America's war on tourism

Mayor Bloomberg paid a visit to the west of Ireland last week to drum up business for the city that never sleeps. Tourism business, that is. The West of Ireland has been sending people to America in large numbers for centuries but there are fewer wistful immigrants drooling over their pints in the bars on second avenue of late. There are some hardy tourists taking advantage of the favourable exchange rate but not enough for Mayor Bloomberg’s liking. He wants us to travel to the Big Apple and he’s so concerned about declining visitor numbers he’s made a special trip across the Atlantic to shout about it.
America has experienced a “17 percent decline in travel from overseas” according to the Discover America Partnership (source International Herald Tribune). Meanwhile New York is losing its position as the world’s financial centre to London. Mayor Bloomberg has been talking about that too, trying to reverse the unfavourable trend. Tourism and financial services are two of the world’s fastest growing industries. The US used to hold a position of unrivalled strength in these markets but it has gone into a sharp decline in the past few years. Why?
Many reasons are advanced from 9/11 and too much regulation to the war in Iraq but for me there is a much more simple reason. We are accustomed to President Bush’s inept delivery and misuse of language but I could have sworn I heard him declare “war on global tourism”. Some people believe he meant “terrorism” but I’m not so sure. Mr Bush definitely has tourism in his sights and this is one war he might actually stand a chance of winning. The experience of arriving in the United States has become so unpleasant that many travellers are taking their business elsewhere.
I always associated the notion of having one’s fingerprints taken as a sign of criminal activity or at least reasonable suspicion. I never had my finger-print taken until a few months ago on my latest trip to the USA. My children were also fingerprinted and all our details are now stored on some vast file along with a multitude of other "suspected" criminals and terrorists. Mr Bush holds tourists and terrorists in equal contempt. As for me, I am no terrorist. I have nothing to hide and I object to being treated as if the authorities had good reason to suspect me for wrong-doing. I found the experience unpleasant, made much worse by the long wait for the ritual humiliation and the cold unpleasant demeanour of the US officials.
I object to having my fingerprints taken. I object to my children having their fingerprints taken. I object to our financial and physical details being stored on some monstrous data-base for purposes I can only guess at but at least I have nothing to hide. Imagine how it must feel for someone from an Arab or Muslim country or from one of America’s traditional adversaries, Russians or Chinese, for example. Is it any wonder business people from the newly-emerging economies in these countries prefer London to New York?
Americans can declare war on global tourism if they like but they have no right to expect people from the rest of the world to put up with it. Mayor Bloomberg should make a trip to Washington rather than Knock if he wants to encourage more visitors. He should have a word with George “war on tourism” Bush and try to get him to see sense (some chance). I like many other people won’t be making many more trips to the states until America decides its global war on tourism is over.