Ask a Mexican!

[daytrader]

Funny article below..It is a weekly column in some newspapers...Here's a link that features the current column at OCWeekly (Orange County). 

enjoy!

DayTrader


Confused by your neighbors? Then Ask a Mexican!
Mon Apr 30, 2007 2:57 PM ET

By Tim Gaynor (Reuters)

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Why do Mexicans use their car horns as a doorbell? Why is Mexican television so obsessed with dwarfs and transvestites? Why do they park their cars on the front lawn?

Do Mexican children get tamales at Christmas so that they have something to unwrap? What is it about the word "illegal" that Mexicans don't understand?

The chances are that you will know the answers to some of these questions if you live in the United States and read the wickedly funny "Ask a Mexican!" column syndicated in more than a score of weekly newspapers across the country.

The brainchild of a Mexican-American reporter, Gustavo Arellano, and his editor at the OC Weekly in Orange County, southern California, the column started out as a prank in 2004.

Since then it has become a sleeper hit read by more than a million people from California to New York each week. It has also spun off live radio appearances for Arellano, and is to be published as a book in May by Scribner.

The column began as a question and answer he made up asking why Mexicans call white people gringos. The answer: "Mexicans do not call gringos gringos. Only gringos call gringos gringos. Mexicans call gringos gabachos," showing white people don't even know the common Mexican slang term for themselves.

"It started off as a joke. It was supposed to be just a satirical take on xenophobia against Mexicans and it just exploded," Arellano said, recalling the letter that started the column off.

"We knew people would be outraged ... whenever you talk about immigration in the media, there is always a response. What we didn't expect was for people to send in questions," he said.

Since then "The Mexican" has received a full mail bag each week mining the knowledge gap between the white Anglo majority in the United States, and Mexicans and other Latinos who make up the largest and fastest growing U.S. minority.

PLAYING TO STEREOTYPE

The weekly exchange is accompanied by an illustration of a fat, leering Mexican with a sombrero, stubble and mustache that plays to stereotype.

The questions -- some addressing Mexicans as "greasers" and "beaners" -- pull no punches, and are met with equally arch slapdowns meant to sneak in an unexpected cultural rapprochement with humor, Arellano said.

"It's kind of a Trojan Horse. When you discuss things in a humorous manner you are going to find a much more receptive audience than if I just wrote a straight-ahead editorial browbeating someone into accepting what I believe."

Through his blunt discussion of stereotypes, he hopes to defend Mexicans and their identity in the United States.

The column takes on all questions, ranging from queries about why Mexicans put images of their religious icon the Virgin of Guadalupe on car hub caps, to frankly addressing the contentious issue of illegal immigration.

"I say I will answer any and every question about Mexicans. I can't back down from that challenge," Arellano said.

"So, I will answer serious ones, racist ones, sexist ones and silly ones," he adds.

At one time or another, the column has offended people on all sides of the immigration debate, although Arellano says he receives more fan letters than hate mail.

Aside from a snowballing readership, the column, which answers two queries a week, has spawned imitators.

There have been versions of "Ask a Korean," "Ask a Muslim," "Ask a Cuban-American" and "Ask a Jew," Arellano said, although the Mexican neighbors remain "the big question mark for the United States."

And despite responding to hundreds of queries in the past two years, he is far from done. Arellano believes the rich mine of cultural misunderstandings will hold out well into the future.

"As long as the readers keep sending the questions, I'll keep on answering them," he said. "I have enough to keep me going for years and years and years."

[doombug]

I wrote about this last year, and included a few excerpts (jokes, really) from the column:

http://www.planet-love.com/forum/index.php?topic=237.0;topicseen

Cultural studies, but with a sense of humor.

[pan de bono]

why do illegal mexicans demand rights here in the states, why do they demand food stamps and free medical and free schol for their kids. why do they march in our streets. why do they boo our children when they travel to mexico to play baseball or soccer.? why do they boo our professional soccer team when it tran vels to mexico to play? whu do they harrass and boo Miss USA?

[utopiacowboy]

why do illegal mexicans demand rights here in the states, why do they demand food stamps and free medical and free schol for their kids. why do they march in our streets. why do they boo our children when they travel to mexico to play baseball or soccer.? why do they boo our professional soccer team when it tran vels to mexico to play? whu do they harrass and boo Miss USA?

Hmmmmmmmmm, because they hate us?

[michaelb]

Hmmmmmmmmm, because they hate us?

Not at all. Most of them don't hate us. The correct answer is because the CAN, because we LET them. That's the 'double standard' point I was trying to make over in the "Senate Make a Deal...." thread. BTW, yesterday I saw an article about the labor gangers (I they prefer to be called 'recruiters') who get contracts to bring in temporary unskilled workers (mostly field hands for harvest) legally .... the way they cheat the both the US companies they are representing AND the poor (take that as 'oh, you poor little thing' if you wish, but I meant it as 'economically destitute') Mexicans they send up. I think I saved the link on my computer at work, but since this site (and others like it) is blocked at work, I'll try to post the link tonight.

[doombug]

why do illegal mexicans demand rights here in the states, why do they demand food stamps and free medical and free schol for their kids. why do they march in our streets. why do they boo our children when they travel to mexico to play baseball or soccer.? why do they boo our professional soccer team when it tran vels to mexico to play? whu do they harrass and boo Miss USA?

