and the experience sucked at rush hours.

[@featmyself]

my office has 8 elevators and the wait times are insane at times…

[@OmegaEnvych]

I work in 6-story building with a single elevator. One would think: So there is no problem, right? Well, no - because that solo elevator is the only quick way up and down in the building. The stairs are present, but if you want to get from floor 1 to floor 5 without elevator - stairs from ground floor lead to the roof of 2-story part of the building. And after that you will have to get through the roof to the 6-story part of the building, enter 3rd floor as a separate entrance and THEN get up via stairs onto the 5th floor. Which is super frustrating when there's no power in the building (which may happen at any time) or elevator is broken again.

[@sadguru1969]

Wow what a view from top of the 2 km high tower all around sand sand and more sand !

[@heenlav4596]

I don't like sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere.

[@thabanglephalala]

And the occasional cloud

[@noggintube]

I went up the Burj Khalifa last year, and thought exactly that. A view of the city and then boring old sand to the horizon.

[@amethystdream8251]

Not to mention the elevator rides

[@PaulGuy]

The problem with these supertowers is that at a certain point, they stop being practical. It takes too long to move people around, it's more expensive than two towers half the height, and the safety factors get far more difficult to manage the higher it goes. Other nations and businesses figured this out decades ago, it's why things in the US rarely exceeded 1000 feet. The only purpose they serve is bragging rights for the owners, the host location, and the tenants.

[@BromdenChief]

Skyscrapers are only practical if you have a lack of land to build on, like on islands, in valleys, etc. A skyscraper is much less energy effective compared to a building with the same dimensions but built horizontally. As far as I know SA is not running out of desert space yet, so yes, it's all about bragging rights.

[@PaulGuy]

@@BromdenChief Exactly. Someplace like New York City, they make sense. But not the middle of a desert.

[@exchangAscribe]

its not meant to be practical. its mainly to function as a landmark, or a thing of beauty. things like mount rushmore, colossus of rhodes, the lincoln memorial, etc. they dont serve much plain utilitarian purpose for society. its a feat of human achievement that inspires the people of that nation. people pay to see these places. having the tallest building in the world draws alot of tourism and can boost the economy of that area. especially if you beat the record by a considerable amount. theres a correlation with the tallest building and more visitors spending more money. the burj khalifa did so much for Dubai, and likely is the reason the city is a household name.

[@TheThewulasvegas]

Parachutes become practical.

[@Hawk7886]

​@@exchangAscribeit's purely a vanity project, they don't need to boost tourism

[@DownWithBureaucracy]

Something I've yet to see answered for any of these projects: who would it be for? What people and/or businesses are scrambling to move to Saudi Arabia?

[@jonahfalcon1970]

Oh, come on. Who doesn't want to live in an all-seeing AI police state?

[@angrymokyuu9475]

Usually these things are meant to lure wealthy tourists and expats. If nobody's interested in your patch of desert, build a modern wonder of the world to catch people's attention(and hopefully money).

[@PaulGuy]

It's for bragging rights, and little else.

[@georgew2014]

​@jonahfalcon1970 It’s for MBS's ego.

[@alexanders.1359]

A lot of people want to move their. influencers and basically anyone who makes money online for example ... Saudi has VERY nice tax laws for people working online. But the problem is more: who, even of those, wants or needs a 2km tower? Imagine spending Millions or maybe 1-2 Billion for the penthouse or an office up there... Would you really like to ride a high speed elevator for 5+ minutes everytime you come home or go to work???

[@lightagainstdarkness99]

basic human rights: x building a 2 km skyscraper: yes

[@ninehundreddollarluxuryyac5958]

The vertical line. What you get if you give enough money to one guy that could otherwise solve every problem for everybody else in the country.

[@JoséFerIzaparraga]

i think the ceo of DC is in charge of Saudi Arabia

[@doujinflip]

The problem is they're a culture of conspicuous hierarchy; there has to be an escalation of personal issues in order to compel the deference and servitude required to mark their social status.

[@stickynorth]

@@doujinflip Sounds about right...

[@tubularmonkeymaniac]

Or even their own. They spend a huge amount on education but the bulk of it is religious education so even its academic status internationally is junk. They could have cured cancer by now but instead they have billion dollar eyesores poking out of sand and thousands of indentured slaves.

[@douglaswilkinson5700]

Saudi Arabia is essentially a dictatorship.

[@NathanEllisBodi]

Just shows that too much money combined with no taste is a recipe for disaster.

[@DonVigaDeFierro]

I think they have a name for it... Kitsch, IIRC.

[@Cucumberflavoredmustard]

It's why they crash all their Lambos.

[@boomsheep]

Remind me again how well the rest of the Saudi mega projects are going.

[@samr.england613]

Don't forget the other Arab "Emirates" who have too much money not earned. Dubai, Qatar, ect.

[@belaladel5074]

Zero

[@EliteBadFrog]

Hide this before AdamSomething sees it 😂

[@wonfor14]

His gonna have a stroke when he sees it 😂

[@BobPagani]

He'll suggest they build a train instead.

