Going, Going, Gone!

I just read on line that Abu Dhabi Investment Council, an investment group from the Middle East has purchased Prudential's 75% share of the Chrysler Building in New York City for a cool 800 million. That's over 10 million per floor. Several months ago a group from Dubai, Kuwait and Qatar bought the General Motors building on Fifth Avenue in NYC for 2.8 million. I felt the first twinge of "no, that can't be true!" then I felt my blood pressure rise when I read this quote. " Many of the oil-rich nations in the Middle East who (are) flush with capital from their oil profit are targeting or looking at our trophy real estate assets." said Dan Fasulo a property analyst at Real Capital Analytics.

I'm not sure why this is upsetting me, after all the Japanese bought Rockefeller Center but this feels like a slap in the face. We're gouged with the cost of oil at about $140.00 per barrel then with the money they've made from us they turn around and buy pieces of our country.

I know I sound like I'm xenophobic but I'm not. It's not that I have a fear or hate of foreigners, I just don't like the thought of so many of our country's assets being owned by foreigners. Does that make me zenophobic??