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I just love Jose Marti and since you mentioned him, here are two of his quotes (forgive my humble translation): “Whomever assists in silence, before a crime, is his accomplice…” and “A just principle, from the bottom of a cave, is more powerful than an army..”
Wealth disparity is surely a source of the current crime rate in CR and there are other sources. We can’t just stand by and complain if we choose not to be part of the solution, but I assure you that it will not get better unless people get organized and find solutions to the sources of this problem. If you feel that the polarization of wealth is the main issue, then get organized in your community to help the less fortunate get a better education, access jobs/training, it’s not just about charity–it’s about getting involved. Imagine what that would mean if other people followed suit? When going thru some of the most economically depressed areas of CR (Los Cuadros, parts of Desamparados, Barrio Mejico and Pavas), the community found ways to protect those that brought them real and palpable hope. I wasn’t hassled and I should have been an easy target being a woman and who is barely 5’3″. Don’t loose hope in what a single person can accomplish–no matter how small that change is, it will have synergistic effects–I’m sure…RebecaJose Marti spoke, wrote, lived and died with a gentle passion. Never a hypocrite, always true to his words… Sadly “Che” and “Pablo Escobar” are this generations political icons. Thank you … It’s not often a poem brings a frog to my throat..
More Marti….
http://oldpoetry.com/opoem/by/Jose%20Marti?order=popularityThank you for the link…Marti’s words are always worth listening to…
Just when you get most discouraged about what the younger generation may not be grasping, you will always find young people everywhere that are questioning the socio-economic, environmental, political and plain old ethical structures in place–it’s their job and no one makes a better rebel than a young adult with ideals. You will find it in the Universities and I recently found it in Puerto Viejo when a young man from Iowa came over to my table at Bread and Chocolate (highly recommend the Queen of Sheba chocolate cake!)because he heard me talking about Cuba. He was questioning the political situation we’re living in and it was refreshing to hear that much candor and idealism from his generation.No doubt as disparity grows, so grow the targets on our backs…
We can live without the flash, drive an older car with a NoTLC sticker, dine at the “Soda”, wear a “Saprissa” t-shirt… Not a problem.
But I agree, we need to grow the middle class and reverse proverty (no easy task)
I have republished a ‘Costa Rica Crime’ I wrote a few months ago at
Tragically I leave this wonderful little big country early tomorrow morning for a week to visit the USA (which has a prison population which totals more than 50% of the entire population of Costa Rica ()) but will be checking in every day…
I miss you already Costa Rica
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comadmin
there you go ahead spewing this propaganda lol i grew up in the USA.. the rules for imprisonment in the USA has changed soooo dramatically that you can even go to jail for wiping your a** the wrong way lol.. the amount of white collar non violent crime has driven the prison population. I have friends that did time because he drove with a suspended license.
NYC does not have the same crime as is rising here.. home invasions, assaults on the streets. and yes the police have more power and influence.. whereas here the police are a joke and are also many time part of the problem.
enjoy your trip to the U.S. You will be alot safer in the U.S.A than here my friend.
by the way you should love the U.S.A. admin since I would say that the majority of your income and members are US citizens.peace… and remember when all elase fails…admin.. I have some extra acid for you LOL
Harlon
Harlon,
My dad told me once, he said. “The difference between family and freinds, is family won’t turn you away when you show up at their door with a body in the trunk”
He’s a big movie fan…
Cheers
Thank you for your reprint of the article on crime statistics. Let me preface this point by saying I am in no way defending the U.S. Yes, I live here and love my country but I also recognize its problems and I (as all of you) yearn for a simpler life. I have lived in Costa Rica for 3 years (as a matter of fact, my brother is a Costa Rican citizen), however, I am not so naive to forget that living in the U.S. has provided me (and most of you) the OPPORTUNITY to afford this better life in Costa Rica-let’s not forget that folks.
