If anybody is wondering about Luanda, I looked it up when the issue came up in a different recent quiz, and I'll re-post my general findings here:
There is lots of oil money in Angola so oil companies are sending Western expats to Luanda to get a piece of the pie. As a result, there is a demand for Western items in Luanda, but there is also a high security cost for importing goods. In essence, quick "forced" Westernization of an otherwise populous but African city is resulting in expensive living conditions.
I think it's impossible. Prices are based on supply and demand. If there's no supply, the price index for the Vatican is the same as the price of a unicorn or a yeti. Mathematically, I think it's a Divide by Zero error that reboots the universe.
The State Department's website lists Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Sadly, I don't think you can discuss Israel without some element of controversial politics.
I don't think anyone seriously thinks that Tel Aviv is the capital of Israel even though most of the embassies are concentrated there instead of de facto & de jure capital Jerusalem due to the delicate political situation.
The seat of Israel's government is in Jerusalem, and Israel claims Jerusalem to be its capital. Tel Aviv is Israel's most populous metropolitan area and is the financial hub of the country, much like New York is to the United States. The US and the majority of the UN have not traditionally recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital city as a concession to the Palestinians and to Israel's other Arab neighbors, and rather or not the US should have maintained that status quo is outside of the scope of the argument I am making. The Knesset, the prime minister, the Supreme Court and the High Court of Justice are all located in Jerusalem along with the overwhelming majority of the offices for various ministries, much like Washington, D.C. is the central location of the US government. It seems clear that an educated person sould be able to identify Jerusalem as the only city in Israel that fits the description of a capital city.
A sovereign nation is entitled to name any city within its territory as its capital. The nation of Israel has named Jerusalem as its capital and therefore even un-educated and biased people with their own agendas must realise that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.
Osiris presents a great argument, but I think Malbaby's is lacking. Whether or not Jerusalem is wholly a part of Israel's territory is itself not fully agreed upon by commenters on the internet.
The capital is where each country says it is. No matter how much you dislike it, I don't see how other countries can decide which city is the capital in another country. You can only consider Israel to be without capital city if you don't reocgnize Jerusalem.
I second this. Tel Aviv is not the capital of Israel. At least no country including Israel itself is claiming this, to my knowledge. Jerusalem is the proclaimed captial of two countries. Like Rome is the capital of two countries. IMHO, the bigger problem in Trump's declaration is that he does not consider Jerusalem to be ALSO the capital of Palestine. Just imagine Trump has said: "USA will move two embassies to Jerusalem, one for Israel and one for Palestine."
'TheLastFish' can you show where your source for your statement that President Trump has stated that he does not consider Jerusalem to be ALSO the capital of Palestine. Or are you just putting words into President Trumps mouth to try and make your biased point.
Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. But the reason many countries don't recognize this is because they don't recognize Israeli control of Jerusalem. Not that they are right to do so... but it would be like the USA claiming that Paris was its capital.
and Trump is an idiot who doesn't understand the implications or ramifications of anything he does or says. Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, sure. But there are reasons why the US keeps its embassy in Tel Aviv. Trump is too stupid to grasp those reasons, though.
Malbaby's point is already invalid because President Trump's administration (along with all other US administrations) does not recognize any sovereign nation called Palestine.
I know that Jerusalem / Tel Aviv has always been a whole controversial *thing*, but it would really bother me if JetPunk had previously accepted Tel Aviv (I personally cannot remember if it did or not), but has now changed it to Jerusalem just because Trump declared it so on Twitter or whatever. I think taking any of those pronouncements until truly *done* is almost always premature, as many of Trump's other off-the-cuff policy declarations do not come true due to court blockage (e.g. Muslim immigration, trans people in the military), him changing his mind (or having it changed for him by advisors), etc.
As long as I've been on here, I'm pretty sure Jetpunk has always maintained Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. It certainly predates any pronouncement Trump made on the subject by a long way.
@Kingfisher That would only make sense if there were many government offices for each country located in those cities, which is wholly untrue for both. Thus, your comparison is completely irrelevant. Serbia doesn’t even control Pristina. Ignoring disputes over whether Israel is right to control the land, Israel maintains pretty much full control of the city and places most of its government offices in the city, which makes it a reasonable claim to call it the capital city.
Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and JetPunk recognizes that because Israel controls Jerusalem and it's nobody else's capital-Palestinians have their unofficial government in Ram Allah.
Face palm me, too, while you're at it. I was sure Australia would be on the list, but thought I was wrong when Sydney wasn't accepted. My brain must be on mute this morning.
The government of of Vienna has built many apartment houses during the last 100 years and rents them out at low cost to citizens, thus generally reducing the prices of real estate and, indirectly, of most other goods.
Some might be surprised but Saudi Arabia is one of the lowest cost-of-living countries in the world. In addition to the high salaries, zero tax, and illegality of dating, this is part of why it's among the best places in the world to work and save money. Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE (particularly Dubai) are all much more expensive comparatively.
I knew the last one had to be the capital of Seychelles or Mauritius but I couldn't get it to come to me. It still always catches me off-guard that a country with an obviously French name, and French[-Creole] speaking inhabitants was a British colony.
There is lots of oil money in Angola so oil companies are sending Western expats to Luanda to get a piece of the pie. As a result, there is a demand for Western items in Luanda, but there is also a high security cost for importing goods. In essence, quick "forced" Westernization of an otherwise populous but African city is resulting in expensive living conditions.
and Trump is an idiot who doesn't understand the implications or ramifications of anything he does or says. Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, sure. But there are reasons why the US keeps its embassy in Tel Aviv. Trump is too stupid to grasp those reasons, though.
Also surprised not to see Monaco on the list.
Some might be surprised but Saudi Arabia is one of the lowest cost-of-living countries in the world. In addition to the high salaries, zero tax, and illegality of dating, this is part of why it's among the best places in the world to work and save money. Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE (particularly Dubai) are all much more expensive comparatively.