Driving to Florida soon from Ontario, worried and scared

[Poohlove]

I have a friend in Georgia. They have been out of gas for their cars, the gas stations have been out. It was heard first hand from someone who lives there. Also, we will be going through Charlotte which is having riots now. I have driven this route several times but not in the last couple of years. This is the first time I have been worried because of all the stuff that has been going on in the States in the last year.

I do not expect everyone to have a gun but then when you see the pictures of people out with guns you wonder how many will have them. We will of course be careful and use common sense but the atmosphere in the States seems disjointed. On my last cruise in January when a few people found out we were Canadians they wanted to tell me how we should be excited that a certain person might be President. They were not happy when I wouldn't talk to them. It was intimidating as I was by myself at the time.

tigercat

I understand being concerned especially when traveling anywhere unfamiliar. One thing I will say is that the media outlets are out for numbers. They are going to make the negative stuff the headline because that is what sells (some posts on this thread alone show how people thrive on negativity). Just use the same precautions that you would any other time and I think you should be fine. There is nothing wrong with being an educated traveller.

 

[Christine]

Please don't let the media ruin you. But I know how it can be when you are distant from that sort of behavior.

Way back in the 80s, I lived in the DC area and it was becoming the PCP and murder capital of the US due to drugs. I then went overseas to Japan for 4 years (a very non-violent 4 years) and I was terrified to come back home. I mean terrified. But I had to and within 3 weeks I was like "meh" all this fuss and I don't even notice it.

Remember the media plays up crimes and plays them over and over so you think it's going on everywhere. You will be fine.

 

[Poohlove]

I'm sorry, but no. It's a ridiculous worry. I live in the States and I have literally never seen a gun in my day to day life (except on police officers of course).

Why belittle her, if it's a valid fear for her and you don't like it then move on and leave her be.

 

[CarolAnn856]

Oh, lay off everyone. If I recall, the OP is older (no offence OP) and she has a right to be worried. While I agree, she's not likely to encounter mobs in the streets, I worry about guns every time I go to the States.

OP, you should be fine..especially since you'll have your sons with you.

Don't you dislike when people make assumptions and believe stereotypes about where you live? I thought I'd seen you post something about that, but I could be confusing you with another poster.

Of course people are going to find the OP's level of fear to be extreme and unwarranted. Most rational people can view the news and not assume that what they see reported in one location is going on everywhere. Yes, there has been rioting in Charlotte. I could see a tourist deciding to avoid passing through at night, even though I don't believe the highways are a concern. Still, that level of worry would be understandable. I hope the OP can get a handle on her anxiety so she can better enjoy travel.

 

[CarolAnn856]

Thanks for understanding.
tigercat

Are you also thankful for all of the posters who are telling you that you have nothing to worry about?

 

[pearlieq]

While I agree, she's not likely to encounter mobs in the streets, I worry about guns every time I go to the States.

I forget sometimes that what's normal to folks in the US can sound very abnormal to people from other countries.

That being said, if the OP were legitimately worried about threats to her well-being this thread would be about auto accidents or falling in the shower in her hotel room. Fixating on localized gas shortages and civil unrest in a city she's going to pass through at 70 mph on an interstate is irrational.

 

[kimblebee]

Don't you dislike when people make assumptions and believe stereotypes about where you live? I thought I'd seen you post something about that, but I could be confusing you with another poster.

Of course people are going to find the OP's level of fear to be extreme and unwarranted. Most rational people can view the news and not assume that what they see reported in one location is going on everywhere. Yes, there has been rioting in Charlotte. I could see a tourist deciding to avoid passing through at night, even though I don't believe the highways are a concern. Still, that level of worry would be understandable. I hope the OP can get a handle on her anxiety so she can better enjoy travel.

I don't think I've said anything specific like that, maybe in general on a related thread.

 

[CarolAnn856]

I don't think I've said anything specific like that, maybe in general on a related thread.

Sorry then. But don't you agree that stereotypes are not an realistic way to view a country or its citizens? And the gun-totin-'Murican stereotype is beyond ridiculous.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Is this a joke?

