Why Not Enable Open Comments on Blogger?

Here is a great little abstract by another author who thinks along the same lines as I do about "Reader's Comments":

Do We Need To Ban Comments On Blog Sites? Some Think We Do

by Ron Schenone on 04/19/2010

In a very interesting article from the WSJ, the issues of a lack of civility when it comes to comments on blog sites, is coming under fire. According to some, Internet users who surf using the anonymous moniker feel impervious in the way they comment on topics posted on blog sites. It seems that a small number are leaving comments that attack other posters and add nothing at all to the conversation. But in what seems like an obvious way to control unsavory comments is to have all comments moderated.

In the WSJ article it also states that:

Part of the problem is that people who conceal their names seem to feel free to say things they never would if their identities were known. There are obvious cases—dissidents living in authoritarian countries—where anonymity is needed. But as Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts Jr. wrote recently, message boards dominated by anonymous comments often become “havens for a level of crudity, bigotry, meanness and plain nastiness that shocks the tattered remnants of our propriety.” .....Read Entire Article

This is the very reasons why I do not allow Gringolandians to comment on my blog.

Having Mexican Friends or Not?

Here is a forum post I read and to which I would like to respond:

"I always have to smile when a NOB American, who's planning to move to Mexico, says she wants to come down and live in a Mexican pueblo and not near any gringos so she can bond with the Mexicans. They are a very tight-knit group! As stated, they will be very polite, but they don't want you for their new-best friend unless there is money involved, and even then they will pretty much interact with you only on an employee-employer level. Without my gringa friends, I would be very lonely and sad. I would never think of moving anywhere that I could not have access to my gringas!"

This quote is true to an extent. Throughout the 7 years we've lived in Guanajuato we've found ourselves on both sides of this issue.

When we moved to Mexico we had absolutely no desire to mix with Gringos. Why, we reasoned, would we want to be a part of a Gringolandia when we went through all the trials and tribulations of moving to Mexico? If we had wanted to be a part of an American enclave, a.k.a. a Gringolandia, why move to another country? We could have stayed in America if that had been what we wanted to do.

We found ourselves Mexican friendless based on the degree of our Spanish fluency. The more and more we increased our Spanish fluency the more and more we began to develop Mexican friendships. And, what I mean by Mexican friendships is being invited into their homes to dine but mostly just to chat. Never once did these who invited us into their homes and with whom we've had friendships ask us for money.

Mexicans are, as the forum poster stated above, "a very tight-knit group." They are that. And it is not easy to win your way into their hearts. Some do befriend you based on their preconceived notion that ALL Americans are rich and exist to take advantage of financially. it is just a way of life here. Not ALL Mexicans will do this. Some actually have a work ethic and an ethic that teaches they should work for their money instead of relying on the rich American patron. Some don't, unfortunately.

We are friends with two groups of Mexicans. One is a group of Christians. We attend church with them each Sunday (protestants) who have taken us into their lives. We've been in their homes many times. Never once have any of them asked us for money (as if we had any extra dollars laying around going unused).

The other group of Mexicans have no particular church or Christian leanings (other than Catholicism) and still invite us into their homes to eat or just to have a cup of coffee and lots of chatting. Neither have they begged money.

Though the poster, in her mass generalizations, did not indicate whether or not she can carry on a meaningful and in-depth conversation in Spanish with anyone, I just wonder whether she can or not.

My best friend is a Mexican guy in our church. We've sat and held he and his wife's hands through family tragedy and would not have been able to had we not had the Spanish fluency we have.

So, consider that when reading posts like the one I quoted above.

You might note that 96% - 97% of Americans cannot speak a foreign language. This carrys over when they move to Mexico expecting the Mexican to fall at their feet and become fast friends for life.

It took us seven years and this, we are convinced, directly related to our Spanish fluency!

Guanajuato Choice of Neighborhoods

The "Cerro del Cuarto" neighborhood, or barrio, always seems to list cheap apartments and houses in The Chopper classifieds. It is not the choicest part of Guanajuato to choose to land in your Guanajuato Expat Adventure. Here is one of many reasons:

Correo reporter, Ruth Elizarraraz, reported, Thursday, July 15, 2010, that five robberies occurred mostly taking place on a Friday night. Only one of the victims reported to the police.

This is common in Mexico generally and in Guanajuato specifically: Not to involved the police.

Watch for this in the listings that show lots of rentals and even houses to buy. It is not a good area of town. We have friends, Mexican nationals, who have moved from this barrio for that very reason.

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Those Loving Mexicans

I really do feel there are some Mexicans who are not just loving but kind, caring, helpful, and salt-of-the-Earth people. But, I would say this regarding just about any culture on the planet. The Mexican nationals in our little protestant church here in Guanajuato I would trust with my life.

However, and there's always a "however," on the other hand I feel there are some Mexicans that hold anti-American sentiments. I reported on this years ago in my blogging and article writing and earned the title to which I am still the exclusive record holder:

THE MOST HATED GRINGO IN THE WHOLE WORLD!

I used to interview Mexicans in Guanajuato, and other cities, and was able to extract from them some pretty strong feelings about Gringolandians. The Gringos don't believe it. They call me a liar.

So, here's a guest post from a lady writing about the Ajijic and Chapala area and their deteriorating Gringolandia...

Since I don't post here usually, and only pop in to read every couple of weeks
I wanted to let you all know about friends who are moving away from Chapala.

We have had two sets of couple friends who have returned NoB because they
didn't enjoy Mexico. One set said they just no longer, after 2 years, felt welcome in their primarily Mexican neighborhood in CHapala and didn't want to move toward Ajijic and they were discouraged from moving to Jocotepec, or any of the other primarily Mexican villages to the east and west. We were surprised to hear
this, but they were very "into" being quasi-Mexican, so they were hurt by the
attitude change they had been feeling from their neighbors.

