Has Norm Goldie Gone Off the Deep End?
Norm Goldie, who moved from New York to San Blas, Mexico, something like 35 years ago, has long been a controversial figure.
On the positive side, he’s helped a lot of cruisers over the years with normal questions about the San Blas area and how to safely enter the channel to San Blas. On at least several occasions, he has helped cruisers get urgently needed medical care. And some cruisers have developed deep friendships with Norm and his wife Jan.
On the negative side, countless cruisers over the decades have accused Goldie of sticking his nose in where it wasn’t wanted. Many cruisers enjoy figuring out things about new areas on their own, or getting the information from cruising friends. Both of these actions seem to incense Goldie, who appears to think only he knows anything about the San Blas area. Dave Benjamin and Jean Harrison of the Alameda-based Amel Maramu Exit Strategy describe such a recent incident:
"Goldie has been verbally attacking some of the cruisers here, who being cruisers, tend to reach out and help each other. For instance, when we came here a buddy of ours told us what we needed to know to safely enter the estuary. Basically it’s just hugging the right side on the way in. Goldie came unglued and chastised the guy for not having us call him. There is much more, so about six of us cruising couples are writing the publishers of the various cruising guides and the Seven Seas Cruising Association to get the word out. If nothing else they need to spell out the guy is looking for money, and no matter what he says, it’s not going to charity."
Goldie has also been accused of giving the impression that he has some kind of official capacity with the Mexican government — which he does not. He has frequently been accused of saying his advice was free, but later all but demanding that money be donated to one of his ‘charities’. When unhappy with cruisers for whatever reason, Goldie often gives the impression that he’s going to make trouble for them with the authorities — even if nobody has done anything wrong. Most recently, we’ve been told that he’s been using profanities against some cruisers over the VHF.
It’s not uncommon for Latitude to get a couple complaints a year about Goldie’s behavior, but lately the complaints have been more frequent and describe even more uncivil behavior than usual.
If you’d like to weigh in on Norm Goldie, pro or con, we’d like to hear from you.