• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Do We or Don't We? Mexico? Too Dangerous???

#61
i've been to mexico to gig in the last two years, but mexico city and guadalajara.
it was awesome, no problems, very grateful audiences.
never felt in danger.
gigging israel that year was another matter.
no matter where you go these days, international travel is more dangerous.
i'd research the promoter and situation heavily before making any decisions.
i also wouldn't let the violence resulting from the us' thirst for drugs or fox news scare me.
research, research, research.
good luck.
 
#63
Wait!! Crime in Mexico!?!? When did this start!?

In My Opinion:
Mexico is no worse than it's been for the last 50 years, neiither is the rest of the world. There's no more Earthquakes than there was in the past, the glaciers aren't melting any faster then previously (Ice melting when exposed to air?! NEVAR!!), ad nauseum.

We are simply made more aware of things like this now-a-days thanks to the speed at which information is spread, the volume of news available, and the need for News stations to sensationalize everything in order to get a few more viewers for a few more sponsorship dollars.

F the Media - Play the damned show
 
#65
See...those were my thoughts. There have been deaths. A lot of them. But the vast majority have been drug traffiking organization (DTO) members, police, politicians, and soldiers. Hell, we have a higher murder rate here in Dallas. IN FACT, just today a gunman opened fire on innocent people and law enforcement at a suburban county courthouse with paramilitary gear. Does this mean we shouldn't play a show in that town anymore?

I've read the travel advisories. They note specific areas and roads. I think my band members jumped to conclusions on their own without considering that there are dangers anywhere you go. What really ticked me off is the note I got that said "We're not going and that's that." The drummer said, "When I think of Central and South America, I think corruption". He's never been out of the country, and neither has our right-wing guitarist. I think a tiny bit of ignorance played into their decisions.

I've traveled lots of places. I grew up in the hood. I was around drug dealers and gang members. I know how to handle myself.

As for the promoter, I trust him implicitly. He is more like the booking agent in this scenario. He sends a money order with half down well in advance. He gives us the rest in cash before we play the first note. Our drummer said, "We're going to be carrying $5000 in cash...someone will have set us up and they will get wind of it and knock us over the head". I call bull corn. We wouldn't have that money on us, and we coulda got the $2500 in a friggin' wire transfer. Again, ignorance and fear.

I admit there could be dangers. But as someone mentioned, You can get your $hit ripped off anywhere. I've had gear stolen here in Dallas. And I'm not worried if my $1000 bass gets stolen. That's why I have insurance. Now if we were DRIVING there with a trailer full of gear, that might be a little different, but again, it could happen ANYWHERE! I've known more than one band traveling through Dallas that had all their gear and van stolen.

I don't live my life in fear. Apparently 3/5ths of my band does!!
 
#66
FriscoBassAce said:
See...those were my thoughts. There have been deaths. A lot of them. But the vast majority have been drug traffiking organization (DTO) members, police, politicians, and soldiers. Hell, we have a higher murder rate here in Dallas. IN FACT, just today a gunman opened fire on innocent people and law enforcement at a suburban county courthouse with paramilitary gear. Does this mean we shouldn't play a show in that town anymore?

I've read the travel advisories. They note specific areas and roads. I think my band members jumped to conclusions on their own without considering that there are dangers anywhere you go. What really ticked me off is the note I got that said "We're not going and that's that." The drummer said, "When I think of Central and South America, I think corruption". He's never been out of the country, and neither has our right-wing guitarist. I think a tiny bit of ignorance played into their decisions.

I've traveled lots of places. I grew up in the hood. I was around drug dealers and gang members. I know how to handle myself.

As for the promoter, I trust him implicitly. He is more like the booking agent in this scenario. He sends a money order with half down well in advance. He gives us the rest in cash before we play the first note. Our drummer said, "We're going to be carrying $5000 in cash...someone will have set us up and they will get wind of it and knock us over the head". I call bull corn. We wouldn't have that money on us, and we coulda got the $2500 in a friggin' wire transfer. Again, ignorance and fear.

I admit there could be dangers. But as someone mentioned, You can get your $hit ripped off anywhere. I've had gear stolen here in Dallas. And I'm not worried if my $1000 bass gets stolen. That's why I have insurance. Now if we were DRIVING there with a trailer full of gear, that might be a little different, but again, it could happen ANYWHERE! I've known more than one band traveling through Dallas that had all their gear and van stolen.

