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Old 23-03-2012, 19:02   #16
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

We have been cruiseing the area your talking about for the last 8 or 10 yrs ! never had a problem Yet !! Now as Ive said before I carry a couple of LARGE CALIBER Flare guns 1 10 gauge and a couple of 12 gauges, the 10 gauge with a 3 1/2 inch buck shot or slugs will deter most all folks who wish to board or do you harm !! Never had to use it but have had it available a time or two !!I know everyone is against guns aboard on here but Ive been thru inspections most everywhere, and have never had a problem with my flare guns ! Just my 2 cents
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Old 23-03-2012, 19:12   #17
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

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Are we chicken s*%}ts or are we careful and prudent?
There is always that fine line between being too paranoid and listening to your instincts. I recommend an interesting book called The Gift of Fear which may help you decide where your fears are in the scheme of things. Having chartered with the Moorings out of Placencia a number of times and also out of Belize City news of this attack surprises me. We've always felt Belize was one of the safer areas to sail in. But, things change as the Eagle song laments "Call someplace paradise, then kiss it goodbye."
Hard to say if this is the beginning of a negative trend for Belize. How the authorities address the situation will bare watching.
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Old 23-03-2012, 19:37   #18
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

There are risks in everything that you do, I have done things in my past that others or most would not ever do. I would bet money that the risks of being attacked by others while on your boat in this area, are far less then having a major problem with the boat itself or weather. You need to have back up plans for everything to feel comfortable about anything. If you are not the type of person that reacts well to the unexpected then you have to live your life a little differntly then me. In any regards we all do the best that we can and live with the consequences. I know for me personally, I would not change one thing about the plans that I had made if I were in your shoes, except I would pre think about what I would do if the unexpected happened.
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Old 23-03-2012, 21:07   #19
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up




During the Great Depression, Franklin Roosevelt told the American people that they had nothing to fear except fear itself.Today things are different. A new culture of fear runs rampant in western democracies, and politicians who should be telling people to not be afraid are using fear to manipulate and control the populace. Something is wrong with this picture, and I'll explain why.I have a healthy respect for sharks when they are in feeding frenzy, and if someone is spear fishing, I get out of the water, but I'm not afraid. I'm simply using my God-given common sense. I know it's not difficult to stay out of harms way when I make a visit to Shark Land. Certain types of behavior on my part may create aggressive behavior on a shark's part. Nevertheless, I shouldn't blame sharks for their aggressive behavior, and instead, I should stop doing things that make them become aggressive. It would be stupid for me to do things that create aggression, and then expect sharks to remain docile and disinterested. The reason I'm not afraid of sharks is because I don't do things that place me at risk for attacks by sharks.

I lived outside the USA for a quarter of a century, and sixteen of those years were in the Middle East. During all those years I wasn't afraid. There was no reason to be afraid because I didn't engage in behavior that placed me at risk. Innumerable times fearful people have told me how dangerous it was to live in the Middle East, how perilous it was to sail through the Malacca Straits, and how sharks wanted to take me out to dinner, and they are right. Half-truths and quarter-truths are the currency of fearful minds. The Middle East is dangerous in specific small restricted areas, and the same is true in Miami and New York. I wouldn't go into a Seven-Eleven convenience store after ten o'clock at night anywhere in the USA. I know of people who died in a convenience store at night. The last time I checked, 35,000 people were killed with guns in America in a single year. Homegrown violence in America is appalling. Do you remember Columbine? So what is more dangerous, living in the Middle East or in Middle America? The answer is that both are dangerous if you engage in behaviors putting you at risk. Even with the handgun carnage that happens every day in America, I'm not afraid to live in America because I know how to stay out of harms way.I sailed up the Red Sea for two months and had an enjoyable trip, and I would like to do it again. The Red Sea has wonderful diving, and good people live in all the countries around its shores.Everywhere I go in the world, 98 percent of the people are good honest citizens, and there is nothing to fear from them. I have traveled extensively in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Oman, the Emirates, and Israel, and I have always been treated with respect. Without exception, the only time I have been treated rudely was in large cities by citified folks who were in a hurry, and who are rude to everyone, not just me.

Every place I visit on planet earth is extremely dangerous when I do things that put me in harms way. At the same time, every place is extremely safe, and there is nothing to fear when I turn on my brain and use it. That's why God gave me a brain and programmed it with common sense. When I turn on my brain, I can go almost anywhere I want without fear springing up in my heart.

I'm not immune to fear, and I'm not a brave person, but at the same time, I don't let fear rule my life. I sailed around the world for eleven years on my yacht and traveled where many people fear to go. I discovered that Franklin Roosevelt was right. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.In spite of sharks and their rows of fearful teeth, life still is good.


Please excuse me now. I'm going for a swim.



