Opinion / Askamexican
¡Ask A Mexican! for Dec 30, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Readers: The failure by the Senate to pass the DREAM Act – which would’ve made citizens out of young adults who came to this country as children and go to college or join the ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Dec 16, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Last year I went to Chihuahua and noticed the Mexicans I was traveling with said gras – like a shortened version of gracias. Is this a common thing? Can I say it? Currently Hot Unlike ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Dec 09, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Why can AeroMexico Airlines fly through any kind of weather conditions to get to and from the United States, but any kind of little ice sprinkle or heavy wind and domestic airlines in ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Dec 02, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
This güero downloaded the Arizona S.B. 1070 bill, did a search on the document for “Mexicans,” and did not come up with a single hit. What’s up with that? So, since you are such an ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Nov 04, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
While waiting for radiation treatment, I noticed a sign on the wall: “If you are pregnant or may become pregnant… ” The Spanish translation used the word embarazada. Why “embarrassed” to be pregnant for these ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 28, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I majored in history at the University of Arizona in Tucson, which I believe was part of the Gadsden Purchase, the last piece of old Mexico the U.S. “acquired.” That got me thinking: ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 14, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: What is it with the Mexican hang-up on body parts? When General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was struck by a cannonball at the knee in one of his 8,000 wars, his right ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 30, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL DREAM EDICIÓN Dear Mexican: Why is it so hard to find an educated Mexican – or hell – even a Latino man who isn’t a pretentious hijo de papi, or thinks he is a ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 23, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: What punishment could America give that would FINALLY make crossing America’s borders – repeatedly – unpalatable to Mexicans? Remember, our original immigration requirements were “good moral character” and a “working knowledge of English.” ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 16, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I work at a large Orange County hotel where 80 percent of the employees are Latin American, primarily Mexican. I love working with them. However, one thing that bothers me is that when ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 09, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL MEXICAN INDENDENCE DAY EDITION Dear Readers: ¡VIVA MÉXICO, CABRONES! Happy 200th cumpleaños to America’s favorite country, to the land of pretty señoritas and eternal economic crises, to the world’s greatest, drunkest bola de hijos ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 02, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL LABOR DÍA EDITION Dear Mexican: I’m a naturalized citizen born in Ciudad Juarez (the most dangerous city in the world, thanks to the drug cartels) but I work for la migra. I get a ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 26, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: It’s one of the worst times ever to be a Mexican, worse than Santa Anna and Cortés, worse than the Zoot Suit riots – man it is worse now than when frickin’ Pete ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 19, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Readers: The Mexican’s longtime amigo, William Lobdell, author of the memoir Losing My Religion: How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America – and Found Unexpected Peace, wrote in recently regarding my ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 12, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: As a proud New Yorker, I gotta ask: WTF is up with Mexican food in this city? Sure, we’re used to getting owned by California and Texas and even Chicago when it comes ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 05, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I am a retired gringa living in Mazatlán, Sinaloa. Most of us foreigners here are liberal and sympathetic to the immigration problem, which the U.S. Congress refuses to address in a meaningful way. ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 22, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I heard Mormonism is a quickly spreading religion down in ye olde Mexico. What is it about this religion that a lot of Mexicans find so fascinating? --Jack Mormón Dear Gabacho: Historically? Mexico ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 08, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I’m a (poor) white girl myself, but I have to ask: What’s the deal with all the rich white girls playing such a big role in Fiesta? Why is it always rich white ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 01, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL POETRY EDITION Dear Readers: The Arizona pendejas emboldened hundreds of Know Nothings to boast that they’re not racist if they support SB 1070. I’ll indulge the protestations with apologies to Kipling… If you can ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 24, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Why do the Mexicans HATE American soccer and “hate” (bolded, underlined, and italicized) Landon Donovan? -Uncle Sam’s Army Brat Dear Gabacho: Because Mexicans hate Americans – DUH! Geez, this is the literary equivalent ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 17, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I’m a civil rights lawyer. I sue the San Diego Minutemen.Whenever the Minutemen are accused of being racist they always say something like, “I’m part-Hispanic,” or they’ll note that some of their members ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 03, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL HIGH-SCHOOL GRADUATION EDITION I work at a high school where there’s a significant number of our students without papers. Two students that I worked with for four years graduated last June (one from Mexico, ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for May 20, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Why shouldn’t the U.S. adopt the same type of anti-illegal immigration laws that Mexico keeps on its books? Illegal aliens in Mexico are felons – so why do Mexicans complain if the U.S. ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for May 13, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL ANTI-MEXICAN SLUR EDITION Dear Readers: I was supposed to deliver this column for Cinco de Drinko, but Arizona’s reprehensible S.B. 1070 bill had to rear its ugly head. Big shout-outs, though, to the Phoenix ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for May 06, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL ARIZONA BUYCOTT EDITION Dear Readers: All together, now: ¡A LA CHINGADA WITH ARIZONA’S SB1070! For those of ustedes too occupied with your Drinko por Cinco hangover, the initiative (signed a couple of weeks ago ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Apr 22, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I have a friend who frequently wears a T-shirt that boldly states in big, bad-ass, Old English letters, “Hecho en México.” Five facts follow: *He was born 23 years ago in the United ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Mar 25, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I just read that Speedy Gonzales is getting his own feature film and will be voiced by George Lopez. I read in The Hollywood Reporter that Lopez said he gave Speedy his “Latino ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Feb 25, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I’m a lifelong resident of Arizona and have worked side by side with illegals for 25 years as a bloquero. In all that time, I never knew ONE of them to be an ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Feb 04, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: How can a formerly proud Latina like myself feel proud to be Mexican again after my beloved relative was murdered in Mexico by narcos while visiting? I still have love for my heritage, ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jan 21, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Half-Mexican here. I was fortunate enough to catch your column while I was visiting for the holidays. I have a comment in regards to [the gabacho who wrote the letter] Sick of All ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Dec 23, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL NAVIDAD GIFTS EDITION Dear Mexican: Can you recommend a solid, accessible history of California and Arizona so I can learn what really happened when the U.S. gobbled Aztlán? --La Chica Confundida Dear Wabette: The ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Nov 12, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Whenever I see an ad for a Mexican ramera, they always describe themselves as “spicy.” Are Mexican women hiding habañeros in their panochas? --Concha Curious Dear Gabacho: “I wish I could say that ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 29, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: For most of my life I was oblivious to the hate that Mexicans have for Salvadorans. Once I became engaged to my Salvi girlfriend or whenever I would tell any Mexican that I ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 08, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
If the pupusa is king in El Salvador, then the country’s tamales fall somewhere between viscount and baron in its culinary peerage: a standard but by no means necessary component. There are great Salvadoran food ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 01, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL, ANNUAL CANADIAN EDITION As a Mexican-American, I’ve lived in St. Louis for about 17 years and have seen a substantial influx of my brethren. Nevertheless, I’m for border security – against the no-good, godless ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 24, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
In Garfield comic strips that appeared earlier this year, Garfield is wearing a sombrero and taking siestas. While cute and all, isn’t this the sort of thing we’ve been striving to stop? –Odio Odie Dear ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 17, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
We gabachos get differing reports regarding the Reconquista. Some say it’s a genuine movement, well underway. Others claim it’ll never happen, but that it’s useful as a slogan that antagonizes white America and energizes young ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 10, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Why do Mexicans make the sign of mucho dinero with a gap between their thumb and index fingers, as if holding an imaginary wad of bills? - -El Zorro Chupagringos Dear Gabacho-Sucking Fox: Because if ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 20, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: My family hasn’t been long in this country, came here because of lousy treatment by other Europeans, and didn’t live close enough to the southern U.S. border to have exposure to Mexico or ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 06, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
SPECIAL SOCCER EDITION Dear Mexican: Why does El Tri act like pendejos every time the U.S. men’s national soccer team kicks their ass? They won’t even shake hands or exchange jerseys after the game and ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 30, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Special Houston Edition I’m curious about your take on English versus Spanish. I am an obviously Mexican-American woman, but sometimes I get angry at people that come up to me and assume I speak Spanish. ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 16, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: How can I get Mexicans to arrive to a meeting ON TIME? – Punctual Pete Dear Gabacho: Tell them you’re offering green cards on a first-come, first-serve basis. And then diles a gabachos ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 09, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Why do Mexicans make up stupid names? I’m not talking about indigenous names that sound different, but when you say them, they have a standard pronunciation. I’m concerned about names that are entirely made up, ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 02, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Looking back recently on my distant youth in northwest Ohio, I came to the realization that the sweetest, most beautiful girl this gabacho ever went out with (indeed, in my entire senior class) ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 04, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
I am a Chicano in Connecticut. I moved from Arizona to the East Coast for my dream job. I have to admit that I’m still homesick. Connecticut is a completely different world. To sum it ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Apr 30, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Readers: As you drinko por Cinco this May 5th, please take this column around listing songs that mariachis will actually, gladly play instead of having to glumly strum through the umpteenth “La Bamba” and ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Apr 16, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: You mentioned that conservatives can’t have an argument against illegal immigration without it degenerating into a diatribe against culture. Here’s an argument that has nothing to do with culture: In California, we now ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Apr 02, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Why aren’t more Mexicans talking about the economic destruction that NAFTA has caused in Mexico and the role it plays in the immigration problem? The state of Guanajuato, home state of former Mexican president Vicente ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Mar 12, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Not sure if this has been asked before, but how do you feel about Arizona’s Sheriff Joe Arpaio? I think the guy’s a racist who’s just out to get Mexicans to fulfill his ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Mar 05, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Readers: Before we move on to your spicy preguntas, a bit of housecleaning. Primeramente, gracias to all the Know Nothings who responded to my 100-word-essay challenge asking them to justify loving legal Mexicans but ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Feb 26, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I believe that the words people use to describe other people, intentionally or unintentionally, reflect their political values. You described César Chávez as hating “illegals” and as being ethnocentric early in his career. ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Feb 19, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: What is the deal with Mexican denial when it comes to dealing with child sexual abuse? I know counselors who tell me that it’s a big problem trying to get Mexican families to ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Feb 12, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I have a question from one Mexican to another: Why do gabachos think we know everything about plants? During conversations with the estadounidenses, I will get asked about plants, pruning, how to keep ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Feb 05, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I can’t tell you how disappointed I’ve been these past few days, as a U.S. citizen and ciudadano mexicano, how I’ve been seeing more and more stories about los narcos and how the ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jan 22, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Mi hermano y yo tenemos un dispute. We all know that Mexicans love their bistec sliced muy thin, but why? My brother is adamant that the diet of free-range vacas mexicanas results in ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jan 08, 2009
