Mexican Culture

Mexican Culture Interpersonal Communication 102 February 17, 2013 There are many different cultures around the world. The Mexican Culture is one that is expanding rapidly in the United States. Although the Mexican Culture is expanding it is very different from the American Culture. The Mexican Culture is a high masculine culture. There are similarities within the American Culture and the Mexican Culture, but also many differences. I was able to spend time with my future step brother-in-law on his daughter’s 1st birthday.Although I have went to family functions that he has attended as well, I did not know him. He typically only speaks Spanish unless he responds directly to a question in English. I was able to learn a lot about Sabino, and his culture. Without this assignment I feel I would not have grown to appreciate Sabino and the Mexican culture. In fact if not for this assignment I would not have attended Evelyn’s, Sabino’s daughter, first birthday celebration . Evelyn’s birthday party was not exactly what I expected. No one sang the traditional American Happy Birthday song.Instead a song called â€Å"Las Mananitas† is sung. Sabino informed me that the lyrics do not translate into Happy Birthday. The song is â€Å"Estas son las mananitas, que cantaba el Rey David,? Hoy por ser dia de tu santo, te las cantamos a ti,? Despierta, Evelyn, despierta, mira que ya amanecio,? Ya los pajarillos cantan, la luna ya se metio. Que linda esta la manana en que vengo a saludarte,? Venimos todos con gusto y placer a felicitarte,? Ya viene amaneciendo, ya la luz del dia nos dio,? Levantate de manana, mira que ya amanecio. † (S.Xique, personal communication, January 20, 2013). This song is translated into â€Å"This is the morning song that King David sang? Because today is your saint's day we're singing it for you? Wake up, Evelyn, wake up, look it is already dawn.? The birds are already singing and the moon has set. How lovely is the morning in which I come to greet you.? We all came with joy and pleasure to congratulate you? The morning is coming now, the sun is giving us its light? Get up in the morning, look it is already dawn. † (S. Xique, personal communication, January 20, 2013).This song was not only sung at the party, but this is how they woke Evelyn up that morning. What surprised me the most about this birthday celebration is that it was not just a party for Evelyn, but a party for the entire family. It was a chance for everyone to get together with food and drinks. The adults partied as much as the kids. Everyone pitched in and provided different dishes and beer. It seemed that each mom competed for the best dish. I was able to sample tamales and carnitas. I was not brave enough to try all of the dishes as I was told some were extremely spicy.At times it was awkward for me as most of the conversations where in Spanish, but I everyone was extremely polite and gracious. Although I did not know ma ny of the people there I felt like part of the family. After observing my future step brother-in-law’s family the way they live is very different than the way one would live in America. Sabino’s family is different from my own family and after talking more with Sabino I realized he is a very traditional Mexican. One of the biggest differences was his children do not believe in Santa Claus.They still celebrate Christmas, but do not believe in the reason children receive gifts. This may not be true with all people among the Mexican Culture, but it was for Sabino’s side of the family. He said it is very important for him and his wife and his children, to understand that Christmas and Christmas presents are not important, but the reason for the season is extremely important. Sabino’s family is devout Catholics and regularly attends mass (S. Xique, personal communication, January 20, 2013). . An obvious major difference is the language between the two cultures (Mukherjee, 2001).The Mexican Culture mainly speaks Spanish, while the American Culture mostly speaks English. Sabino is able to adapt to American way of life and he can speak English, but it is not his best language. He prefers to speak Spanish. He is quiet if people around him are speaking English, but if he is around others who speak Spanish he chats away. Sabion said he is just more comfortable and can understand things better in his own language. He said that not everything translates the way it is meant to, especially jokes and sarcasm (S.Xique, personal communication, January 20, 2013). While I was observing Sabino’s family I was able to learn many different things about their way of life. The Mexican Culture is very kind and loyal (Mukherjee, 2001). Most get married and have families. Sabino said many of his family members and him avoid any kind of confrontation, and do not try to get into any situation that would include disagreement. This would indicate that his cu lture is high in uncertainty avoidance. They are very sensitive and emotional with everything they do.Members of the Mexican Culture take pride in their work and try to do everything with the best of their ability. Money is not a form of achievement, but they will stride to do everything needed to take care of their families. They are very hard workers, and if they are asked to do something they usually do not hesitate and will complete the task efficiently (Mukherjee, 2001). Sabino regularly sends money back to his sister in Mexico to help her with her children (S. Xique, personal communication, January 20, 2013). This shows that Sabino is a part of a collectivistic culture.He cares about his family, but he believes that it is important focus on the needs of everyone and not just him and his family here. . Family is very similar in the eyes of the Mexican Culture, and the American Culture it is almost the same. The men usually work and the woman stays at home and takes care of dome stic chores and takes care of the children in the home. The Mexican family may not ever separate, and tend to live in the same household together for a very long time(Mukherjee, 2001). Sabino only left his family to start a family with his wife.He told me that some Mexican families never leave from the same house, and even when they start a family of their own, their family will all live together (S. Xique, personal communication, January 20, 2013). References Geert Hofstede, Culture’s Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviors, Institutions, and Organizations Across Nations. Second Edition, Thousand Oaks CA: Sage Publications, 2001 Mukherjee, B. (2001, September 23). Difference between mexican and american culture. Retrieved from http://www. buzzle. com/articles/difference-in-mexican-and-

