But it is not just what they were given. If they wanted something - a bike for example, they had to work for 6 weeks in the colmado to earn enough to pay for it - and within days it had been 'lent' never to be seen again. This type of generosity is just unbelievable. And they do not understand when I say 'this is mine', I do not lend it to anyone. Is it us europeans/north americans who have it wrong, not to want to lend our hard earned possessions???
- Thread starter Matilda
- Start date
Why do Dominicans lie???
Signs
I have seen many a Dominican workshop with the sign
"No prestamos herramientos."
They know their fellow countymen...
Janin
No, not only us.
I have seen many a Dominican workshop with the sign
"No prestamos herramientos."
They know their fellow countymen...
Janin
There is so much truth in this thread. I can tie the lying and the giving away stuff in a personal experience.
Christmas 2005, I bought my wife a black dress at Macy's. Retail 169 dollars, bought it for 99 dollars on special. Still, for me, that's alot of money for a dress. I asked her if she liked it, she says yes. Next time we're together in DR, I asked her has she worn it yet, she says that it looks too big on her and she was going to alter it to make it smaller and sexier before she would be comfortable about wearing it outside. Then, about a month later she says that Santo Domingo is tropical and women don't wear black dresses. Then she admitted that she gave it away.
See, it all ties together. A little white lie and a lack of respect for other peoples' hard earned money.
Christmas 2005, I bought my wife a black dress at Macy's. Retail 169 dollars, bought it for 99 dollars on special. Still, for me, that's alot of money for a dress. I asked her if she liked it, she says yes. Next time we're together in DR, I asked her has she worn it yet, she says that it looks too big on her and she was going to alter it to make it smaller and sexier before she would be comfortable about wearing it outside. Then, about a month later she says that Santo Domingo is tropical and women don't wear black dresses. Then she admitted that she gave it away.
See, it all ties together. A little white lie and a lack of respect for other peoples' hard earned money.
I noticed that Dominicans who work hard in the US for example do understand the value of time and money. But those who don't - just don't get it. It is not that they don't respect it, they just don't know what it is about. When I lived in a place where most people were paid very little or not paid for months at a time when USSR collapsed - most had the same approach. They were not able to make enough to save for anything of value anyway. So, money was spent quickly and easily because it will proably be worth nothing even tomorrow anyway
I was going to go to sleep, but I have to reply to this post. Many times I read these posts out of boredom, like some type of reality television show. This last post was short, made a point, used a strong example and was right on the money. I had to think about it and I agree. I am no wizard when it comes to managing money. Often times I will be almost broke until my next payday. When I plan ahead thinking of my next payday, I immediately think of what things I want to buy for myself that I haven't had in awhile (like having quality beer in the fridge, a night out at a decent restaurant), like a man finding water in the desert. So, I can imagine how much a relief many poor people worldwide feel the rare opportunities that they put their hands on some money.
Bravo. I totally agree.
Bravo. I totally agree.
I noticed that Dominicans who work hard in the US for example do understand the value of time and money. But those who don't - just don't get it. It is not that they don't respect it, they just don't know what it is about. When I lived in a place where most people were paid very little or not paid for months at a time when USSR collapsed - most had the same approach. They were not able to make enough to save for anything of value anyway. So, money was spent quickly and easily because it will proably be worth nothing even tomorrow anyway
One more time for a second there, I thought it was only Dominicans.
Rocky, from what I've read on here, you seem like a nice guy. Why does this quote seem a bit condescending?
They are pathalogical liars
Here's an example:
I work at POP airport as an aircraft engineer and I am responsible for the aircraft when it is on the ground.
The captain came up to me and said that I might need to look at the cargo door as he just witnessed the loader close the door on top of the FMC which is the scissor lift machine that brings the pallets to the aircraft cargo door.
When I saw the edge of the cargo door, there was a large chunk taken out of the door. So I asked the loader what happened. He told me that it was like it when it arrived. I then told him that the captain saw him cause the damage. He called the captain a liar. I then told him that I inspect the doors as part of my walkround inspections. The doors were fine on arrival. He then called me a liar! I then asked him if it was like it when the aircraft arrived then why didn't he bring it to my attention as I am the engineer and might be interested in it? He didn't know!
I then apologised to him and set about fixing the mangled door. He looked very sheepish after I said that I was sorry, and obviously the damage happened by itself!
I have learnt that this is the best way to get past the Dominican macho not-wanting-lose-face attitude. Apologise, say it's your fault and see what happens! He couldn't do enough for me to help me fix the mangled door!
