Some people should just stay home
The mother of the bride's shrill nasal voice over the telephone made my head hurt. "...And another thing," she rambled, nearing the end of her list of complaints. "My son-in-law and SEVEN of his friends got speeding tickets just after crossing the border. This is so unfair, it's like they were out to get us! You KNOW this is bad for tourism, I'm going to warn my friends never to go to Baja again!"
I rubbed my temples and spoke slowly, my tone of voice clearly communicating my frustration. "Martha, were these people speeding?"
"No!!! Of course not!!" She replied loudly. "Well, um...OK, fine, they were going over the speed limit. But still...We're American tourists, they shouldn't be giving us a hard time, we're going down there to spend money."
Nice, very nice. It is precisely this kind of "holier than thou" attitude, mostly perpetrated by ethnocentric first-time American travelers, which has tarnished the image of Americans visiting foreign countries. I suppose that, according to these obtuse individuals, only locals should get cited for breaking laws in tourist meccas like Orlando, Miami, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, because visitors are there to spend money and support the local economy. Try telling that one to the cops!
Is it only in third-world countries where these folks feel protected by the almighty Dollar? Would they issue the same complaints if cited in Munich, Paris or Tokyo?
People who support this mindset should do us all a favor and stay home. Not only are they showing a blatant disregard for the laws of a country that welcomes them with open arms, but they are tarnishing the good name of their fellow Americans.
I rubbed my temples and spoke slowly, my tone of voice clearly communicating my frustration. "Martha, were these people speeding?"
"No!!! Of course not!!" She replied loudly. "Well, um...OK, fine, they were going over the speed limit. But still...We're American tourists, they shouldn't be giving us a hard time, we're going down there to spend money."
Nice, very nice. It is precisely this kind of "holier than thou" attitude, mostly perpetrated by ethnocentric first-time American travelers, which has tarnished the image of Americans visiting foreign countries. I suppose that, according to these obtuse individuals, only locals should get cited for breaking laws in tourist meccas like Orlando, Miami, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, because visitors are there to spend money and support the local economy. Try telling that one to the cops!
Is it only in third-world countries where these folks feel protected by the almighty Dollar? Would they issue the same complaints if cited in Munich, Paris or Tokyo?
People who support this mindset should do us all a favor and stay home. Not only are they showing a blatant disregard for the laws of a country that welcomes them with open arms, but they are tarnishing the good name of their fellow Americans.
posted by Baja Babe at 10:15 AM
2 Comments:
Yeah! Besides that, they are probably the same people trying to get out of paying their American speeding tickets because their father is a cop or their mother's a judge.
I drove in to Baja many, many times over the years, usually just to Tijuana or Rosarito, but occasionally farther south. Never had traffic problems. Sure, I've got my share north of the border, but I was always afraid of ending up in a Mexican prison if I crossed the wrong policeman south of the border.
These days the Mexicans have worked hard to eliminate the atmosphere of corruption and lawlessness. I guess it works against some people who now feel like they can do whatever they want with impunity.
thanks, 2x4, couldn't have said it better myself. :)
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