Argumentative essay: Sex education in school Essay

In the U.S, more than 750,000 girls ages 15-19 become pregnant every year. More than 80 percent of these are unintended pregnancies, according to dosomething.org. That is a great amount of teenagers that could have potentially dodged a bullet with a little more sexual education. Will a lack of sexual education continue to play a role in the overwhelming amount of teenage mothers in America? In my opinion of course it will. Just like the article states, sex education is rising in American schools, and this is in favor of my argument on how I greatly support this upward movement my reason is we are just falling way behind! Further thought out and well presented sex education will reduce teen pregnancy and spread of sexual diseases. How exactly will better sex education in the states lead to fewer sex incidents within the sexually active community? Simply by education. Lack of education in anything will not give you positive results. Although it is said that there is no strong proof tha t teaching sex education will have any effect on teenagers and young adults, there is proof. Ex. Hechinger writes â€Å"Analysis in sex education in Sweden, Holland, France, Great Britain and Canada show us lagging far behind† (143). Reading the article and noticing the particular countries mentioned, I went to research. The countries mentioned are up to par with America as far as development and economy go, but fall way behind when it comes to all things sexual! We not only have higher teenage birth rates, we also have higher sexually transmitted diseases and lower use of oral contraceptives. The statistics and education don’t lie. I would have personally benefited from a more well put together sex education class and many other young lady’s would agree. (Rodriguez 2) I’m sure now the reader is wondering if there is a deeper reason for my argument. Yes there is. I am teen mother, I am a statistic, one of the person that adds on to the lack of sex education in America. One of the many teenager girls that had a lack of sexual education. I thought it could never happen to me just like in the article, ex, Hechinger writes â€Å"They believe ‘It can’t happen to me’.† (144). It wasn’t arrogance or ignorance it was my lack of understanding and me not wanting to ask questions related to sex. I now ask myself how many pregnant teenagers had the same questions I did? Lets follow in the countries listed in the article’s foot steps, in fact we have already started, considering sex education has increased dramatically in the last 5 years. Let it keep rising! I stand by my argument, lets give these confused teenagers the knowledge to rely on, just like Sweden, Holland, France, Great Britain and Canada have. They are statistically doing better the article speaks on it and so I stand by my argument. I give my full su pport to the growth of sexual education, I wonder if Laredo agrees with me? (Rodriguez 3) Hechlinger, Fred M. â€Å"The First Step in Improving Sex Education: Remove the Hellfire.† Reading and Writing Short Arguments.Ed. William Vesterman. New York: Mayfield Publishing, 1994. 143-146

