Floridian: Both sides of the Cancun story

Both sides of the Cancun story

By SUSAN TAYLOR MARTIN

From e-mail messages sent to the Times in response to an April 22 front-page article about spring break and graduation trips to Cancun, Mexico. The story focused on two 18-year-olds from Florida who had been drinking heavily and fell off a balcony, resulting in the death of one and serious injuries to the other.

-- SUSAN TAYLOR MARTIN, Times staff writer

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"As parents of 3 teenagers, one at UF and 2 in high school, we want to thank you for the wonderful job you did on the student travel article. We have saved it and had all 3 of our children read it and forwarded it on to our sister in Tallahassee for her to share with her children. I also sent it into East Lake High School's office for the staff to share. Thank you for the information. It's a wonderful piece."

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"I believe this article was very bias was not based on facts, but that of the opinin of a man whose son died which will make the article one-sided. Being to Cancun last month, I know that some of the things said in the article were not true. In the article, not one good thing was said about Cancun. . . . This article was written at a very bad time, I am planning a trip for my class next year and because of this article I have had over 30 people drop out. Cancun is a place of fun and sun, why don't you write about all the drinking and drugs that goes on in St. Petersburg or Miami?

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"Thank you for the article. My daughter's trip has been cancelled."

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"I would like to thank you or whomever wrote this for scaring the s-- out of my parents. Now because of you or whomever wrote this, my parents are having second thoughts on letting me go to my senior class trip. That is one of the biggest things in my life and you have to go ruin it. Just because a few teenagers took it upon their irresponsible selves to fall off balconies, I think it is totally unfair that you or whomever wrote this gets to put this out and give our parents second thoughts. If I don't get to go on this trip I hope something that you long after gets ruined in your, or like i said before, whomever wrote this, life."