My turn to rant....

[brownsd54]

Well said Rob!!! We live in an “it’s not my fault” society. It’s just human behavior.

-Got into an accident…..ya I went through a stop sign, but the other guy was speeding, it’s not my fault, it’s the speeders fault.

-I got robbed the other day. Ya I brought this guy over after the bar and had a few drinks. I passed out, and went I came to, all my stuff was gone, but it’s not my fault, it’s the thief’s fault.

-Damn cops stopped me for no reason. Found a little ganja in my pocket and spent the night in jail, but it’s not my fault. Ya I was drunk, dancing on the bar and singing at the top of my longs, “I love ganja…”, but it’s not my fault, it’s the cops fault for being overzealous.

I could go on and on forever. (Might be a good idea for another thread. “It’s not my fault because….”)

We have been coming home to Jamaica for 22 years now, twice and sometimes three times a year. We have never had any problems other than a few incidents that can be attributed to our own stupidity. Mind you we don’t go down that dark ally, cash in hand wanting to buy ganja. We don’t change money on the street. Not after the first time and got ripped off mind you, (my fault and my first act of stupidity). We don’t get drunk and stupid on the beach and then invite people we don’t know back to the room to “continue with this little party”. Yes, sometimes thing happen, but nothing happens that doesn’t go on in small town America, or back roads Canada. We just have to keep our wits about us, don’t do things in Jamaica that you wouldn’t do at home. And above all, don’t blame everyone else for our own stupidity.

A great man once said;

"Stupid is as stupid does."
-Forrest Gump

[rocknrollfarmer]

Rockin' Rob ! In regards to your post....Color me impressed ! Common sense can go a long way. When you were in doing the rock promotion gig, did Minneapolis's The Replacements ever play there? See you the week of the 17th. Keep up the good work ! Respect, Todd + Deb

[Luvsdaislands]

Rob....GOOD POST!!

This needs to be pinned at the top of the board!!!!

Basically, use the same common sense on vacation that you use at home...don't ever let your guard down!!!

[Eco]

Blah blah blah....so who has the cheapest beer on the beach.

Kidding...and I shouldn't be.... Nice rant though and I mean that.

The part about the locals hating a thief is dead on. A few years ago a badmind reached into my pocket while I was doing a business review in Negril...after I caught him and did my thing (some major verbal assault and a little battery) he ran away with all the locals chasing him. Several trips later and I have not seen his face...

[Muzikdoc]

Well said and to the point Rob..Thank You...I have had only on small incident in all the years I have visited..And it was pretty much my fault..walking back to my room at 2 in the morning with a bag of Beer.. LOL..A guys jumps out from nowhere and says "Gimme your Beer!" I looked at him and took a small step towards him and quietly said.."You ain't getting my beer" I could see him thinking hard..then he say, "Respect" and went along his way..HaHa..I don't consider this close to a crime but know how someone would blow it up to being almost ROBBED!!..lol..Don't put yourself "out there" and you wont have an issue.

[heater]

Well said Rob.

[chris55]

Well put Rob. I took Kahunas post for what I believe it was. A home invasion would be frightening, no matter where you are. Think a lot of us would want to leave and he is a seasoned Jamaica visitor. I for one know I haven't always had my "A" game on..and that goes for my home town as well.. Kahuna did. He made a slight error. Who hasn't. I for one, did not glean from his post that we shouldn't go to Negril. He is obviously a frequent poster and wanted to share his experience. I was going to buy his book and did..he is a good writer and probably feels disillusioned with the island for now. I feel sad for Kahuna that this happened. I think he gave a very factual account of what happened and I took what he said as information to be used..

I'm sure he is imagining what it would have been like had his wife been with him. I'm going to miss his posts. Perhaps in time he will come to terms with what occurred and make his way back to the island.

[Tanfastic]

Thanks for addressing this, we love Negril and live in the Phoenix Metro area. I would guess there is more crime in our area on any given weekend than all of Negril for a year. yet we don't move!

[meinvancouver]

All I have to add to Rob's rant is sometimes as seasoned Negril travelers, we may think that we know it all and let our guard down and things happen. Some of the stuff mentioned here would not happen to a newbie, they are more on edge and worried than the person that has been to Negril 12 times. So for all the peeps that have been going to Negril since the 80s and 90s, don't let your guard down when visiting the island we love so much.

Cheers and good rant Rob!!

[sabu]

Thanks Rob for your well honed perspectives. We are all aware of Jamaica's reputation as a dangerous place to visit and we try to balance that misconception with the reality that Jamaicans in general are incredibly hospitable and that traveling in Jamaica is generally very safe.....but that you still have to follow some basic safety tips like locking up valuables and not wandering around at night off the beaten path (and I consider the beach a "beaten path" up until late night).

We are among the many who have been coming to Jamaica every year for many years with countless trips to Negril, many trips with our kids when they were young. We are careful but have never had any "incidents". The worst was my fault, driving....got confused and went into a rotary past Sav and came out the wrong way into a slow-mo head on. Fortunately, no one was hurt but I mashed up the Jamaican driver's car. Again, all my fault. The amazing thing us was how well we were treated by the driver, the police, and the neighbors who looked out for my wife for the 3 hours she sat by the roadside while we straightened things out, and I went up to the police station to file the accident report. When I got back to the site, some of the neighborhood women were out sitting with my wife and keeping things calm and cool.

We all know, or have heard, about thefts, pickpockets, sleight-of-hands but its important to keep it all in perspective.