The Adoration of Jenna Fox- Summaries

The The Adoration of Jenna Fox By: Mary E. Pearson Pages 1-50 Jenna Fox has just woken up from a coma after an accident she wasn’t supposed to survive and doesn’t remember a thing about her life. She is slowly starting to adjust to her new surroundings and learning small things she knows she should already know how to do. Her mother suggests that she what the discs her parents had been making since she was a baby. Jenna watches the disk and is vaguely reminded somewhat of her childhood. When Jenna explores her house she lives in she is curious as to why it is so empty and unlived in.One day when her mother goes to town and her grandmother, Lily goes to her greenhouse to avoid contact with her, Jenna sneaks out the front door and goes for a walk. On her adventure, she meets Mr. Clayton Bender, and makes friends with him. On her way back, Jenna cuts herself, which frightens her mother very much. Jenna all of a sudden has a memory of a trip to the beach with Lily that happ ened almost 15 years ago, an impossible thought but a memory none the less. After that Jenna starts remembering small things like her best friends and the T in Boston.She learns of her father’s latest invention, Bio Gel. The gel can make organ last indefinitely instead of having a limited shelf life. When Lily takes Jenna to a mission, she gets a sudden urge to get back in school to pick up where she left off. Everyone thinks it is an outrageous thought but her mother soon gives in and allows her to go to a small charter instead of a widely populated school where she could be put in a dangerous situation. Pages 51-100 Jenna is now determined to take control of her life back. On her way to Mr. Bender’s house, Jenna meets the boy he warned her about, Dane.This boy that lives at the end of her street seems to be very curious. At Mr. Bender’s House, Jenna is forced to turn away his hospitality towards her because of her special diet. After he told her he did researc h she did research on him as well. She learned that he was keeping a very big secret about his identity. When he confessed to her she felt they were better friends because of the secrets they shared. Jenna continues to watch her home movies and sparks a few of her lost memories. She remembers that she loved hot chocolate but her mother and grandmother get angry with her for disobeying her diet.She wants to pick up where she left off in school so she asks permission to start school again. Her mother allows her to attend a small charter that has a flexible schedule and a smaller class size. The first day she meets her few classmates and recognizes Dane. A boy named Ethan leads a discussion on Walden. When he makes an error, she corrects him, surprising him and her also. She is shocked again when Ethan invites her to join their group for lunch. At lunch Jenna gets a chance to meet the rest of her few classmates. Allys is the only other girl other than Rae, their teacher, and is the fir st to open up.Since everyone at the charter has a special reason for attending, Allys shares that her’s was a fatal disease that cause her to lose her limbs. Now she has prosthetics and is also the first person to tell Jenna they like her. Jenna opens up a little more about her condition. She also starts to grow a liking for Ethan as well. Lily and Claire get in an argument about Jenna’s social relationships. Jenna continues watching the discs and learning past details she’d forgotten. She starts working with Ethan at the mission until she finds a community service project of her own. She grows a closer bond with him and becomes fascinated with him.Allys expresses her feelings about FSEB and ethics problems unknowing that Jenna’s dad, founder of FoxBiosystems and creator of Bio Gel. Pages 100-150 Jenna explores the downstairs of the Cotswold and finds interest in Claire and Lily’s rooms. In Claire’s room she finds a locked door and has a nat ural instinct to look under the mattress and finds the key. Before she gets a chance to open it she is called away by someone at the door. Ethan visits her and they talk which slowly leads to them sharing a passionate kiss. Because Lily got upset with Jenna after the kiss, Jenna rebels and pours mustard into her nutrients before Lily can stop her.Jenna watches the last disc in her box and it shows Claire and Jenna having a fight about Jenna’s ballerina career. Jenna is determined to find out what is behind the closet doors. She pretends to go for a walk but sneaks into the closet instead. Inside she finds three boxes one with her full name on it. Trying to get it loose she cuts her wrist on an edge. Worried about what her mother will do she hurries to her bathroom to look at the gash. When Jenna falls down the stairs from being too dizzy, Claire discovers the cut. Now her parents are forced to tell her why there is hardly any blood coming from her wrist.They explain that she was terribly burned in the accident and something had to be done fast or she wouldn’t have made it. Her father informs her that her entire body is made up of Bio Gel. The only thing original in her is 10% of her brain. Jenna has a really hard time understanding the situation and believing that she is a real human being. She asks why they relocated and her father tells her that where they live now has a consistent temperature that will help