Then lo-and-behold a couple months later another single friend mentioned she
was moving from Chapala back to Ajijic because she no longer felt welcome in
Chapala. She is ignored in eateries and stores, spoken rudely to on the Malecon
and is cheated regularly at the market.

And then a couple, who had lived in Ajijic for 18 months and moved to CHapala
because they liked the atmosphere there better and have been there 3 years
called me just 3 weeks ago asking if I would alert them to any houses from San
Antonio to La Cristina as they were moving back from Chapala. When we went out to dinner they said that their beautiful downtown Chapala 2 story house with
pool and fab garden that they willing paid $1000 US per month, had become a
jail of sorts because they no longer were welcomed in their neighborhood as they
previously had been. That where they had shopped for the last 3 years and at
the main market they were slowly paying more for food and had realized they
were now victims of a "gringo tax" whereas they had not been before and that young shop persons who had been chatty and willing to talk in Spanish at their level now virtually sped thru anything and when asked to speak slower the young
people were rude and wouldn't make the effort.

What does this all mean. Well, this couple has been talking with other expats
in Chapala and they have come to the conclusion that the citizens of Chapala
have seen their town grow and improve and there is a movement afoot to make it
uncomfortable for expats so that Chapala does not become Ajijic with its
unaffordable housing and high living prices for its locals.

This is also the case in Jocotepec, but that has always been that way.

Mexican friends tell us that many men who left the area to work in the US are
returning and they are angry for lots of reasons and they are relating stories
about the US and they are telling family and friends that the expats don't
deserve to live better in Mexico than they could in the US because that means
that Mexicans can't live in their towns and villages. They would be right.

It had to happen, and whether its as prevalent as these people seem to think it
is, it still is obviously making Chapala uncomfortable for some expats, enough so that they are leaving or moving out.

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A Guide to Shopping in the City of Guanajuato

Guest Blogger: Cindi Bower


The city of Guanajuato is known for its history, architecture and music but is not thought of as an especially great place to shop. While Guanajuato is not full of shopping malls and exclusive boutiques, it has enough shops to satisfy even an inveterate shopper. The historic center of Guanajuato is where you'll find the best shopping opportunities.

Many shops can be found along the main street that runs through the center of the city. The street is called Sopeña on the south side of the Jardín de la Unión, then changes to Obregón from the Jardín to the Plaza de la Paz and finally to Juárez from there until past Mercado Hidalgo. Since Guanajuato's streets are not built in a grid formation and are not always clearly marked, most people use landmarks as points of reference when giving directions.

The best place to start your shopping adventure is in the Jardín de la Unión, Guanajuato's main plaza. There is a small shop, Arte de México, just across from the newsstand. It carries some jewelry, souvenirs and a small selection of regional candies.

With your back to the Jardín, face Teatro Juárez and the San Diego Church. Turn left and walk past the steps leading to the theatre. Now you are on Sopeña. This is mainly a pedestrian street, but watch out for delivery and trash trucks that also use the street from time to time. At Sopeña #5, you will find Rincón Artesanal, a small shop with ceramics, some religious art and carved wood items. A few doors further up the street is La Florecita, a shop with cloth bags, scarves, shawls and embroidered blouses and dresses.

Around the corner from La Florecita at Sopeña #17 is an upscale store called La Casa del Quijote with several rooms of jewelry, pottery, sculpture, ceramics and more. The displays are nicely done and the employees are very attentive and helpful.

Turn around and go back toward the Jardín. La Catrina Dulcería (candy store), just across from the theatre steps at Sopeña #4, is a sweet tooth's dream. The store offers a wide variety of typical candies from different parts of Mexico as well as nuts, jams, cajeta (sweetened caramelized goat's milk), vanilla extract and much more. Be sure to climb to the second floor for more delicious treats and the various Catrina figurines for sale.

Continue past the Jardín on Obregón Street. On the left just past a travel agency is La Casa del Sol. The shop is jam-packed with all manner of items: jewelry, dolls, religious objects, purses, dishes and much more. Though the items look antique, they are reproductions made in workshops around Guanajuato.

Cross Obregón Street, go through the small plaza and you'll be on Calle Truco. La Casa de la Abuela, at Truco #5, offers handmade, unique items such as puppets, children's toys, fountains, picture frames, candles, metal sculptures and more. A few doors further is Galeria del Arte Nautilus Calli, which offers art, home décor and gifts.

Go back to the intersection of Truco and Obregón Streets and turn right. There are a number of handicraft, gift and souvenir shops around Plaza de la Paz (dominated by the Basilica, the large yellow church) and along both sides of Juárez Street all the way to the Comercial Mexicana supermarket.

For silver jewelry, visit Plata y Artesanias at Avenida Juárez #34. The store offers bracelets, earrings, rings and necklaces, both in plain silver and silver with various semi-precious stones. It also offers handmade Mexican home décor.

Mercado Hidalgo has some souvenirs, candy and handicrafts on the second-level mezzanine as well as in some booths outside the building. It is more a market where residents buy food and household supplies or stop for a quick snack or meal than a place to buy handicrafts.

Across Avenida Juárez from Mercado Hidalgo is a steep street called Mendízábal that leads to the Alhóndiga de Granaditas, a large building on the left that was used as a granary. There is a bookstore inside that offers literature, books about history, art, science and more.

Calle Mendízábal ends at Pocitos Street. Turn right on Pocitos and walk away from the Alhóndiga. There are a few shops of interest along this street. El Viejo Zaguán, at Pocitos #64, offers candles, shawls, religious art, candy and knick-knacks. Donkey Jote, at Pocitos #30, is an English-language bookstore. La Rana, at Pocitos #7, has handicrafts, glass, and colorful Mexican folk art animals (alebrije).

