AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums Talk Belize Trip Reports The Apparently Controversial Account of my Trip

I've gotta say that I love this message board and it's been helpful and interesting, BUT, I have noticed that any time anyone has the least bit unflattering remark or negative thing to say about Belize and most specifically AC, they get completely skewered by the regulars here. I don't get it, San Pedro by all accounts is a fabulous place as I'm soon to find out, so why be soooo sensitive to other people's negative remarks. It won't tarnish the island, this is just their opinions and their experiences. Even the most amazing places, resorts etc can have problems or times where things just go wrong. Yes, Dan made an error leaving his bag out which he freely admits, after all we were all new to traveling once. And, maybe many of you have had great experiences with Mata, but most people do have a good time when nothing amiss happens. It's when the going gets tough that people show their true strengths or in this case MR's weaknesses. Streetchie & NY Gal, I'm with ya all the way. Let's be open to people's accounts, good or bad; it lets the rest of us learn from their experience.

Well, Chris. Rest assured that my passport was promptly cancelled. No worries on that account. Wouldn't want a Belize terrorist to make his way into our wonderful country, right?

But I admit - you do have a point as to the line about how Belize "sucks." I think I'll edit that. It was a frame of mind born of frustration. I think I relived the moment in a narrative fugue.

Anyway - this is all very interesting to me.

klcman - I think you may have a point. And I'll grant you that my reliability would be better served by a bland, purely factual account. But I'll stake a possible libel claim on the facts that do count - I wouldn't name names lightly. I may not have lived through the McCarthy Hearings, but I've read about them.

As for my previous observation - the tendency to "blame the victim"... I think that may warrant its own topic... a new idea for my blog.

And finally, as to the tendency of the forum to silence the negative comments, let me leave you with some words of the famed Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.:

"We should be eternally vigilant against attempts to check the expression of opinions that we loathe and believe to be fraught with death..." (Abrams, dissenting)

After all, "time has upset many fighting faiths." (Holmes, again).

Geez, I guess not.

I'm surprised by the level of vituperativeness directed against Dan here. Afterall, he was the victim of a crime. This would seem to support the wacko theory that we commonly blame the victim because it assauges our fear of being victimized ourselves by engaging in the fantasy that the victim must have had it coming...?

But then you wouldn't expect the people on this board who have reacted with callous indifference to the fact that Dan was the victim of a crime to understand why Dan was upset that his predicament was met with callous indifference by the people at his hotel.

Dan is to be commended for responding to the abuse with humor and civility. Maybe he could give everyone here lessons on responding to criticism without being defensive and abusive.

I also think he has been more magnanimous towards Mata Rocks than the rest of us would have been had we gone through the same thing. But of course, none of us would ever have been so stupid...

And Hopper2, I've noticed the same thing and I agree with you.

Seems to me if people had have paid more attention to the title of Dan's story (and the name of his blog), they wouldn't have their knickers in such a twist.

BTW, Dan, I really enjoyed your story, despite being able to detect some literary licence and what appeared to be a few factual errors. As for factual errors, I just put down to you had been under a lot of stress at the time and weren't there that long in any event. No biggie.

I decided I wanted to go back and read it again. I can no longer access it. Is that because you took it down for editing? Or because it's had too many hits?

Hey Dan,
I loved your story! You write very well. I am concerned your gifts will go to waste in the legal profession, as there can be a lack of a sense of humor in the profession. I believe I am entitled to this opinion, as I have practiced law longer than you have been alive...yikes, that is too long! Anyway, thank you for making me laugh very hard and please visit Belize again. As you know, it is a pretty amazing place.

Thank you Dan, hopper2 and Fengshui

Let's look on the bright side said the blind man.
He who cannot see only speaks.

Humor keeps the world revolving as well as negativity. Now, if we can all put it together we would have some equality

Holiday rational by NyGal...poetry in motion!

Guess I've stayed out too long enough.

Dan has legitimate complaints but I'll admit when I read his story I thought he was full of sh.t. The reason being that, having such a passion for this place, I was P.O'd about the inaccuracies in the story. Personally if you have a beef I don't have a problem with it being posted and in most cases it's helpful to hear them. When you cross the line and embellish, omit important information or just plain old make things up you should be prepared for an onslaught. If you aren't factual or omit important information then the rest of your post comes into question.

As a local (gringo) I know I tend to jump on anything inflammatory because, in general, that's what it's meant to be, inflammatory. Not a piece of writing intended to be informative or helpful. I will continue to be that way because in the end when the truth comes out about a lot of the more inflammatory articles about Belize it's rarely reported and only the bad taste of the original report remains. "Gringo Killed in Central America", you never hear that the person was a) involved in the drug trade, b) screwing some guys 13 year old daughter or c) in some other way given his due. Of course bad things do happen here that are worthy of reporting but only in a factual or balanced way. Why bother having this forum in the first place if not.

On the practice of jumping on people's stupidity and flogging them to death over and over again; while some may take some pleasure in it, it's a total waste of time and dilutes the message so much as to make any comments on the post worthless.

My Wednesday morning 2 cents. Oh, and I did love the Cave Tubing part.

sea... change and shell -

Feel free to correct any factual errors (that don't subtract from the story) and I will promptly correct them. I attribute any errors of this sort to the 9 month delay in putting the story "to paper." It was all written in a frenzy a few days ago - it may have been easier had the thieves not stolen my journal.

And as for my chosen profession - well, all I can say is that a sense of humor couldn't possibly hurt. And I've thrown a bit too much money down the administration's way to give them the satisfaction of dropping out in my last semester.

Where I go in the long run - well hopefully it's somewhere that prizes my particular talents. Right?

I wanted to go to Law School, but my Dad said someone in the family must have a honorable profession.

Dan, I like your style and charm. You'll go far in this wonderful world.

Heads up...."traveler beware, once they get your money you are on your own, victim."....Chloe