[@BobFudgee]

True 😂​@@BobPagani

[@stickynorth]

@@BobFudgee "Just PUUUUUUUUUUTT it on some f*cking rails and call it a day.. JFC"

[@reksapluss716]

he has a stroke everytime he sees anything other than depressing commie blocks and cramped buses

[@hexenhammer483]

I'm sure this will be built just as quickly and efficiently as The Line

[@davis.fourohfour]

At least someone is trying SOMETHING else besides 1959s suburb and car model, which is a freaking disaster being replicated all over the world.

[@user-uf2df6zf5w]

​@@davis.fourohfour The Dutch do none of those and build instead urban areas like they should been.

[@jamiebrooks3864]

Neom looks like it get boring very quickly with no bar to forget how silly you was buying a box in a glass box in a desert, just slightly better option than moving to Mars

[@frisianmouve]

@@davis.fourohfour This is about a dick measuring contest of megaprojects. Not really a discussion about car-dependency, growth-ponzi scheme, stroads etc. etc.

[@frisianmouve]

@@davis.fourohfour Pretty sure there's someting in-between car-centric suburbs and monstrous prestige projects

[@purdysanchez]

They do realize that rapidly ascending over 1.2 miles in an elevator has serious health consequences for someone who is not accustomed to living at that altitude? Unless the whole building is oxygenated and pressurized it's a massive liability.

[@Travis_22]

Yep people's hernias and things will start popping out

[@anckrnews]

Perhaps Saudi Arabia’s experience bringing down very tall buildings gives them some engineering insight that will be useful here.

[@coweatsman]

The patented airliner assisted demotion technique.

[@craiggillett5985]

Being located close to an airport does tend to make things easier.

[@armynyus9123]

Not even that was real. Closer to possibly real - but still far away from it.

[@ummmm....-sd9eb]

​@@coweatsmanright ⟵⁠(⁠o⁠_⁠O⁠)

[@pistol-pete77]

😂😂😂

[@nonjaninja4904]

I don't even trust the construction quality of a one story house lol.

[@BrokenhornKT]

These days, Wise!!

[@tomhenry897]

Not with the slave labor they are going to use

[@Moms.on.shrooms]

Smart.

[@JoséFerIzaparraga]

i think the ceo of DC is in charge of Saudi Arabia

[@gramma677]

Can you trust the quality of a 50 foot pit in the sand? Cause that's all they're gonna get.

[@LaVidayElTristeFinal]

What I don’t understand about these sultans and kings in the Middle East (whether it’s Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, etc.) is their obsession with artificial spaces that many people in the world find alienating and unwelcoming. I’d much rather enjoy being in contact with nature that being locked in steel and crystal jails, no matter how luxurious they are. I visited Dubai and Abu Dhabi and everything was so tacky and artificial that I wanted to escape to Yellowstone or somewhere like that. And I know I’m not alone in feeling this way. There’s a reason many more people visit National parks than Saudi cities. The Saudis would be better off creating nice retreat villages in their mountains where the temperatures are cooler and nature is beautiful, rather than pointless buildings in the middle of the dessert, where nobody wants to live. Or disalinate sea water, irrigate the desert, plant millions of trees and turn it into a beautiful green oasis. In sum, turn to nature instead of creating these artificial spaces where human life will be miserable.

[@InXLsisDeo]

These people have lived all their lives in artificial spaces. It's all about showing off. Nature is an abstract concept to them. If it can't be bought it has no value for these people.

[@TheWombat2012]

The best reason I saw was that not many people want to go regularly to “nature”. The comment was “you can only go and sit and look at a tree so many times”. Tourists by a vast majority want something to DO, something to see and amazing things to experience like those cities in the desert. Look how many people go to Las Vegas compared to how many go to a national park to bush walk and look at trees.

[@HassanalBolkiahSoyjak]

Their goal is to impress the West to attract tourists, but they still think this is still the Industrial Revolution/Gilded Age, where tall towers were impressive to Europeans. And are unaware such things are no longer impressive to the West. Also something called "elite projection" where rich people think poor people are impressed by rich people things.

[@veronicaroach3667]

Maybe because all these places are desert anyway, and they have barely any vegetation to start with, so they don't relate to forests & rivers like Europeans or Americans do, don't seem to have a built-in need for greenery & mountains - because they are tuned in to flat desert - so steel & concrete is their goto 'better' mode ? Beats me, but that popped into my head, so I am proposing it !

[@Phantom-ez4zv]

Saudi cities has history and culture and has saudi occupiance as the majority residents of the cities, we are not like United Arab Emirates, we didnt just slam in towers next to eachother, it was gradual and those cities are geniune and has long history. In dubai you will feel like you are in an international hub city, in Saudi you will feel like you are in SAUDI as a guest. and all that you mention about what should of be done, is already done or in process of doing.

[@satan5731]

They can't even finish Jeddah Tower, just how they hell are they gonna pull this one off?

[@pegcity4eva]

Exactly

[@stickynorth]

You'd know, Sir! ;-) But my sentiments exactly... Get the 1 KM tower done first, then we'll talk 2 KM... 3KM, 4 KM, etc...

[@IZNT-0]

They just want money for the supposed construction. Then pocket it without building it.

[@gramma677]

Large civic projects to satisfy the merchants in the land. That's why they are stuck in a medieval state. They run it that way.