Continue on Pocitos (now called Lascurian de Retana) past the steps leading to the main building of the University of Guanajuato. At the bottom of the hill, there is a small plaza on the right. Around the corner, at Ponciano Aguilar #25, you will see the Capelo gallery and café. The famous local artist, Javier de Jesús Hernández, goes by the name Capelo. The gallery offers art and ceramics. Capelo owns several horses and often uses them as subjects in his work.

Go back to the small plaza outside Capelo and face the post office. A large church, La Compañía de Jesus, will be on your left. Walk toward the post office on the sidewalk in front of the church. There is a street to the left of the post office that will lead you to Plaza Baratillo (turn right at the tortilla shop). Plaza Baratillo has several food shops as well as a shop on the corner next to the street that sells a variety of regional candies, nuts, jams, salsa and liqueurs.

Cross the street and go through the large indoor patio (there is a coffee shop/restaurant inside called "Café Atrio"). The narrow end of the Jardín de la Unión is just outside. There is a jewelry store and a shoe store just across the sidewalk from Café Atrio. Around the corner from the shoe store, you'll find a small shop with pottery.



You've made a large circle and ended up back where you started at the Jardín de la Unión. While you haven't seen every handicraft, jewelry or artisan shop in Guanajuato, you've discovered the vast majority.

Travel Destinations: Guanajuato, Mexico

Guest Blogger: Cindi Bower

Guanajuato, the capital of the state of Guanajuato, is located in the mountains of central Mexico. It's not a place that immediately comes to mind when people consider vacationing in Mexico. Many are familiar with Mexico's lovely beaches and the attractions in Mexico City, but few discover the treasures in the colonial cities of central Mexico.

Guanajuato is often referred to as "The Jewel of the Americas" and "The Crown Jewel of Mexico's Colonial Cities." It's come a long way from the days when the semi-nomadic indigenous people called it "Quanx-huato" or "Hill of Frogs" because it was so barren that only frogs would live in the area.

The area probably would have remained little more than a place for ranchers to graze their cattle if not for one important discovery in the mid-1550's. Silver and lots of it. Some of the world's richest silver veins were buried in the mountains surrounding the modern-day city of Guanajuato.

Silver made many of the Spanish settlers very rich. They built huge haciendas outside the city and fabulous mansions in town, some of which remain today. Some made generous donations to build and adorn Guanajuato's numerous churches. One man, the owner of the Valenciana mine, single-handedly provided the money to build the San Cayetano Church, otherwise known as the Templo la Valenciana.

Shopping for silver is just one of the many activities one can do in Guanajuato. There are a number of shops with silver jewelry for sale along the main street that passes from the San Francisco church, past Teatro Juarez and the Jardin de la Union to Mercado Hidalgo. You can even let the jewelry come to you if you prefer. Just sit on one of the shady benches in the Jardin and wait. Before long, women with silver jewelry in black cases will approach you and proffer their wares.

While you search for an unoccupied bench, take a look at the buildings surrounding the Jardin. Though most are hotels, restaurants and shops, they were originally the homes of some of Guanajuato's wealthiest residents. The interior of the building that houses Starbucks is particularly beautiful. If you walk in the large, center door, the passage leads to an interior patio topped by an impressive stained glass window. The railings and pillars that line the passageways on the second and third floors that overlook the patio give you a glimpse of how opulent the home once was.

Visiting the churches will show you the results of the money donated by the wealthy mine owners. The San Diego Church, across the street from the Jardin, had to be raised 20 feet and rebuilt between 1782 and 1784 due to extensive flooding. The second Marques de Rayas, owner of the Rayas mine, donated much of the money needed to rebuild the church. He and his family are buried in the elaborate El Senor del Burgos chapel to the side of the sanctuary.

There is a museum under the church that contains an excavated portion of the convent (monastery) that was attached to the original church. The museum has drawings of what the convent looked like when it was functioning. Unfortunately, the rest of the convent cannot be excavated as Teatro Juarez was built on the site.

The Basilica of Our Lady of Guanajuato, the large yellow church a block from the Jardin, is a favorite venue for weddings, baptisms and confirmations. The interior is quite impressive. Above the altar is a statue of Our Lady of Guanajuato, a gift from King Charles I of Spain in gratitude for the vast amount of silver that poured into his coffers from the mines of Guanajuato.

Plaza de la Paz, the location of the Basilica, is surrounded by several mansions built by more of Guanajuato's wealthy mine owners. One of the several homes built by the Count of Rul y Valencia, the owner of the Valenciana mine, now houses the Superior Court. If you ask the guards at the door, they will allow you to go as far as the interior, enclosed patio and get a taste of the way the rich lived in the 18th century.

The San Cayetano Church in Valenciana, built by the aforementioned Count of Rul y Valencia, is small but contains richly carved and gilded altarpieces. Several concerts during the three-week-long International Cervantes Festival in October are performed in this church.

There are a couple of shops on the plaza in front of the church, one of which, Ojo de Venado (deer's eye) sells folk art from all over Mexico. To the right of the church, there is a street that leads to the Bocamina San Ramon mine and hacienda. The Bocamina is the entrance to the mine, and while visitors cannot go into the mine itself for safety reasons, they can get a feeling for how difficult the life of a miner was. There is a small museum with mining equipment and artifacts from the mine's heyday.

