Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Statistically, even in the most sobering days of post-9/11 anxiety, travel to
most international destinations remained no more dangerous than a drive
to your neighborhood grocery store.
Why do we react so strongly to these events? h e mainstream media are
partly to blame. Sensationalizing tragedy gets more eyes on the screen. But
it also exaggerates the impact of a disaster, causing viewers (understandably)
to overreact. More than once, I've found myself in a place that was going
through a crisis that made international headlines—terrorist bombing, minor
earthquake, or riots. Folks from back home call me, their voices shaking with
anxiety, to be sure I'm okay. h ey seem surprised when I casually dismiss their
concern. Invariably, the people who live in that place are less worked up than
the ones watching it on the news 5,000 miles away. I don't blame my loved
ones for worrying. h e media has distorted the event in their minds.
I got an email recently from a man who wrote, “h anks for the TV shows.
h ey will provide a historical documentation of a time when Europe was
white and not Muslim. Keep i lming your beloved Europe before it's gone.”
Reading this, I thought how feisty fear has become in our society. A fear
of African Americans swept the USA in the 1960s. Jews have been feared in
many places throughout history. And today, Muslims are feared. But we have a
choice whether or not to be afraid. Americans who have had the opportunity
to travel in moderate Muslim nations like Turkey or Morocco—and been
welcomed by smiling locals who gush, “We love Americans!”—no longer
associate Islam with terrorism.
Of course, terrorism—which, by its very nature, is designed to be emo-
tional and frighten the masses—makes it more dii cult to overcome fear.
But my travels have helped me distinguish between the fear of terrorism...
and the actual danger of terrorism. I was in London on 7/7/05, a date the
Brits consider “their 9/11.” A series of devastating bombs ripped through
the subway system, killing 52 and injuring about 700 people. Remember-
ing the impact of 9/11 on the United States, I thought, “Oh my goodness,
everything will be shut down.”
Instead, I witnessed a country that, as a matter of principle, refused to
be terrorized by the terrorists. h e prime minister returned from meetings
in Scotland to organize a smart response. Within a couple of days, he was
back in Scotland, London was functioning as normal, and they set out to
catch the bad guys—which they did. h ere was no lingering panic. People
mourned the tragedy, even as they kept it in perspective. h
e terrorists were
