One goes up, the other down

ONCE little more than an underpopulated prong on the Arab coast of the Gulf, Qatar is being propelled into the world by a new ruler and the discovery of vast reserves of natural gas. The new emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, ejected his father from power 21 months ago. Since then, apart from having threatened to take his father to court if he did not hand back several billion missing dollars (Saudi Arabia persuaded him to drop the threat), Sheikh Hamad has promised municipal elections and perhaps a direct poll next year for his shura, or consultative council. For a Gulf state, this is lively stuff.