A trip to Guanajuato wouldn't be complete without a visit to the Mummy Museum. It's rather ghoulish, but is very popular nonetheless. Between 1865 and 1958, the law required that if the deceased's relatives stopped paying upkeep on the deceased's crypt, the body would be disinterred. Cemetery workers found a percentage of these disinterred bodies had been naturally mummified due to Guanajuato's dry climate. The mummies were housed in a building, which was later converted into a museum when people began showing an interest in seeing the mummies.

Guanajuato offers plenty to do and see. Spend a couple of days, a week or longer enjoying the architecture, the art, the music and the culture in Guanajuato, named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. It will be an unforgettable experience.

Guanajuato, Mexico - 2010 Rainy Season

It seems the 2010 rainy season is here initiated by Hurricane Alex. last year's rainy season was strange. For all practical purposes it was not a rainy season at all. It rained here and there but certainly not in the tradition of Guanajuato's normal rainy season.

In January of 2010 is when the rains, in earnest, hit the town. It was screwy.

It is anyone's guess, I suppose, what this season will bring. I just hope it is a normal rainy season so water rationing can be avoided.

In our old neighborhood we had rationing for months because the 2009 rains didn't come.

I hope this year normalcy will reign.

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Guanajuato, Mex - Safety: GRAVE

Points from Ruth Elizarraraz's, Thursday, July 1, 2010, article: Es grave la inseguridad en la ciudad: líder de Canaco (It is serious insecurity in the city: leader of Canaco) referring to the safety of the capital city of Guanajuato. Here's the link to verify the facts yourself.

The story made these points:

1. Roberto Serrano Chirino, the local leader of the National Chamber of Commerce, said that the lack of an operational and growth strategy to reduce crime rate is at the root of the rising crime rate in the city of Guanajuato.

2. The statistics show, says Chirino, that law enforcement officials are NOT doing their job.

3. The criminals know the police are not doing their job: "this is something that the criminals know and that's why more and more robberies, assaults and other crimes that damage the heritage of the families."

4. The mayor, says Chirino, has private police security as well as all council members and top level officials have surveillance in their homes whereas the people, the citizen of Guanajuato do not enjoy that privilege.

5. The story concludes with "Guanajuato is no longer the safe and peaceful city...now the theft and robbery are everyday things, "something they prefer to ignore, this is a turning point where they must act in a timely manner because otherwise the situation can become uncontrollable levels."

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###

Guanajuato, Mex - Attack in Pastita

Here is a perfect reason why I rant and rave over Gringo visitors walking late at night around Guanajuato:

A woman was attacked, beaten, and robbed in front of the Commission Federal de Electricidad building at 22:20 at night on Saturday. She was robbed of about 4 thousand pesos and various items she was carrying in her purse.

Her minor daughter ran to the police kiosk in on the Pastita street to get help.

The culprit was not caught.

Gringo tourist, especially Americans, tend to want to be able to walk back to their hotels, B & B's, or house rental in the dark. They reason Guanajuato cannot have crime, that it cannot be like back home.

Don't do it. Take a cab!

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Click On This to Reach A Walk Through Mexico's Crown Jewel

Guanajuato, Mexico - Dengue Fever

It comes chugging up the street under the cover of darkness. The sound is unmistakable. It sounds like a train engine trying to make it up a steep mountain. The sound belongs to the truck with a machine on its back spraying a noxious cloud of insecticide into the air. Guanajuato does this, by the way, in an attempt to rid the city, or keep under control, a deadly resident: Dengue Fever Mosquitoes.

According to Secretary of Health of Guanajuato, Jorge Armando Torres Aguirre , the city is just starting its third stage of the first phase of spraying. Though no local outbreaks have been reported of the disease, there have been identified mosquito larvae transmitter of the virus. The spraying seems to be killing the larvae, says Aguirre.

Secretary of Health of Guanajuato (SSG), Jorge Armando Torres Aguirre, says there have been cases in other Mexican states but none yet locally. That's why, he says, Guanajuato is engaging in aggressive spraying control.

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Click On This Link to Reach A Walk Through Mexico's Crown Jewel

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Source: El Correo 6/29/10

Dos Rios Crime Alert

It seems a lot of Gringos who come to vacation in Guanajuato are staying more and more in the San Javier barrio during their visits. There are several hotels here and while it is a fair distance from the El Centro or downtown area, it would appear the more fit Gringos don't mind the walk. I suppose the "charm factor" comes into play in wanting to walk through and experience a bit of the local cultural color.

To walk downtown and back from the hotels (the good ones) one has to pass through this area called "Dos Rios." Lately, the local newspaper has been reporting gang violence happening in the callejons (alleys) around the Dos Rios area.

The gang known as "Pollos Negros" (Black Chickens) have been identified as the main culprits tormenting the neighbors in the la Paila callejon.

As you are walking downtown and when you reach the Dos Rios section of the street, look to the right and you will see a convenience store, much like a 7-11, called "Extra." That is where the callejon is where the violence takes place.

The Guanajuato newspaper, El Correo report three incidents where the police were called to break up fights or investigate robberies.

June 23rd - Students returning home in the La Paila at about 10:30PM found their house broken into and with most of their appliances stolen.

June 25th - A police officer was attacked in the la Paila callejon when called there to break up a fight.

June 26th - Another incident of breaking up a fight but on a much larger scale and more police were injuried.

So, if you are like most Gringos who want to be out after dark and walk back to your hotel, maybe you should consider getting a cab.

For reasons I cannot possibly begin to explain, much less comprehend, Gringo routinely engage in risky behavior in Mexico they wouldn't dream of doing back home. like walking to their hotels at two in the morning!

Take a cab so your vacation doesn't get ruined.