I expect in a few decades time, Canadians will be asking the same questions once the Mexican migratory route settles there as well.

For the remittance and social-benefit drains on their economy, Canada can expect to see plenty of inverted flags as thanks.



Too often, you can't take the shit out of someone from a shit-basket country.

[Ray]

*****
Doing the booing Americans won't do
By Michelle Malkin · May 30, 2007 09:35 AM

The United States government is on the verge of approving a mass amnesty to millions of illegal aliens — a plan pushed aggressively by meddling Mexican officials who reap billions of dollars in remittances (illegal aliens' earnings sent back to Mexico) without having to lift a finger to clean up their own country.

And the thanks we get? Internationally televised public humiliation.

On Monday night, the beautiful young woman who represented America in the Miss Universe pageant was booed and mocked as she competed on stage in Mexico City. Rachel Smith, 22, did her best to respond with grace and dignity during the Top Five finalists' interview segment as the audience disrupted the event.

Definitely not this one.

Smith soldiered through her answer, describing an educational trip to South Africa. Catcalls and whistles nearly drowned out Smith's reply until she wrapped up with "Buenos noches, Mexico."

I wouldn't have been so polite.

None of Miss USA's fellow Americans participating in the interview segment — neither Minnillo, nor macho co-host Mario Lopez, nor the dashing Romo — came to Smith's defense. Instead, Minnillo pleaded briefly with the unruly mob: "Okay, una momento, por favor ." Lopez stood mute with a dumb grin on his dimpled face. Pathetic.

In fact, Smith was subjected to anti-American hatred throughout the week-long event. Last week, during the contestants' national costume fashion show, Smith smiled bravely as a rowdy outdoor crowd hissed and booed at her. According to pageant observers, no other contestants received such treatment.

Pitifully, Donald Trump and his Miss Universe officials are downplaying Smith's experience — ignoring the fact that the last time the pageant was held in Mexico, Miss USA was abused in similar fashion. 1993 Miss USA Kenya Moore was infamously heckled when chosen for the semi-finals that year.

Just a tiny minority of America-haters, right? How quickly we forget.

Do you remember what happened in Guadalajara in 2004 during an Olympics qualification soccer match between the U.S. and Mexico? The stadium erupted in boos during the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner." Fans yelled "Osama! Osama!" as the U.S. was eliminated by Mexico.

The following year, in March 2005, Mexican soccer fans again cheered the al Qaeda mastermind's name at a World Cup qualifier. ESPN reported the audience again booed and whistled during the U.S. national anthem, and plastic bags filled with urine were reportedly tossed on American players.

One Mexican fan told the Christian Science Monitor: "'Every schoolboy knows about 1848. . . . When they robbed our territory,' referring to when Texas, California and New Mexico were annexed to the U.S. as part of a peace treaty ending the war between the two countries, 'that was the beginning.'"

This bitterness is long-standing, deep-seated and stoked by top Mexican government officials and elites. But pointing this reality out in the context of our crucial national debate over sovereignty, immigration, assimilation, border security and the rule of law will get you labeled a bigot. Our leaders have concluded that it is better to pander, hide, pull out a friendly Spanish phrase like Minnillo did, and pray that the hatred will go away by giving the pro-amnesty lobby its legislative goodie-bag.

Meanwhile, as Manhattan Institute fellow Heather Mac Donald points out, the White House continues to attack opponents of the Bush-Kennedy amnesty package as "nativists." Conservative columnist Linda Chavez accused amnesty critics of "not liking Mexicans." Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff suggested enforcement advocates wanted to "execute" illegal aliens. And Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham trashed immigration enforcement proponents as "bigots" in front of the ethnocentric, open-borders group La Raza.

Yeah, we're the nativists.

Next, they'll tell us the mob at the Miss Universe pageant was simply "doing the booing Americans won't do."
Will President Bush speak out against the treatment Miss USA received in Mexico? Will any amnesty peddler in Washington? Imagine if Miss Mexico were booed, heckled and subjected to chants of "USA, USA" if the pageant had been held here.

Smith can hold her head up high. Those who are selling out our country, on the other hand, should hang their heads in shame.
*****

http://michellemalkin.com/index.htm

[pan de bono]

Good post Ray.
   
I think they boo us because of many reasons, the two main reasons 1. they hate us, 2. they are jealous of us.

Theres a good article in the New York Times  by Michele Malkin called "Beauty and the Baffoons" about the mistreatment of Miss USA by the Mexicans.

These neighbors of ours to the south Mexico have no class at all.

[pan de bono]

ok, i'll ask a mexican " hey man are you here legally"? "no se"?

[daytrader]

Hey Ray, I see you are a Michelle Malkin fan.... have you noticed she appears frequently on  "The Factor" on Fox?  Now she's on every Friday for a new segment with old Bill O.  Me thinks Roger Ailes is going to bless us with her own show next season! 

DayTrader

[Ray]

I've been a Michelle Malkin fan for many years. She drives the liberals absolutely nuts! 

I didn't see her segment last night but she has been awesome as a guest host on The Fatcor. I agree that she's about ready for her own show. And she's a hell of a lot better looking than O'Reilly!

[pan de bono]

I love watching Michele, shes great, honest, to the point and she doesnt take any s--t from anyone. She deserves her own program.