[@oFaisalo]

Pro it’s a private project, go update your knowledge

[@thomashunter5645]

It is important to build a tower that will beat all the existing buildings in height. They should not worry about minor things like if it is safe, how much will it cost or will people live there. Safety, feasibility, commercial viability or utility are unimportant. The most important thing is the bragging rights and the satisfaction of beating others.

[@mon_66]

Then why US built skyscrapers? They have extra money. And who said it's not possible to achieve those things? I'm not saying that's right but at least its better than spending it on wars and supporting Corrupt dictators like some country we all know do.

[@jonahfalcon1970]

You should see what's going on with the superthin billionaire buildings here in NYC LOL

[@thegreenpickel]

The elevators need to have the ability to operate in negative Gs, I want to float on my way down.

[@thomashunter5645]

@@thegreenpickel , Great idea. They can make a lot of money by building elevators like that. People will be ready to pay a lot of money to experience zero gravity. You don't need to go to space anymore.

[@jonahfalcon1970]

@@thomashunter5645 But what about the poop?

[@AkashYadavOriginal]

Why you wanna go vertical when most of your country's horizontal land is empty?

[@DarioCastellarin]

Saudi Arabia's next money laundering megaproject.

[@baronvonhoughton]

Why on Earth would they need to launder money? That means to clean illicit earnings, from for example drug dealing. They already have free access to their own vast legitimate oil money. You perhaps mean embezzlement. However again it's a absolute Monarchy. So the King already can help himself.

[@Thisisaweirdthing2makeusdo]

Why would the need to launder legal oil money??

[@BD-cm7xc]

The money is legal but the corrupt officials will probably receive kickbacks for the contracts. This is why you can see nonsense projects and nonsense arms deals. This is how you make money in the third world, kickbacks.

[@CrazyBear65]

They gotta clean that poppy money somehow...

[@abu_muhammad]

Money laundering is only illegal for commoners. I think it's a fundamental human right for all but what do I know.

[@davidjernigan8161]

Water, sewage, firefighting, and transporting people and things up and down, not to mention HVAC. A column of water that tall exerts a force of over 2900 pound force per square inch

[@mp51998]

They’ll do like they do in Burj Khalifa. It’s pumped in stages so there’s not one continuous column. Lowers the pressure as each column of water is separate.

[@jacquesberube2139]

They do it in mines but this is not a mine. Peoples would be very adventurous to live in such a structure.

[@jonahfalcon1970]

@@mp51998 They just managed to get rid of the poop trucks.

[@SJM_TCMI]

*sewerage

[@randrothify]

It will become the world‘s largest fire trap, terrorism target, and phallic symbol.

[@thelogoth]

I think I might have tried to turn the desert into an oasis. Desalinate the crap out of the sea water and funnel it to build dams and things.

[@EyeXombie]

That would make too much sense. Screw that we are building a big metal and glass dick in the desert.

[@corwinvodyanoi4615]

....you know what, with trillions of dollars you could probably restore the Fertile Crescent to be worthy if the name again.

[@samr.england613]

Do you have any idea how vast is the Arabian Peninsula? One Million Two-Hundred-Fifty Thousand Square Miles! Roughly One/Third the size of the United States! To turn the whole peninsula into an "oasis" would bankrupt the country, despite their massive oil revenues. Desalination is incredibly expensive. It's used mainly to provide drinking water, but also, on a relatively small scale, to irrigate farmland that was once desert. But in no way have the Arabs considered irrigating the majority of the Arab Peninsula, of which they have dominion.

[@samr.england613]

@@corwinvodyanoi4615 The Fertile Crescent could be restored if Turkey would preiodically release water from its multiple dams and resevoirs UPSTREAM from the ancient Fertile Crescent. But they don't. Gee, I wonder why? Turks are NOT Arabs, btw. Iraqis ARE Arabs.

[@gorkskoal9315]

^

[@ignitionfrn2223]

1:10 - Chapter 1 - The tower 2:40 - Mid roll ads 4:10 - Back to the video 5:45 - Chapter 2 - The context 14:20 - Chapter 3 - Can it be done ?

[@Complete.cyclepath]

Thanks!

[@feathercat9118]

they don't even have a functioning sewer system, these guys have smooth brains and too much money.

[@Darkstar-se6wc]

Muslim cultures tend towards cousin marriages. Generations and generations of cousin marriages. Just ask the NHS, they’re dealing with the result.

[@robertnett9793]

Saudi Arabia theese days reminds me on this one Monty Python skit, with the guy who sees everything double and want's to mount some expedition to Africa. With one point he explains, that the 'Miller Twins' or so failed with the task to build a bridge between the two peeks of Mt. Kilemandjaro...

[@philt2170]

Listen, lad. I built this kingdom up from nothing. When I started here, all there was was swamp. Other kings said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built it all the same, just to show 'em. It sank into the swamp. So, I built a second one. That sank into the swamp. So, I built a third one. That burned down, fell over, then sank into the swamp, but the fourth one... stayed up! And that's what you're gonna get, lad: the strongest castle in these islands.

[@skeetercreek6455]

She got HUUUUGE... TRACKS OF LAND!

[@cbnewham5633]

Don't forget the huge tracts of land.

[@fubartotale3389]

Thank you Michael Palin.