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Old 23-03-2012, 21:14   #20
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

Hey!!! That shark has some broccoli stuck in his teeth...:-)
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Old 23-03-2012, 21:16   #21
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

Like i have always told visitors to some of the area's i have traveled,,"Don't Walk like a victim" because they can see it and smell it on you.
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Old 23-03-2012, 21:28   #22
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

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Like i have always told visitors to some of the area's i have traveled,,"Don't Walk like a victim" because they can see it and smell it on you.
You are 100% correct. How you carry yourself and project yourself in the third world makes a huge difference. Predators search for easy prey, and if you project a positive and powerful presence, the cockroaches tend to leave you alone. I lived in Arabia for sixteen years, and people left me alone no matter where I went in the magic kingdom. When I sailed up the Red Sea, nobody gave me a hard time.

Some people have victim written all over themselves, and they get hassled again and again by authorities and other predators.

I was never given a hard time by anyone anywhere in my trips in the third world. I am extremely careful about where I go in "civilization" where there are 300 million well armed citizens who could dispatch me from planet earth in an instant of time.

Most of the crime in the places that I visit in the third world is non-violent. It is petty theft, and violence is an aberration in the places that I visit.
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Old 23-03-2012, 21:37   #23
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

Just go. Exposing yourself to the very slim chance of being attacked on your cruise is far better than the quiet certainty of dying in the furniture at home.
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Old 23-03-2012, 21:38   #24
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

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Originally Posted by bobconnie View Post
We have been cruiseing the area your talking about for the last 8 or 10 yrs ! never had a problem Yet !! Now as Ive said before I carry a couple of LARGE CALIBER Flare guns 1 10 gauge and a couple of 12 gauges, the 10 gauge with a 3 1/2 inch buck shot or slugs will deter most all folks who wish to board or do you harm !! Never had to use it but have had it available a time or two !!I know everyone is against guns aboard on here but Ive been thru inspections most everywhere, and have never had a problem with my flare guns ! Just my 2 cents
I second that keep several around .... they are saftey equipmet in more ways than one.... therefore they cannot be impounded and they don"t count your bullets entering or departing.
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Old 23-03-2012, 22:26   #25
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

There are some very good answers here to what is basically an emotional question. Specifically, Hillbillylad, FoolishSailor and International Drifter hit many nails right on the head.

As an engineer who has been to about 70+ countries, I look briefly at a few basic stats, NOT ANECDOTES, and then make a gut decision. Over the last 20+ years that has meant that we spend most of our time in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and Australia. We have tried to keep away from the USA for OBVIOUS REASONS, but have not always succeeded.

The reasons might not be obvious to some of the locals there because the gullible provincial ones listen to the news and believe it all instead of looking around. Is this you, svdestiny? Anyway, over the last couple of decades, I ended up going there 5 times (1 delivery, 2 stopovers to other countries, 2 boat purchases). Never as a tourist, never to do anything except move on, deliver a boat, pick up a boat, smile at those serious Customs dudes, get robbed by the TSA thieves, fend off the loonies in the Florida parks and dodge the beggars.

It may surprise you, but each time I found the USA locals to be very, very friendly and no one challenged me to a gun fight. This is in spite of the stats about gun deaths. And I never died in a car crash. In spite of the road death stats. Nor did I die from a hijacked plane. In spite of 11 Sep 2001. Etc etc.

Mate, you will die one day.

Die slowly in front of the TV watching the Discovery channel or on the highway or from your neighbour´s gun. If you are lucky you will die from a 3rd world bullet while you are doing something you love (cruising?) with the woman you love. That would be a great way to go!

You have a greater survival rate in Belize than Florida so if you want to continue risking your life where you are, that is a totally understandable but very emotional and very irrational decision.

Check out the rape stats in Belize and Florida and show them to your woman!
(38 rapes per 100 000 people in FL in 2010 vs 38 rapes in the entire country of Belize in 2008). Maybe the stats are a little orange-banana instead of apple-apple but the tendency seems clear.
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Old 23-03-2012, 22:50   #26
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

and this rant has to do with an incident in the Tobacco Cayes of Belize how? It is a reasonable question to ask considering the stuff going on in that little region of the world at the moment.

Quote:
Originally Posted by maxingout View Post



During the Great Depression, Franklin Roosevelt told the American people that they had nothing to fear except fear itself.Today things are different. A new culture of fear runs rampant in western democracies, and politicians who should be telling people to not be afraid are using fear to manipulate and control the populace. Something is wrong with this picture, and I'll explain why.I have a healthy respect for sharks when they are in feeding frenzy, and if someone is spear fishing, I get out of the water, but I'm not afraid. I'm simply using my God-given common sense. I know it's not difficult to stay out of harms way when I make a visit to Shark Land. Certain types of behavior on my part may create aggressive behavior on a shark's part. Nevertheless, I shouldn't blame sharks for their aggressive behavior, and instead, I should stop doing things that make them become aggressive. It would be stupid for me to do things that create aggression, and then expect sharks to remain docile and disinterested. The reason I'm not afraid of sharks is because I don't do things that place me at risk for attacks by sharks.

