Posted by pancho from pool0067.cvx20-bradley.dialup.earthlink.net (209.179.250.67) on Thursday, November 28, 2002 at 7:01AM :
In Reply to: Re: No, foo- posted by Stella from 12-248-23-42.client.attbi.com (12.248.23.42) on Thursday, November 28, 2002 at 3:24AM :
Unfortunately I'm not there now. You are making a big mistake. Juarez is one of the many dangerous border towns. I fly down to Leon all the time...with a bunch of little old ladies travelling to San Miguel. There is no more dangerous country ON EARTH than the United States.
In the last twenty years I've driven all over Mexico, all the way down to Chiapas where I almost got myself trashed at an army checkpoint...figures, the one time in my life where I really DID lose my temper was midnight on a deserted stretch of road...the only gringo there...and I got so pissed at the soldiers I started helping them search my car...pointed out places they'd missed...that was after having a coniption fit over their delaying tactics and attempts to shake me down. I think my wires were crossed at birth. Most Assyrians feel stronger when their opponent has his back turned...or is heavily outnumbered by all their cousins...our men are especially brave when it comes to abusing coffee shop wiatresses...if they aren't too big. I get queasy unless I'm outnumbered. Naturally in Chiapas I decided to act like I was in a coffee shop at the Chicago Hilton.
Mexico is the only place I ever allowed my children to walk away from me...go shopping in the marketplace alone, wander through town...go riding on the beach with perfect strangers. We lived in posh St Helena, California for nine years where zillionaires vacation and the wine industry has made a Disneyland of the place...where Coppola, Madonna and Robin Willimas, among others live in scattered estates here and there. I would NEVER allow my children on the streets there alone in broad daylight...it was on the route to the north end of the state where several whackos have chopped up people and buried them or eaten them.
In the seaside town of Barra de Navidad, my children walked to the market by themselves...did the shopping for breakfast. They regularly wandered into town to play games, get ice cream and just hang out. Nowhere in the United States would I let them do that.
But maybe it's better not to tell...keep it a secret. You feel safe in CHICAGO???
-- pancho
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