Canadian Robin Wood, 67, was shot and killed on Tuesday (January 3) while vacationing in the seaside Mexican town of Melaque in Jalisco state, when two masked gunmen burst into the house where Wood was staying at roughly 0100 hours. Wood was residing in the house with a woman who lives in Puerto Vallarta at the time.
When the intruders demanded money and computers, Wood reportedly said, "No, No," at which point the Canadian was shot in the right side of his chest. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Wood was pronounced dead on arrival at a Melaque hospital. Blog author's commentary:
As I have said in all too many of my postings where armed robbery occurs, and particularly in Latin America, where most assailants carry firearms, resisting an armed robbery is NEVER a good idea.
First of all, few criminals in Mexico ever see the inside of a prison cell, largely because of the low arrest rate. Second, experienced criminals in Mexico are prepared to kill victims if they RESIST, which is why I so passionately urge against resistance. Where money and valuables are demanded, I have rarely seen victims harmed if they give up what criminals have demanded. On the other hand, I can offer countless case studies of foreigners who have been shot and killed in Mexico simply because they RESISTED.
Please: If an armed criminal demands your money or valuables, give them up willingly, as no amount of property is worth YOUR life.
Great blog, by the way. Staying Safe Abroad.
#2
...which I will admit is a shame because there are most certainly some wonderful things in that country to see and do. It's just that you have to risk your life to see and do them.
#3
Passive resistance gets you killed as well, at least in Mexico, so it's best to play by Old Mexico rules.
Gun control has been around in Mexico since 1968, so people adapted to using knives. Mexico has, or at least had, some of the best knife fighters in the world, and great respect was given to experts.
This matters in closed quarters such as a house or apartment, where knives are on a par, or even superior to a gun. Especially if the gunman does not know you have a knife.
In this case, someone breaking in approaches you, holding two concealed fighting knives in the Hwa Rang Do style, with handles in your hands but blades hidden behind your wrists. If he closes to within 5', you win. He loses, big time.
I doubt the criminal would be a gun expert, as they seldom are. Just some thug with a gun, rapidly staining your Saltillo tile floor with his fluids.
#4
Resisting an armed thug with words and your bare hands? Words fail me. Still this incident could crater tourism from Canada if the Canadian media say anything about it.
A man tossed crude firebombs at an Islamic cultural center in part because he wasn't allowed to use its bathrooms and targeted four other sites in Queens on New Year's Day because of personal grievances, an official said Tuesday.
Police said that Ray Lazier Lengend, 40, of Guyanese descent, was arrested Tuesday after he was tracked through a stolen car with out-of-state license plates believed to be at the scene of at least two of the attacks Sunday evening on a convenience store, three houses and the cultural center.
Lengend, who resides in Jamaica, had vowed to take revenge following his shoplifting arrest last Tuesday. Police commissioner Ray Kelly said, "When they were pushing him out of the store, he said words to the effect of, 'We're going to get even, we're going to get back at you."
A deli was the first of four Queens targets hit by the man, who also is suspected of striking at an Islamic center, a Hindu temple inside a home and a Jamaica home.
Kelly said, "Four of the five attacks, the Starbucks Frappucino bottles were used. Our detectives believe that the same individual is responsible for all of these incidents."
Police had aired a security video from the Hindu temple that showed Lengend apparently throwing a lit Molotov cocktail over the fence.
Two Molotov cocktails were thrown at the Imam Al-Khoei Islamic Center, but none of the worshipers inside were injured.
Iman Maan Al-Sahlani said he was grateful for the NYPD's efforts in finding the culprit. He said, "We have to be shoulder to shoulder. We have to protect our country, we have to protect our society and the freedom that God gives us."
Follow-up to this story. The NYT also followed up, to their credit. They make a plausible case for their original anti-Muslim angle, but many of the details in their story make the crazy crackhead motivation seem at least as important.
Zooey Deschanel has filed for divorce from her rocker husband of two years. Who?
The actress filed for divorce in Los Angeles on Dec. 27 from Ben Gibbard, citing irreconcilable differences. The former couple announced they had broken up in November. Dang. What's with the "Irreconcilable Differences"? Looks like Katy and Zooey may have been separated at birth! The 31-year-old actress stars in the Fox sitcom "New Girl" and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her performance. Gibbard is the lead singer of the rock band Death Cab for Cutie, which released the album "Codes and Keys" in May. I think I've come to the conclusion that as a cost-cutting measure there are really only two young actresses in Hollywood, one of them blonde and the other brunette. They just trot them out under different names as required. Saves lotsa money that otherwise wouldn't go to the studio heads.
Deschanel and Gibbard were married in September 2009 and have no children together. Hmm. Two whole years. Twenty-two months longer than Kim Kardashian and whats-his-name... Deschanel's publicist has said that the couple's split was "amicable."
