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(c) Elliott Publishing.

Bad Advice
Err Travel · December 17, 1999

The Internet is chock full of travel advice - some helpful, some awful, some even dangerous.

The helpful advice I pass along to my corporate clients and to fellow ticked-off travelers. The awful advice I ignore. But the dangerous advice I collect.

I use this collection to underscore the point that while most advice is cheap, bad advice can be deadly. Here's some of the harebrained advice I've recently found served up on the Internet. (When you run across dangerous advice on the Web, forward it to me at riley@appliedpsychology.com. Be sure to include your name and home town.)

American Woman Motorscene offers this suggestion: Always keep your car keys in your hand and ready. Use the "fisted key" approach, with the key sticking out between your index and middle finger to use as a weapon if necessary.

Have you ever heard of a thug seeking medical attention because he was "keyed" by some hapless victim? Me neither. The "fisted key" is of little use as a weapon but can thrash the holder's fingers in a fight.

This pearl is from Residence Inn: Use the hotel stairs as a free stair-stepper.

Hotel stairwells are designed to be used as escape paths in emergencies, not as thoroughfares. And because they provide mobility without detection, they are often the chosen routes for criminals who are "working" a hotel. Moreover, the same doors that provide fire seals also attenuate sounds -- like the sounds of an assault. Stay out of hotel stairwells.

Here's some counsel from Lonely Planet regarding travel in Colombia: Don't be unduly discouraged because, though the violence, cocaine cartels and guerrilla insurgency which dominate the headlines are very real, they do not necessarily impact on the personal safety of travelers who keep their wits about them. Steeped in myth and mysticism, Colombia is, arguably, the most underrated travel destination on the continent.

It's no myth that the murder rate in Colombia is eight times that of the United States. It is no myth that many victims are not involved in drugs or political revolution. It's no myth that our State Department regards Colombia as one of the most dangerous countries in the world. Colombia is fairly rated, not underrated.

These doozies were found among the letters to the editor of Frommer's Budget Travel Online: Wear a fake wallet in an obvious place (like your back or front pocket). Buy a cheap one, fill it with dollar size paper and let them take it.

Huh? Invite criminals to take my wallet? Then piss them off by having stuffed it with worthless paper? What am I, nuts? I'm going to make myself a target just to pull a fast one on some lowlife? How dumb! The best advice to avoid being victimized is the advice that puts more space between me and the crooks, not advice that encourages them to approach.

Carry loose cash in your pocket. No money clip that they can reach in & take out. You will feel their hand groping.

Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather they get my dough and go rather than "feel their hand groping."

Wear a waist pouch. NOT an ankle safe or neck safe. They WILL go after your ankle or rip it off your neck. They're not stupid.

No, you are, if you take this advice.

The idea behind keeping valuables in a hidden pouch is so that your loot will be, well, hidden. If you drag out your "hidden" pouch at every stop, it isn't.

Finally, this contribution comes from Mr. Frommer himself: The State Department is so very conservative in these matters that if they don't list problems (or any serious problems) at your intended destination, you know beyond doubt that the place is safe as a sewing circle.

Absolutely, positively wrong! There is no such thing as a safe destination. And the folks at the State Department would be the last to tell you to let down your guard when you travel. As always, be careful about the advice you get on the Internet.

Caveat Surfer.

Dr. Terry Riley is a psychologist and travel security authority. His column appears on Saturdays. He is author of the popular book Travel Can Be Murder. Visit his site at http://www.appliedpsychology.com or e-mail him at riley@appliedpsychology.com.