Where to begin?
Yes! I admit that Dominicans are grossly uneducated in comparison to the developed world and civilized nations, but then again, I'd lived in most of the developed world and found many have lost any resemblance to a human civilization; they have exchanged human contact for machines that pretty much do all that is needed for them.
Now those same "educated" cultures are at the mercy of nature. A real bitch when you try to fool with her around...
The vast majority of Europe's rivers are just channels to transport stuff, not gather drinking water from them mind you...
The plumbing in the UK is alive and will suck you into the pipes if not careful in many places. Livestock in Germany is so stuffed with antibiotics and other crap, that you don't know if it's beef you're eating or the mass of living stuff they put into them.
In Italy, they got garbage up to their necks in all places, upscale included...
In France, a tourist or non-French is treated like varmint...
In Japan, if you don't make a real effort to become the last Samurai as you step in the country, you soon will tell the difference between their natural slanted eyes and the eyes of disapproval looking at you...
In Spain, Ole!!! Hombre! Sos una mierda!
Yes indeed, I admit we're very little educated in contrast to that which you have come to understand as "developed".
But then again... You can't even BUY your way into the elite of Santiago with all your foreign currency and education...
The bulk of expats that make their lives in the DR will come in contact many times with many people, but seldom cross paths with elites in their day to day activities.
Let me explain:
Donald Trump is a millionaire with education (yes/no?). Yet Trump and all his money (allowing for most of the real estate to be paid for, which is not) still comes short to MANY people in Santiago that constitutes the Elite.
But you see, we're uneducated people to your level of culture...
That's why a good 85% of big biz in the DR is owned by Dominicans! Since we lack the proper education and courtesy of your culture, we hog as much as we can from the table into our hands...
The last time I had the same light discussion above this opinion of yours, Carlos Piantini made the remark of any good insolent, uneducated Dominican and said "Ese es un baboso"... Truly an unrefined man to your standards of education and finesse...
Now on the issue of figuring out electricity, is better said that you're a newcomer to this country and have little knowledge of the inner workings.
Let me try and enlighten you here: Ever since the first jolt of electricity made its way to a light bulb in the DR, the Dominican gov paid the bill for 3/4 of the country that couldn't afford it to begin with. The rest of us that could handle the price got billed to cry for.
Still to this day, the gov keeps the subsidy to this industry; the subsidy allows the poor to be able to watch TV, iron the clothes and listen to the radio. All basic signs of modernity. If the gov dropped the subsidy for the power generating companies, the actual bill would be a slap in the face opening an invitation to a duel for both clients and utility company...
People come into the DR and after spending some months/years think they have it all figured it out, not!
The DR was founded by cattle ranchers, land owners with vast farms, sugarcane barons and whatnot. The people that populated the city were just as spoiled brats as they may come. The traditions of dressing your best garbs on Sundays to stroll the parks and paseos were the common thing to do.
The people of the DR always made good money, being the country a good exporter of goods to Europe and the entire American continent. The best families sent kids to Europe's best schools and lavish parties where the norm to society in both cities of SD and Santiago.
The cattle ranchers, sugarcane barons and others, amassed huge wealth and stuck to their little speck in the Caribbean instead of moving to other developed countries of the time.
The wealth has been passed down fro then on. Many families of Santiago are still settled in the same houses they lived all their lives. Many live in secluded areas in the campos while others do so within the city itself.
Wealth is money enough that you couldn't become poor even if you wanted to... Your kids will attend the same schools that their kids attend and if lucky,
could make friends with them.
But you see, this is where it gets funny! Dominicans for the most part, shun away from the celebrity and wealth status that most foreigners tend to associate elite classes in their home countries with.
Our kids will attend school with all the other kids, which parent can afford to send to private schools. No fancy "elegantarian" schools...
Is called love for their country and culture!
Our colleges lack nothing in comparison to those in the developed world, what we lack is development of the private industry sector. One that has been dormant for ages, since very little could affect their control over the market until now.
It's the private sector that contributes so that advances are made in short term and colleges adjust to those needs in return.
Take the IT educational system, even in the US and Europe the colleges are lacking greatly in meeting the technological needs of the industry, mostly due to the accelerated pace in which advances are done within the industry.
The DR will do just as those other countries have done so far; meet the needs of the internal industry as the industry sets the pace of innovation in the classrooms.
Exploitation is what the Dominicans are doing to the foreign investors that see the culture and underestimate the regular folk as second class to them. Not knowing that we're the same people that got off the boats and traded mirrors for gold... Today we use a better mirror that needs not to be pushed for the trade to take place. It just needs to be seen with the crystal clear waters overlapping the coast...
Just imagine if indeed, we took the initiative to market the country to the world with real funds to push the boundaries?!?
But they still come and leave behind their gold and take with them the memories of our beautiful sun drenched beaches with heavenly sands...
Yes indeed! We're a gross people!
