Mike Harker Savagely Beaten In Carribean

[MarkJ]

Ummmmmm. Wheres my fave security photo.....

St Martin is meant to be safe, isnt it?

[shadow]

Still love that screen door Mark..

[Southern Star]

A horrible and cowardly act of gratuitous violence - overkill that was clearly not necessary in order to complete the robbery. Sadly, it has become an all too common occurrence virtually everywhere in today's society (and as Gord May pointed out, people living in North American cities live in glass houses and should decidedly not throw stones at St. Martin).

Avoid St. Martin? Avoid Antigua? Avoid St. Kitts? Avoid St. Vincent? Avoid Puerto Rico? Avoid St. Lucia? Avoid Trinidad? Avoid Venezuela's offshore Islands? Avoid Brazil. Avoid Panama? Sure, you can if you so choose. But while you are at it, you should also avoid going out in even your own home town, where acts of senseless violence are also bound to occur. Yes, to be totally safe, you should sell your boat and move into a gated community in a house with bars, security cameras, alarms, search lights and a safe room. Sound like fun?

Alternatively, there are things that we can(and should do) to minimize our risk while cruising. Alarm systems connected to the spreader lights, bars on large hatches/doors are a good start (and dummy safes with cancelled credit cards, relatively small amounts of cash and your passports a good 'finish', if they somehow manage to actually get in).

Resistance? Each must decide that for him or herself. But one wonders what would have happened if Mike, knowning that he was outnumbered and at a disadvantage, hadn't physically struck back. The result in terms of the beating he received may have been the same (at which time one may as well do more than passive resistance), or.....

In the final analysis, our hearts go out to Mike as a fellow cruiser who suffered a fate far worse than anyone deserves. What I suggest we should not do is to become frozen in fear as a result of his fate (and that of many others who have been victimized elsewhere in a similar way). To do that is to let the bad guys win - it is to limit our mobility, our desire to explore new places and things and to pursue our dreams because of risks that are on the one hand unavoidable (this can occur anywhere), and on the other hand able to be minimized (with proper security systems in place).

Brad

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Ummmmmm. Wheres my fave security photo.....

That's all very nice. But have you trained her where to poop onboard? or does she use the dock..........

[sneuman]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Ummmmmm. Wheres my fave security photo.....

St Martin is meant to be safe, isnt it?

I am a big fan of Occam's razor - the simplest solution is often the correct one. Under the circumstances, this countermeasure seems would have had a much greater chance of success than a firearm.

[Bash]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Ummmmmm. Wheres my fave security photo.....

St Martin is meant to be safe, isnt it?

okay, I've built the screen. now how do I get one of those lifting attachments?

[Palarran]

Did anybody read this today?
Teen tourist killed by crossfire in Virgin Islands - Travel - News - msnbc.com

Maybe there should be a thread for where cruising is safe. It seems the list would be shorther.

[sarafina]

safe is not a place... it's a state of mind...

[Ram]

Originally Posted by sarafina

safe is not a place... it's a state of mind...

Tell that to the guy that just left my boat who is stationed in Afganestan!

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by Ram

Tell that to the guy that just left my boat who is stationed in Afganestan!

I find that hard to beleive, given that we have been continuously winning for 9 years now We didn't even win for this long in WW1 & WWII, combined - was even starting to worry that I had left it too late to invest in some lake front property - but before I write that cheque am now thinking their may be something I don't know?

[Palarran]

Originally Posted by sarafina

safe is not a place... it's a state of mind...

Sorry, but that makes no sense at all. Safe is safe, no matter what place your in or your state of mind.

Sint. Maarten and St. Martin are different places. You can tell almost immediatly upon crossing the border. Sint. Maarten is NOT as safe, period.

Christian had graciously offered to get Mike Harker a laptop if he didn't have one. I also have quite a few old ones sitting around and could bring him one. I'll be down there on July 29th for 5 days. If someone on this forum is in communictation with him, ask if he still needs one. I could leave it at The Scuba Shop for him.

[osirissail]

Well, I know for sure the only "safe" island in the Caribbean - Mopion Island. Never heard of anybody having a problem there . . . . wait a minute . . . I just remembered there is somebody down there that is evidently stealing the top half of the ladies bikini's as I see few ladies with them. Oh, well, I guess everyplace has its problems . . .

[GordMay]

Excerpted from Mike’s latest missive:
“... I am on a borrowed laptop, but I can go in to get Internet twice a day...”
➥ Sail-World.com : Mike Harker tells of mugging in St Martin

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by osirissail

Well, I know for sure the only "safe" island in the Caribbean - Mopion Island...

I'd have thought Mopion was more a sandbar, than an islet.

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Ummmmmm. Wheres my fave security photo.....

St Martin is meant to be safe, isnt it?

Mark,

I think that looks good but now that I see a picture of it close up I wonder........

If I were to grab hold and pull really hard could I not just pop it out?

How deep are the channels of that Bendytoes?