Talk:Rick Steves

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Contents

[edit] Card-Carrying

"Card-carrying member of..." recalls immediately the 1988 US Presidential elections, where George HW Bush accused Michael Dukakis of being a "card-carrying member of the ACLU." Obviously, then, this is not NPOV. Being a member of the ACLU, NORML or yes, even the NRA is not a crime; it is in fact a right guaranteed by the First Amendment. The Dogandpony 11:40, 13 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Only in Europe

"Both his books and television shows deal with travel only in Europe" is not true per se; there are shows on Egypt, Israel, the non-European part of Turkey, etc. Jim

By the way, I think I should clarify that this item is not the discussion of why this article should be cleaned up that is referred to. The request for cleanup was apparently posted without a rationale being included on the discussion page. I can see that some changes should be made but am not sure what the other person had in mind. Jim 00:16, 13 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Article is not objective

This article is well-written but needs to be more objective. It reads like PR for the Rick Steves company. It must be possible to put Rick Steves in context of history and other travel entrepreneurs. Pangmorn 23:52, 14 August 2006 (UTC)

I agree! His publications are presented as collections of "secret" tips of how to get to know authentic Europe whereas they lead you to similar mainstream tourist places as any other travel guide.

Not really. Rick Steves advocates a lot of travel suggestions that are no mainstream. You haven't read his material, you're making an assumption ( remember what Felix Unger says about assumptions? ) Jake b 04:57, 7 December 2006 (UTC)

Yes really. Everything in ETBD or that is written by Steves is purely mainstream. Plus if you follow his suggestions, you'll see more Americans than you will Europeans. This article about Steves needs to be completely re-written. Quietleader 00:25, 2 March 2007 (UTC)

I think you will now see more Americans than you will Europeans, because so many Americans are following his guidebooks (much as the Rough Guides brought a lot of Brits to places they didn't previously go), but Steves has definitely put places on the American tourist map that were not there before, probably most obviously the Cinque Terre. Also, he seems to have accomplished a certain degree of crossover, introducing many comparatively mainstream Americans to more of a "backpacker's" view of European travel. - Jmabel | Talk 07:48, 25 August 2007 (UTC)
I disagree. I finally caved and visited Gimmelwald (yes, the picture on the page) exactly a week ago. I was shocked. Let me say something -- my wife is Swiss and I've lived in Switzerland for a year and a half. I have a "GA" -- it costs me absolutely nothing to visit there. I thought it'd be worth it after talking about it for so long. My wife's grandmother even challenged me -- "Gimmelwald" doesn't exist (she kept insisting that I meant "Grindelwald").
Anyway, the streets were empty other than a French-speaking couple (no English) and some local children (Swiss German) who were chopping ice. We bought some nice cheese (similar to Sbrinz) and Wurst. My wife spoke Swiss German and I tried my best to do the same... They where really surprised to see tourists... The woman from Gimmelwald did say that there are a lot of Americans during the summer and "winter" (post-Christmas). During winter there are a lot of Swiss, as the area is cheaper than the ski town slightly higher (so the Swiss save money by staying there). Don't "judge" without having been. In terms of mountain towns, this is the most "original" I've seen, as there are not a massive amount of condos everywhere (which even pollute Braunwald).--80.219.69.131 (talk) 22:39, 8 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Marijuana activism

I notice that Steves's support for marijuana legalization is mentioned, but not cited for. I'm not particularly planning to work on this article, but here is a citable article on the issue on the "Rick Steves Europe" website. Probably if the article is going to engage the matter at all, it should somewhere refer to "harm reduction", a key phrase that he uses. - Jmabel | Talk 07:40, 25 August 2007 (UTC)
Also an hour-long radio interview on the subject. - Jmabel | Talk 07:43, 25 August 2007 (UTC)
Search Google News, this has many articles for reference, see also: "Marijuana: It’s Time for a Conversation" http://www.marijuanaconversation.org/ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.173.31.91 (talk) 01:19, 17 February 2008 (UTC)
The link has no apparent information relating to Rick Steves. What is your point with it? --Bossi (talk • gallery • contrib) 06:23, 17 February 2008 (UTC)