[Culturechat] Rick Steves Op-Ed
Kk5qq@aol.com
Kk5qq@aol.com
Tue, 26 Oct 2004 22:34:29 EDT
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Well I'll be a contrarian, Jerry, and say I liked most of what Rick Steves
wrote -- and I think it is mostly true. Sure, it's self-serving because he
would like to promote his own travel business. I haven't checked the facts on his
UN comments, but seems as they were spot on. Our country generally is in the
decided minority on major votes.
Jane & I have just returned from a rail journey from Beijing to Moscow via
Turkmenistan. We weren't really able to pick up much on the locals thought, but
our 50 fellow travelers (mainly from UK and USA, and who collectively had
been to 314 "countries" of the world on my list 385 possible destinations)
generally shared our dismay at the direction our country is going in world politics.
The consensus was that Europeans still like US citizens as individuals -- but
if we vote to continue on the same path next Tuesday their friendship will go
away. (I know . . . Who cares?)
Re travel, it's been our experience -- albeit much more limited than that of
Rick Steves although we are eligible to join the Traveler's Century Club --
that travel indeed does broaden one's perspective. Our friends who never travel
generally aren't very well informed about world affairs and also, for what
it's worth, aren't very progressive in their outlook on domestic social policies
either.
Irv Smith
Missouri City Texas (in Tom DeLay's congressional district)
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<HTML><FONT FACE=3Darial,helvetica><HTML><FONT SIZE=3D3 PTSIZE=3D12 FAMILY=
=3D"SCRIPT" FACE=3D"Comic Sans MS" LANG=3D"0">Well I'll be a contrarian, Jer=
ry, and say I liked most of what Rick Steves wrote -- and I think it is most=
ly true. Sure, it's self-serving because he would like to promote his=20=
own travel business. I haven't checked the facts on his UN comments, b=
ut seems as they were spot on. Our country generally is in the decided=
minority on major votes.<BR>
<BR>
Jane & I have just returned from a rail journey from Beijing to Moscow v=
ia Turkmenistan. We weren't really able to pick up much on the locals=20=
thought, but our 50 fellow travelers (mainly from UK and USA, and who collec=
tively had been to 314 "countries" of the world on my list 385 possible dest=
inations) generally shared our dismay at the direction our country is going=20=
in world politics.<BR>
<BR>
The consensus was that Europeans still like US citizens as individuals -- bu=
t if we vote to continue on the same path next Tuesday their friendship will=
go away. (I know . . . Who cares?)<BR>
<BR>
Re travel, it's been our experience -- albeit much more limited than that of=
Rick Steves although we are eligible to join the Traveler's Century Club --=
that travel indeed does broaden one's perspective. Our friends who ne=
ver travel generally aren't very well informed about world affairs and also,=
for what it's worth, aren't very progressive in their outlook on domestic s=
ocial policies either.<BR>
<BR>
Irv Smith<BR>
Missouri City Texas (in Tom DeLay's congressional district)<BR>
</FONT></HTML>
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