Browsing Category:
Internet/Communication, Mexico, Travel, Violence
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TripAdvisor Accused Of Removing Claims About Rape, Assault In Mexico
by Tammy on November 2, 2017They’re now ‘changing their policy,’ but too little, too late? Via CBS. The investigation into an alleged rape of an American tourist at a Mexican resort in 2010 has uncovered shocking practices by one of the largest hotel review websites around, CBS Pittsburgh reports. According to an investigative report by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, review website TripAdvisor is being accused of removing numerous comments by tourists who claim they were drugged, assaulted, robbed, or even raped at high-end resorts in Mexico. The report says the website has removed any comment that has called the safety of guests at these locations into question. In place of the reviewer’s post were messages from TripAdvisor that claimed the reviews were “inappropriate,” “off-topic,” or...
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TSA May Soon Be Inspecting Our Books and Food
by Shifra on June 28, 2017They do promise not to notice what we are reading. Sure. Via The Week. The TSA began a new screening policy for paper products at airport checkpoints in Missouri last month, and now the agency’s branch in Sacramento, California, is testing out more invasive searches for books and food items. In the new system, passengers are required to take all reading material and food out of their carry-on luggage and place it in a separate bin. TSA screeners can “fan” through travelers’ books to see if anything is hidden in the pages, but agency officials insist they will not pay attention to the content. Critics have long argued passengers selected for extra screening are not chosen as randomly as the...
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Curious Cat Hitches Ride on UPS Truck, Delivered Back Home
by Tammy on July 9, 2016Penny. Have paws and a UPS truck, will travel! Via People. July is Pet Loss Prevention Month, and it is important because of stories just like Penny’s. Margaret was at work last Thursday, when she got a notification on her phone from Whistle app. The pet GPS tracking application was letting Margaret know that her cat, Penny, was outside her designated safe zone. Looking at Penny’s location, her owner realized that the feline was moving faster than four paws could take her, so she figured that cat had to be stuck in a car. Margaret left work and started following Penny’s trail, she soon realized that she was tailing a UPS truck, and figured Penny, a curious box-lover like most...
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Airports Using Therapy Horses To Soothe Travelers In Security Lines
by Pat_S on May 17, 2016Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport is using miniature therapy horses to help reduce stress and anxiety levels while travelers are stuck in security lines. Other airports are employing clowns or giving away lollipops to make for a happier experience sweating in lines clogged with other travelers and their crammed carry-on baggage. American airports see new strategy for soothing passengers stuck at security: clowns, lollipops and tiny horses Facing a widening flyers’ rebellion over increasingly lengthy queues at their security check points, some airports in America are trying a novel distract-and-delight approach by bringing in sweets, lollipops, live musical performances and even circus acts. Passengers stuck in line at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport should not be surprised if before finally making it...
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Titanic Captain Was Warned Before Voyage – But Not About Icebergs
by Tammy on April 15, 2016Ooh! Via The Guardian. The captain of the Titanic had more than icebergs to contend with on the ill-fated voyage that ended 104 years ago on Friday, a document has revealed. A report was handed to Capt Edward Smith before the ship left Southampton for its maiden voyage to New York on 10 April 1912, warning him of the presence of a mast of a submerged wreck in the Atlantic. The scrunched-up piece of paper was handed back to the messenger as it was not on the ship when it sank after hitting an iceberg, resulting in the deaths of more than 1,500 people. The note ended up in the offices of the solicitors hired to represent White Star Line,...
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State Dept Apologizes for Tweeting Bizarre Overseas Travel Warning
by Tammy on March 31, 2016Bizarre, yes. Also stupid, sexist and not helpful. It also highlights the fact that our government thinks it’s their job to tell spring breakers what to watch out for when traveling. Last time I checked, the Fed isn’t Daddy, and we’re going to remind it of that in November. Jerks, each and every one of them. They’ve deleted some of the more idiotic tweets, just remember, it’s our tax dollars paying for this nonsense. Via Business Insider. The State Department apologized on Wednesday after sparking controversy while one of its official accounts tweeted travel tips under the hashtag #springbreakingbadly, warning travelers to beware of overseas scams. Things went awry on Wednesday when the department made a recommendation to avoid being...
