Saturday, June 11, 2005

You liar, you! (mentiroso nomás)



Not long ago I was chatting with Tilman Mager my german friend, and he told me about his dissapointment with a guy which rarely honored their words: the guy said to Tilman "okay, see you then, tomorrow at 6 PM" and the next day nothing happens, "well, today at noon without fail" and again nothing. Tilman claimed how often people here in Arica say "A" and then do "B", he feel that as a disrespect, even an insult, which make loss time and money and difficult to make any kind of deal here.

Otherwise we are always a little shocked about the excesive literally from gringos, their lack of understanding on the understatement, which sometimes appears to us like a sort of rudeness, they seems unable to catch those ironic jokes, so popular between us, when we say the opposite that we meant.

I remembered many years ago when I used to work with Casio Computer and my japanese counteparts drove us mad with their flagrant "lies", when I finally was in Tokio and meet face to face to the japanesse executives I ask them directly "why you guys tell "yes" to all my askings and then you made the more convenience for yourself, doesn´t have you honor? ¿why do you speak so much about honor and loyalty and then shamelessy lie us?" and one of my japanese friends ask me "the problem my friend is that you, chileans are too uneducated; as long as you are my friend, when you ask me for something I never been so rude to say you "no", I always ask "yes" but this doesn´t mean "yes, I will do all your wishes", but "yes, I understand what you are asking me and I will take into account your point". At a first sigth this appeared insane and even rampant hipocresy to me, well, as time goes on this served me a lot to understand and negotiate with such people, it was simply their way to understand the courtesy.

Now many years has passed and I realize that we are similary liers and hypocrital to the eyes of gringos: we barely express our desagree openly, and many times prefer say "yes" and then simply do the most convenient for us as. Incredible but until I chat with Tilman I never realized before that we behave same like my japs friends.

2 comments:

DCveR said...

Same happens in Europe, the northern folks don't get the irony of the southern countries. There is no point in trying to explain a joke to a german,a swede, a dutch, ...
The subtlety is usually too much for them.

Tomas Bradanovic said...

I see, and even in Germany the north-south difference is big! I think the worst problem with northern people is that they took literally everything we say, wen I say "see you at eigth" they are waiting for me **at eigth** such a rude people!!
For our peace of mind japanese people are worst liars than us...(I used to remember them Pearl Harbor)