Maybe the gun-toting teabaggers excited Michael Steele and his fellow Republicans, but the travel wizard was not impressed and is canceling any future plans for going to McCain's home state.

Around The World Blog:

He's not advocating a boycott of Arizona (yet) but he does say that he's "shocked beyond measure by reports that earlier this week, nearly a dozen persons, including one with an assault rifle strapped about his shoulders and others with pistols in their hands or holsters, were openly congregating outside a hall at which President Obama was speaking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars."

Who is Arthur Frommer?

Arthur Frommer (born 1929) is a travel writer, publisher and consumer advocate, and the founder of the Frommer's series of travel guides and Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel[1] magazine. He has published many books for budget-conscious travelers and has been one of America's foremost budget travel authorities since the 1950s. Frommer's seminal book, Europe on 5 Dollars a Day, changed the way Americans traveled, and foreshadowed such later budget-conscious guidebooks as Lonely Planet and Rick Steves

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What he says carries a lot of weight, and you can bet Arizona officials are freaked out by his opinion on this matter.

Here's what he said.

I am not yet certain whether I would advocate a travel boycott by others of the state of Arizona; I want to learn more about Arizona's gun laws and how they compare with those of other states. But I am shocked beyond measure by reports that earlier this week, nearly a dozen persons, including one with an assault rifle strapped about his shoulders and others with pistols in their hands or holsters, were openly congregating outside a hall at which President Obama was speaking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

For myself, without yet suggesting that others follow me in an open boycott, I will not personally travel in a state where civilians carry loaded weapons onto the sidewalks and as a means of political protest. I not only believe such practices are a threat to the future of our democracy, but I am firmly convinced that they would also endanger my own personal safety there. And therefore I will cancel any plans to vacation or otherwise visit in Arizona until I learn more. And I will begin thinking about whether tourists should safeguard themselves by avoiding stays in Arizona.

According to the Phoenix, Arizona, police, if Ronald Reagan were delivering a political talk in Phoenix, Arizona, would they have felt it was proper for protesters with guns to mill about outside the hall from which he would leave?

I'd appreciate hearing your comments. The question is, should we all organize a travel boycott of Arizona until this tolerance of armed intimidation is ended, probably by an act of the Arizona legislature? People with guns, including assault rifles, do not need permits in Arizona, but can simply carry such weapons with them, openly and brazenly, when they gather to protest a speaker at a public event. The police also acknowledge that about a dozen people carrying guns, including one with an AR-15 assault rifle, milled about outside the event at which President Obama spoke.

Wow. Frommer is actually thinking of a full scale travel boycott of Arizona.

John McCain tries to act like the Czar of world security, but his home state is scaring the bejeezus out of people. He's an election loser, health-care-reform denier, but a favorite of the Sunday talk-show circuit.

You'd think a senator would at least speak up. But, being Republican, what he'll probably do is call Arthur Frommer a liberal or something.

My husband and I are big travel junkies and I love watching Rick Steves' various travelogues on PBS. But we had no idea of Steves' influence until a few years ago. While in Sorrento, Italy, we were looking for a place to feed our fussy toddler. It wasn't the dinner hour and most places were setting up for dinner. But at this one restaurant, the maitre d' outside offered to make our kid a little plate of food to satisfy her. So we went in and sat down to a pretty authentic meal. But we noticed that as we were eating, the whole restaurant filled up--quickly. There had to be 50 tables turned in the 90 minutes we were in the restaurant. And each one of those tables had one thing in common: someone had a copy of Rick Steves' book in their hand. All of them.

But it looks like Rick Steves may be delving into other interests:

Everybody knows that Democratic U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee (WA-01) has long had his eye on the governor’s mansion, and is widely expected to give up his House seat to run for our state’s top office in 2012. But who of note has his eye on Rep. Inslee’s coveted House seat, once it becomes vacant?

Word is that noted travel writer and TV and radio personality Rick Steves is seriously considering giving up his globetrotting ways for an extended stay in the other Washington, and is already working the local Democratic circuit in preparation for a potential run. The latest evidence? Steves jumped at the offer to be the keynote speaker at the Snohomish County Dems’ Annual Gala fundraiser on Sept. 12.

Yes, I know, 2012 is quite a ways off, but it wasn’t so long ago that Inslee was a top candidate for the number one or two position in President Obama’s Department of Energy, giving Steves a more immediate opportunity to explore his own political ambitions. And it was during this time, with a potential special election looming, that Steves reportedly firmed up his intention to run.

Steves could be an incredible asset to the progressive community, as this profile in Salon shows. Recently, Steves branched out from his European travel to travel to Iran, which displayed an all-too-rare side of the depth of Iranian culture and humanity. His travelogues urge Americans to approach new cultures with appreciation and an open mind, and that's certainly an attitude we could use in DC. And based on his humongous fan base (and experience on those PBS pledge breaks), he should have no problem fund-raising.