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Belgian Terrorists Can Still Enter US Without a Visa
by Tammy on March 22, 2016Of course. Because for some reason the Obama administration likes it that way and the GOP is unable to come out of its coma and do more than have hearings or make angry cable news statements. Via Free Beacon. Leading lawmakers identified Belgium as a hotspot for terrorism months ago and are warning that many of the radicalized individuals living there are still able to travel to the United States without first obtaining a visa and undergoing thorough security checks. Rep. Ron DeSantis (R., Fla.), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told the Washington Free Beacon Tuesday afternoon that current flaws in the U.S. visa waiver program—which facilities travel to the United States from partner nations including Belgium—have...
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The ‘Singing’ Road Ahead
by Pat_S on October 2, 2014There’s an ebola epidemic coming our way, an insane terrorist army intent on killing us, an incompetent government that wants to know everything about us but keeps us in the dark about them. Nothing to be happy about. Well, good news, depending on the outcome of an experiment, we may be getting—TA DA—singing roads. That’s a happy thing, yes? Oh wait maybe not. It’s a social experiment about changing people’s behavior. In this case to reward us, the lab rats, only if we strictly obey the law. ‘Singing road’ built for social experiment TV show The road was paid for by the National Geographic Channel for a show called “Crowd Control” that premieres in November. The show conducts social experiments...
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TSA Makes Last Minute Deal For $50 Million For Uniforms
by Pat_S on March 6, 2013The sequestration cuts allegedly caused TSA agents to be furloughed causing delays at various U.S. airports (also allegedly). Those lucky TSA agents who kept their jobs are doubly graced. In an eleventh hour deal TSA spent $50 million for new uniforms. Part of the money is going to Mexico. Cuts Be Damned! TSA Orders $50 Million in New Uniforms The Transportation Security Administration made an eleventh-hour deal to buy $50 million worth of new uniforms for its agents — sealing the deal as the nation braced for the budget-smashing sequester, CNS News reports. And incredibly, as the nation continues to struggle with the outsourcing of manufacturing to countries outside the United States, it turns out the uniforms will be partially...
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Git Along Little Travelers—Saddle Seats for Airplanes
by Pat_S on September 16, 2010A post by Pat Now that we’ve gotten used to being herded like cattle in airports, it’s time to play cowboy. It’s the Skyrider, a new airplane seat that gives the passenger 23-inches of space. The seat resembles a saddle. The passenger’s positioning is somewhere between sitting and standing. You think this is bad? Some airlines are considering having no seats at all. SkyRider airline seats pack fliers into 23 inches of space “For flights anywhere from one to possibly even up to three hours … this would be comfortable seating,” he says. “The seat … is like a saddle. Cowboys ride eight hours on their horses during the day and still feel comfortable in the saddle.” The new airplane...
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What is Burning Man?
by Maynard on August 17, 2008I'm bumping this article from last year, since Burning Man starts next weekend. Tammy's screener/AP Nikki is a regular "Burner", so she'll be there. (Hey, Nikki, will you be able to call in and report from the scene?) As...
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All This and Still No Sign of Bin Laden
by Maynard on June 16, 2008Oh, the humanity! Passenger's pepper spray discharges; 9 TSA screeners affected At San Jose's airport today, a can of pepper spray discharged after it was removed from a passenger's bag, and nine security screeners were affected. Two of the...
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Things to do in Vegas
by Tammy on October 24, 2007A post by Maynard With Tammy making plans to take the show down the road to Las Vegas and follow up on OJ's latest adventures, I'm wondering what recreations we can recommend to her. Other than the plentiful gambling and...
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Our State Department At Work
by Tammy on May 31, 2007Instead of helping to plan the attack on the preeminent terrorist nation in the world that has been murdering our soldiers for years, the State Department instead wants to help you with your travel plans. It's a really great...
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The Saudis Are Winking At You
by Tammy on October 30, 2006And they want you to come over. They want more visitors. You see, it's been tough because even though they're the nation that harbors the strain of Islam that is hacking up the world like a cancer, they've maintained one...