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DENNIS
Platinum Nomad
Posts: 29510
Registered: 9-2-2006
Location: Punta Banda
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It amazes me that the absence of venom, sylens word, and the interchange of friendly thought can be considered so unusual here.
Perhaps we should adopt the holiday spirit throughout the year.
It's not too early, I hope, so Merry Christmas everybody.
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Diver
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4729
Registered: 11-15-2004
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Very good thoughts, Sylens.
I had been sitting back realizing all the similarities in those "differences" that were brought up by some.
Yes we are all so different but also so alike.
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jerry
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their theives and murders in every cultures allways have been these are not the norm there are brillent people these are not the norm eather
just because one culture may be more articulate with words expressing them selves doesnt mean that another culture who isnt has different intentions
i think everything is learned and a lot of that is goverened by the teachers be it schooling , religion or family
why do the mexican people speak spanish?? spanish is an influence not native
jerry and judi
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DENNIS
Platinum Nomad
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Location: Punta Banda
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Actually jerry, Mexican people spoke Japanese until April 7th, 1762, when they discovered they had no word for Fish Taco so, they made a small
adjustment in communication.
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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
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And to be Mexican........is so Mexican!
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Oso
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2637
Registered: 8-29-2003
Location: on da border
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Mood: wait and see
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I'm not sure where anyone got that DNA percentage, but 96 to 99%, depending on methodology, is the shared DNA between humans and chimpanzees. Not
really a surprising statistic in light of fairly recent elections in various parts of our small planet.
All my childhood I wanted to be older. Now I\'m older and this chitn sucks.
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Paula
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Location: Loreto
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How do different languages affect the general personality traits of different groups of people united by location and shared history? There are words
and ideas that can be expressed in one lanuage or the other, but require very non-literal translations to equal the same thought. Does this fact
affect behavior, or does behavior affect language?
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Barry A.
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Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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Oso-----
I assume that you are talking about the elections on Nov. 8???? Yes, I too was amazed, but the Monkeys came out in force that day, I guess, and set
us all back a little. 
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Minnow
Banned
Posts: 1110
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: Lost Wages
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Mood: Embarrased Harry Reid is a Nevadan
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Here we go again.
Comitan. Saludos
I was actually spell bound, for a minute, by purely intelectual thought.
My bad.
[Edited on 3-12-2006 by Minnow]
[Edited on 3-12-2006 by Minnow]
[Edited on 3-12-2006 by Minnow]
Proud husband of a legal immigrant.
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Iflyfish
Ultra Nomad
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Registered: 10-17-2006
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sylens,
I am glad you have weighed in.
You have said “i'm way over-generalizing, but it is my way of reconciling my sense that we are so tremendously similar (99.9???% shared dna) and yet
indescribably unique. and yes, i think cultural similarities/differences fall in the same boat. looked at from some perspectives, it is amazing how
all societies have developed cultures to deal with the same issues. but from another perspective, it is wondrous to enjoy the dramatically different
way cultures have done this. and i'm using "cultures" in the broadest sense”
You are pointing at the dynamic I am looking at. Most people do not know that DNA is expressed via interaction with the environment. DNA exists as
potential and is expressed as it interacts with the environment. Certain contexts and stimulation must occur for this expression to happen. DNA is
also mutable and changes over time. Environmental influences change DNA. The giraffe modified it’s DNA over time to extend the neck in order to eat
tender leaves that grow on the top of trees. The organism changes to adapt to it’s environment. It takes the monarch butterfly something like four
generations to complete one cycle of it’s migration. That is how important DNA is to butterfly behavior.
The human brain appears to have gone through three distinct phases of development. The primitive or “reptilian” brain is shared with the reptiles. The
neocortex developed later and allows for much more complex behavior. The frontal lobes developed later and are very involved in mediating behavior and
in complex thinking related to cause and effect as well as forward thinking. The brain evolved over time through genetic mutation to adapt to its
changing environment.
