warning to fellow Canadians going to Florida

[DisFan2]

Hi:

I wonder what will happen if a person from florida has some sort of car trouble and most people are willing to assist someone in need.

They may perceive they are being threatened by someone walking up to their car to assist them and shoot before asking.

Deb.

If a person was inclined to act this way, I'm pretty sure they weren't being held back previously - i.e. they would shoot first, law or no law. I think Chipmunkfan's got it right; Floridians aren't going to look at this as 'carte blanche' to start shooting people. It's a stretch to believe that law abiding citizens were sitting around waiting/lobbying for a law that would let them start killing people indiscriminately.

 

[jtdl]

This law should be the other way around. Anyone remember Mark Fyke, the Canadian teen who was killed in March 1996 in Daytona? He was using a pay phone to call his Mom in Belleville, Ontario with a friend across from the Thunderbird Inn and were accosted by FLORIDA LOCALS and shot to death in the head.

Something tells me there will be many more headlines such as that.

Too tragic. Too senseless.

My gosh, I do remember that and I just got a big thump in the heart - we stayed at the Thunderbird just this year! I wasn't aware that he was killed there. I did say that I did not ever wish to go to Daytona again, it scared me! My daughter and I went shopping along the main drag one evening and it ended up getting semi-dark before I realized it and we were so scared we ended up running for about 20 minutes back to our motel.

 

[jersey shark]

...this thread is very amusing - one of the great (mistaken) stereotypes of the USA is the crime rate and public safety matters.

...Disfan2's comments are among the few on this thread that are logical and "tell it like it is"...

...I live 45 minutes outside New York City and have Canadian friends (met while on business in Canada - Toronto area) and as much as they are good friends and love to travel etc.., there is a hesitancy to visit the New York area because of the perceived "crime" in the area(??). This is remarkable to me -NYC is just about the most fabulous city in the world, has so much to offer, in many ways, it's a "Disney World" all its own with so many treasures - I can't imagine missing it because of a displaced sense of safety (which should be NO issue at all - especially around the touristy areas).

...plus, even though there is certainly crime in the USA, of course Canada's not exactly immune from it either...

 

[DutchsMommy]

I think common sense will, in general, keep us safe. Sure bad things happen, but they are generally freak incidents which could not have been prevented (ie wrong place wrong time) and that could just as easily (and propbably much more likely) happen to us as we drive on the highway. I imagine that in the USA they deal with the same issues as we do - the responsible gun owners are fine, it's the criminals that are at issue. And in general, from my experience, there isn't a crack dealing corner at WDW, so I am feeling pretty OK with the law. While I might not in principle agree with the right to bear arms (I'm not that un-Canadian LOL) I do think that when travelling if you stay away from shady areas, watch out for yourself, and in general attempt to remain safe, you will be fine. I travel exactly how I act at home - I don't go to Markham and Eglinton at night (kinda yucky neighbourhood near my hosue), I don't make eye contact with weirdos let-alone get in a shouting match with them, I don't often stroll around after it gets dark, and I don't carry huge sums of $$ in my purse. So, when all is said and done I don't intend to let something like this (in FL or any other place) change my way of living and vacationing.

 

[basas]

Lets not jump to conclusions here.

I was looking at different articles (found on other websites), http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...042501553.html and i really think that this isn't that big a deal.


This 'ad campaign' is taking this new law to extremes when really, most people (including law enforcement) support it. It's only the hard-core left-wing gun-control groups who are making this WAY more than it should be. I'd support it too.

I don't want to start a gun-control debate (I personally support having the option to own one...just for example look at a city like Winnipeg with all its violent crime) but its not as if people are now allowed to go blasting people left, right, and center.