The problem with stats is you can bend them and mold them in many ways to try and prove a point. The point you were trying to make was the capitol (San Jose) has 9.2 murders vs. 35.4 for the U.S. capitol of D.C. What you failed to mention in your article (please note your chart at the bottom) was that the NATIONAL MURDER RATES for Costa Rica and the U.S. are 7.8 and 5.6 respectively (you failed to point that out!). If you notice as well, the cities with the highest crime rates are largely areas where there is a lot of “minority on minority” crime and gang/inner-city related violence. It does not necessarily mean that if you are visiting L.A. you have a great chance of being murdered (although I would not suggest a sightseeing trip to the Compton area)…The point I am trying to make is these are not the average Joes getting murdered here-these people are killing themselves. I am not talking bad about Costa Rica I am just making the point that many of you are moving to Costa Rica to escape crime and violence, and guess what folks….IT IS FOLLOWING YOU. Unless something is done to nip this in the bud, CR will be no different than the U.S. As a matter of fact, I would expect that the rate would grow EXPONENTIALLY with no viable means of enforcement! If you want to talk statistics…that 212 this year alone A) may not be all inclusive (I am sure there were other areas that suffered invasions that were not reported to this particular agency and B) per 4 million residents (especially if you excluded the really remote) may just be statistically worse than other places (although I can’t locate stats on that). To make matters worse, there were 400 armed street robberies in San Jose alone LAST MONTH- 2,293 so far this year. Where is our statistician when we need him?
Unless someone makes some BIG changes-SOON-this is going to get UGLY. The “Ostrich Approach” (head in the sand) is not working.I agree it(crime watch) only helps treat the symptoms… But, there is a saying in chess, “When in doubt take a pon”…
Maybe a crime watch group can lead to better moves later in the game… Small incremental step can change the world. Striking miners in Poland is one example… Refusing to give up your seat on an all white bus, another….
All I ask is that I be part of the solution and that I recognize when I’m contributing to the problem….
Will the TLC “trickledown” enough to solve the disparity? Not sure.
Will those holding the sprinkler get soaked? You betcha.Pray for rain…. My guess is if the growth is not organic(not fabricated by special interest) it will ultimately fail to serve the general population and disparity will continue.
Only with education, concern for others and community pride can truly great things happen… Case in point Dubai and Caracas, both swimming in oil and disparity…
Cheers,
I always found that a funny term. Crime “Watch”. The problem is all watch and no action-right? How about…Caution: You are now entering a criminal elimination area?” ~smile. The sign can be like the “watch for falling rocks” sign, but instead or rocks, they’ll be falling acid -right harlon? LOL
Familiarity can breed contempt….and also complacency. Who knows for sure where it is safer when talking about entire countries? These things are extremely localized. I live in the U.S. for now and I have grown tired of this place overall and am looking forward to a challenging change of pace in CR. There are good and bad things about both places. Take your pick as to which things are relevant to you but I still feel that I will feel safer in CR once I am settled in and have grown familiar with my neighborhood there. I feel quite safe where I am in Miami, as long as I don’t go where I don;t belong.
touché … Ice. You’ll never get the cumbaya vote with that kind of talk….
Scott, I’ve always seen you as an honest info broker and gracious host… We love you man.. But, you must agree your job as cr spin master can only get tougher unless this thing turns around…
What happens 5 years from now if this trend continues… Will we keep our fingers crossed that US Crime follows the same trend…
welovecostarica.com could become weloveDcostarica.com
bummer eh…
Cheers,
Just a note, unfortunately I did not hear the whole broadcast but KFI radio (Los Angeles, CA) announced that the State Department had issued a Travel Warning about the Tamarindo area of CR due to roving bands of armed and violent gangs. I checked the State Department website this morning but did not find anything there – if there is a travel advisory out, it is going to be very bad for tourism.
rf, I read this Tamarindo related article… Actually good news.
http://www.ticotimes.net/dailyarchive/2007_09/0920074.htm
Maybe the KLI piece was a diabolical “Reverse Pump n Dump Tamarindo Real Estate Short Sell Scam” That’s a mouthfull…
Did they end the advisory with with US crime stats?
I take that back, no more sarcasm. From now on upe is all about Happy thoughts… I’m OK your OK…. CR OK…Stats OK…
Sorry Scott, Maravilla, etc… ICE, Harlon, keep that vat filled to the rim.. Sprite, Beca keep the Poetry flowing… I’m going fishing…good points.. but we have to remember that admins job is selling real estate and all the virtues of costa rica. I also love this pura vida country and love living here but i am a pragmatic individual and cannot close my eyes to this growing trend here.
people need to know all the information when making a decision to relocate here.. not just we love costa rica.. lol
enforcment here is a joke.. response time is a joke.. the fuerza publica makes $300 per month they are a joke. the only real semblance of law and order comes from the OIJ which publicy stated they are way underforced and cannot handle this increase in crime.
the best strategy is to live in an area with also like minded people and work on comunity grouping.. where each neighbor looks out for each other. if there is something amiss and i am not home i get a call from my neighbor to see if all is ok… same goes with me.. we keep vigilant about who enters the area and question people as they come in..
but please do not mention anything about that acid my neighbors think im such a wonderful guy..lol
harlon
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