[@douglasclerk2764]

Just don't sing.

[@skeetercreek6455]

@@douglasclerk2764 I thought it was a bit daft me guarding him when he's a guard... HICCUUP!

[@chrisx8707]

The PIF is approximately half Norway's equivalent, and we don't see them doing silly things like this -- and this is why Norway's is so big -- it has been built carefully over the years....

[@greebj]

how come the people who live in the dark for like 1/4 of the year have the smartest governments on the earth? (edit: nevermind, I just remembered Canada.)

[@ssokolow]

@@greebj 72% of Canadians live south of the 49th parallel and 50% of us live south of North Dakota. We don't count.

[@larrywest42]

16:41 I heard "it would take an incredible bank of alligators..." and suddenly the project seemed a lot more interesting

[@TheOneCity1]

😂

[@chaddog313]

Honestly, the line project is more workable than trying to build a 2 km tall sky scraper. The line can be built out in blocks and expanded over many years.

[@PhantomFilmAustralia]

Still not feasible. Living between two walls like that in the desert will not fare well with providing fresh water regardless of desalination and recycling. Sunlight will only be available for a few hours a day depending on the time of year. One of the biggest problems will be the buildup of sand against the walls, be it from constant daily blowing or massive sandstorms Saudi Arabia is renown for, being disastrous for emergency evacuation.

[@emilgilels]

Think of the 2km tall skyscraper as The Line, rotated 90 degrees... ;-)

[@David_randomnumber]

​@@PhantomFilmAustraliaanother point is the planned maglev train. Not much use for it now but if you want it you still have to invest time and money to prepare for it. If you skip it then transportation becomes a big issue later on.

[@chaddog313]

All decent points, neither project is feasible, but of the two the line has fewer hurdles.

[@CrazyBear65]

Two kilometers is a mile and a quarter. Tower of Babel, anyone?

[@sameebah]

I think the technical term is "more money than sense".

[@jovalleau]

More dollars than sense.

[@rickwilliams967]

Why aren't we doing pyramids? We established thousands of years ago, that it's the most sound structure. Triangles y'all.

[@belaladel5074]

No one can

[@Subher0]

I'm going to suggest they build a space elevator, and an escalator to the moon. Yes.

[@larrywest42]

I just suggested the space elevator, though it's very likely to fail, because I think a serious effort would - like the race to the moon - generate a lot of technological advances in engineering and material science. I mean, if you're going to throw away billions and billions of dollars, why aim for something as pedestrian as a skyscraper? Just don't try to put it in (geosynchronous) orbit above a populated area.

[@evermar1]

I am convinced that Foster and Partners would have worked with Albert Speer and the Third Reich to design Germania . The fee structure and fame would have been awesome.

[@manoz6194]

Can't imagine them designing anything neo-classical

[@evermar1]

@@manoz6194 I am referring to the fact they would work for any authoritarian regime for the sake of business and ignore the human rights and deaths involved with the Saudi Government on this project. I guess they don't think of the near slave like conditions for the foreign workers on this project from their air-conditioned headquarters in London.

[@manoz6194]

@evermar1 I see but that era of Germany wasn't what you believe it was. The victor's write the history books remember. Germany in that era was the peak of human civilisation, it's all been downhill since then

[@davidmrenton]

@@evermar1 you could argue as these projects never get built , they are therefore helping to bankrupt Saudi Arabia and reducing the amount of suffering they are causing as very rarely does anything get built.

[@kettelbe]

​@@manoz6194are you for real. You are lunatic rale your pills

[@tats8666]

Imagine being a plumber or window cleaner for such a building.

[@angrydoggy9170]

They should put a gym on top of that thing for altitude training.

[@larrywest42]

BASE jumping!!!

[@Thisandthat8908]

Human Rights are also sky rocketing there. Even if some of these -crazy- fancy projects would succeed, you can't hide what barbaric, brutal medieval country it is. The same goes for Dubai, Qatar and so on. Being put "A generation ahead" would get them roughly to the 1800's?

[@mon_66]

What is human rights? Allowing lgbtq maniacs to show off their genitalia? Saudi Arabia is known for violating human rights in the recent years after the rise of ibn salman. Idk about UAE. but Qatar? I don't think I heard any cases of human rights violation except the western Islamophobic propaganda that was refuted by many during world cup.

[@treadinglightly-gg9cc]

Agreed. TBH all these crazy ass projects are just more examples of their maniacal barbarism - imagine what real good all this money could do if not serving the egos of an elite of brutal human human rights abusers.

[@The_real_Arovor]

Closer to 900 BC

[@e1123581321345589144]

@@The_real_Arovor well 900BC was much more civil than some of the sh** that went down in the middle ages so that's not far off.

[@The_real_Arovor]

@deepseashark5951 Na, we at least know how to treat people the majority of the time. I‘m not saying we’re doing great, but regarding to human rights, the Middle East and some of parts of Africa are just atrociously bad.

[@markingalls6331]

I don't know what Saudi Arabia is thinking. They failed to build a 1-km skyscraper and now they are saying they want to build a 2-km skyscraper? Nuts.