Jerry wrote in part “why do the mexican people speak spanish?? spanish is an influence not native” among many other things you have said. I want to
acknowledge taking this statement out of context.
Farasha wrote in and exchange with longlegs “As the skin is renewed on an daily basis - and within 2 weeks we have a complete NEW skin - and still ol'
habits!!
Maybe we (humans) should do the same? Changing by adjusting every so often, just keeping the important features (likes the wrinkles in a faces or
moles) that make us distinctive, a personality. And sheding the flaws??”
I wonder if indeed this is what happens on a genetic, DNA, RNA level. The human organism, including the brain evolves over time.
There are those in this dialogue who have proposed that our behavior is all learned. Like a “tabla rosa” we appear as blank slates and then our
culture is written on it. It is clear that this certainly happens. We learn languages and social customs and norms that are the substance of our
cultures. We also have genetic material that modifies itself to meet the demands and context of our lives. We have an organ called an appendix that
used to be used for digesting fiber. We no longer need it but it still sits there like an embarrassing dolt of a cousin at our elegant table. Our
brain is still wired to react to stimuli like we still had sabor tooth tigers around. Most all of us have had the experience of our fight/flight
system going into overdrive in an inappropriate context. Certain hormones if expressed in excess can over ride out judgment and we find ourselves
waking up with people who we do not find attractive in the morning. I digress a bit, flood of testosterone.
To those who ascribe to the learning theory I would ask why is it that some people have a greater capacity for language than others? Why do some excel
at mathematics while others flounder? Is it possible that entire races and cultures have evolved certain parts of their brains more than others. Is
it possible that the more square shape of the Asian skull allows for more material in the frontal lobes? Is it possible that certain races/cultures
have developed bigger gluteus maximus muscles in order to run and jump better? Is it possible that certain hummingbirds have developed beaks that are
a perfect fit for one flower and that beak differs from their cousins?
Is it possible that human beings in northern climes did not need as much melanin in their skin to act as a natural sunscreen? Is it possible that
human beings in more southern climes with greater sun exposure have retained more melanin in their skins to adapt to more sun than their cousins in
northern climes?
Is it possible that some groups of human beings developed more complex language and frontal lobe structures to deal with different environmental
challenges?
I was once asked if I could be reborn into any place and time that I had knowledge of and where and when would that be. I answered Polynesia in the
eighteenth century. Great temperature, lots of fruit available for the picking, lots of fish readily available, la vida man! Easy life!, no need to
ponder all this stuff!
Well, that’s enough for tonight. I have promised myself a good night sleep.
Ilfyfish when not engaged in useless thinking
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jerry
Super Nomad
Posts: 1354
Registered: 10-10-2003
Location: loreto
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anything is possible.
if it found to be true by who??
by what measure??
is sciense itself flawed??
evolution ??probibly??
inviroment for sure
another few 100,000 years and im sure all these questions will answer them selves
me headed to baja in january and i hope nothing changes before i get there
jerry and judi
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fdt
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4059
Registered: 9-7-2003
Location: Tijuana, Baja California
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Mood: Yeah, what if it all goes right
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| Quote: | Originally posted by DENNIS
It amazes me that the absence of venom, sylens word, and the interchange of friendly thought can be considered so unusual here.
Perhaps we should adopt the holiday spirit throughout the |
Funny, isn't it, and if you notice, usual venom throwers are'nt posting here and we even have the big time people involved now. Congrats to us all!
A well informed Baja California traveler is a smart Baja California traveler!
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fdt
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4059
Registered: 9-7-2003
Location: Tijuana, Baja California
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Mood: Yeah, what if it all goes right
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And Big wow
7 pages, 120 replies an almost 2000 views. hey Doug, I think there maybe sould exist a "Cultural Diferences area".
saludos
A well informed Baja California traveler is a smart Baja California traveler!