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If you are coming to Guanajuato to check out the possibility of living here, you've got to realize a scary fact. The Gringos who live here operate businesses with you in mind. For example, real estate investment and rental properties. They resent, most vociferously, what I have said in today's blog and whatever I write in my books, articles, and blogs. They would rather I not tell the truth about living in Guanajuato because they suffer this delusion that what I say is robbing them of business. They would rather you suffer harm than be informed what areas to avoid. They think to tell you of the new reports is driving business away from their filth lucre endeavors.

The Robberies Are Increasing

Police in Guanajuato reveal they are receiving 20 reports of theft per week. Homes and businesses are the main targets for these break-ins when the home owners leave for work or businesses close for the day.

Statistically, however, most of the invasions are daytime events. The most common item taken are the butane gas tanks used to fuel the cooking and hot water in the homes.

<>Source

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Crimes and misdemeanors: Staying safe in San Miguel
Is SMA still safe, or falling prey to drug dealers and thugs?

By Anne Nicolai
August 11, 2009


Knowledge is power: Spanish-speaking residents are safer

Across the board, every official interviewed for this article agreed that one of the best ways for foreigners to provide for our personal safety is to learn the language of the country that we’re living in. They point out that Spanish speakers have an easier time getting to know their neighbors and the local police. Knowing the language also helps when calling for help or reporting a crime.

In fact, the author’s calls to the various emergency telephone numbers prove this point: on two different days, at two different times of day,...there were no English-speaking operators.


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Those Nutty Cab Drivers

I am convinced that one day we will die in a fiery taxi crash. They drive at the speed of light (or at least it seems) but have managed to get us, so far, to our destinations over the past 7 years. One day though.

What is rare for us is to encounter angry cab drivers who make us feel he might set upon us and perhaps beat us half to death. We encountered this just the other day.

I would venture to say that 99.999% of the cab drivers we've had have been exceptional. They ask us where we are from, how long we've lived in Mexico, and end up complimenting us on our Gringo command of Spanish. Some have even given us their home phone numbers and private cell phone number so that we can call them for personal attention in the future. We love Mexican cab drivers.

We were coming home from downtown when we encountered the cab driver from hell. He not only did not talk to us but took us to a part of town where we did NOT live and insisted that this strange and unfamiliar street was our home.

When I insisted that the place he was trying to deposit us was NOT our home, he went into a roaring rage. He even snapped around to face the back seat where my terrified wife sat as though he might slap her for chiming into the dilemma.

I thought I would have to fist fight him.

As suddenly as he launched into the rage he stopped and took us home.

Now, what does a Gringo do in a case like this?

The typical Gringo would try and filing a complaint with the cab company and police. What did I do?

Nothing!

I spoke with a Mexican friend who agreed that I should do nothing. The point was made in our conversation about the event that if I had complained ,some sort of censure surely would have ensued. But, the cab driver "knows where you live," my Mexican friend reminded me.

My Mexican friend was right.

Had I been Mexican with an extended family, discrete inquires would have been made, maybe a bit of money would have been exchanged for apologies, and the whole affair would have faded into obscurity with all parties satisfied.

It's how culture works here, like it or not, and Gringolandians never understand it.

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Living in Mexico: Lord of the Flies

I am reposting this article on the anniversary of the fire set outside our window on June 4, 2007, at 430am. This happened 12 hours after receiving a death threat via a anonymous email from Americans involved in the Gringolandia communities in Guanajuato and San Miguel de Allende.

Remember reading The Lord of the Flies when you were in high school?

"Lord of the Flies is a thought-provoking novel authored by William Golding in 1954. The book describes in detail the horrific exploits of a band of young children who make a striking transition from civilized to barbaric. Lord of the Flies commands a pessimistic outlook that seems to show that man is inherently tied to society, and without it, we would likely return to savagery."[1]

I've been wracking my small and insignificant brain lately trying to come up with a way of describing the colonies American gringos start in the Mexican towns in which they congregate. Mind you, I am operating under a tremendous bias lately and if I seem a bit hyperbolic, you will have to forgive me. I am thinking that perhaps I've had one too many threats and the fire, my Lord the fire, was what really has set me on edge about the whole thing. Let me say this in case you haven't been following my online columns.

I have been writing almost exclusively about American expat issue since moving to Guanajuato. I've also been writing about expat issues and how the dynamics involved affect the Mexicans in the communities into which Americans settle. I became so interested in this when I began to learn, from Mexicans, that not all is well on the American expatriate -Mexican relationship front. When my Spanish got good enough, the little woman and I headed off to an area where some academics are now beginning to focus their research: San Miguel de Allende. I wrote about the expats and got the typical vitriol one would expect.

However, dealing with the expats there through email never took on a dark and hideous nature. It did in Guanajuato, the city in which my wife and I have lived for more than four years. I began noticing an amazing thing that I've yet to hear anyone write about: How does a local Mexican community regard a gringo presence in their town, in their midst, when their livelihood is dependent upon that gringo tourist and/or expat?

How do the members of a Mexican town react to a gringo presence when their livelihood, their bread and butter, is not contingent on how well they treat the foreigner tourist or expat? An interesting situation to consider, wouldn't you say?

What I noticed in San Miguel de Allende, while they may take the gringo's money, smile, and be polite to them, they are not overtly rude or arrogant toward the gringos. I think if you surveyed the Mexicans, you would find they don't consider the gringo population as their friends, but realize their ability to make a living is dependent upon their treatment of the gringo tourists and expats. And, there are certainly hordes of gringos with which the Mexicans must deal. They may not like it, but it is reality.

The Mexican act accordingly. In the city of Guanajuato, where my wife and I dwell, it is different. The livelihood of the vast majority of the Mexican population is not contingent upon the gringos. Gringo tourists or expats do not make or break Guanajuato. This town has been a traditional Mexican tourist town and not a town often visited by foreigners, at least until the past few years. How the gringos are regarded is different than in towns where the Mexicans' livelihood depends on the foreign presence in the form of tourists or expats.

