Cruise Ship Will Make Stops on Cayman Brac

[Joneill]

The Cayman Compass posted an editorial in favor of cruise ships on Brac:

EDITORIAL – Celebrating the tourism ‘boomlet’ on the Brac | Cayman Compass

Not surprising - money seems to trump everything these days, unfortunately!

 

[AggieDiver]

This seems like one of those "all development is not good development" situations. So many politicians seem to think that growth is always good, and sometimes that just isn't the case. I think vibrant growth and development in a place as small as Brac would destroy an essential part of what makes it special. Is it wrong to just want to see some of the quiet places on the planet stay quiet?

 

[Damselfish]

It's also seems like a bit of a "not in my backyard" situation, except for most people on here it's only their backyard temporarily for a week every few years, at most. I could also have a knee-jerk reaction, but I don't know enough about it to have a strong opinion, so I'm going to play devil's advocate here...

Do the people whose backyard it _is_ in favor it? Saying people who live someplace and would like an economic boost, or want to do (legal) things with land they may own, that they shouldn't because you'd like everything stay just the way it is - I don't think that quite flies. Yeah, people there should certainly consider what they might lose along with whatever they might gain, and it doesn't hurt to call attention to that. But there are probably ways to do some of this there without destroying the environment. I think the question and focus should be 'will they?'

 

[drrich2]

My little family cruises in addition to my solo dive trips and 'scuba trips disguised as family vacations' (as my wife puts it). So I'm not inclined to write cruisers off as 'pod people' and so forth.

That said, a large influx of tourists into a small destination is worrisome (environmentally, perhaps not economically), regardless whether they're cruisers, snorkelers, deep sea fishermen, etc...

Thankfully, they're aiming for the 'small' cruise market, so hopefully a few hundred instead of a few thousand at a time, but I'm reminded of something my mother once said - 'If you want to ruin something, build a road to it.'

Mom doesn't have a real high opinion of humanity, so I may be jaded. Cruise ships make awfully big 'roads,' though. Trying to get hundreds of people at a time not to litter...

Richard.

 

[Joneill]

It's also seems like a bit of a "not in my backyard" situation, except for most people on here it's only their backyard temporarily for a week every few years, at most. I could also have a knee-jerk reaction, but I don't know enough about it to have a strong opinion, so I'm going to play devil's advocate here...

Do the people whose backyard it _is_ in favor it? Saying people who live someplace and would like an economic boost, or want to do (legal) things with land they may own, that they shouldn't because you'd like everything stay just the way it is - I don't think that quite flies. Yeah, people there should certainly consider what they might lose along with whatever they might gain, and it doesn't hurt to call attention to that. But there are probably ways to do some of this there without destroying the environment. I think the question and focus should be 'will they?'

Fair enough - it is truly a local decision and none of us can mandate what they do - we can just try to highlight impacts for them to consider.

The concern is that big money and short term gains will cloud the long term consequences.

At the end of the day, if they do ruin it, we can just go some other place (until those places are eventually all ruined too!).

 

[tkaelin]

I guess I agree with Damselfish. If folks on the Brac are in favor of it (not sure that is the case yet but assuming it is) than its more their business than mine.

 

[scubadada]

What is a cruise ship, even a small one, worth of tourists going to do on Cayman Brac? Are they going to go diving with Reef Divers or Brac Scuba Shack? That would require a change in the business plan. Visit the bluffs, do the caves, visit the parrot preserve? They certainly do not have the usual tourist shopping opportunities.

 

[AggieDiver]

The Caymans have always seemed to me like a fairly large population of people just living their lives while being led by the wants and desires of a very small population of "movers and shakers" with big ideas about development. That can be a good thing, as any growing population needs a growing economy to support it. But Cayman Brac in particular always seems to have its share of "businessmen" that have a grand idea about how they want to develop something, and it always fails because they can't get some local approval they wanted to make their development work. Things like Divi wanting to put a casino at Divi Tiara...or the Alexander wanting to dredge a channel into their pond for a marina. I see plenty of the "business" types clamoring for better air service or more cruise passengers, etc. But I always question if their desires really reflect the desires of the actual Brac resident, or whether the resistance to legalized gambling and the prohibition on dredging the new channel are more accurate reflections of what most on Brac want.

 

[AggieDiver]

My own personal opinion is that places trying to attract tourists need to understand what makes them unique and attractive and try to preserve that. Once you become just like every other cruise port, then you are just competing on price and the locals rarely get much of a cut from that action. What makes Brac and LC unique is what made Cozumel unique in 1975...they are small, quaint, out of the way places that are quiet and let people get away from the rest of the world. I just think that is something special and I hope the folks on Brac feel that way too.

 

[Alucard]

a fairly large population of people just living their lives while being led by the wants and desires of a very small population of "movers and shakers" with big ideas about development.

In my experience this is pretty much how most of the developed world works. Most people are just getting by and have very little influence or impact on the development decisions that are made. In theory the government and their approvals process should be the gatekeeper for the regular people of what happens and what doesn't. I think that we all know that sometimes politicians are more in the pocket of the rich and influential than truly representing the desires of the masses.

I think the point of having the locals make the decisions about the future of their island is vital. Expecting that people voluntarily get "left in the dust" so that we have a place to escape our own crazy world is unrealistic and rather self-centered.