[@JSx145]

World (including Saudi Arabia): the future is moving away from fossil fuels. Petro-countries will need to diversify to survive… Saudi Arabia: we are going to make a strategic investment in a big, useless building with our funds, that is unlikely to result in long term jobs or significant future revenues…

[@sammiemakki9339]

😂 go educate yourself and see how many US companies they own and multinational corporations. Their vision 2030 is literally to diversify their economy, that’s why projects like NEOM popped up. Dubai is a good example they’re following. Dubai doesn’t depend on oil but rather grand projects, low taxes and laws to attract foreigners and investors.

[@jamielonsdale3018]

​@sammiemakki9339 You mean that other desert boondoggle which isn't sustainable after the oil runs out? The one where they keep abandoning projects because they can't take the passports from enough immigrants to supply the incredible turnover of dead slaves? Yeah, that's a fantastic model to follow... 😂😂😂

[@billwhitacre703]

​@@sammiemakki9339That all sounds great, but 20 yrs from now Dubai will be nothing but casinos & dollar stores. A service economy is not sustainable.

[@cathulionetharn5139]

nope, not until plastic is replaced

[@BiggieTrismegistus]

​@@cathulionetharn5139No one is saying oil will become worthless. Even today Saudi Arabia and other major oil producing states are hurt when the price of oil falls too low. What's going to happen if lower demand drives the oil prices down permanently?

[@Omni-Man]

Born to late to explore the Earth. Born too early to explore the Universe. Born just in time to see Mega City One begin construction.

[@sutherlandshots2954]

Bring back Dredd

[@stickynorth]

@@sutherlandshots2954 And instant trials... Then again in the USA? Pretty sure this is what the all the police shootings are already doing...

[@CorePathway]

I was going to be snarky, but…why? It would be magnificent if it gets built…cool!

[@JeffBilkins]

Even looks like a few big shiny towers surrounded by a slum.

[@merlebarney]

Personally I’d go for exploring the Universe.

[@HaveAGreatDay54]

Why do these people keep building monstrosities in the desert sand that no one will ever live in? They have already proven that these buildings will stand almost entirely vacant. How absurdly ridiculous. The entire oil-stained desert there is becoming a shrine to narcissistic indifference.

[@scheimong]

Saudi Arabia's various construction projects are the ultimate proof that oil money doesn't buy intelligence 🤣

[@solarissv777]

I wonder, if you could buy it by building a huge futuristic university campus and invite the best scientists and educators from all around the world with good salaries and research funds? Then insentivise best and brightest to come and study there, create a good tax climate for international companies to open offices around and use the newly graduated professionals. Add mechanisms to fund promising startups etc. But nah, better build a 2km tower!

[@PwerRanger01]

@@solarissv777 Like the liberal ideology of universities would go well there.

[@solarissv777]

@@PwerRanger01 not all universities are woke (that's an American thing). Although it still would have to be a new town with a much laxer version of a Sharia law. Besides what you need for progress is STEM and medicine. No need for humanities in a project like that. Moreover, if they were smart they could do it in a totally different way: instead of injecting liberal values (sometimes too much), they could try to introduce Islamic ones to all the foreign students. At first the subtle and "liberalized" version (aka, what they have in Turkey or Azerbaijan), and then, interested, would be able to dig deeper. That could even spark a renaissance in the Arabic world. But that's too complicated, building a 2km tower is much simpler.

[@The_Midnight_Bear]

@@PwerRanger01 You could pull a "stick to the science and engineering, and the money will flow" thing.

[@solarissv777]

@deepseashark5951 west understands that the most important and precious things are people, especially competent people. While many eastern countries are still chasing flashy things.

[@eleghari]

I believe MBS is going for the "Dumbest Ruler in History" award...

[@darksidegryphon5393]

smooth-brained dictator + construction project = dumb shit

[@jorgdahn3736]

Well that could also belong to Putin, Trump and Bush the younger. 😂 And also to all dictators, past, present and future, of course.

[@eleghari]

​@@jorgdahn3736Name one of them with so many failed projects and so much money wasted 😂

[@cesarbugarini499]

Bush failed war on terror in Iraq (trillion dollar investment) Trump FAILED trillion dollar botched covid response Putin couldn't even manage wartime logistics miscalculated Ukraines fall to the tune of whatever thats gonna come out to be in dollar amount. Grand government projects come in al shapes and sizes ​@@eleghari

[@Alice_Fumo]

@@eleghari Xi Jinping. Especially if you want to consider failed policies as failed projects. Need I say any more than zero-covid?

[@1106gary]

Are there enough people in Saudi Arabia to fill up these buildings?

[@deltacx1059]

I would be suprised if they could build a three level house at this point. The biggest buildings on the planet already has water issues and no way they are going to be able to handle one twice the size. You have all this empty wasteland, do something useful with it, put a spaceport there or something, eump it into spacecraft to go and mine space or something.

[@jonahfalcon1970]

I met a traveller from an antique land, Who said-“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand, Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things, The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed; And on the pedestal, these words appear: My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings; Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair! Nothing beside remains. Round the decay Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare The lone and level sands stretch far away.”

[@budgiefriend]

AI to the rescue.🤣

[@JeffBilkins]

"We finally build the shattered statue from the classic poem 'Nothing bad will happend to the giant effigy of hubris'"

[@thomasfreeman7410]

Top tier gcse poem

[@KarlBunker]

👍👍👍👍👍 I don't usually care much for poetry, but sometimes ... it can just hit the bullseye, eh?