My mere mortal observations have been that Mexicans in the city of Guanajuato treat the gringo expat in one or more of the following ways: A kind of indifference where they don't even particularly notice you but are not rude or abrasive. An attitude that you are not even there. Some will not respond when you address them in Spanish on the street. They act as though they didn't hear you or look right through you. There are some, and it seems to be getting worse, who are overtly rude. They act like they would love for you to go away so they will never have to see your gringo face again. Some will not wait on you in a store or restaurant unless you become insistent. Now to complicate this, I began noticing, as did my wife, that those Mexicans with whom we would interact socially would tell us they have noticed the same thing-same treatment-toward them.

These have been Mexicans from different regions of Mexico who now, for whatever reason, live in Guanajuato. They are mostly from El Norte, the Northern States. They tell us that the gringos are treated better in those regions. But the amazing thing is that these Norteños noticed the same treatment at the hands of these central Mexico Mexicans that we noticed. Is that not something worth writing about? Is that not something newsworthy? In other words, there is a kind of "cultural regionalism" within the different regions of Mexico.

Some, of course not all, Mexicans might even treat their fellow Mexicans from a different region with indifference or even rudeness. We talked to too many Mexicans from the northern states who told us this for it to be a coincidence. I wrote about this and the gringos in Guanajuato have taken exception to this to the point of threatening me with violence.

Emails, messages from some email service called "Will Self Destruct"[2], and at least one (so far) face-to-face encounter on the street where I was told, in so many words, my name was mud and was going to get muddier for writing about these things. I was told I'd better stop. One guy threatened to come to my house, accurately stating where I lived, with a group of men to teach me a lesson. And all for what I've been writing. Though I cannot make this statement with any certainty about all of the Mexican towns in which there exists a Gringo (mostly I am referring to Americans) Expat Community, the one in Guanajuato seem to on the verge of a perfect example of "making a striking transition from civilized to barbaric[3]."

At the very least, they are demonstrating: "a pessimistic outlook that seems to show that man is inherently tied to society, and without it, we would likely return to savagery."[4]

Look, disagree with me, fine! I do not care that everyone agrees with me. All I care is that I try to write a reasonably constructed argument. If I am found lacking, why in God's name will not one of the members of this wild and crazy bunch of Gringos in this town answer me in kind? Is it not better to try and offer a well-constructed, maybe even bordering on logical brilliance, counter argument than to send someone threatening emails that keeps him up at night wondering who wants to harm him and his wife? Maybe not. At least you would think not from how they've responded to my observations.

I mean, really, what a perfect example of showing how man is tied to the restraints of society in which there would be enforceable laws regarding the behavior of some of these gringos here in Guanajuato. What an excellent study this would make for academics to see how and to what these group of mostly Americans return to, morph into, without the constraints of a democracy governed by laws. They are not a bunch committed, it would seem, to a pastoral Jeffersonian democracy.

In Lord of the Flies, there are two characters that stand out to me in my quest to explore expat issues: Ralph and Jack.

Ralph is twelve years old with blond hair, and is the most charismatic of the group. He is described as being built "like a boxer," and is initially chosen as leader due to his many positive qualities. He maintains a conflict with Jack throughout the entire novel, attempting to keep order whereas Jack isn't concerned with it. Ralph and Piggy together represent the struggle for order and democracy.[5]

Jack is about Ralph's age, with a skinnier build and red hair. His freckled face is described as being "ugly without silliness." From the very beginning, he seems to harbor emotions of anger and savagery. At first, he is the leader of his choir group, who become hunters as the book progresses. Finally, his savage personality and ability to tell people what they want to hear allows him to overtake Ralph as chief.[6]

Both of these characters seem to explain the expat community in Guanajuato. Ralph, who represents democracy, seems to know that democratic rule is the only way to keep the order. For this to happen, the maintenance of order, the real Expat, the one truly committed to actual and real expatriation, does whatever it takes to be absorbed into the local Mexican community. He adopts and adapts to the culture through the portal of language.

This is how order is maintained in his life since he no longer lives in America. Jack, who represents all that is savage and anarchistic in man, seems to represent that group of American expats who, through a lack of linguistic ability, cannot possibly hope to maintain any sort of order in their lives, so are afloat upon a sea of anger and savagery. What else would you call the behavior of trying to suppress someone for expressing some simple and unassuming observations about his life in Mexico?

They don't offer a debate inspired by democracy in a marketplace of ideas, but rather, savagery in the form of profane threats and confrontations. And, is not the so-called expat community represented by the "Island" in Lord of the Flies? A microcosm representing the world.[7]That is exactly what the expat communities in Mexico are. They are a microscopic view of America gone amuck-a subculture is created-and anarchy reigns. It is a subculture without any rules.

[1] http://www.gerenser.com/lotf/

[2] http://www.willselfdestruct.com/secure/submit

[3] http://www.gerenser.com/lotf/

[4] Ibid

[5] Ibid

[6] Ibid

[7] Ibid

Guanajuato, Mex - emails

On the tourist forums there are frequent complaints about trying to make reservations or get questions answered via email with Guanajuato (or any Mexican city) hotels, B & B's, or whatever. The websites of these places, so complains the Gringo, are never updated, the websites don't work, and most of all, they never answer emails.

The answer is easy: Mexico is, for the most part, a country of appearances.

Ned Crouch in his book, Mexicans & Americans, Cracking the Cultural Barrier, (A highly recommended book, by the way) tells of a story in which he went to a Mexican business supply company for some particular need. When looking at the company's brochure, he noted that the company indeed carried the item for which he was searching. Not only did they have the item, but there were claims that the company had these sound-proof cubicle dividers tested in a special laboratory to test the veracity of the product.

