Alligators vs. Sharks

If you're from an area free of sharks and alligators, you may wonder about the wisdom of sharing the water with them.

Consider the facts: from 1976 to 1995, of the millions who flocked to [Carolina's and Georgia's] surf and sounds, alligators attacked just six of them, and sharks sunk their teeth into nine others.
So which is worse-a gator attack or a shark attack? Based on statistics compiled on attacks in six states, neither is as lethal as you might expect. If you get attacked by an alligator, you still have a 96.6 percent chance of walking away--or, at least, of hopping away--from the encounter. Even better, a full 98 percent of shark attack victims live to tell the tale.
--Moon Handbooks: Charleston & Savannah
(First Edition, 2003)

On South Carolina's People

For all its physical beauty, despite its music, its food, and the salty scent of the coastal marshes, the very best thing about South Carolina is its people. Remove South Carolina's people, replace them with New Yorkers, give it five years, and what would you have? Florida.
- South Carolina Handbook (first edition, 1999)