her shelf life. She also learns the second reason for their location is Jenna being illegal with Bio Gel making up the substance of her body.Lily and Jenna have a conversation about why Lily acts so different towards Jenna. Her answer is that she let go of her granddaughter eighteen months ago and now has her in a different form. At school, Jenna is more unsocial than ever before. She is still trying to figure out what she is and what she needs to do next. Pages 151-200 Lily talks to Jenna about things she feels Jenna should know. She infor ms Jenna that before the accident she didn’t go to her room when Claire told her to; now she naturally goes without hesitation.Jenna is upset about the information but wants to prove it for herself. She waits until her father and mother chat on the Netbook and puts on a flipping plates show for them. When Claire furiously tells Jenna to go to her room, Jenna resists the urge. Her father and mother explain that they uploaded things into her when they were working on her scans. They were afraid she’d be so behind in school they uploaded the 10th through 12th grade curriculum. Jenna meets Ethan at the mission where he shares his dark secret that has burdened him.She trusts him enough to share the information she has just received. He doesn’t leave her but instead assures her she is going to get through it but warns her not to tell Allys because of her ethical standards. For a bacteria lesson, the group goes to a river scene. During her lesson, she starts talking ab out the FSEB which sparks something in Jenna. They get into a heated discussion that doesn’t end the best way. When Jenna visits Mr. Bender, she learns that someone broke into his garage but took nothing. She feels like she remembers seeing his car before but doesn’t know where from.She asks if she could use his netbook to do some research. The research is on her accident. She learns that Kara Manning and Locke Jenkins died after that accident and she would have been trialed if her condition wasn’t as deadly and severe. Jenna talks to her parents about them being dead and they said they didn’t want to push her with that information. Her mother is redecorating her so she asked for red drapes instead of the only color in her wardrobe, blue. She remembers getting the red skirt with Kara and goes on a rampage for it through the entire house.Lily shares with Jenna the escape plan if anyone from the government were to show up asking questions. When her mom goes to pick up her dad, Jenna goes to the closet. This time she discovers that the other two computers have Kara and Locke’s names on them. This sends Jenna over the edge. She runs into the forest and just lays there. Pages 201-265 Jenna gets mad at her parents for all the secrets they kept from her including the boxes. They told her they were backups in case something was to happen they would have all the blueprints and information needed to reboot her.They share the risks and complications of her situation. When she asks where Kara and Locke were they tell her that after their parents thought she was the one that caused them to get hurt they wouldn’t let the doctors in to prep everything. They both died before they could do anything. In class, they watched a long speech having to do with the FSEB. They have made many bad medical changes that negatively affected a lot of sick and injured people and the new medical act will take all control from them. Allys realized that Jenna is the daughter of Matthew Fox who she highly dislikes for his work with Bio Gel.After Mr. Bender somewhat saves Jenna from a sneak attack in the forest they go off and talk. Jenna admits she knows his name is Edward and he is her dad’s friend who set up the house and helps get her out of the country to Italy where the temperature is consistent. Jenna remembers the accident. She wasn’t driving, Kara was. But no one but the backups and she will ever know that. Jenna finds the real last disc and sees that she was under so much pressure to be perfect. At the beach, Jenna finally admits that she is tired of being on a pedestal and having so many expectations.When they get home there is a strange man there who is talking to Jenna’s father about moving the backups to a safer location. Ethan and Jenna go visit Allys who has Lupus which is causing her body to fail. They stay and talk to her for a while. Jenna confesses to her that she is really Matthew Fox’ s daughter. On the way back Ethan doesn’t want Jenna to get caught by the government and offers to take her anywhere. Lily and Jenna devise a plan to get rid of the backups. When they do, her parents are furious and tell Jenna those backups could have saved her. Jenna just wants to live her life without having a backup if she messes up.She wants to be normal more than anything. Allys’ parents visit Jenna’s parents and ask if they can help fix Allys up like they did with Jenna. The next part takes place 260 years later. Allys and Jenna live in Mr. Bender’s house. Everyone they know has past but they’re still there. They have traveled around the world speaking to people just like them. The laws of medicine have changed so much. Jenna has a daughter who she will eventually have to leave because no parent should outlive their child. The Bio Gel has been modified to make sure no one lives beyond an acceptable and appropriate time.

