Week End Wrap: Politics and Religion

Sunday April 30, 2006

^{The Week End Wrap is an editorial take on the week's student travel news and issues.}

New flick "Flight 93" should make us want to travel... Mexico drug decriminalization to lure travelers?... Photos of Dachau... Travel bloggers are talking about... this week in Student Travel.

Flight 93 - Everyone remembers where they were on September 11, when the US learned first-hand what terrorism is all about. You may want to see a new flick out this weekend, "Flight 93," which details the last moments of passengers on the terrorist-held flight that ultimately crashed in Pennsylvania that morning.

Understanding what happened on September 11 is one of the reasons why we should travel. By gaining an understanding of what life in other cultures is like, understandiing religion's real role in politics and seeing how some cultures view the US, we'll better understand our roles as a global citizens. And by traveling to terrorism-stricken areas abroad (like the Egyptian backpacker beach bombed last week) and at home, we'll come to know the meaning of compassion. If you travel to Pennsylvania or New York, put the site of US 93's September 11 crash or the tomb at the site of the World Trade Center in New York (photo at right) on your list.

"This could be our generation's anti-war anthem album." -- That quote from excellent campus newspaper Stony Brook Independent speaks of Neil Young's new album, "Living With War;" regardless of your political beliefs, you may find the album's anti-war message intriguing. Longtime free speech fan Young has made the album free for listening online at his website.

"Man's Inhumanity to Man..." -- Holocaust Remembrance Day was April

25 in memorial of those who died during World War II era leader Adolph Hitler's reign in Germany. I traveled to Germany and former concentraion camp, Dachau, this spring with a terrific gang of students from Texas on an EF group tour called "Traveling Through History," and will be publishing some guides to group travel with EF over the next few weeks -- in the meantime, check out a sobering gallery of Dachau photos from the trip.

Dachau photo gallery

^{"May the example of those who were exterminated here...because they resisted Nazism help to unite the living for the defence of peace and freedom and in respect for their fellow men." -- From memorial near entrance to Dachau}

Drug Decriminalization to Send Travelers South? -- With Mexico set to

legalize the possesion of small amounts of some currently illegal drugs for personal use, some US citizens are saying young people will start taking dope-buying trips to Mexico. Probably not so much. US officials decrying the decriminalization may not know that those amounts are already (annoyingly and frequently) proffered on Mexico beaches popular with younger travelers -- that won't change.

What may change is the trickle-down supply. Police bribes happen in Mexico. I'm against laying cash on Mexican cops for any reason, but those busted for small-time drug stuff have reported walking away after greasing local police palms. Cops will now no longer be focusing on personal drug users and whether that's because there's no money in it is of no matter -- what's important is that police attention is now going to be on dealers. Rather than just saying no to drugs, Mexico lawmakers may be being smart with the country's illegal drug problem.

Travelers are Talking About... -- Rolf Potts talks about the best travel writing of 2006... Tim Leffel talks about AAA's cheapest and most expensive destinations... Andy the HoboTraveler talks about secret cell phone rules... Coming up: New Orleans Jazz Festival!

New from Student Travel This Week