http://www.endsofearth.com/2009/10/travel-discrimination-might-save-your-life/ Solitude is impractical and yet society is fatal ---Ralph Waldo Emerson Wed, 21 Jul 2010 08:29:58 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 http://www.endsofearth.com/2009/10/travel-discrimination-might-save-your-life/comment-page-1/#comment-451 Brook Wed, 14 Oct 2009 09:51:27 +0000 http://www.endsofearth.com/?p=795#comment-451 Mary, I think you made the right move! Sometimes, you just know... Pretending to be "blind" to differences in people is a recipe for disaster. We should do our best to recognize and understand the differences, both good and bad. Mary, I think you made the right move!
Sometimes, you just know…
Pretending to be “blind” to differences in people is a recipe for disaster. We should do our best to recognize and understand the differences, both good and bad.

]]> http://www.endsofearth.com/2009/10/travel-discrimination-might-save-your-life/comment-page-1/#comment-392 Mary Baker Mon, 05 Oct 2009 03:26:42 +0000 http://www.endsofearth.com/?p=795#comment-392 My husband and I were traveling from Washington State to Louisiana. We were in Santa Rosa, CA - he was in the car at the time and I was on the motorcycle. We were looking for a hotel, and pulled over off the interstate at a corner store that was closed for the evening. He parked by the bike and got out of the car. I put the kickstand down and got off the bike. We decided to call my son in Louisiana and get him to log on to the internet and book a hotel for us. While I was talking on the phone, a white pickup truck with two young males pulled into the driveway, turned their headlights off and looked us up and down. They pulled into a parking spot on the side of the building out of view of any other motorists. Both Ric and I looked at each other and at the same time said "let's get out of here". He quickly got in the car, and I cranked up the bike and rolled out of the parking lot and he followed me to a well lit and open for business, crowded store. Our conditioning and preconceived notions may have saved us from being beaten and robbed or worse. We both said later that we felt the danger and knew we should remove ourselves from the situation. We had made the mistake of pulling into a dark area at night in a city that we were unfamiliar with. Profiling has its place and is an important part of protecting ourselves. I completely agree with your article, and hope it helps someone else to avoid a disastrous situation. My husband and I were traveling from Washington State to Louisiana. We were in Santa Rosa, CA – he was in the car at the time and I was on the motorcycle. We were looking for a hotel, and pulled over off the interstate at a corner store that was closed for the evening. He parked by the bike and got out of the car. I put the kickstand down and got off the bike. We decided to call my son in Louisiana and get him to log on to the internet and book a hotel for us. While I was talking on the phone, a white pickup truck with two young males pulled into the driveway, turned their headlights off and looked us up and down. They pulled into a parking spot on the side of the building out of view of any other motorists. Both Ric and I looked at each other and at the same time said “let’s get out of here”. He quickly got in the car, and I cranked up the bike and rolled out of the parking lot and he followed me to a well lit and open for business, crowded store. Our conditioning and preconceived notions may have saved us from being beaten and robbed or worse. We both said later that we felt the danger and knew we should remove ourselves from the situation. We had made the mistake of pulling into a dark area at night in a city that we were unfamiliar with. Profiling has its place and is an important part of protecting ourselves. I completely agree with your article, and hope it helps someone else to avoid a disastrous situation.

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