Today Bob Marley would have been 66 years old. Here's one his oldest tunes, Simmer Down, whch he recorded in 1962 to try to help quell the rude boy riots in Kingston and then one of my favorites live:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHYe_ULBLHk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUvP_Ti1-BA&NR=1&feature=fvwp

Happy Birthday Mr. Marley. Got to see one of his last shows before he died at the Paramount Theater.

Kinky Reggae

When I went to Jamaica I found out what a nutjob he was and lost all respect for him.

I didn't discover Marley's music until well after his death. Don't know how I missed it, but I did. I love it; it's one kind of music I can listen to all day and over and over and not get tired of. So I can relate far better to the celebration of Bob Marley's birthday than I can the celebration of Ronald Reagan's 100th.

Sg

You ought to go spend a couple weeks at a resort in Jamaica then. It's all they play, all day, all night, 24/7.

If you do try to get away from it, outside the resort area, Marley's other fans will either rob you at knifepoint or machete you in the face and neck just for being white.

Of course there's always Margaritaville, where it's just like a Red Robin, but with Jimmy Buffet playing all day 24/7 instead.

Oh and Ganja's a felony there too so chances are, that nice drug dealer is actually a Narc waiting to shake down your family back home for "fines" and "bail."

Bob Marley- inspiring white college students around the world to grow dreds, never shower, smoke a ton of weed and wear one of these:



I liked marley until I had to walk through stinky drumb circles everyday on the way to class.

There is something weird about going to a 5 star resort in Jamaica and being surrounded by a tall fence and guards with automatic weapons.

Don't for get the spikes and razorwire on top of the walls.

In the area we were in during the 2 weeks we were there, a girl was suspected of being pregnant with a "blue-eye" (white) baby and was hacked to death in broad daylight by a group armed with machetes. There were 3 home invasions, all were fought off, one homeowner killed 3 intruders with his shotgun. Two Jamaicans were macheted to death for suspected of being gay. The minister of prisons, citing AIDS rates as high as 50%, distributed condoms, sparking a week of prison riots across the country. A customs worker at Sangster Int'l. was busted helping smuggle dozens of AR-15's from the US. An opposition radio host announced her intent to run for Parliament on air and was shot multiple times as soon as she arrived home that night.
We were robbed at knifepoint.

The drug of choice in Jamaica is cocaine, not ganja.
Rastafarians hate white people, want them ALL dead, but LOVE their money. Conversely whites cant be rasta anymore than Jesse Jackson can join the KKK. Most Jamaicans aren't rasta and regard Rastas as a dangerous group of nutcakes. I'd have to take my shoes off to count how many white-bread dreadlocked college kids I saw completely scared schitless. The town's supermarket had a guard at the front door with a riot shotgun.

Here's a good blog post about what happens when Whitey wanders "off the reservation" in Jamaica:
http://jamaicamax.com/blog/2007/09/29/medical-facilities-in-and-around-negril-jamaica/

Jamaicans don't even listen to or play Reggae anymore. They play rap with a slightly caribbean beat. Expecting them to still play reggae would be like expecting Sinatra to still be playing in Vegas.

What is there worth doing in Jamaica?
The food and the coffee. I'd rate the coffee the best in the world, and the food right behind it. I'd go back just for that.

Funny thing about dangerous places like Jamaica, my blue-eyed blonde daughter spent three months traveling alone there in late 2001-early 2002 on her Watson fellowship when she was 22, after three months in Bolivia, and before three months in Uganda, and three months in SE Asia. She wasn't robbed, mugged, abducted, or otherwise have any more difficulties than in a lot of places in this crazy world. Anyway, it's not logical to hold Marley responsible for the behavior of anyone but himself.

Sg

That's right. Especially little twinkies like you.

+ The Third World.

Just can't see random hating on people. It suggests elitism. Humility is a desirable and worthwhile trait to discover in one's self. I've travel throughout Jamaica and developed friendships even though I live in resorts. When you go into the water, or on the beach you will fine regular Jamaican's enjoying life, just as the visitor come there to do. Just saying....

BWP the World is your Oyster. The good vibes will see you there.

Bob Marley - Running Away & Crazy baldhead

thats awesome! I think that kid represents the peace movement better than any white college kid ever could. This thread isn't about violent rastafarians, it's about love..... and appreciating diversity.