Comments on: Defending India

By: Chris Phippen

Chris Phippen — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 23:16:41 +0000

I agree with those above. If we are fearful of travelling to Mumbai, and especially if we decided not to go, then the terrorists have won. As mentioned above, the odds of being in the same city at the same time and even in the same area of such a large city during an attack has got to be near the odds of being struck by lightning. I think there was a post on this in the fall quarter that I responded to and from what I read, the Indians have done a good job ramping up their Quick Response Teams to handle situations like this in the future. The only thing that scares me about India in June is what we’ve been told about the food vendors in the streets.

By: Michael Harroch

Michael Harroch — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 22:05:24 +0000

The main goal of terrorist activities is not to inflict human casualties. There main goal is to inflict terror to the ethnic group, country, religion etc. they are targeting. Looking at the state of mind of most Westerners today, I am sad to say that it is fairly evident that these terrorists have succeeded. We are all victims of terrorism. It has affected the way we travel and where we travel to. It has affected our purchasing behavior, our political stances and our general perception of security. It has done so by playing on our fears. Roosevelt would be ashamed.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:43:01 +0000

I don’t think the risk of being subject to a terrorist attack in India is any higher than risk of going to a ball game in the US. In fact, it looks like one of the key players in the Mumbai attack was a Pakistani-American David Headley. An American citizen!
A greater risk in my opinion is being hurt from a traffic accident in India. From the safety film we all watched, the one cause that was reported to have caused the most injuries of foreign travelers was car accidents. Another factor of course for causing a nervousness about terrorist attacks is the over-exposure to news reports that detail everything about the specific attack,, but fail to put it into contest, vis-à-vis that many, many more people more people are killed by everyday activities like car crashes.
In fact in 2005, There were 400 times as many deaths from car crashes world wide than by terrorist linked activities.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/34352.php

Let’s go to India, enjoy ourselves, but keep your eyes open for cars coming at you.

By: Vitus Holzner

Vitus Holzner — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 01:33:41 +0000

I think fear of terrorism is just nonsense! As Will asked correctly, what is the likelihood of being a victim of a terrorist attack? I would say somewhere close to zero! Terrorism is only a perceived threat fuelled by the media who loves to send gruesome pictures to our homes and politicians who are trying to push legislation curtailing our freedoms. Did I just hear someone saying Patriot Act?
I am not afraid of going to India at all. If we don’t act stupid I think it will be just as safe as a two weeks in LA.

By: Jordan Wente

Jordan Wente — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:49:10 +0000

It upsets me that people can be so ignorant about issues like terrorism. A week after the 9/11 attacks I had to board a flight from Miami to San Francisco. The airport was a mess, people were freaking out about their loved ones getting on a plane, as I walked through security and saw US soldiers in uniform holding their weapons I couldn’t help but think that this is all a little bit over the top. We gave them exactly the kind of response they wanted. The fact is the only reason terrorism is effective is because of this reaction. I agree completely with John, the only thing we can fear is fear itself. Terrorism occurs all over the world and with new media it is more frequently publicized than it has been in the past leading to an even stronger reaction. This attack might have revealed a huge weakness in Indian government but the ability for India to bounce back from it reveals some of its strengths. I was in India just a year before the attacks and never once felt unsafe or fearful of this kind of event. It will be interesting to see if the atmosphere has changed since but given India resilience I doubt it has.

By: Frederick Peemoeller

Frederick Peemoeller — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 01:25:13 +0000

I personally am not afraid of terrorism and I agree with what many of you have said. By not visiting Mumbai, you have essentially let the terrorists win. India has increased its forces against terrorism and these forces will continue to grow as the country strengthens. Unfortunately, these homeland security forces are not as effective as what we have at home, but they will prevent some terrorist attacks from occurring. With that said, I am not going to run around with an American flag draped over my back with dollar bills hanging out of my pockets, but I will not allow any past terrorist activity to threaten the experience I have in India and I don’t think any of you should either.

By: John Barry

John Barry — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 04:58:14 +0000

I’m with Will on this one. Terrorism . . . shmerrorism. What ever happened to the feeling behind FDR’s the “only thing thing we have to fear is fear itself” inaugural address statement? Everytime someone is contemplating a trip to Brazil they ask me about the “danger and violence.” Hate to break it to you guys but I lived there for the first 11 and one half years of my life and was never assaulted, mugged, or robbed. What makes this even more convincing is the fact that the entrance and exit out of my high rise luxury condo was a mere 300 feet from the stairs that led up to an infamous Rio de Janeiro slum.

I was 4 days away from moving to Santa Barbara to attend UCSB when 9/11 happened. Did any of you consider leaving the U.S. for a safer place to live when this went down? I’m guessing that you didn’t. My mom wanted me to move back to Brazil though. This may sound like an extreme reaction to the attacks but it’s no different than saying you shouldn’t visit a country that’s ever been victim to extremists’ attacks.

By: William Ary

William Ary — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 03:33:32 +0000

Terrorism? Yeah and what if a meteor hits your house. The odds are huge that you will be fine as long as you don’t provoke anyone. I have visited 20+ countries, from Europe to Africa and South America and I have yet to experience anything more dangerous than a cabbie who gouges you on fare to a tourism destination.

That said, one thing my family and I always do when we are traveling somewhere new is hire a local expert to tell us where to go and not go, what the risky places are and who to avoid. You can think you know a lot from reading travel books but there is no substitute for a real person to help out. We (luckily) will have Dr. Singh and others along with us to help out with this. Risks will never go away no matter where you go, but there are ways to reduce them.

By: Tim Lynds

Tim Lynds — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:45:36 +0000

I agree with Alex V. above in that people get too scared and worried about these things. Sure, terrorist attacks are horrible and would scare the crap out of me if I was directly exposed to one, but why should a normal citizen be in constant fear of them? If we remain scared and do not travel to places that have been the target of a terrorist attack, then the terrorist win.

This is not to say that we should be stupid about it and act like it won’t or can’t happen to us. If an attack happens days before our scheduled trip or one of our destinations is engulfed in war maybe we should think twice about where we travel. But if the skies remain clear from now until this summer in India then lets hit the streets running and have a blast. Worry and fear can ruin this incredible opportunity and experience.

Lastly, I AM a stranger to foreign travel so I do not know what it feels like to be immersed in a completely different culture in an unfamiliar land. I am not sure how I will feel once I am in India, but I do know that I will be going there with nothing but positive thoughts and as little fear as possible.

By: Jay Ponto

Jay Ponto — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:38:35 +0000

My family has been a slightly concerned about my journey to India this summer, particularly my mother. When her only child is venturing off to a place half-way around the world where terrorist attacks have been conducted against Americans, one can easily see cause for concern.

The way I see it, how many tourists/students/officials/business people travel from the US to India and are the victims of a terrorist attack? Less than one percent - I’m willing to take my chances. I’m not different than any American traveling to India, except that I’ll be with a sizable group of other Americans. The saying “safety in numbers” comes to mind, but it’s also easier to hit a bigger target.

I am no stranger to traveling in foreign countries, feel relatively safe about going to India, am not worried about the trip, and am eager to visit this new culture I have yet to fully experience!