[@jonahfalcon1970]

@@KarlBunker Thank Percy Bysshe Shelley. Gone way too soon at 29. Also, you'd think someone who lives in the desert would get the message of Ozymandias.

[@haslahali746]

One big problem is that buildings like this are starting to push the boundaries of material strength! Higher you go, more the mass and all that has to be able to carry itself! Basic steel and concrete aren't going to do it at some point because they will start to break under their own weight. This is the reason why Burj Khalifa is built the way it is and a similar "arrow shape" structures are probably to be expected in the future projects!

[@mikatu]

The problem with these towers is always the same: the usage. They can build it but then they don't have anything to do with it, other than to use it as marketing tool.

[@stevenvanhulle7242]

Its main use will be elevators.

[@EarthCitizen3]

Trouble going horizontal so now they'll try vertical? Got it.

[@eleghari]

Remember they already failed at vertical too (Jeddah Tower)

[@stereo-soulsoundsystem5070]

i want diagonal

[@Norp-i7m]

The real trick is to go *diagonal*.

[@chrismills2439]

oh look they are trying to rebuild the tower of babel...

[@georgegonzalez2476]

The whole point of building upwards was to get people closer together, to make business meetings easier to arrange. This worked out fine way back when. Before the Internet. Now businesses can work together without being physically together. So there isn’t much point in building upwards anymore. Even less so in SA as there is plenty of land to build outwards. It’s even sillier to build up beyond a certain point, as every floor at the top requires more steel on every floor below it to hold up the top floor. You quickly get beyond the point of diminishing returns somewhere around 100 floors or 400 meters. Anything more is just plainly uneconomical. So 2000 meters is just plain silly. The lower 80 floors would have to be mostly steel just to support the upper floors. The math is simple and has been known for 100+ years now. This thing is unlikely to ever be built.

[@JJ-zr6fu]

That’s not necessarily true. In places like Manhattan the only option is to build up

[@jamaly77]

Meaning China is actually smart to ban idiotically tall buildings ;)

[@danopticon]

High-rises emerged as a way to more efficiently utilize limited urban space, which includes the delivery of services - utilities, fire protection, mail delivery, etc. - and not necessarily for businesses alone. Rather, we urbanized so that all humanity could more effectively employ our resources and shop for our groceries and collaborate with one another. (It might be more chronologically accurate to say that first we urbanized - as people flocked to the centers of production where all the money and opportunity were - and then in hindsight we recognized the many benefits of urbanization and began consciously pursuing sensible land-use policies.) Towards the end of the twentieth century, however, we realized that building above a certain height is nearly as impractical as suburban sprawl: skyscrapers create their own sets of problems, which I needn’t enumerate here because the problems have been amply addressed in many public fora. The long and short of it is: mid-rises and a few high-rises good; monstrous skyscrapers, bad.

[@Norp-i7m]

@@danopticon No, skyscrapers started being built so banks could cluster in certain financial sectors. You're romanticizing predatory capitalism.

[@videowilliams]

Making Saudi a more appealing place to visit or do business or improving the view from a high floor of this hypothetical tower would be even bigger challenges than making the building itself. I think you really hit on something in your bit about their love of conceptual art.

[@grabnar4015]

I have a name idea for the tower but I'm not sure what the Arabic for "compensator" is

[@FadiSaab]

برج المعوض Al Mu’awedh Tower lol

[@SnaccDaddyy]

building a 2 kilometer tall building next to an airport seems.....interesting

[@TheGuiltyPillow]

My theory? They are going to build it straight up, but sideways. Like a Ripley's Believe It or Not exhibit, everything will be on its side. Then, they build a 2km long crashpad. Finally, they make the tower fall on its side so that now everything inside is right side up. Voila! Neom is complete! XD

[@tayzonday]

They should call it “Arco” after the super-tall self-contained cities of Sim City 2

[@greebj]

the crappy Blade-Runner style Plymouth one that spews out a ton of pollution and you have to surround it with police stations to try and deal with all the crime it creates 🤣 At least Saudi could save on cops, just need a some extra chopping blocks

[@erikwsince1981]

Yeah they were fully called Arcologies. I remember them from SimCity 2000. Great game!

[@bjornskivids]

It won't be self-contained. It will need constant resources and servicing from outside. Ain't no food growing in there. Ain't no sewage being processed.

[@DeathInTheSnow]

Ah yes, because clearly the problem with Neom was that it was a straight line that went _horizontally_ instead of _vertically._ This should solve it! Also I once stayed in an 30 storey hostel with 8 lifts. It took _half an hour_ to get downstairs because everybody wanted to use the lift at once. *_On every floor._* Doesn't matter how fast they go, you're getting a bottleneck when your lift has to stop at every floor, open, close, not pick up anybody because it's already full and people want to get to the ground floor only, and then go back up one storey at a time to the top, while full, then repeat.

[@thegreenpickel]

If you were a prince I could see having your own private elevator from the penthouse to the ground floor and 500 car garage in the basement level.