Leadrship Development and business Ethics Coursework - 1

Leadrship Development and business Ethics - Coursework Example Druyun later retired from her government position and joined Boeing. However, both Druyun and Sears were later fired for ethical misconduct based on the allegations from the US Department of Justice. When an internal probe into the ethical issues was conducted it was discovered that Druyun and Sears were involved in unethical activities and that the Boeing chairman Philip Condit was also involved in the discussions. With both Sears and Druyun pleading guilty of ethical misconduct they were both slapped with fines and respective terms of imprisonment. In another ethical issue, Boeing was accused of having accessed trade secrets of its competitor, Lockheed Martin and for which a former top executive was charged with ethical misconduct. Several other such ethical issues cropped up during the tenure of Condit. In one such case it was alleged that Boeing had manipulated its financial statements in order to clinch a merger with McDonnell Douglas. Another law-suit was filed by female employ ees of Boeing accusing the company of discrimination by lesser pay for the women employees and refusing their promotion. In addition the company was also accused of racial discrimination towards its employees especially African Americans. Condit was also known for his romantic liaisons with the female employees at Boeing. Later following two ethical scandals on the issue of bribes and sexual harassment, Condit resigned from his post of CEO which was then taken up by former President and Chief operating officer, Harry Stonecipher. Less than two years later Stonecipher had to resign his post due to an extramarital affair with a female Boeing employee that stood to violate the code of conduct of the company. Thus major ethical issues within the company involved CEOs who are expected to set and follow ethical standards. And most of the issues involved financials stakes and personal interests. While the

Why did the Oligarchs exercise so much influence in Russian political Essay

Why did the Oligarchs exercise so much influence in Russian political and economic life in the period 1993 -99 - Essay Example They did not move quickly enough, however, and in the autumn of that year Yeltsin simply dissolved the old former soviet political apparatus and declared that a new Duma (Parliament) would be elected. The Duma election was scheduled for 1995 and Yeltsin himself ran for re-election as president in 1996. These events characterized a period of immense political and economic instability and this was the environment in which a new breed of key players was born: the so-called â€Å"Russian Oligarchs†. The term â€Å"oligarch† is derived from the Greek meaning â€Å"governing by the few† and it usually has negative connotations relating to the abuse of power. There are at least four important factors which contributed to the emergence of the oligarchs and their growing influence in both politics and economic life in the period 1993-1999. This study will look at each of these in turn: By the autumn of 1993, it was clear to all observers that the old Soviet systems had fallen away and there was no immediate substitute in place. Yeltsin relied upon his personal authority and the support of the military to wrest control out of a disintegrating situation. The scene was set for a new era. Waller (2005: 13) analyses this decade under the heading â€Å"The Yeltsin years 1991-1999: reaping the whirlwind† and this is a good description of the mood in Russia across all sections of society. Old systems and habits had simply been swept away and no one could tell what would happen next. Other commentators stress the risks inherent in the new situation: â€Å"Russia and the other post-communist societies had to feel their way forwards on the edge of a precipice in the dark.† (Sakwa, 2008: 303). The majority of the population seems to have suffered a certain amount of shock and paralysis. The old communist regime had produced many inefficient