Given how many Americans refuse to set foot near any part of Mexico at all based on media reports of violence---and knowing how unlikely a normal person is to run into it unless in a border town, I doubt it is a joke. There are offical warning about visiting the states in some countries now. Seems silly when you live there and KNOW it is localized and not that hard to avoid---but media can make it seem so mcuh more prevelant than it is.

 

[NHdisneylover]

I'm sorry, but no. It's a ridiculous worry. I live in the States and I have literally never seen a gun in my day to day life (except on police officers of course).

I lived in the sates most of my life and am American.

My uncle accidentally fired a gun off while cleanign it in our living room when I was in kindergarten, luckily no one was harmed, but the bullet hole remained in the floor at least until we moved.

Then two guys came into the laundry mat when I was in second grade--they had guns and demanded all the money the people washing had on them (rolls of quarters mostly)---my mom hid me in the laundry basket.

My cousin and her boyfriend were shot to death in his apartment when she was 16. Her grandfather (on teh other side) comitted suicide by gun a month later.

The store I worked at in highschool was robbed at gunpoint


. . . (stopping at highschool age, not becuase there were not other brushes with guns in various ways after that---though there have been none in Spain, Mexico or Germany when I have lived in those place---it could happen some day, but hasn't yet)

These incidents were not even all in the same place or state.


I DO think we have significantly more gun violence and incidents than most other fist world countries (well, I know we do---it is a known and well documented fact). It make ME, who grew up in the US and knows it is not likely to be encountered on any particular day, nervous when I go back now that i have lived out of seeing guns in the hands and on the hips of civillians for so long. The risk IS higher (much). Still overall low, but high enough to not be ridiculous for someone not used to it (becuase we DO tend to stop worrying about risks around us we can'T really control and get used to) to think about and worry a bit.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-u-s-gun-deaths-compare-to-other-countries/

(and no, this is not meant as an anti-gun post----just poitning out that it is a reasonable worry for someone from elsewhere----sort of like it is reasonable to be worried about pickpockets in Barcelona or Paris or Rome and yet locals are so used to how to hold their things, etc that they never think about it)

 

[kimblebee]

Sorry then. But don't you agree that stereotypes are not an realistic way to view a country or its citizens? And the gun-totin-'Murican stereotype is beyond ridiculous.

I do agree about stereotypes. I also agree that the news does its best to sensationalize stories BUT the story still happened.

 

[Snap Crackle Pop]

Please don't come and visit the USA. It would better if you just stayed where you were.

 

[Aliceacc]

I'm 57 years old and live 40 minutes from midtown Manhattan.

The only guns I've ever seen in my life have been on TV, in the movies, or resting on the holster of a policeman.

I was the victim of a crime once. I was in the supermarket parking lot 25 years ago, and some teens ran from behind me and grabbed my purse. I yelled like a banshee, and men from all over the parking lot followed the teens. They were so thrown off, they threw my purse, and the $22 it contained, at the guys before jumping into a car and speeding away. There were no weapons, and the closest thing to violence was the breaking of the purse strap as they pulled it off my shoulder. Had I not been a teacher who is used to the sound of teens running, I probably would have turned around as they approached, gotten out of their way, and avoided the whole incident.

I would be hesitant to drive from Ontario to Orlando because it's such a long drive. Please rest assured: you're far, FAR, FAR more likely to come to your demise at a car accident on the way to or from Orlando than at the hands of rioters.

This is a very hard time for our country. But please know that the overwhelming, huge majority of Americans are reading and watching the same stories you are, from the comfort of the TVs in our living rooms, and not out the windows of our living rooms.

And most people I know who drive from up North to WDW tend to avoid the inner cities-- they circle around the cities instead.

 

[morgan98]

I do not think people are belittling the OP. I think her reactions and fears are over the top and unfounded based on the reality posted from people living in the impacted areas.

Her two posts make it sound the Stephen King's "The Stand."

I am not going to deny that some things that are going on can be a bit unsettling, but making it sound like she will be driving through a vast wasteland of lawlessness where random people on the streets are packing heat and there is no gas available is just not true.

 

[ashley0139]

Given how many Americans refuse to set foot near any part of Mexico at all based on media reports of violence---and knowing how unlikely a normal person is to run into it unless in a border town, I doubt it is a joke. There are offical warning about visiting the states in some countries now. Seems silly when you live there and KNOW it is localized and not that hard to avoid---but media can make it seem so mcuh more prevelant than it is.