[@joshm3342]

Agreed, but SOFTWARE could prevent stopping if full & nobody wanted off.

[@Kuenstler.und.Wanderer-Esp]

Didnt the hotel have stairs?

[@DeathInTheSnow]

@@Kuenstler.und.Wanderer-Esp Neither me nor my partner felt like walking down 20+ flights of stairs with luggage. Now imagine doing a 2km stairway at the end of work every day. And that's just to get to the bottom before you start your commute home.

[@Kuenstler.und.Wanderer-Esp]

@@DeathInTheSnow im just a guy whos to lazy to wait for the elevator so i always walk

[@khalidmustafa1967]

I think the most essential and pressing mega project is SEWEGE.

[@contessa.adella]

2Km IS impressive..but… I propose building FOUR of them close together, bridging them at the tops to make a super strong platform to bear a fifth tower rising centrally and majestically another 1Km, making the executive penthouse suite a vertigo inducing 3Km high. I mean if we’re talking fanciful ideas…why not?😊

[@wimvanaerde6249]

Hahaha 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@KhattaRapidus]

Be just much more impressive to turn Mt Everest into a giant pyramid and getting a rocket platform closer to space. Make a huge pyramid rising above the Himalayas. Edit: Without extreme Geo engineering and it's probably not going to happen, without deep Earth energy.

[@mymasmith7848]

Sounds the tower I would build out of blocks on the toy room floor.

[@adarret]

What’s the architectural term for Vaporware, asking for a friend…

[@thudthud5423]

I'm not an engineer, but I would assume that there would be significant side to side way in the upper part of the building. From what I understand, the Birj Kalifa and the One World Building in NYC have a side to side sway and that its somewhat necessary. So, with a 2km building, I'd assume there would be a significant side to side sway. Here's my non-professional concerns: - How far from the building's base center point would the building be capable of swaying? Here's what I mean. If you were to look directly down at the building and draw an X at the geometric center of the building's base and draw an X at the geometric center of the building's top floor, at full sway, how far apart would these Xes appear? A few inches, a few feet, a significant percentage of the base's breadth? - How noticeable would this sway be and what would the psychological effects be on its occupants on the top floors? Would it cause them anxiety or nausea? - How would the tower hold up against wind?

[@rousedg]

The vision has clearly jumped the shark.

[@KellicTiger]

Only if they put a shark at the top of the building.

[@stickynorth]

@@KellicTiger Their new sky aquarium coming soon to Riyadh or Neom? Wouldn't be shocked...

[@Foolish188]

I kinda like The Vision. Although I wish the Scarlet Witch had picked someone else.

[@mukkah]

SA: It's the fountain of Megaproject memes that flow'eth ever over lmfao

[@MosquitoValentineNH]

Dear God Simon you’re starting to sound like Al Pacino. With the amount of videos you make your vocal chords are probably like an old dried out fan belt. You need to go on a couple week break before you start sounding like RFK Jr.

[@e1123581321345589144]

"Sire, you know that line project we started? It's not feasible sire, the coffers have run dry" "I know what the problem is, *Built it in the sky!* "

[@greebj]

Excellent idea sire, we will save so much money by eliminating the need for the other 169km worth of the earthworks!

[@ellis4438]

How many people have noticed that your handle is the Fibonacci sequence?

[@e1123581321345589144]

@@ellis4438 not sure, but you're the first one to mention it since I created it 19 years ago.

[@biercenator]

Further proof that having piles and piles and piles of money at your disposal is bad for ya.

[@Fixatedwatcher]

It will take a couple of generations but it will all end back up in the desert, there seem to be very few plans for Saudi Arabia to try to cope with what happens after the oil well has dried up. These vanity projects will be looked at with disdain when the inevitable happens.

[@CandorPerlicious]

Ok, simply put. Who the heck is going to want to live in a building 2 km high. HOW LONG is it going to take to get the elevator to the top floor? Even if you had your own personal lift, a 2k distance in a slow moving elevator is going to take FOREVER. Hope you're not claustrophobic. The average speed of an elevator car is between 5 and 22 mph. At 22 mph it would still take a little under 4 minutes to get to the top or bottom. Now wait for the car to come up from the lower levels then go down and vice versa. I don't have that much patience to ride in an elevator for that long.

[@ocda3]

Hopefully they have a better plan for dealing with the sewage than Dubai did with Burj Khalifa.

[@doujinflip]

Dubai has a piped sewage system now. They've been working to dig one in for like the past two decades.

[@paulkendzulak-kx6kz]

I was thinking the same thing lots of money but not to smart

[@mon_66]

Skyscrapers Usually don't have sewing system even in US.

[@mon_66]

@@woodym2 Oh sorry it seems that it has a sewage system. I asked gemini. It said it's a misconception that it doesn't have one. Idk who spread these kind of lies. They say only some old buildings didn't have sewage system that's it.

[@TheMightymolar]

​@doujinflip Not long ago, they used poop trucks. No more poop trucks?

[@rinzo2009]

So the Prince wants to rebuild the Tower of Babel in Jeddah, right? With the latest cutting edge tech too, right? We wish him and the Saudi purse the best of luck.

