And now for something completely different: L.A. Gang Tours ($65 bus tour)

[BeHereNow]

I think this is completely brilliant.
Who cares about the Hollywood Tour of Movie Star Homes?
Tourists can now see where the Homeboys live!

http://www.lagangtours.com

Be sure to click on featured locations!

Me, I'm going to grab a ticket and a documentary camera for the next tour.

BHN

[FSogol]

1. Will it be like the polar bear tours in Churchill? n/t

http://www.tundrabuggy.com/

[BeHereNow]

3. Heh-heh...I don't THINK so!

The Polar Bear tour doesn't include a visit to County Jail-
"Home to 120,000 gang members..."
Plus the only think Polar bears "pack" is ice...
BHN

[pinto]

18. I don't think the people doing this see it as a joke. Seems like they're trying to take a novel

approach to highlighting the issue, while raising funds, enlisting some gang support and helping some kids out of the game.

Will it be effective? Who knows?

[BeHereNow]

23. Certainly not a joke to them- they are trying to bring positive change.

I hope it is a great success.

I also think if they play on the myths about gang culture,
in an entertaining way, the small towners will get the thrill
they see in the movies about gangs but end up at
an artistic facility, face to face with the
people they are so scared of and learn that there are positive
things going on in the hood.

Could be a real money maker for the community.
BHN

[MUAD_DIB]

2. Will they be doing reenactments of all the greatest

Crip/Blood gang wars?

If you got the gangs involved think of what kind of killing they could make.


:evilgrin:

[BeHereNow]

5. I think that is a suggestion worth making!

The wild west shows and civil war re-enactments are
always a hit with such ventures!

Plus, since it's near the studios, they could engage
the special effects community in how to make the gun fire look real!

Talk about a thrill for the tourists!

BHN

[MUAD_DIB]

7. Fake gunfire?

:evilgrin:

[BeHereNow]

8. Well that's what would make it more thrilling!

The people on the bus wouldn't be sure
if they were experiencing a REAL drive-by or not!!!

Better than the rides at Universal City, as far as the thrill factor!

BHN

[pinto]

21. Again, I don't think the organization considers this a joke. n/t

[BeHereNow]

24. I dont' either- I am not joking about the "hollywood" marketing of it either.

Tourists who come to L.A. and pay for those tours want
to be entertained. If you're in the "hood" seeing a
staged drive-by would enchance the appeal.

BHN

On edit: And create more jobs for kids who want to learn and
work in the industry...

[Occulus]

25. People should read downthread

The organization doing this is serious as a heart attack, and the founder is a former gang member turned humanitarian:

Alfred Lomas, founder of LA GANG TOURS, was raised in Los Angeles, California. A former gang member in South Central, Lomas has dedicated his life to serving the Los Angeles community through humanitarian aid. He works as the director of the mobile food truck ministry at the Los Angeles Dream Center. This ministry provides over 200 tons of food to more than 50,000 people a month across the Los Angeles metroplex, primarily for low-income families who live in inner city projects, at-risk neighborhoods, and high crime areas.

It occurs to me that we need more of people like him...

[BeHereNow]

26. I agree.

I LOVE that the organization has put this together.

I do chuckle at the thought of tourists from small towns
cowering in the bus wondering if they'll make it back to
Kansas or not...

BHN

[derby378]

4. I'm already booked for the Peterman Reality Tour

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9WtjFhEGrM

[Clintonista2]

27. LOL that is one of my favourite episodes ever

especially considering the fact that I've always been an anti-muffin stump person. It was as if that episode validated my muffin outlook in life :rofl::rofl::rofl:

[Initech]

31. Dogs, twists, some kind of fermented chicken drink....

:rofl:

[rocktivity]

6. Moral outrage from local politicians in 5, 4, 3, 2...

And to think that one little movie started it all!



:rofl:
rocktivity

P.S. A couple of Jersey boys had some successful Sopranos bus tours!

[joeybee12]

9. Sounds like they're trying to do good with this...

...but not something I'm gonna sign up for.

[BeHereNow]

11. That's what I like about it- They ARE trying to do good with the venture-

I hope it is a great success for them!
BHN

[KamaAina]

10. That would have to rank right up there with the Katrina devastation tours

I am not making that up! :eyes:

[BeHereNow]

13. You're kidding- "Katrina Devastation Tours?"

That's sick.

I don't think the Gang Tour is though-
They want to enlighten and bring positive change to
their neighborhood. That's a good thing.

BHN

[KamaAina]

14. I wish I were kidding, but sadly, no

http://www.graylineneworleans.com/katrina.shtml

An eyewitness account of the events surrounding the most devastating natural - and man-made - disaster on American soil!...

We'll drive past an actual levee that "breached" and see the resulting devastation that displaced hundreds of thousands of U.S. residents....

Souvenir Hurricane Katrina book available for purchase at departure point!

[BeHereNow]

16. No mention of proceeds going to help...

Some people have no shame.

BHN

[joeybee12]

19. People went to OJ/Nicole's house after that...the neighbors complained

about all the traffic.

[pinto]

12. Seems an odd project, if you just read its name, but here's the "about us" statement and mission -

A novel approach, for sure, but one that shouldn't be discounted off hand without looking to see *what's behind the name*.