To be fair, I would also think that about people who would refuse to visit any part of Mexico, or the people who ask if it is safe to visit Paris (where I have also been this year), or anywhere there has been very rare or localized violence. OP classified the US as a war zone. There are legitimately dangerous places in the world. The US or France are not two of them.

 

[Southernmiss]

I lived in the sates most of my life and am American.

My uncle accidentally fired a gun off while cleanign it in our living room when I was in kindergarten, luckily no one was harmed, but the bullet hole remained in the floor at least until we moved.

Then two guys came into the laundry mat when I was in second grade--they had guns and demanded all the money the people washing had on them (rolls of quarters mostly)---my mom hid me in the laundry basket.

My cousin and her boyfriend were shot to death in his apartment when she was 16. Her grandfather (on teh other side) comitted suicide by gun a month later.

The store I worked at in highschool was robbed at gunpoint


. . . (stopping at highschool age, not becuase there were not other brushes with guns in various ways after that---though there have been none in Spain, Mexico or Germany when I have lived in those place---it could happen some day, but hasn't yet)

These incidents were not even all in the same place or state.


I DO think we have significantly more gun violence and incidents than most other fist world countries (well, I know we do---it is a known and well documented fact). It make ME, who grew up in the US and knows it is not likely to be encountered on any particular day, nervous when I go back now that i have lived out of seeing guns in the hands and on the hips of civillians for so long. The risk IS higher (much). Still overall low, but high enough to not be ridiculous for someone not used to it (becuase we DO tend to stop worrying about risks around us we can'T really control and get used to) to think about and worry a bit.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-u-s-gun-deaths-compare-to-other-countries/

(and no, this is not meant as an anti-gun post----just poitning out that it is a reasonable worry for someone from elsewhere----sort of like it is reasonable to be worried about pickpockets in Barcelona or Paris or Rome and yet locals are so used to how to hold their things, etc that they never think about it)

Even your experiences are quite the anomaly and not at all the normal American's experience with guns.

Growing up, I knew there was a rifle in the house- back of the top closet in my parent's room- which they got out rarely for target practice on their 6 acres of land and to go hunting twice.

My brothers had pop guns.

An uncle's first wife died when the gun she was cleaning went off before he married my aunt and well before his kids or I was born.

My brother in law brought pistols to dmils 15 acres while we were there again for target practice. He's an army and navy vet with much experience. We used it as a learning tool for our 4 kids- proper handling, safety, realizng how powerful they are and target practice- who had never been that close to a gun.

Those are the closest encounters with guns I can recall. Not an everday occurance by any means.

 

[Bilberry]

I'll be making the trip to Florida soon myself. It's that time of year to make the migration south. We've been doing this for years. It isn't the same route as you, but we will eventually be on 75 heading to south Florida. We've not had issues in the past but take typical precautions to avoid possible issues.

I did see some news clips of rioters in the Charlotte area throwing rocks onto passing cars on the highway. Maybe you saw that also. I imagine that to be rare, and believe it will be policed in the future. In case the rioting continues and police have problems controlling might be a good idea to have a plan to go around the city if necessary.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I worry about guns every time I go to the States.

Canadian households with at least one gun: 25%
American households with at least one gun: 31%

Honestly, unless you're hanging out in the worst neighborhoods of a handful of large cities, things aren't all THAT different North or South of the border.

 

[jrmasm]

Oh, lay off everyone. If I recall, the OP is older (no offence OP) and she has a right to be worried. While I agree, she's not likely to encounter mobs in the streets, I worry about guns every time I go to the States.

OP, you should be fine..especially since you'll have your sons with you.

Older? My parents, 80 and 81, drove from Hilton Head to southern VA today without any issues.

 

[Madame]

Canadian households with at least one gun: 25%
American households with at least one gun: 31%

Honestly, unless you're hanging out in the worst neighborhoods of a handful of large cities, things aren't all THAT different North or South of the border.

I have no idea of the validity of the findings, but a quick Google search shows over 40% of American households own guns. Canada's population is also 1/10 of the US population.