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FARASHA
Senior Nomad
Posts: 848
Registered: 6-3-2006
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HEY- THIS THREAD IS STILL GOING !!!!!!!!
I DID INDEED MEAN FRIENDS - not Acquaintances, and as it is, I'm not a native english speaker, I looked it up (for my correct spelling) and found much
more on Acquaintance then I thought - look it up: http://www.reference.com/search?r=2&q=Acquaintance It gives a quite good Idea about all we are talking about too (beside spelling).
A nice sunday from over the pond!!
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FARASHA
Senior Nomad
Posts: 848
Registered: 6-3-2006
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Iflyfish
Farasha wrote in and exchange with longlegs “As the skin is renewed on an daily basis - and within 2 weeks we have a complete NEW skin - and still ol'
habits!!
Maybe we (humans) should do the same? Changing by adjusting every so often, just keeping the important features (likes the wrinkles in a faces or
moles) that make us distinctive, a personality. And sheding the flaws??”
I wonder if indeed this is what happens on a genetic, DNA, RNA level. The human organism, including the brain evolves over time.
Is it possible that human beings in northern climes did not need as much melanin in their skin to act as a natural sunscreen? Is it possible that
human beings in more southern climes with greater sun exposure have retained more melanin in their skins to adapt to more sun than their cousins in
northern climes?
Ilfyfish when not engaged in useless thinking |
I think that we are still evolving, that will never stop. And refering to the skin - we have had a darker skin in the past, we lost the melanin in our
skin, due to adaption to cooler/darker environment, with those tribes who wandered north. And those who develope skincancer are usually those with
skintyp I and II.
So we adapt continuously, for the good and for the bad (unfortunatly).
What does have also a GREAT influence is what happens also during fetal status, and birth, and nutrition during th whole time until we grow up - more
or less Oxygen,Protein, Vitamins - IS influencing the developement of the brain - which has an influence on differing intellectual developement. Plus
the social surrounding that is more or less supportive by stimmulating a childs developemnt of brain and skills.
AND STILL I find siblings are some times sooooo DIFFERENT as one can not imagine - maybe a precaution from nature to avoid inbreeding??
I see it as a VERY COMPLEX thing why we differ in some ways, and in other ways are the same.
Fact is - we incline to look for different Genetic material for reproduction, and I think that is why we are also drawn to differing cultures
etc....As the Variety/Diversity will keep us alive as Human Species!??
WHATEVER the Reasons, I ENJOY IT A LOT - the Diversity as much as Common Grounds!
[Edited on 3-12-2006 by FARASHA]
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Lee
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3477
Registered: 10-2-2006
Location: High in the Colorado Rockies
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Believe it or not....
"In some parts of Spanish America, esp. the Andean countries (Equador, Peru, Bolivia), people who are open, frank, direct are considered rude and
blunt.... in some places, in order to be kind to you, people will tell you what they think you want to hear...
The Hispanic Way
(Aspects of Behavior, Attitudes and Customs in the Spanish Speaking World)
Judith Noble / Jaime Lacasa
NTC/Contemporary Pub. Co. 1991
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longlegsinlapaz
Super Nomad
Posts: 1685
Registered: 11-18-2005
Location: La Paz
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A prime example of cultural diversity, thought processes & appreciation….or lack thereof:
Setting the scene:
Place: El Centenario
Time: 9:00 PM, Saturday night
The unnecessarily amplified Mariachi band sets up with much testing of the sound system, resulting in squawks & high pitched screeching that put
the resident hens & roosters to shame, while most likely doing irreparable damage to egg production for the foreseeable future!
They seriously blast into full swing around 9:30 PM; the bass setting cranked to a ground-shaking level that could have made one believe that they
were in Asuncion! Throughout the casa, heavy iron doors & window frames began a steady vibration, rising & falling dramatically along with
the heavy beat of the music….the entire structure mimicking a tuning fork! Dogs joined in the ear-splitting competition! Plaintive cries (shrieking)
of young Mexican maidens added to the raw sounds pulsing out into the night!
