Kids urged to avoid Spring Break in Mexico

C'mon Steve, don't you hear the mortar fire? I've been hearing air-raid sirens all day. Instead of working I've been cowering under my desk all day.

To be fair I don't think it's a great idea for stupid teenagers to drive to Tijuana for Spring Break, which is the main thing that Carol Thompson (the Dean at University of Arizona) was warning against. Too bad FOX News interviewed her, they just can't resist twisting a story until it's backwards.

But I'm simply amazed at how much misinformation there is out there about safety in Mexico right now. I've heard people being interviewed on the news saying that they are scared because of all the tourists being shot in Cancun... But NOT ONE tourist in Cancun has been murdered as far as I know.

And FOX News was stating that the US State Department warning about Mexico included warning people off Cancun. But I've searched the site for warnings that include Cancun and can't find any. The US State Department alert just says the usual stuff about not getting drunk and losing your wits, and about the undertow in the ocean here...there's nothing particularly strident about it's discussion of Cancun.

It seems people are freaking out about safety in Cancun without getting the facts. But the fact is that Cancun is pretty tranquil for a place with almost 1 million people living in it.

Honestly I think Americans in particular need something to distract them from the shrinking economy. The reporters there are desperate to cover any sensational story that isn't "oh my god the economy is going down the drain."

And the Canadian press, well, they've been down on Mexico for a long, long time. I think they want Mexico to be perfect because they are so sick of being cold. And when Mexico turns out to be a troubled complicated place they jump all over it.

Ok, now I'll go back to hiding under my desk...I hear incoming missiles...

 

Also it seems like the ones who are generally spreading the misinformation are the same ones complaining about illegal immigration and building the fence... in other words, all around anti-Mexican types.. which is fine, but the problem is Fox news and similar outfits have millions upon millions of loyal viewers who take everything they hear or watch as the unquestionable gospel.

You also have to take into account the US groups that want to "encourage" people to vacation IN country to help their own tourism shortfalls, and spreading lies about your competition is a cheap and effective way to scare up business.....

I think most people who have been here before realize that the reports are sensationalized garbage. But for the first timers, it will make a lot of people think twice.

If I were in charge of Cancun's tourism dept. I think I might consider filing suit against some of the "news" outlets who are misreporting and generally bad mouthing Cancun.... at worst it would get Cancun's name out there, and at best, they would have to issue retractions... If I went on TV and suggested you'll be murdered if you vacation in Miami, I expect I would catch all kinds of grief and slander suits, but they seem to have no problem insinuating such things about Mexico.

There are problems here, but the "news" outlets owe it to their viewers to get the story right and not sensationalize everything... but that's another rant.

 

Very, very, VERY well put!

I've been going up a wall over the fact that the Dean at the University of Arizona issued a warning against travel to Mexico. But Arizona, as I understand it, has the most lax laws regarding buying semi-automatic weapons of the states that border Mexico. And so the cartels are buying guns in Arizona...and Arizona students are told not to go to Mexico...

Don't even ask me if I think guns should be so readily available in the US...

And then I remember just how many drugs my fellow college students used (I had quit by then :wink: )...and I think that maybe, just maybe, the University of Arizona should instead be preaching to it's students not to use illicit drugs that might be coming up through Mexico...

The craziness in this equation makes my head spin.

Last time I was in the States I got some dumb questions about safety in Mexico. I immediately asked those folks if they knew anyone who smoked pot or used coke...I told them to tell their friends to quit. Don't talk to me about Mexico being unsafe while you are smoking dope on the weekend.

 

Breaking News

A tourist died here this week...on Wednesday in Puerto Morelos a 57-year old man died from drowning... See how dangerous that ocean is, it kills people, in fact I think that ocean out there kills more tourists than anything else around here...

 

I saw that about the tourist. Too bad.

Last week, the day before that happened, I got a PM on TA from a guy who wanted to know about snorkeling places and where he could go where they had extra large life vests. I told him I didn't really know but what I did know I told him(as diplomatically as possible) that people died all the time snorkeling so to watch so as not to overexert in the heat, etc. etc.

Then there are the cases of springbreakers dieing here from alcohol abuse or activities stemming from it like jumping off of balconies. This does not count the inter-springbreaker robberies, fights and rapes. I guess it would be much calmer here without those folks but what can you do?

 

Consuming abnormally large amounts of alcohol before swimming doesn't help either....

Generally, giving large numbers of inexperienced drinkers "open bars" is bad enough... add in hormone raging, macho-ego, invincible teenagers, and its a miracle if things don't get out of hand...

 

To be fair I think some people who don't drink or don't drink much at home, kinda of let their hair down on vacation. Others just continue the same lifestyle that they have at home whether that includes little or no drinking and/or drugging or lots of it.

This is the same whether the people are tourists or transplants from somewhere else--like me/us looking for a "change" or a "new life or experience." It is what is called a "geographical. "But the old saying is "Wherever you go, there you are. So here we are. I for one am quite happy.

As another old saw goes, "Want to make God laugh? Tell Him your plans!" Came here to get away from everything, continue my retirement, and keep on with the drinking and partying! Ended up finding everything, going back to work and getting sober! He must be laughing--but then that makes two of us!

 

Something more sensible and accurate from the press (thanks to CancunCanuck for finding this):

Mexico alert is for border cities
http://www.freep.com/article/200903...25/FEATURES/Mexico alert is for border cities

 

I saw that and decided not to post it. It is from the Free Press! You can only imagine what those nuts are like!! Don't want anyone blaming the messenger and looking for ulterior motives. (he says with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek!)