The Most Hated Gringo in the World Report – 14

DEFENDING MY TITLE

I woke up this morning with one goal in mind: Defend my title as The Most Hated Gringo in the World! So, here we go.

Occasionally in online forums, you will find Mexicans following the threads and responding. Not a lot do but when they do it is very, very, very telling. Here's one to get the ball rolling:

"I am Mexican. I also speak English, as you can see. And probably 98 percent of my fellow Mexicans would live in exclusive enclaves and gated communities were they able to afford it. We do not enjoy being poor." – Recent Forum Post

I've noticed the majority of those Mexicans who do break their forum-lurking silences on the Internet express this total misunderstanding of the argument between the true Expats and the Fakepats about the Cultural Imperialism the Fakepats constantly try foisting upon Mexicans.

The Mexicans responding to the arguments tend to express something along the lines of the quote above as their interpretation of the argument.

Some have even gone so far as to accuse people, like yours truly, of wanting to keep Mexicans mired in poverty when we oppose the Cultural and Economic Imperialism with which the Gringos oppress the Mexicans in towns like San Miguel de Allende.

The argument is not about globalization. It is not about Mexicans wanting change for themselves. The argument has nothing to do with Mexicans wanting to weave into their unique culture—a culture nowhere else found on the planet—something that might improve the lives of their fellow paisanos.

The argument is about Cultural Imperialism and the infection of Mexico with aspects of American life for the sheer purpose of profit.

"Cultural imperialism is the practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, or artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation into another. It is usually the case that the former is a large, economically or militarily powerful nation and the latter is a smaller, less important one. Cultural imperialism can take the form of an active, formal policy or a general attitude." –From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Doesn't it certainly beg the question why in towns like Puerto Vallarta, Lake Chapala, Ajijic, and San Miguel de Allende a Gringolandian wannebee, The Fakepat, can move in and never give the language barrier another thought? Accidental? Coincidence? Not on your life!

Just tell me who said Wal-Mart, Applebee's, and God forbid—Starbucks—are Mexican?

Studies have shown that when American tourists come to visit (invade) a foreign country, they do not want too much "foreignness." They want something a little different with a heaping helping of sameness. In other words, they look for something slightly different but not too different. They look for something familiar that is like home.

We saw the truth of this study the last time we went to Puerto Vallarta. We stood watching the ocean liners loaded with Americans and their money come into the bay. Directly across the street from where these floating hotels were docked were Sam's Wholesale Store and Wal-Mart (it wasn't bad enough to have one owned by the same culture-destroying outfit, they had to have two).

When they lowered the gangplanks you would have thought the Americans would have been standing in line to take a cab to the Puerto Vallarta Historical Downtown District to soak up the local (very Americanized culture) ambiance. What did they do? They scurried as fast as their flip-flop clad feet could take them to Wal-Mart and Sam's Club.

Not believing our eyes and thinking we were dreaming, we went straightaway to the line of cab and hopped into one. We were told, at least by this cabbie, that this is what Americans do upon arrival. Few, if any, want to go to see the sights. What they always seem to do, according to this cabbie, is flee to Wal-Mart and Sam's Club and then filter back to the boats. Some make it to the beaches. Some make it to the evening's orchestrated events. The next day, we confirmed this story with residents and shopkeepers.

So let me propose the question: "Just for whom is the infection of Starbuck's in San Miguel de Allende and the most recent infection of Applebee's in Guanajuato and the coming Wal-Mart for anyway? Your average Jose and Juana Mexican? Or for the elite? I mean who would pay eight bucks for a cup of coffee and for a meal that would be the month's wage for an average Mexican family?

These places are here to attract the American tourist and American Fakepat.

I know an American lady who was so delighted when the Applebee's opened in Guanajuato she could not flee there fast enough. The prices are outrageous. The Mexican elite from D.F. and the American Gringolandians eat there. Need I say another word?

The Mexicana whose point-of-view I quoted above is mistaken.

The Gated Communities and Exclusive Enclaves are in Gringolandias because the Americans want to be gated off from Mexico. They demonstrate by their constant attraction to these Cultural Isolation Fortresses that they want nothing to do with Mexicans, Mexico's language, and Mexico's culture. It has nothing to do with "richness" versus "poorness." It is not an economic question. It is a question of Cultural Imperialism, straight and simple.

And, regarding this Mexican's statement:

"And probably 98 percent of my fellow Mexicans would live in exclusive enclaves and gated communities were they able to afford it."

This is a hypothesis that cannot be tested. Just what proof does this Mexicana offer to show the veracity of her proposition? None. Do I need to go on?

Yes. I must.

"'Cultural imperialism' can refer to either the forced acculturation of a subject population, or to the voluntary embracing of a foreign culture by individuals who do so of their own free will." –From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A few years ago, a fellow from SMA sent me an email in which he said that if any Mexican in San Miguel de Allende resented and cannot accept that the Mexican's existence in life is to serve the American population then that person is welcome to live elsewhere.

Now, I am done.

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