[@JoséFerIzaparraga]

i think the ceo of DC is in charge of Saudi Arabia

[@santoshNarayana]

@@JoséFerIzaparragaCeo of DC? Do you mean the mayor of Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser? Are you saying she is secretly in charge of Saudi Arabia? 😂😂😂

[@greebj]

The sad thing is they'll probably want to dig up more oil to pay for this feckless insanity, lowering prices, and will be yet another subtle impediment to decarbonising So we can sit back and laugh but everything has a consequence that touches us eventually.

[@baxterdevin]

"F**k that moon." Out of nowhere, totally unexpected, and 100% accurate. You got my sub with that one 😆

[@oeliamoya9796]

I like Simon. He's a great narrator. He should make more channels.

[@johnboren8928]

I'm not sure KZbin has the capacity for any more Simon-channels.

[@AirWindStorm]

218 are not enough?!?

[@thomasnelson6161]

This feels like bread and circuses.

[@4literv6]

Because it is. 👍🏻 Like politics just distracts and divides=intentionally using Hegelian dialect against us ALL. "Tell em what they want to hear, make em laugh n cheer so they'll re elect you every year" bullworth 90s political satire movie qoute with holly berry and Warren Beatty.

[@davidripley2916]

Nah mate, that's televisions 📺. Modern- day version of bread n Circuses. Bruce Springsteen showed this with the track 57 Channels( and nothing on). Ends up shooting his t.v. and busted for disturbing the peace. . .

[@KaiserAfini]

Doesn't the desert offer lots of unused real estate ? Couldn't they build stunning ground level infrastructure for much cheaper and with less engineering hurdles ? This is just a vanity project, it has no practical use.

[@juances]

These princes are acting like spoiled brats and the mega projects are the toys that seem fun one day but get bored of it the day after.

[@daryl9799]

Don't worry one day they will all be broke the free ride doesn't last forever. The way these guys spend money is rediculous.

[@July41776DedicatedtoTheProposi]

Saudi Arabia should focus on more basic goals: water, water, and water. Saudi Arabia could build enough facilities to provide water for the entire Middle East as a replacement for OIL.

[@merchantfan]

Or literally anything to help themselves with climate change. A bunch of people (like a *bunch*) just died during the Hajj. They're going to pay for all that oil money in a lot more than cash

[@paulkendzulak-kx6kz]

That would be a good ideal

[@40below1000]

Commercial fossil-fueled desalination can make as much fresh water as any nation needs. The big problem is with the tons of polluted salt they leave behind. One litre of reclaimed water leaves behind 1.5 littres of toxic brine from the process and you cant just dump it back in the sea without killing everything living there

[@July41776DedicatedtoTheProposi]

@@40below1000 So? Create artificial salt beds just like those that lay below Arizona, NM, Texas, Louisiana, all the way up to the Great Lakes and Canada. No big deal.

[@janiceperkins4340]

Water gose for way cheaper than oil !! Not a good business decision, no profit! 🤷‍♀️ Rule of Acquisition # 108

[@governmentlab6162]

So, this is the problem with the oil-producing countries in the Middle East. They think that if they just build a really tall or really big building and fill it with super-luxurious hotels and restaurants, tourists will come. No, tourism demand doesn't come that way. There should be historical sites or pyramids nearby. Or at least a theme park that recreates the ancient Middle East.

[@vtxrecruiter]

These are the people that thought setting the AK sight to a higher number made it shoot harder.......

[@WolfetoneRebel1916]

Has anyone ever actually wasted as much money as this guy. It's actually hilarious.

[@merchantfan]

It's kind of sad though at the same time bc with all that money and how much they're going to be impacted by climate change, they could build some really cool actually useful stuff but they just want to throw around money and stroke egos

[@eleghari]

He start with kidnapping Saudi elite and forcing them to pay him ransom for their release. Collected about $2 Billion. Then went and spent ~$500 on a fake painting. Tell you this guy is a genius 🤭

[@BiggieTrismegistus]

Many of the Soviet megaprojects were stupid but they were nothing compared to what Saudi Arabia is doing.

[@merchantfan]

@@BiggieTrismegistus Saudi Arabia is more insulting I think bc since it comes from climate change-inducing oil it feels more like Nero fiddling while Rome burns. The Soviet megaprojects were sad for the soviets but this is sad for everyone

[@Kai...999]

I'm an engineer, of the mechanical variety. And this technically can be done in theory but in reality they won't get it done. They simply won't. Also didnt they abandon the Jeddah Tower project that was half the height of this?

[@jonahfalcon1970]

Techincally, they didn't abandon it. 🙃

[@clintjohnmanuba6917]

It's planned to be built near an airport? Yeah we can see safety experts sweating at their seats.

[@hindumuninc]

Well, at least Saudis don't have a well known reputation for flying planes into buildings... oh wait.

[@jaroslavsvaha6065]

Maybe Saudi Arabia should use some of its money to connect the Burj Khalifa to the sewer system, so they don't look like they're stuck in 19th century

[@ianmcnulty799]

The building will be held together by an exterior tubular brace that wraps the tower in a spiral formation and will also be the world's tallest waterslide.

[@kharmachaos667]

Doubles as a way to remove waste.

[@tripwire3992]

You mean saudi arabia is planning to build a 2km skyscraper but it will only be 3d renders for the next 30 years