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I’m a Spanish teacher, and I’ve been hearing my students say a phrase that I am unsure what it means (if it truly means anything, which they swear it does). They say it’s ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Nov 26, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I hear all the time that 12 million illegal immigrants live in the United States. Is that true? Who counted them? How did they do it? Is there a turnstile at the border ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 30, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I know you’ve been asked variations of this before but I’m going to ask you again anyway. I’m a gay white guy and I’ve had three relationships with Mexican men in the last ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 23, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: One of our Arizona politicians once said on the PBS show Horizonte that the “crime” of being undocumented in this country is equivalent legally to that of a parking ticket. Do you know ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 16, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: A group of very young soldiers in the Mexican Army were being chased through the castle by U.S. Marines. At the end of the chase, the Mexicans realized they were trapped on a ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 09, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: A friend of mine calls Mexicans “wabs” but being a dumbshit, doesn’t even know what it means– except that it’s not P.C. What’s it mean? -ThesaurusaurusMex Dear Gabacho: “Wab” is a slur that ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Oct 02, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
¡Dear Mexican: I’m half-Catalan, and the women on my mom’s side of my family have spent most of our lives being hated by Mexicans. I’ve never understood it. My mom and aunts warned me as ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 25, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: What is an anchor baby? I am a 45-year-old male born in the U.S.A. My mother was born in ex-Yugoslavia (now Serbia), and my father was also born in ex-Yugoslavia (now Croatia). My ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Sep 04, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I’m an illegal alien. Got here on a tourist visa and stayed for a job. My gabacho employer knows about it and doesn’t care. I don’t apologize: Ever since I can remember, the ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 21, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I am the proud uncle of five Mexican-redneck kids who recently moved to Wausau with their mamá wisconsiana after living in la Capirucha all their lives. I’ve talked to them on the phone ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Aug 14, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: As a Mexican, I’m always ashamed of the fact that a lot of Mexican women just come to the United States to have babies and to utilize this country’s welfare. I know a ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 31, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: What’s with calling yourselves “La Raza?” Being Mexicans, Chicanos or whatever isn’t enough– now you’re THE race? Sounds pretty racist to me. –The Race Is On Dear Gabacho: Few things annoy the Mexican ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 17, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Why are there Mexicans in the Border Patrol? What a hypocritical thing to do to our people. –Carne Asada Carlos Dear Wab: Not only are Mexicans in the Border Patrol, but la migra’s ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 03, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Whenever I have an immigration debate with my Chicano hermanos who support open borders and get angry at any type of immigration control, they don’t seem to understand the basic laws of economics, ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 26, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: What do you think would happen if U.S. citizens could as easily buy land and set up businesses in Mexico as Mexicans can do in the U.S.? Might that be a big boost ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 19, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I read your column every week and notice your ongoing theme of pushing for “immigration reform.” I realize your concern for your compadres, but what of those of us who see that our ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 12, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Readers: The Mexican has previously published only one “best of” column in his nearly four years living under his cousin’s identity in this country. But I must pull this week’s first pregunta out of ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jun 05, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: First, it was the Native Americans, then it was the blacks, then the Japanese. For a while, Muslims. Now, I fear that American prejudice will soon overwhelm Mexicans. It’s one thing to get ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for May 22, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
I’m a California white boy with many Mexican friends. In addition to that, I’ve been running a fantasy baseball league for nine years. For the first time, we have a large percentage of Mexicans in ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for May 15, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Readers: My recent column regarding the dissimilarities between Scots and Mexicans provoked a surprising amount of angry responses – by real Scotsmen furious that letter-writer Great Scot could be so pendejo. Here’s the best ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for May 08, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Whenever I see the television show “Cops,” the white folks pull over and hope no one searches anything where there are at least three syringes, one crack pipe and enough pills that would ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for May 01, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Consider the similarities between my people, the Celtic Scots, and yours, the Hispanic Mexicans. Both our people trace roots back to Spain. We sailed north to the British Isles and mixed with the ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Apr 24, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Readers: The paperback version of my book is out in stores now, cheap enough so that even a Guatemalan can afford it. Buy, por favor! Now, on to the preguntas… Dear Mexican: Lately, I’ve ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Apr 17, 2008
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: Why don’t Mexicans have enough gratitude for America to learn to speak English? Are they too stupid? Too lazy? What – they can’t learn two or three words a day? Is this asking ...
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: What is it about the word “illegal” that Mexicans don’t understand? – Mondo Minuteman Dear Gabacho: Take your pick, Mondo. Mexicans don’t understand the word “illegal” because: (A) when paying their gardeners, nannies, ...