The single gringa in the rental casa on the adjoining property: cursing the inventor of amplifiers, Thomas Alva Edison, Ben Franklin,
CFE, whatever Mariachi group first decided that amplification was necessary, let alone would somehow add to the quality of their performance; along
with whoever sold it to them! She found herself wondering how much the owner of the adjoining property was paying the Mariachi group to perform; ergo
how much it might cost her to pay them to pack up their electronic equipment & call it a night! She was praying for a power failure, rain,
hurricane, tsunami, drug raid, swarm of locust; ANYTHING that would leave a deafening silence in its wake! By 10 PM she was gritting her teeth; then
came 11 PM….12 PM….1 AM (I won’t attempt to describe her progressively deteriorating mental state!) Suffice it to say that she gave up any attempt of
sleep around 1:30 AM! She got up & let her dogs out to join in the festivities & attempted to ignore the vibrations reverberating through her
concrete casa enough to concentrate to play a computer word game. She experienced great joy as the decibel level of the neighborhood dropped
considerably around 2:15 AM, the pleasant sound of cars pealing off down the dusty road & out onto the highway became the new music to her ears!
Eventually, somewhere around 4:30 AM sleep finally came! This was her around 8 AM >>>>  
The several hundred Mexican residents within a mile: Most likely simply appreciated the free music! 
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FARASHA
Senior Nomad
Posts: 848
Registered: 6-3-2006
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LEE , yeah, also in other places like Bedoins in Sinai, or in Asia.They would not be open to you unless you really become a CLOSE friend and part of
family.
[Edited on 3-12-2006 by FARASHA]
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Minnow
Banned
Posts: 1110
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: Lost Wages
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Mood: Embarrased Harry Reid is a Nevadan
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Here's another example/ what are the chances of this happening in the states.
Nov. 20, dia de revolucion, is celebrated all over Mexico with parades. In Maneadero there is only 1 paved road, which happens to be the main
highway, MX 1. For three hours in the mourning of Nov. 20 the highway was closed to have their parade. Hundreds of children, bands, beauty queens,
and the like, had their chance to be the center of attention. Mean while, hundreds of cars, trucks, motorhomes, were forced to try and work their way
around the festivities, or wait it out. I found myself in the middle of it when I went to town to buy propane. So what do my wife and I do. Sit and
watch the parade, of course. Here is a quote from her. "if the mountain won't come to you, you need to go to the mountain". Cosas de la Vida.
Great story longlegs! I hope you get some sleep soon.
[Edited on 3-12-2006 by Minnow]
Proud husband of a legal immigrant.
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Iflyfish
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3747
Registered: 10-17-2006
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Great stories, this is the stuff of the differences. Love to read these anecdotes!
I'll bet those native Mexicans who have visited the USofA have some funny stories too. These stories reflect the culture of the writers. To a native
Mexican they would be so syntonic they might not be worth repeating. Culture is like a bone in our nose, others are odd not having them.
I once stayed in the Obrero, a Basque hotel in the middle of China Town in San Francisco. I opened the front door early in the morning and was hit by
a wall of Chinese language and culture. I hunkered in a doorway for a while to acclimate myself to the scene. I recall watching these Chinese women
sorting through vegetables like they were gold panning. I watched as they picked up each piece of fruit or vegetable and turn it repeatedly in their
hands. Examining, squeezing, smelling, and puncturing with their fingernails. After discarding a dozen oranges, one or two made the cut. Then they
progressed to the onions and quinces.
I think that I am so used to having the brightest, biggest, shiniest vegetables available in abundance with the vegetable guy at the store throwing
away anything that is in the least way blemished. So this ritual fascinated me. I then discovered that often-unwitting store clerks would give away
persimmons that are soft. They of course are best eaten soft. I have scored a lot of them by asking “are you going to sell these?”
Iflyfishwhennotpeoplewatching
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