Saudi Arabia's 100-Mile Skyscraper Is Turning Into a Disaster

The Saudi crown family's megalomaniac dreams of building a gigantic city of the future in the middle of the desert are getting a brutal reality check. Saudi Arabia's plans for Neom, a futuristic fever dream which includes a massive all-inclusive resort on the coast, a second ski resort in the mountains, and an up to 106 miles-long pair of 1,600-foot skyscrapers called The Line, is running into major financial problems. As the Wall Street Journal reports, capital expenditure estimates to build Neom to what officials call its "end-state" by 2080 have ballooned to $8.8 trillion, which is over 25 times the kingdom's annual budget. Worse yet, an audit report reviewed by the newspaper found that officials were trying to fudge the numbers to hide evidence of the project's ballooning costs. The audit found "evidence of deliberate manipulation" of finances by "certain members of management." It's a damning new development that highlights the grandiose and unrealistic goals set by Neom's mai ... Read full article.