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Katy Perry looks like a slightly dumber version of my soul mate Zooey Deschanel, who's making my life very hard by staying in Hollywood and staying married to someone else.
Posted by Thing From Snowy Mountain 2012-01-04 00:17|| 2012-01-04 00:17
OK, TFSM, looks like your prayers have been answered. We're rootin' fer ya! Post pics if she'll let you.
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/05/2012 8:45 Comments ||
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#8
Oh, c'mon guys. Pretty brunette, big blue eyes? Current holder of the "Meg Ryan Terminally Cute Cup", if I recall correctly. Talented and funny too.
Long piece in the New York Times about the lack of food in the Congo. It's not a new story of course, but the west has fixated recently on the fraudulent election there, so there is some attention to the fact that, more generally, life sucks for everyday people. Apparently the government neglects feeding the people while working to extract valuable minerals, and the people have forgotten how to fend for themselves.
You will be pleased to know that neither George W. Bush nor Mitt Romney are blamed; but give the journalists some time and I'm sure they'll manage.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/05/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
Former Breadbasket of Africa.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
01/05/2012 2:21 Comments ||
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Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
01/05/2012 13:44 Comments ||
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#4
Actually, the Congo has never been a breadbasket, even under Leopold. It's always been about stealing everything that wasn't tied down, and a few peoplethings that were. It's a fabulously wealthy country as far as resources are concerned, and one very, very, VERY hard to manage. Half the population or more still live a hunter/gatherer lifestyle.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
01/05/2012 15:29 Comments ||
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[Daily Nation (Kenya)] A grenade blast in the Rwandan capital Kigali has killed two people and maimed 16 others, police said Wednesday.
"Eighteen people were maimed and two died from their injuries," police front man Theos Badege said, adding that that the kaboom took place in the capital's Gasabo district late Tuesday.
"An investigation has been opened but no suspects have been placed in durance vile," he added.
Security forces have in the past blamed attacks on the FDLR, a Rwandan Hutu rebel group based in neighbouring DR Congo, as well as former security officials in exile.
Several people are awaiting trial accused of carrying out grenade attacks in Kigali and provincial towns in 2010.
The last grenade attack in Kigali was in March 2011, and injured seven people.
Two people were killed in a previous attack in January and seven were maimed, two fatally, in a blast after presidential elections in August 2010.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2012 00:00 ||
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[Bangla Daily Star] A mugger was killed in a mob beating after he injured a local in Binodbari of Savar on the outskirts of the capital yesterday morning.
In Bangladesh the thief hierarchy is truly Darwinian: the bad ones rapidly achieve suicide by mob, the good ones eventually reach the attention of the Rab.
... and the best ones become politicians. The dear departed was identified as Babul Miah alias Alam, 26, son of Abul Kalam of Chandpur Sadar upazila while the injured was Sumon Miah, 25, a resident of Binodbari.
Farid Ahmmed, sub-inspector of Savar Model Police Station, told The Daily Star that Suman saw Alam and four others mugging the driver of a CNG-run auto-rickshaw and tried to stop them by shouting for help.
To stop him, the muggers hurled a dagger towards Sumon that injured his leg, said Farid.
Hearing the shouts, locals rushed to the spot and were able to capture only Alam. They gave him a beating leaving him dead on the spot, the SI added.
Savar police sent the dead body to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for his appointment with Doctor Quincy while Sumon was admitted to Savar Enam Medical College Hospital.
A case would be filed in this connection, said the SI.
When they have enough points, the Rab takes note, followed by the inevitable encounter. They're up to twelve battalions now, one for each system, plus headquarters, of course, and still they have have to farm some of the work out to the local police.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2012 00:00 ||
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#2
That's one hell of a big opening in the side of that sub. What were they doing, some sort of upgrade or corrective action? I'm sure they can seal it up nice and tidy when they're done, but dang that is, if nothing else, horribly expensive.
The blog asked, what would make a fire in that space burn so hot and so long? That's easily answered: everything that's in there.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/05/2012 12:40 Comments ||
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#3
I wonder if the Russians are stupid enough to try and repair it? That might work, unless the buyer checks SubFax before he buys it.
#4
Damn. The US is on its last legs of tyranny, the world is ending shortly and Sorch Faal still is the only source with the courage and insight to publish the details?
Boy, I guess we're lucky we have these Interwebs to get the word out.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Zooey Deschanel has filed for divorce from her rocker husband of two years.
The 31-year-old actress stars in the Fox sitcom "New Girl" and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her performance. Gibbard is the lead singer of the rock band Death Cab for Cutie, which released the album "Codes and Keys" in May.
Deschanel's publicist has said that the couple's split was "amicable."
[Bangla Daily Star] A mugger was killed in a mob beating after he injured a local in Binodbari of Savar on the outskirts of the capital yesterday morning.
Still would have liked to see Montana. 