Another instance almost caused me to cry with laughter last week. For you regular flyers out there, you may have noticed the large canvass bags that cabin crew use to put the rubbish in. Ours are bright red in colour and they are also fire retardant to comply with safety regs. Anyway, someone had spilt some milk on the jetbridge. The Dominican agent thought it would be a good idea to mop it up with an empty canvass garbage bag that he found in the galley. The purser told him not to do that as it would harm the bag's fire retardency. Holding the bag in his hand (dripping with milk) he stood there and said that he didn't do it!!! Even though the purser and myself saw him do it, he just denied it!
Even though we are dealing with relatively intelligent and educated Dominicans that work at an international airport, they cannot shrug off their basic inbred instincts when confronted...lie,lie and lie some more.
They are just like children...even the educated ones (just cleverer liars).
Here's an example:
I work at POP airport as an aircraft engineer and I am responsible for the aircraft when it is on the ground.
The captain came up to me and said that I might need to look at the cargo door as he just witnessed the loader close the door on top of the FMC which is the scissor lift machine that brings the pallets to the aircraft cargo door.
When I saw the edge of the cargo door, there was a large chunk taken out of the door. So I asked the loader what happened. He told me that it was like it when it arrived. I then told him that the captain saw him cause the damage. He called the captain a liar. I then told him that I inspect the doors as part of my walkround inspections. The doors were fine on arrival. He then called me a liar! I then asked him if it was like it when the aircraft arrived then why didn't he bring it to my attention as I am the engineer and might be interested in it? He didn't know!
I then apologised to him and set about fixing the mangled door. He looked very sheepish after I said that I was sorry, and obviously the damage happened by itself!
I have learnt that this is the best way to get past the Dominican macho not-wanting-lose-face attitude. Apologise, say it's your fault and see what happens! He couldn't do enough for me to help me fix the mangled door!
Another instance almost caused me to cry with laughter last week. For you regular flyers out there, you may have noticed the large canvass bags that cabin crew use to put the rubbish in. Ours are bright red in colour and they are also fire retardant to comply with safety regs. Anyway, someone had spilt some milk on the jetbridge. The Dominican agent thought it would be a good idea to mop it up with an empty canvass garbage bag that he found in the galley. The purser told him not to do that as it would harm the bag's fire retardency. Holding the bag in his hand (dripping with milk) he stood there and said that he didn't do it!!! Even though the purser and myself saw him do it, he just denied it!
Even though we are dealing with relatively intelligent and educated Dominicans that work at an international airport, they cannot shrug off their basic inbred instincts when confronted...lie,lie and lie some more.
They are just like children...even the educated ones (just cleverer liars).
One more time for a second there, I thought it was only Dominicans.
Well I heard you, Alfredo.
To those picking up the stereotyping: If you knew Matilda you would know that she neither stereotypes nor is condescending, nor is Rocky. The problem is some of the others appear to and threads of this nature tend to bring 'em out of the woodwork...............and how! It is also not always clear whether a post is tongue in cheek. If the subject is to be discussed can it not be done in such a way that we all learn from it, rather than vent?
Generalisations get tedious & tiresome. Time for a thread called 'Are all Dominicans as bored by stereotyping as some of us gringos are'??? :cheeky:
Because of our upbringing.
Our mothers were being condescending when they would say, "Oh grow up", "When are you ever going to grow up", Oh, he's so immature", You're not a kid anymore. Start acting like an adult", etc.
We have been brought up to believe that being child-like is wrong.
Yet, as we grow older, we come to a point where we want to look, feel and act younger.
"Oh stop being such a stick in the mud", "You're only as old as you feel", "Get out and play, have some fun, stop being so serious", etc.
I believe that the Dominican's child-like ways have a lot to do with so many tourists and expats saying that they love them.
My comments about this are neither positive, not negative.
They are but observations.
If someone here feels that Dominicans are perpetual liars because of some genetic flaw, then that would be condescending.
Expats who have lived here for a long time, know what I say to be true.
Those who have been here for 10 years plus and still don't understand this, will be found in local bars everyday, talking about how Dominicans are this and that, that they are stupid, they do crazy things, they're all thieves, they're all liars, etc.
Those comments come from folks who were not gifted with intelligence, nor a great power of observation, and they are doomed to be unhappy here.
Why they stay, is beyond me.
As that famous comedian once said, "If ya ain't got nothing nice to say, get the F*** out of the country".
Robert or Dolores could probably tell you what the percentage of Dominicans on this forum is, but I would guess that it's tiny.
Those who are Dominican born, who read DR1, are probably quite highly educated and traveled and more familiar with customs from our "new world", and they are just as aware as us that most Dominicans are child-like in their ways, when compared to people from the industrialized nations.