I lived outside the USA for a quarter of a century, and sixteen of those years were in the Middle East. During all those years I wasn't afraid. There was no reason to be afraid because I didn't engage in behavior that placed me at risk. Innumerable times fearful people have told me how dangerous it was to live in the Middle East, how perilous it was to sail through the Malacca Straits, and how sharks wanted to take me out to dinner, and they are right. Half-truths and quarter-truths are the currency of fearful minds. The Middle East is dangerous in specific small restricted areas, and the same is true in Miami and New York. I wouldn't go into a Seven-Eleven convenience store after ten o'clock at night anywhere in the USA. I know of people who died in a convenience store at night. The last time I checked, 35,000 people were killed with guns in America in a single year. Homegrown violence in America is appalling. Do you remember Columbine? So what is more dangerous, living in the Middle East or in Middle America? The answer is that both are dangerous if you engage in behaviors putting you at risk. Even with the handgun carnage that happens every day in America, I'm not afraid to live in America because I know how to stay out of harms way.I sailed up the Red Sea for two months and had an enjoyable trip, and I would like to do it again. The Red Sea has wonderful diving, and good people live in all the countries around its shores.Everywhere I go in the world, 98 percent of the people are good honest citizens, and there is nothing to fear from them. I have traveled extensively in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Oman, the Emirates, and Israel, and I have always been treated with respect. Without exception, the only time I have been treated rudely was in large cities by citified folks who were in a hurry, and who are rude to everyone, not just me.

Every place I visit on planet earth is extremely dangerous when I do things that put me in harms way. At the same time, every place is extremely safe, and there is nothing to fear when I turn on my brain and use it. That's why God gave me a brain and programmed it with common sense. When I turn on my brain, I can go almost anywhere I want without fear springing up in my heart.

I'm not immune to fear, and I'm not a brave person, but at the same time, I don't let fear rule my life. I sailed around the world for eleven years on my yacht and traveled where many people fear to go. I discovered that Franklin Roosevelt was right. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.In spite of sharks and their rows of fearful teeth, life still is good.


Please excuse me now. I'm going for a swim.



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Old 23-03-2012, 23:50   #27
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

I dont see a problem,,,i get it,,,what dont ya get Bella??
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Old 24-03-2012, 04:49   #28
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

Don't worry, be happy!

Take a walk and stay off the computer doing "research".
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Old 24-03-2012, 04:59   #29
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

Quote:
Originally Posted by foolishsailor View Post
Sometimes we all focus on the "outliers", the events, good or bad, that stick out and attract our attention. The stabbing, the boarding, the incredible bad weather, etc ...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimbo485 View Post
There are some very good answers here to what is basically an emotional question. Specifically, Hillbillylad, FoolishSailor and International Drifter hit many nails right on the head ...
Some very wise advise & analysis from some, not at all, "foolish" sources.
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Old 24-03-2012, 09:40   #30
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Re: Depressed and close to giving up

Ok, the wife here. First, I would like to invite everyone over for a beer

We have been overwhelmed by these responses, all offering sage advice. A little of our background. I'm a nurse, my husband is an electrician. We have sailed since the nineties, mostly Connecticut to Florida, with cruising to Mexico, Belize and Guatemala (2006-2007) on our 3rd boat, a Morgan 34, (sturdy but older, like us.)

I am hardworking, good problem solver, but a bit of a dreamer and risk taker. My husband is brilliant and seems to be able to fix everything, seriously. maybe this is part of the problem...he might not be able to "fix" or control bandits boarding our boat. He also is a bit of a worrier where I am an avoider. I go into personality types because ones personality seems to determine how one handles a threat.

I am familiar with normal threats of cruising..weather, mechanical problems, money woes etc. these threats are almost like old friends...I have ways of dealing with them, plans a, b and c. Safety concerns, in the past, were about dinghy theft, dark alleys, faux ATM machines etc. And again we had some sense of control...we're careful, and NEVER had a problem. Hell pre-boat we even lived in the lower east side of new York city for ten years and had a blast. Never a problem.

But the thought of us bobbing gently at anchor off some small cay, listening to the soft slap of water against our hull, but worrying, worrying about what could happen next....no, that's not what i want. I don't want to lock ourselves in the vberth, I want to look at the stars.

Soooo, at this point I,m going with my strength! Avoidance YAY! We are going to prepare as well as we can, go to Mexico (which I love although common sense tells me it's not all beer and skittles there either ) and take it from there. We will avoid known problem areas if possible, be careful and sensible, and enjoy ourselves.

hey, it beats the dying in the furniture alternative.
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