Herb
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Cultural Education part 1
I fell in love with Mexico as a nation and as a people as an exchange student in the DF (Mexico City) nearly 20 years ago, I learned some valuable
lessons about cultural differences and being too quick to be judgmental about those differences just because they were different from what I had grown
up with.
I received word from my mom while I was there that she had received a notice in the mail that there was now a warrant for my arrest because I had
failed to appear in court on a traffic ticket that I received just before leaving for Mexico. I was visibly upset because I had completely forgotten
about the ticket in my preparations to leave and I knew that it would be a costly mistake. When I explained my plight to my Mexican friends they were
amazed at why I had let this happen. The following conversation ensued:
Friend: Why didn?t you just take care of it?
Me: Well, I just forgot about it.
Friend: No, I mean why didn?t you just take care of it there with the officer. You know, just slip him a little something.
Me: You can?t do that in the US, it is illegal.
Friend: It is technically illegal in Mexico but that is the way we handle such matters here.
Me: Yes, but if I tried to do that in the US the officer would not accept it and I?d be in bigger trouble. Besides, even if he might want to accept
it, he has no way of knowing if I?m not just another undercover officer checking up on him to make sure he won?t take a bribe. They do that there, you
know.
Friend: Well if you were an undercover cop, then the officer could just bribe you to not report it, right?
Me: No, that wouldn?t work back home. There?s always someone checking up on everyone else and eventually you would get caught. Our system isn?t messed
up like it is here in Mexico.
Friend: Ok, let me ask you some questions then. How much will this cost you when you get home?
Me: Hundreds of dollars
Friend: Are you a criminal or bad person?
Me: No
Friend: Then why do they want to put you in jail? And whose system is messed up?
Me: Hmmm!?
A couple of weeks later, I got to see their system in action. I was riding with that same friend when he was pulled over by a police officer for a
busted taillight. My friend immediately hops out of the car and begins to engage the officers in conversation. He explains that he had been meaning to
get the light fixed and that he had gotten busy and had forgotten. He tells them that he appreciates that the officers are doing their part to keep
the city safe by reminding people of such things and that working so hard in such an important job must make them pretty hungry. He hands them the
equivalent of about 13 US dollars and suggests a restaurant nearby that is owned by a friend of his where they can still get a really good dinner even
though it is late at night. Everyone smiles and shakes hands and we are once again on our way.
?You See!? he says as we drive away. I am amazed. Even though I know that this particular infraction would be a fix-it ticket back home, I realize
that this would have worked for most any minor traffic violation down here. It was a lot cheaper for my friend than any ticket I had ever received in
the US and he would not have to take a day off of work in the future to go to court or hassle with getting someone to ?sign it off.? It was also the
most pleasant exchange I?ve seen anywhere between an officer and someone being stopped.
I realized then that bad and corrupt have more to do with how people treat and respect each other than the specific ?rules of the game? for a given
culture. It is their country and their system. It works for them and leaves them feeling better about it in the end than ours. I smiled as I thought
of the likelihood of being greeted with gunfire if I had jumped out of my car so enthusiastically back home.
Don?t get me wrong; I don?t in any way condone the kind of violent or excessive criminal behavior of police officers in Tijuana that have been
discussed in other posts. But I learned a lot that month about grouping and labeling things as bad just because they are different.
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Anonymous
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An Angry Man stirreth up strife, and a Furious Man aboundeth in Transgressions.
Proverbs 29:22
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Herb
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Uh oh, JR!
It looks like I've been tagged as going to hell along with you and Natlie Ann!
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Ski Baja
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I'll bring the Ballenas !
It's time for a return to Addams Family values!
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Mike Humfreville
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The down side: Since there is no record of the problem with the failed light, there is no incentive to fix it.
The up side: If it is given that only drivers in error are stopped, the innocent taxpayer is not burdened with the cost of law enforcement, which is
paid for by those in error.
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Herb
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Upside, downside...
Funny you should mention that, MikeH.
I learned in further discussions with my freinds there that the plus and minus thing could go on endlessly. There is a financial incentive to get it
fixed. It gets cheaper ultimately to fix the light that to continue buying dinners for 2.
And, yes, they said that sometimes they do get pulled over for doing nothing wrong. Of course they also pointed out that because of this extra income,
they don't have to pay their officers as high of a salary as we do here, so their tax burden is less.
The important lesson for me is that it was their system and they were happy with it and it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought.
[Edited on 1-8-2004 by Herb]
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Dave
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The amazing thing is that your Mexican friend was stopped for a busted taillight. I have seen,swear to God, a federal pass a national plated car at
night on the cuota with NO lights and going 25 mph, to stop a speeding gringo.
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Herb
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Follow the money...
Despite the busted tail light, my friend had a nice car. Whether you call them corrupt or not, they're not dumb.
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Anonymous
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Certainly the Lord rewards the behavior of the godly, but the behavior of the wicked is self-destructive:
Psalms 1:6
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Ski Baja
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Can't you switch
to the religious channel or something ?
It's time for a return to Addams Family values!
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Anonymous
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ANSWER NOT A FOOL ACCORDING TO HIS FOLLY,LEST THOU ALSO BE LIKE UNTO HIM.
PROVERBS 26:3
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Stephanie Jackter
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Thanks for a little perspective, Herb.
And another interesting difference is that here, that poor person is the one who is more likely to be stopped (especially if he's driving while black
or brown). In the bribe system, there's little incentive to stop the person who's least likely to be able to pay the instant multa.
With whatever the drawbacks, though, I still prefer our system, knowing that the little bribes lead to the bigger ones and that there is definitely
more high level corruption in the Mexican legal system because low level corruption is tolerated and supported. It's not all about traffic tickets in
the end. There's a lot of systemic rot.
When it comes down to it, I think most people I know, Mexicans and non Mexicans alike, would rather be under the Los Angeles or New York legal and
economic system (I mention the two because they're intertwined), than under the system in Mexico City. I just don't think the average Mexican is
truly happy with the corruption unless he is one living at the total top of the food chain who does have the resources to pay off anything. Everybody
else loses in the long run.
Having said that, I'm particularly vulnerable to you argument right now, Herb. Here's a letter to the editor I just penned:
"My pre-trial hearing at criminal court is on Monday. At the arraignment a couple of weeks ago, I sat and listened while plea deals were being struck
with the other criminal defendants, many of whom had multiple counts against them for various drug offenses and misbehavior in public. They were
offered "diversion". Plead guilty, take the fine, get a little counseling and the criminal conviction would be wiped off their records completely.
After being offered no leniency in exchange for my plea, I asked why I, someone who committed the offense of walking my dog thirty feet from the door
of the dog run to my car without a leash, should be given a lifelong criminal history for that act. The clerk told me I needed to take that up with
Mayor and Council, who decided not to make that particular crime a misdemeanor. I sure don't get it. But I guess they must.
If it had been a misdemeanor, I would have just paid the fine whether I felt I was guilty of the crime or not. But with a criminal conviction
looming, would it be wise for me to do anything other than taking up the court's time and our tax payer dollars to contest this absurdity?
After my three strikes, I just hope they won't make the handcuffs too tight and my children will be well cared for. I do hope someday God and society
and the Mayor and Council can all forgive me for what I've done.
Stephanie Jackter"
When the goin' gets tough, the wierd turn pro
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Anonymous
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Appeasers beleive that if you Keep throwing Steaks to the Tiger the Tiger will turn Vegetarian.
Broun
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