Who has NEVER had something stolen in Bonaire?

[Doc]

Several Times. Nothing ever stolen from me, but my rental jeep was stolen... by the rental company. They tried to scam me.

Your basic logic is faulty

The premise of a survey or poll is that you are seeking information. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out two things...that guarantee you the same result.

1) You will likely have LOTS more "No, Never" than you will count "Yes, I got ripped off". Simple probability.

2) If someone was a victim, they will most certainly chime in. If they had an uneventful vacation, they are many times more likely to say nothing.

Scientic, meaningful or.... none of the above.

Bonaire is a hoot. Well worth the big imaginary dragons of risk. Go and have fun.

 

[Bob]

I've been to Bonaire seven times since 2002 and haven't had anything stolen. So far so good. almtree: Bob

 

[diversteve]

Your basic logic is faulty

That's already a given. The point of this poll/post is to emphasize the positives about Bonaire. Since the negative posters have had their say since 2006 in the other thread. And in prior threads as long as I've been on SB.

The premise of a survey or poll is that you are seeking information. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out two things...that guarantee you the same result.

1) You will likely have LOTS more "No, Never" than you will count "Yes, I got ripped off".

I sure hope so since that's exactly the intent ... No one said this was objective. I don't feel the other posts have been either. In fact I'm so far from objective that I spelled it out in the OP:

Negative comments risk being moderated out of existence.

But otoh, I did include the "Yes" response.

I could've done it without the poll but where's the fun in that??

2) If someone was a victim, they will most certainly chime in.

It appears a few have in this thread. Even though I specifically asked posters not to.

If they had an uneventful vacation, they are many times more likely to say nothing.

That's what this poll is for, to give those people an incentive to respond.

Scientic, meaningful or.... none of the above.

I vote for none of the above.

Bonaire is a hoot. Well worth the big imaginary dragons of risk. Go and have fun.

Been there done that. Not likely to go back soon as there are more destinations than I can possibly do in my diving lifetime. But I did want to provide a platform so people who will, can make an objective decision.

 

[BidAndDive.com]

Never had anything stolen on Bonaire, but on the other hand I just didn't feel safe there for some reason. Maybe it was me...

 

[jscott099]

Nothing stolen from car, hotel, or at airport. But that was 5 years ago. I sure do read info that makes me nervous about it now though. You know how it goes though, the media gets hyped up. BA tourism better start a good PR campaign soon.

 

[Dive California]

Your basic logic is faulty

I agree with RoatanMan (is it now BonaireMan)...this poll is faulty...

If you were a victim in Bonaire...the last thing you would do...is follow the ABC thread, right? Cause you wouldn't want anything to do with Bonaire...therefore, the majority of "victims" wouldn't even see this question (poll).


STOP...:icosm10: these silly polls

 

[diversteve]

I agree with RoatanMan (is it now BonaireMan)...this poll is faulty...

I do too...

If you were a victim in Bonaire...the last thing you would do...is follow the ABC thread, right?

I don't know, they might look here for confirmation, commiseration or sympathy.

therefore, the majority of "victims" wouldn't even see this question (poll).

That's ok since this post is for the non-victims.

STOP...:icosm10: these silly polls

Like that's really going to happen on SB...

I would've still posted the thread to give the non-victims a place to express their opinions. So adding the poll is a non-issue.

 

[Andy_G]

4 trips and only 1 pair of board shorts stolen from the hired truck
am i bothered? - nope!!.
Was I stupid to leave them there? - yep!!

will it put me off of going back? - most definitely not!

 

[Doc]

Like that's really going to happen on SB... .

Exactly. Perceptions of a great dive destination island country (Bonaire)are molded and shaped by the ongoing harangue over this relatively small issue.

1) The incidence of occurance is minor yet it makes internet headlines. It mirrors the "real world" news media. We all are terrified of... what's the latest thing? On the morning of 9-11, what were we worried about? Shark attacks in Florida. It's the non-issue of the moment.

2) The way to prevent car burglaries are easy but we are more prone to hear the doofuses whine who ignore the warnings.

3) Bonaire is no more crime prone than any other island. It is, however, the only place in the Caribbean that wealthy travellers park vehicles in secluded locations and are guaranteed to be gone for an hour. Why do they do this? Because the shore diving is the attraction- as is nowhere else. Why do they lock their cars and leave valuables inside? Ask Mr. Darwin.

4) Why doesn't the Government do something? Their hands are tied until a scheduled change in the law takes effect. When that does, we must expect a change in the enforcement. Like I said: 1 day, 1 hill, 1 police sniper, 1 bullet. Done.

My SCUBABoard "handle" might be RoatanMan, and I have regretted that seemingly innocent monnicker I selected many times over. We dive all over the world and travel 5~7 weeks per year just to dive. I would rate Bonaire in the TOP 3 "must dive" destinations in the Caribbean. No dive log would be complete unless you had that passport stamp!

Simply bringing this garbage up again and again promotes the falacy of danger. No matter what is said, including the above, is no where near as much fun to read as the tittilating stories of a ransacked car parked and locked by a vacationing moron.

Leave nothing in your car. Your license and cash: waterproof. Anything else? You didn't need it anyway.

Go dive. Kwitcherbichin. That's the name of the town, right? Or is it Krinkydink?

The way to deal with this, or any misperception, is NOT to begin threads. The best way to handle an ongoing trail of misinformation is to post follow ups to anything that comes up. Stick to the facts, write coherently and never ever ignore it. It's like whack-a-mole. Bonaire deserves better treatment than hype and scare stories.

 

[caymaniac]

I've been to Bonaire twice. The first time in 1986 when my wife certified. And by the way, the diving was fantastic previous to the hurricane surge. The second trip was 5 years ago, the diving was still good but the shallow diving - plus the west side of Klien is crap, overall the diving is still good but the coral that has been destroyed will never come back in your life time.
I still choose Bonaire as the easiest/best shore dive in the Caribbean.