Case Study Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Case Study Paper - Essay Example The correct field data provides huge relevant information about people that are used by the government to initiate developmental and operational activities across the nation. The allocation of fund is distributed as per the requirements provided by the census data of the region and used for activities for the wider welfare of the society. Answer 2 The major risks associated with FDCA projects were primarily linked to the incomplete or inaccurate information that was communicated to the central offices from the field. The lack of effective technology was one of the key elements of inaccuracy in the data collection. The slow speed of mobile devices as well as their inability to handle large data became critical reasons for inaccurate census data. Thus 2010 data was too unreliable to use. Answer 3 The major problems that Census bureau faced in implementing its new wireless data collection system was using substandard and non tested handheld mobile computing devices. These devices were i ntended to replace the manual filling of questionnaire that were not only time consuming and costly but also difficult to organize. There were many factors that caused the problems. The management lacked accountability and FDCA executives were ill equipped to handle the challenges of technology. They were also not trained properly in using the technology or were made aware of the process of collecting important census data. The lack of effective communication within the organization also became critical aspect of failure in generating quality database. Last but not the least important was the mobile devices that were bought at exorbitant prices but were not able to transmit large data with speed and accuracy. Answer 4 The major steps that I would have taken to mitigate the risks in collecting data are as follows: 1. Had ensured that executives and volunteers involved in data collection were trained in the process of using technology efficiently. They would also have been imparted tr aining in dealing with the respondents and extracting relevant information with accuracy. 2. The wireless mobile devices would have been tested on a pilot project of census data collection so that any problems like slow speed, inability of transmitting large data etc. could have been identified and rectified for final project. 3. Last but not the least would have been the reward system for executives who show consistent high performance. This would have motivated the field workers to work diligently and help in collecting relevant and accurate census data. Answer 5 Had I been in charge of managing this project, the foremost thing that I would have initiated was create guidelines that would have made accountability as most critical part of job specifications of all employees working within the project. The hierarchy of officers involved with the FDCA would have been made accountable for lack of accuracy in data collection and transmission of same within the prescribed time to the cen tral data processing units. Field Data Collection Automation is a vital part of US Census, the accuracy of information therefore becomes highly critical for developing welfare policies based on demographic information. Placing accountability on workers would not only promote better work ethics but also ensure that they work conscientiously to achieve team based targets on time. Another important aspect where I would have focused on would have been t

How can cognitive behaviour therapy be modified to fit the needs of Essay

How can cognitive behaviour therapy be modified to fit the needs of young children - Essay Example The client works together with the therapist in developing skills relevant for recognizing ill full thoughts, testing adjusting beliefs, changing behavior, and how one relates with other people. Normally, many clients in need of cognitive therapy suffer from assumptions that direct them to certain reactions. Among the assumptions are the thoughts of unworthiness, under-estimation of achievements, over-generalization of issues, maximization of negative issues and minimization of positives. For example, person who would have lost their job due to an avoidable mistake might believe they are useless. Such persons may focus on the mistake that happened and use the mistake to justify their feeling of themselves. The believe leads the individuals to damaging emotions like frustration and hopelessness (Scaruffi, n.d., p1). Such persons see themselves as losers and thus start keeping to themselves in effort to avoid making similar mistakes in the future. A prolonged feeling of unworthiness adopts into a response that confirms the original feeling of being useless every time the person faces similar experiences. Cognitive therapy works at testing the assumptions the client had and co nsidering new information capable of shifting the assumptions to a direction that allows different behavioral or emotional reactions. The clients with the help of the therapist train how to use flexible ways of thinking and response to issues. The therapy challenges the clients to interrogate their thoughts on the truthfulness and the advantages of such thoughts to their goals. If a thought is found unhealthy, the therapy recommends it replacement with more helpful thoughts capable of facilitating more desirable responses and can aid achievements of the client’s goals. Cognitive therapy therefore can be termed as a skill-building approach that allows the therapist to teach the client how to practice the skills learned individually until they become their own