Mr. Crouch asked the receptionist where the products had been tested only to find they had NOT been tested anywhere. The conversation went forward to reveal that the claim was made in the company's printed material because that was expected by the customer and that was what company's like theirs claimed to be and do. They had to look like what their competitors looked like whether it was true or not. "They had to play the role and look the part." (page 191)

My wife worked for an ESL school in which the sign on the outside wall made all manner of wild claims of services offered on site that simply did not exist. When I asked the director why she had this sign she said because it made the school look competent. Also, she had 25, count them, 25 diplomas and certificated on the wall of her office attesting to her English teaching and speaking ability and she was in essence incapable of speaking, reading, or writing in English. She claimed to have aced the TOEFL exam.

There is a gift shop in Guanajuato that has an email address which the owner NEVER looks at. She told us she only checks the email if someone calls her and tells her that an email is forthcoming. (And what is the point of that I have to ask?)

These folks have email but do not do business, like take hotel reservations, with a faceless person.

It is culture, guys, and that's how it is. The email and websites are for appearances. It is "trying to play the role and look the part like the rest of the world."

Guanajuato, Mex -- Not Until The Fat Woman Falls

We were on our way downtown to do some errands. Nothing risky about that normally. I do however suffer a quiver or two when walk by the parking garage where a dentist and his receptionist, on two different occasions, were jumped and robbed at about 130pm one fine safe and sound Guanajuato day.

This time we decided to ride the bus. We got on and headed toward the back where the chances of getting a breeze in the steaming hot afternoon were greater.

The bus we boarded was a new one with an elevated backseat area. You have to climb three small steps to mount the much higher back seats. Why they have these I couldn't begin to guess. But, we sat in the seat that was right up against the steps leading to the upper seats.

So, off we go stopping along the way to allow the crushing multitudes to board the bus.

This really fat lady got on the bus. It was her intent to sit in the elevated back seat area. I think I am accurate to say that this is the only area into which she could fit.

Step one, she mounts. Step two, she vanquishes, when she go on the third step the bus lurched forward and the woman let go of her grip and landed direct on top of me!

Essentially, I broke her fall finding myself squashed under the might of her huge butt. Her butt was sitting on my upper back and head. The left side of my face was mashed into the middle part of the man's back who was sitting directly in front of me.

I whimpered.

My wife flew into action trying to get this two-ton lizzy's buttocks off of me. I was immobilized as was my gordita who was laughing hysterically making it impossible for her to help in saving my life. I found it hard to breathe.

Finally, and how I have no idea, she was hoisted off of me.

Then the bus driver changed gears, creating another forward lunge, and the woman once again came off the step and on top of me.

Then, the adrenaline made its move.

I was able with a mighty Bruce Lee roar to shove this woman off of me. I grabbed her two Jello butt cheeks and pushed her up the steps and onto a seat.

She just laughed.

I had to take pain meds.

I had to go to bed.

I had to cuss a word or two each time I thought of the circumstance.

I had to swear off taking buses.

Guanajuato, Mex -- We're Home

We house sat for two weeks. That's the longest gig we've done, ever. I can't say it wasn't interesting. It was that. But I can say I do not want to do that again any time soon. We love the folks we were helping out. But, it is just that we cannot stand the cats and their peculiar indoor/outdoor behavior.

I thought this morning how these friends feed their cats on the kitchen counter to keep their dogs from eating the cat food. The dog's ration is served on the floor while the cat's is on the counter. We used to do the same thing when we had dogs and cats. However, the only difference is that our cats NEVER went outside tromping about in the yard where they would step into all manner of nasties in the grass.

I certainly acknowledge that it is "their" privilege and right to do with their pets as they see fit. But the thought that the indoor/outdoor cats can carry parasites in their paw pads onto the kitchen counter where human food is also served is just too much to bear. The fact that the cats would come onto the bed at night with their parasite-laden paws is also too much.

Anyway, we are home, we are tired, we ordered pizza, and now its time to go to bed.

A Tale of Two Bunnies Continue

I am on a "do-not-let-your-cat-out-of-the-house jag."

The folks for whom we are house sitting let their cats go outside in the night to hunt. The cats can come and go through an open window in their bedroom. This is how "Yani", the "bunny killer" got into the house with his prey. (See previous blog for details.)

I did some research and even contacted my degreed and licensed Vet tech friend in Kansas for info.

It turns out that you can indeed get your cat into quite a bit of trouble allowing it to go in and out to catch and eat prey. By prey I am speaking out rats, mice, rabbits, birds, etc...

I asked what dangers can the cat encounter in catching these varmits, bringing them into the house, and eating them. Here is her answer:

"Tapeworm, fleas, plague, rabies, & hantivirus, to name the risks from greatest to least. If there are native parrots, they can catch chlamydia psittacosis from them (&, more rarely, from other bird species)."

"Plague" and "hantivirus" were two that jumped out of her email screaming loudly in my face.

We actually love cats. We loved them so much that in the States we had thirty Russian Blues in a breeding and show cat cattery. So it is not that we have anything at all against cats. But, where we do draw the line is in letting a "non-working" cat outside in this day and age. Working cats, or as it is known in Kansas, a farm cat, is a necessity on a farm where vermin can cost a farmer money.

A pet...should be kept indoors.

There are scores of reason why you should keep the cats inside. There is only one reason people let pet cats outside: anthropomorphism.

Just think about it: Your cat catches, not necessarily killing, a rat and brings it into the house and the thing has hantivirus or the plague. Just what are you going to do?

Got your haz-mat suit on hand?

I have heard of extremely isolated cases of plague here in Mexico. Another vet I know in Mexico confirmed hantivirus here in Mexico.

