sensitive aren't we?
2 things - and anyone can bitch if they want, but
1) Scuba Mau again.
2) Typical Mexican mucho macho dive master attitude "No problem"
You can discount the Mexican connection all you want, but I dive all over the place and I see it all the time consistently in Mexico. I'm not looking to get into some racial argument but to deny that this exists is like denying the sun shines in Cozumel. It's just part of the culture there. Big smile, no problem... It's continually stated over and over again how much people enjoy the friendly people of Cozumel, part of that 'friendly' is the easy going nature, sometimes a nature that too quickly discounts a problem or doesn't want to rock the boat in any way. It's just the way it is, every country on the planet has customs unique to it, in my opinion this is part of Mexico and the experience there. It doesn't make anybody a bad person, you just need to be aware of it, and if you've been going there long enough and go other places you probably have contrasting experiences to compare it to and notice it to.
Mike, I have an issue with what you wrote because I feel this type of post just fuels undeserved prejudice. How would you feel if I wrote Americans are all ignorant, racist, war mongers ? I'm by no means trying to start a fight here or get political or (even worse IMO) politically correct.
I just think that your post mixes up different aspects of the Mexican culture with specific issues related to one dive op (whose owner to the best of my knowledge is NOT even Mexican) and comes up with quite an erroneous conclusion.
I'm fascinated by the so-called Mexican psyche but am by no means even close to understanding all of it.
Your point about the laid back, no problem attitude has nothing to do with "machismo". To me it has more to do with the "fatalistic optimistic" view of life shared by many Mexicans I've met, especially in the South. Maybe it has something to do with the cyclicity of the Mayan calendar, the belief in afterlife (culturally more accepting of death than other civilizations, it seems to me), and the fact that many people there seem to live in the present, instead of always planning ahead and worrying about the future. From personal experience, I believe that last one has a lot to do with both limited income (the more material things you own, the more worried about loosing them you are) and the climate : even in a country as small as France, it's obvious that people who live in the South, where the weather (and proximity of the ocean) makes it possible to survive without planning months ahead for a harsh winter, tend to be a lot more laid back that those who live in places where the snow makes it impossible to harvest food for 4 months.
This has nothing to do with the so-called machismo.
To answer your other post about women having more than casual discussions with a Mexican DM (not your exact words) : yes, I have. But it's never been out of line IMO (no touching, just talking). Just as I have been chatted up by Mexican aged between 18 and 80+ years old. However, a lot less so in Cozumel than in other places I've been in Mexico (in all fairness, maybe it's because I am older and less attractive. But I'd rather believe that it's because men on the island are different
)
The chatting up used to bother me, until a Cancun taxi driver who could well have been my great great grandfather came on to me. It downed on me that day that it was more an homage to me being a woman than an actual proposal. Now I take it for what it is : a compliment. Of course for some people it can be perceived as offensive, especially in countries that have sexual harassment laws that prohibits a boss complimenting an employee's looks (catch my drift
we the French might unfortunately get there too some day. Sigh).
Since you want to make this a racial thing too, you need to look up the difference between
ethnicity and
nationality. Everything I've said is defined by nationality. Of course because some people never want to admit there could be anything even slightly not positive in regard to their favorite vacation destination or somebody they interact with and have ignored the negative behavior, the discussion bends toward racism if a person's nationality is brought up. I forgot that Mexico is actually a state of the United States and not a foreign country.
However, I forgot the first rule of Cozumel is never discuss anything negative about Cozumel. Sorry I broke the rules.
It has nothing to do with race or nationality : it's called culture.
Last but not least, I personally have no issue with anyone writing negative things about Cozumel or other locale, as long as they are true. However, making a generalization about a whole place because of one dive op, using pseudo sociological/cultural arguments gets on my nerves.
FWIW : I've dove with ops that I felt cut corners in Hurgada (Egypt), Nice (France) and Hammamet (Tunisia). Except for the latter (where it was then the ONLY dive op), I would never infer that all dive ops in these places cut corners.