I don't live my life in fear. Apparently 3/5ths of my band does!!
Click to expand...

Sounds like good ole ethnocentrism on the part of your guitarist and drummer killed this before it ever had a chance. There are more dangerous places in the U.S. for ****s sake. I say this as a former resident of New Orleans with tons of family still down there.
 
#67
I think it's all about familiarity with the area. For instance, I wouldn't even play a gig now on the street where I grew up. Even the police won't go there now if they don't have to because it's so dangerous. I got this info from an ex-cop who is now in the military. If I knew for sure the area of Monterrey was safe, I'd go. If I wasn't sure, I wouldn't go. In this case, based on the info that is out there, I doubt seriously if I'd go.
 
#69
Really interesting thread... :hmm:

I can see a good argument for going through with the gig - provided you have access to really good, accurate, up-to-date information. And that's one thing you really don't have...

I wouldn't be so concerned with whether the promoter might hold back some of your money - I'd be concerned with whether he completely understands the security situation down there. That's the one thing for which I would not simply take his word - regardless of what he says. Because you have no way of knowing for sure whether he really knows what he's getting you into. For that, you need your own, independently-verifiable sources of information, as D.A.R.K. has pointed out.

One other thing: I also read the State Department travel advisory, and it specifically mentions that Americans have been kidnapped from some of the nice, upscale hotels in downtown Monterrey. Something to consider pretty seriously... :hmm:

MM
 
#70
The promoter lives in Mexico. And Americans have been kidnapped from hotels in America. I guess my point is that it's not any more dangerous there than it is here. I simply don't see what the commotion is all about. Drug dealers are killed in the US daily. The press says "28,000 dead from the drug war in Mexico in the last 4 years." How many people in the US are murdered over drugs? Plenty.

Oh and why the :\ face?
 
#75
kuys said:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Obviously, so many people in this country really do let fear dictate their lives. It's very sad.
Click to expand...

I'm not saying people should cower in fear. By all means travel. I do. I've been to five foreign countries, including Mexico, and I liked all of them. I just got back from Euope. It was great there, too. But Monterrey is not the safe city it was two years ago. Monterrey is not Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo
 
#76
I've been to several places in Mexico and South America over the last five years roughly 18 times a year on business travel, and to Monterrey specifically over a dozen times. My last visit was over 18 months ago, and at no time did I ever feel out of place or threatened, and I am about as gringo as you can look. My Spanish vocabulary is limited to "cerveza" and "buenos dias".

That being said, I would be very uncomfortable going back with all the latest headlines coming from the south. The immigration debate was straining relations even then, I'm sure they haven't cooled in that area since my last visit.

If I had to travel back to Monterrey tomorrow (and who knows I might) I would go without hesitation. You fly in to the airport, rent a car, check into the Hampton Inn a few minutes from the airport, and you're there. There is a Carl's Jr. next door, as well as an Applebee's and a convenience store. Travelling in downtown Monterrey is another matter, the infrastructure is not anything Americans are used to, road signs are sketchy, especially if you don't know where you're going. I would do a gig with no hesitation if you have transportation to and from the hotel, I feel safer there than I do walking in certain places in nearby Knoxville.

Do the gig and follow common sense travel advice and you won't have any problems. Don't flash cash, get drunk, use drugs, hire a prostitute, etc.
 
#78
I live in Mexico, used to live in the USA, never been to Monterrey.

But I think some of you guys are over exaggerating, not EVERYBODY who comes gets killed, and Monterrey isn't really as dangerous as other places like here in Mexico City, but according to all the newspapers and all of the Mexican media, the city you shouldn't go to is Ciudad Juárez in Chihuahua, because that's where all of the drug dealing-terrorist danger is.

I don't think you'll get killed by a drug dealer unless you're involved with them in some way, or you're out on the street alone in a dangerous place. Monterrey was a disaster zone a few months ago because of the hurricane "Alex". A lot houses and buildings were destroyed, and I guess they're still recovering.

Don't be too scared about Mexico, in my opinion, it's the media that makes this country look so bad in front of all the other ones.