The thing is, you can allow your cat outside time by attaching an ultra inexpensive cat pen to the window that would protect all members of the family, human and felines, and the cat could merrily watch critters through chicken wire and not be able to catch and eat them.

Doesn't that make a lot of sense?

Guanajuato, Mex -- A Tale of Two Bunnies

Night had finally fallen. The air was still. The days have been hotter than I can recall for May and the darkness finally capped off the burning of a dreadfully hot day offering a small, sweet respite.

I had to go to the bathroom. I had the urge for hours but the awful heat, in non-air conditioned Mexico, prevented me from doing what I had to do: I had to do #2. Moving one's bowels is not so terrible of a subject to broach when one has Irritable Bowel Syndrome or IBS. I've learned to face it that it is something not only with which I have to live but to talk about it often finds fellow sufferers who end up being friends. Just think about it: A Fellowship of #2'ers.

But, I digress....

I settled on the porcelain throne in the downstairs bathroom of the house we were house sitting. I thought it cooler and more conducive to better evacuation (If you know what I mean.).

Suddenly, and without warning, when an unexpectedly smooth egress was upon me, I hear a screech and a high pitched squeal coming from upstairs.

The screech came from my wife.

The squeal came from Yani, one of the feline charges we were "watching."

The wife screamed for help. I hollered as loudly as I could, "What is wrong?"

She replied in an uncharacteristically articulate screech, "Yani has something in his mouth and it's wiggling." (Death throes, no doubt.)

I could do nothing at that moment. I did what I came to do.

I pooped.

When finally done I didn't even flush but pulled up my britches and ran out the bathroom door.

By that time, every one was in the downstairs bedroom to which the bathroom I was in was attached. The cast of characters were my wife, Nuit, the black female cat, and two poodles, Katie and Chole Marie. All were facing the walk-in closet were Yani the bunny killer was adding the finishing touches to his murderous campaign of bunnycide.

(As an aside: The dogs were staring at the whole affair and exchanging knowing glances with one another as though to say, "We knew cats were a murderous bunch.")

I opened the louvered doors to the closet and proceeded cautiously. I wanted to extricate what looked to me to be a quite dead bunny (barely able to hop age) from Yani's death grip. Rabbits carry, at the very least, tape worm and I wanted to be fully responsible in my pet watching duties in this house sitting gig.

But, there would no disburdening Yani of his catch. I did try stepping on his his tail, ever so lightly, hoping that would freak him out into dropping his prize but it didn't work. He went deeper into the closet where I could never hope reach him.

We sat on the bed listening to Yani crunching the skull of his little bunny meal. Then he walked calmly out of the closest, licking his bloodied, bunny-killer lips, and shot out the window into the back yard.

I gave pursuit.

I saw him whip up a tree and over a wall at the speed of light. Within seconds he was back in his yard with a second bunny in his homicidal maw. We closed the window to prevent him from going back into the bedroom with his kill. He jumped to the window sill and upon realizing his entrance to the bedroom was thwarted, he leaped into the garden whereupon I saw the bunny was still alive and tried escaping Yani's killing grasp.

But, each time the bunny would try to run (hop) Yani would leap upon it and toss it into the air. He jumped on the the poor, helpless creature, he flopped on it, he laid on it, he rolled on it, and did God only knows what else to it. I don't know what else he did because I went to bed.

When I reentered the house the wife was hovering over the bed with a wash cloth to clean up the bunny blood that was deposited on the sheets. Apparently, Yani began devouring the thing on the bed before crunching his way merrily through the house.

The smell of death eventually filled the bedroom making sleep difficult, no, impossible. We did what we've seen on a zillion CSI television shows reruns: We applied a generous glob of Vic's vapor rub under our noses.

Sleep came, eventually and fitfully, but it came.

When morning finally came, Yani came through the window and into the bedroom singing his little chirpy meow as though nothing was wrong. With not a thought as to his nighttime savagery, he went full of gaiety to the upstairs and into the kitchen and begged for his morning ration of canned cat food.

I asked him if he wanted a little bunny with that to which he only chirped.

Moral of this story: Unless you have a farm with crops to protect from rats, mice, and yes, rabbits, a modern cat does not need to go outside. Studies from the University of California at Davis's vet school has shown that cats live longer and healthier lives as indoor cats only. Their outdoor brethren live much shortert lives with predation-induced parasites being a major cause of a shortened life span.

Think about it,

Guanajuato, Mex - HOT

Speaking of climate change: When we moved here in 2003, it was as you have no doubt read, "Spring Time" all year round.

Winters were extremely mild. We usually ran around in short pants and shirts until the middle of December. January was a bit chilled at night, when the sun went down, but very nice and mild during the day.

The warmth came back in February and everything returned to its usual lovable self.

January of 2010 was the most frigid and wet we've experienced. This is the hue and cry of the locals too. My best friend, Carlos, told me Jan 2010 was the coldest and wettest he could recall in his 45 years of life on Earth in Mexico. It was frigid, it was wet!

At this writing, it is May 2010 and is dangerously hot here. I tend to think all the cars pumping poison into the air has something to do with the abnormal heat but I have no proof, yet.

We left the house right after breakfast and headed to the bus stop. By the time we got downtown I felt in need of a pair of paramedics and a stretcher. We shopped in a hot store (no one except for Del Sol department store uses an air conditioner.), went to a hot pharmacy, jumped into a hot cab, came home to a hot house, and am sitting with a fan blowing hot air up my hot nose.

Tourist, of course, come to GTO during this time of the year not bothering to understand that GTO can be blistering hot, like now, or rain for days on end.

"God, let the rains come, I implore you!"

That will cool off thie hellish heat!