Context counts -

AN OPPORTUNITY TO SAVE A LIFE, CREATE JOBS AND REBUILD COMMUNITIES
The mission of LA GANG TOURS is to provide an unforgettable historical experience for our customers with a customized high-end specialty tour. We will provide customers with a true first-hand encounter of the history and origin of high profile gang areas and the top crime scene locations in South Central, Los Angeles. Each tour bus for LA GANG TOURS will have a guide from the South Central areas who has gained hands-on knowledge and experience of the inner city lifestyle.

The objective is to create jobs for the residents of South Central, Los Angeles; to give profits from the tours back to these areas for economic growth and development, provide job/entrepreneur training, micro-financing opportunities and to specialize in educating people from around the world about the Los Angeles inner city lifestyle, gang involvement and solutions. This project will create opportunities to contribute to the economic health of South Central and the tools needed to access the American market.

Your participation allows the success of a cease-fire agreement between three of the largest and most notorious gangs in L.A. history. This agreement will allow young people and children safe passage (gun fire free safety zones). It will provide the framework to create a peaceful environment conducive to their physical, spiritual and emotional well-being. With your help together we will save lives and create sustainable change.

GUN FIRE FREE SAFETY ZONES

Safe Passage5-10% of the gang population is responsible for 65-70% of all gang violence. LA GANG TOURS has access to the "5%," those who have their fingers on the triggers. The participating gangs in the established gun fire free safety zones have agreed to allow LA GANG TOURS to operate in their areas, given our goals to hire their youth for employment opportunities and offer job and entrepreneurship training programs.

LA GANG TOURS has predetermined routes and times that are honored by each of the participating and opposing gangs. Every effort has been made, from the time of day to departure locations, to ensure a safe, pleasant and enjoyable tour experience.

Alfred Lomas, founder of LA GANG TOURS, was raised in Los Angeles, California. A former gang member in South Central, Lomas has dedicated his life to serving the Los Angeles community through humanitarian aid. He works as the director of the mobile food truck ministry at the Los Angeles Dream Center. This ministry provides over 200 tons of food to more than 50,000 people a month across the Los Angeles metroplex, primarily for low-income families who live in inner city projects, at-risk neighborhoods, and high crime areas.

Alfred has pioneered food distribution sites in rival Bloods and Crips housing projects that had been at war with Alfred’s gang for generations. He has been featured in newspaper articles, radio interviews, television shows, and has received numerous accolades from the city as a result of his community service work and his work with numerous organizations around the world on inner city gang issues.

"My heart and prayer is that this organization will provide rays of hope into the dark corridors of drugs and gang violence. If people set their hearts to it, change is possible. People can succeed and make a difference if they choose to. For every drug addict struggling with addiction, don't give up. For every single mother struggling to pay her bills, don't give up. For every person who feels like there is nothing left to live for, don't give up! Continue to press on and together we will fight for peace and love, with a determination that will not be denied and a courage that will never fail.” - Alfred Lomas

[BeHereNow]

15. Exactly.

The tour includes a stop at the local graffiti art center
with lunch.

I personally like that there is a place for young artists to
focus their energies in a creative and positive environment.

East LA is home to a WONDERFUL place called
Self-Help Graphics which teaches kids print-making.

When I was working with gang bangers, I would always send
the artistic kids there.

BHN

[Occulus]

22. Well, now that's pretty impressive, isn't it

K&R this thread.

[Cleita]

17. I hope they have bullet proof armored buses with armed guards on board.

I thought the tour where they took you to places that famous people had been murdered or died at was ghoulish. This takes the cake. In one of my jobs that I had clientele in gang neighborhoods I had to pay a retired neighbor of mine to come with me and sit in my car so it wouldn't be stolen.

[BeHereNow]

20. No need for those precautions in this venture.

On the contrary, the people of the neighborhood
will be flattered by the attention.

It is an opportunity to bridge the gap imo.
They are people too, not just scary guys who
will shoot at anything that moves.
I have known some really nice gang members.
Most people really don't understand the culture of gangs
and this is potentially a beginning at transforming the
culture into something more positive.

BHN

[KamaAina]

28. What's next? Cruises to Haiti?

Actually, yes.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ynews/20100119/ts_ynews/ynews_ts1063

By now, most of us have seen and heard about the profound devastation and suffering wrought upon Haiti last week after a massive earthquake. So you'd probably think there's no way that cruising tourists could have returned to frolicking on Haiti's beaches mere miles from where people are trapped beneath the rubble of a decimated city. Unfortunately, you'd be wrong.

On Sunday, the Guardian reported that Florida-based Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines is docking ships at the "picturesque wooded peninsula" known as Labadee, which it leases on Haiti's northern coast. At Labadee, passengers "enjoy jetski rides, parasailing, and rum cocktails delivered to their hammocks." The British paper also reported that passengers can spend their time "shopping for trinkets at a craft market" while armed guards stand at the entry to the complex to guarantee their safety.

Despite the fact that the ships have delivered relief supplies to the island, some passengers on the ships are reportedly "sickened" over the decision to dock there. One passenger took to an Internet message board to protest the idea of vacationing where "tens of thousands of dead people are being piled up on the streets, with the survivors stunned and looking for food and water."

[BeHereNow]

29. L.A. gangland is hardly Haiti...

They are neighborhoods where people live.

Again, I think the idea is a great one with sincere intention
to bring positive change to the people who live there and
help dispel the myths around the culture.

BHN

[Initech]

30. Cause the boyz in tha hood are always hard...

Come talkin that trash and we'll pull your card
No nuthin in life but to be legit
Don't quote me boy I ain't said shit...,