I kind of feel like a lot of you guys are starting to think that coming to Mexico is death 100% guaranteed. To me, it's like saying "Don't go to New York City, the terrorism is unbelievable there! Don't risk your life."

But I never said that drug dealing was something not to be worried about. But for people who live here, we just have to be careful and live with it.

Disagree with me or not, it's what I think.
 
#79
RadioMasterDude said:
I live in Mexico, never been to Monterrey.

But I think some of you guys are over exaggerating, not EVERYBODY who comes gets killed, and Monterrey isn't really as dangerous as other places like here in Mexico City, but according to all the newspapers and all of the Mexican media, the city you shouldn't go to is Ciudad Juárez in Chihuahua, because that's where all of the drug dealing-terrorist danger is.

I don't think you'll get killed by a drug dealer unless you're involved with them in some way, or you're out on the street alone in a dangerous place. Monterrey was a disaster zone a few months ago because of the hurricane "Alex". A lot houses and buildings were destroyed, and I guess they're still recovering.

Don't be too scared about Mexico, in my opinion, it's the media that makes this country look so bad in front of all the other ones.

But I never said that drug dealing was something not to be worried about. But for people who live here, we just have to be careful and live with it.
Click to expand...

Ciudad Juarez is the city in Mexico I've been to the most. But I'm not really sure if I'll be going back, unless things improve there. By the way, I loved Mexico City. Outstanding.
 
#80
MONTERREY, Mexico – The kidnapped mayor of a northern Mexican town was found dead Wednesday, extending a rash of deadly attacks on political figures in an area besieged by drug gang battles.

Santiago Mayor Edelmiro Cavazos' body was found near a waterfall outside his town, a popular weekend getaway for residents of the industrial city of Monterrey, said Nuevo Leon state attorney general Alejandro Garza y Garza.

Police have not determined a motive, but the assassination bore the hallmarks of drug cartels waging vicious turf battles in northeastern Mexico: Cavazos' hands were bound and his head was wrapped in tape.

Garza y Garza suggested it was a drug gang hit, saying Cavazos participated in state security meetings and was "showing his face in the fight against organized crime."

However, Cavazos had not made any dramatic security decisions since taking office in November 2009, said Jorge Santiago Flores, the local president of the mayor's National Action Party. He said it remains a mystery why anyone would want to kill Cavazos.

"He was a very kind person. He was a man who worked a lot in the community and always helped those in need, donating medicine and helping people who asked," Flores said.

Cavazos, 38, was kidnapped from his home Sunday night by 15 armed men wearing uniforms from a defunct federal police force, a tactic frequently used by Mexico's drug gangs.

Garza y Garza said the gunmen arrived in seven vehicles with police patrol lights. When Cavazos and his security guard went to see what was going on, the assailants forced them into the cars.

The security guard was driven around for about 15 minutes and released unharmed by the side of a road, Garza y Garza said. The guard then reported the kidnapping to police.

President Felipe Calderon, who belongs to the National Action Party sent his interior secretary, Francisco Blake Mora, to Nuevo Leon for a security meeting with the state government.

Nuevo Leon Gov. Rodrigo Medina said he would press for more federal soldiers and police in the state.

The region been besieged by drug gang fighting, including a new war between the Gulf cartel and its former ally, the Zetas gang of hit men.

Mexico's drug gang violence has surged since Calderon intensified the fight against traffickers in late 2006, deploying thousands of troops and federal police to root out cartels from their strongholds.

More than 28,000 people have since been killed in the country's drug war. The government says most are victims of cartel infighting. But assassinations of police, government officials and politicians have also increased.

In June, gunmen ambushed and killed the leading gubernatorial candidate for Tamaulipas state, which neighbors Nuevo Leon, a week before the elections. A mayoral candidate in Tamaulipas was killed in May.

A total of 191 soldiers have been killed fighting drug gangs between December 2006 and Aug. 1, 2010, according to a list of names on a wall of a Defense Department anti-narctotics museum. Reporters saw the list Wednesday during a tour of the museum — the first time the government has made the number public.

Forty-three of the soldiers killed were officers.

Last week, the government said 2,076 police have been killed since December 2006.

___

Associated Press Writer E. Eduardo Castillo contributed to this story from Mexico City
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back