They can see it as clearly as we do, and know that it's neither a good nor a bad thing.
It has it's advantages and it's pitfalls.
There's no doubt that it can become quite frustrating to operate a business in this country, when one's employees do not understand the values of honesty and responsibility.
You wouldn't believe some of the things I have heard come out of their mouths.
From a girl wearing my pants and me calling her a thief.
From an employee standing in the street, locked out, 30 minutes after we are supposed to open.
Where are your keys, I say.
Translation, the keys stayed home.... They didn't want to come to work with me this morning.... I wanted them to come, but they didn't want to... They have a mind of their own and I couldn't force them to come with me.
From the barmaid who just knocked an ashtray off the bar.
What happened, I ask.
It broke itself... It just threw itself off the table and smashed itself on the floor....
From a motoconcho driver who just smacked into the back of a parked car.
What happened, I ask.
It accidented itself.... It smashed itself...
Even the language lends itself to non responsibility.
Anyone who moves here and learns to understand the culture, should be able to succeed an be happy.
Those who don't, will always have complaints.
Funny that. DR-born author Julia Alvarez made the same point in one of her books about the transition from Spanish to English when her family moved from the DR to the US when she was a child. She observed that English did not have the same flexibility - you could eat all the cookies and say 'se acabaron' in Spanish, while in English it is difficult to find a grammatical construction that absolves you from responsibility.
Goes without saying though that this 'incriminates' the entire Spanish-speaking world and speakers of every other language that uses that reflexive construction, not just Dominicans.
Goes without saying though that this 'incriminates' the entire Spanish-speaking world and speakers of every other language that uses that reflexive construction, not just Dominicans.
I wrote a post citing my personal experience about my lovely, respectable, dominican wife who told a white lie about a dress I bought for her and eventually gave it away. It is 100 percent true. The story I read about the POP airport stuff might be true as well. I must begin with that disclaimer because I have been reading some things lately that seem to be fabricated. Not in this thread. I 'm African American and there are negative cultural stereotypes about my people as well (as you all know, I was going to give examples here, but I am sure some come to mind). If others who aren't African American cite examples of those stereotypes and this what they believe, what can I say? The only offense I take is when people think African Americans are inherently inferior because of those stereotypical behaviors. Those who are feeling uncomfortable and assuaging your guilt by using political correctness, stop it. The reason the world has so many unresolved problems with people not liking others is the lack of honest dialogue. Its good to hear what peoples' honest opinions of others are. That leads to dialogue between people and people looking at themselves in the mirror to make changes.
Moderator: I apologize for using race in this post. I fully understand the policy of this message board to abstain from talking about race. Censorship is the way to education (lol).
Moderator: I apologize for using race in this post. I fully understand the policy of this message board to abstain from talking about race. Censorship is the way to education (lol).
Come on down here and spend some years... Get involved... Live your life, interact with the people... You will see that most posts of this threads are absolutely not exaggerated...
..the upside down country..
A few years ago I bought a Dominican I know a PC in Miami and shipped it to Las Americas, he paid for it believe it or not. The guy is not poor has lived in NY and Italy for years and he’s 60++. He didn’t expect he had to pay for it so after a while the story turned upside down and from his point of view he bought me the PC and he also did me a favour and paid me for it!!!???!! I’m still laughing every time I think about it, still haven’t manage to figure out whether the guy was high or just had a temporary shortcut in his brain...funny...he, he...
A few years ago I bought a Dominican I know a PC in Miami and shipped it to Las Americas, he paid for it believe it or not. The guy is not poor has lived in NY and Italy for years and he’s 60++. He didn’t expect he had to pay for it so after a while the story turned upside down and from his point of view he bought me the PC and he also did me a favour and paid me for it!!!???!! I’m still laughing every time I think about it, still haven’t manage to figure out whether the guy was high or just had a temporary shortcut in his brain...funny...he, he...
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True, but the option to say it differently in Spanish, assuming responsibility, is there.Goes without saying though that this 'incriminates' the entire Spanish-speaking world and speakers of every other language that uses that reflexive construction, not just Dominicans.
One can say, I broke it, I forgot my keys, I stole it, etc, in Spanish, if one so desires to.
Goes without saying though that this 'incriminates' the entire Spanish-speaking world and speakers of every other language that uses that reflexive construction, not just Dominicans.
This is SO funny! I just realized - it is the same in Russian. We say things like - it fell and broke itself or it (money for example) disappeared on its own! Now I understand why American and Western European friends I met in Ukraine were so "shocked" :laugh:
You are like a breath of fresh air..its good to know we Dominicans are not lets say ..unique.lol:cheeky:
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