Pizza promotion met with death threats

[Sequoia]

DALLAS, Texas (AP) -- A pizza chain has been hit with death threats and hate mail after offering to accept Mexican pesos, becoming another flashpoint in the nation's debate over immigrants.

"This is the United States of America, not the United States of Mexico," one e-mail read. "Quit catering to the damn illegal Mexicans," demanded another.

Dallas-based Pizza Patron said it was not trying to inject itself into a larger political debate about illegal immigration when it posted signs this week saying "Aceptamos pesos" -- or "We accept pesos" -- at its 59 stores across Texas, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada and California. (Watch reasons behind the decision)

Pizza Patron spokesman Andy Gamm said the company was just trying to sell more pizza to its customers, 60 percent of whom are Hispanic.


http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/01/11/pizza.pesos.ap/index.html

[Selatius]

1. We wouldn't be in this mess if we cracked down on employers and secured the border and...

told Mexico to actually fight corruption and invest in social programs to fight poverty. Instead, they simply resort to old-fashioned cronyism and rule by the elite, and US business interests were more than happy to exploit the situation for their own gain.

The biggest losers are workers on both sides.

[EST]

3. There are thirty two families who pretty much own Mexico.

Until this cartel is broken up, their horrid mismanagment of the Mexican economy will continue to produce a dirt poor majority. Unfortunately, the GOP/big business cartel in this country is doing everything in its power to produce the same condidions.

[Selatius]

6. You mention GOP but leave out Dems from the equation

The problem of border enforcement is a bipartisan failure, not a Dem one. Big business lobbying money is blind to political parties as long as people on both sides are willing to sell-out the working class.

[EST]

14. You make a good point. n/t

[bleedingheart]

12. I thought the number of families that control Mexico was smaller

around 8...

Do you know of any articles that deal with that subject?

I have spoken to family who are familiar with Mexican politics and they have all spoken about these "families" that control the country...but who are they and how did they get into this position?

[EST]

17. We had a large discussion about this a ways back and I picked

up that number there, I think.
It is a small number and some of those families go back centuries, while others got that way just as the Bfee and many others in this country have, graft, corruption, greed, possession of our government, etc, guaranteeing them the power to appoint and elect whomever they wish.

As you are no doubt aware, there are powerful individuals who sit on multiple boards, run huge corporations with multiple silent links and partners.
Seventy percent of the stock market is owned by enormous corporations and other powerful monied entities. When you own the companies and own the companies which own the companies and those companies have limited rights of citizenship as well as human rights, in effect, you own the country.

Add in the fact that companies acting as people are eternal, dying only by committing suicide, and the rights and freedoms available to you and me are growing smaller and smaller.

[EST]

21. Here's one link and a brief exerpt:

http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2006-04/Mexico2006-04-27-voa61.cfm
For years, some U.S. lawmakers have called on Mexico to improve its economy and business climate so more Mexicans can find opportunities at home instead of migrating northward. But historically, Mexico has had its commerce and industry concentrated in the hands of a few wealthy, powerful groups who have no interest in opening up to competitors.

Roberto Salinas Leon, Director of the Mexico Business Forum in Mexico City, says these controlling interests also strongly influence government policy. "The control that the business elite exerts today is part and parcel of a much broader historical tradition called 'mercantilism,' where basically you have deals made between the business elite and the political process in order to favor the business elite. The business sector uses the political process instead of the economic process to benefit," says Leon.

And here is one that talks about, among other things, the seven families whe control the Mexican media:

http://www.rwonline.com/reference-room/special-report/05_rw_xm_in_mexico_3.shtml

There are many more articles concerning immigration and powerful families that I got with the following google:mexican powerful families controlling government

[EFerrari]

8. Our government did everything it could to make sure the last

selection in Mexico produced crony results. Everything from using BushCo PR people to Bush calling the winner before the results were in.

What we "told" Mexico is that they can't hold free elections or elect progressive candidates because it's inconvenient for BushCo. Nice, eh?

[Benhurst]

2. Why do Republicans hate our free enterprise system?

:cry:

[Bitwit1234]

4. They prove it over and over

Republicans are psychotic....that study that study,,,the guy was 100% correct.

[bryant69]

5. Nice.

Of course when we go abroad we never demand that everybody take greenbacks, do we?

Oh wait . . . .

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[TX-RAT]

7. "Quit catering to the damn illegal Mexicans,"

What a bone headed statement, most illegals exchange their peso's before they cross. Usually the only ones with peso's are legal residents who have traveled to Mexico for business or pleasure and just had some left over.

[Tempest]

16. I still have peso's left over from my trip to Mexico in October

I'd like to be able to use them at a store.

I don't have enough to bother exchanging for dollars, but it's enough to buy a pizza.

[Catherine Vincent]

28. Same here!

And I'm sure a lot of Americans have pesos in their drawers either for keepsake or just leftover from their trip to Mexico.

[aceman2373]

19. Maybe we should not except Canadian money either... :-)

[Akoto]

22. They put tracking devices in their currency, you know!

:P

[notadmblnd]

24. I live in Michigan and I know we don't accept Canadian money

Not so much as a quarter.

[RB TexLa]

30. You can accept anything of value for services and goods n/t

[notadmblnd]

32. Well let me put it to you this way.

There is no business in Michigan that I know of that accepts Canadian money in exchange for goods or services. Canadians (up until recently at least) have always been happy to take our dollars (probably because in the past the US dollar has been worth up to .70 cents more than a Canadian). I know the values is much less now. but there is still no Michigan business that I am aware of that accepts Canadian. In fact, on the occasion that a Canadian coin slips into my pocket and I've tried to use it as cash, I have been asked for US coinage instead. I live within 30 miles of the border.

[napi21]

25. I realize I don't live in a border State, but NO business here

would accept anything but US currency. It's the same in Sicily where my son lives. All businesses only accept the Euro PERIOD!

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

23. I'd imagine that many of the people sending the e-mails...

live no where near the border, and have never been out of the country.

[TlalocW]

9. There are lots of places in Mexico

That accept dollars - resorts, towns just over the border, etc. It's a practical business decision. If I run a business somewhere close to where buses from Mexico stop, do I want to lose money from potential sales because the people on board haven't exchanged their pesos for dollars yet? Do I give a damn one way or another why they didn't make the exchange before they got on the bus? No, I want to sell hungry people pizza. If I sell a lot of pizzas, it will be worth it to make a special trip once a week to exchange the pesos for dollars.

TlalocW

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

20. Accept Dollars? You Bet!

When I was in Cancun -- several years back -- the street vendors would cut you a better deal if you paid them in greenbacks.

[RB TexLa]

10. I just hope when one of Dobb's followers shoots someone at Pizza Patron

it's a freeper Dobbist and not a DU Dobbist carrying out their role in his "war."

[file83]

11. Just because they spend USD$ at Walmart, doesn't mean it's good for the country.

China is making lots of YUANs off of the very same people complaining about this peso stunt.

But of course, it would take a brain in order for them to figure that out.

[A HERETIC I AM]

13. This is such nonsense. Canadian stores have been accepting dollars for years....

and even though i've never been to Mexico, I understand that most border towns accept dollars as well.

Some people are such assholes. Threatening this company for conducting a legitimate business practice that is not illegal is the sign of backward thinking.

[RB TexLa]

15. Any one can accept anything of value they are willing to accept as payment for

goods and or services, as long as it does not create an illegal transaction. And I have news for them, this is just the store that is in the news, there are many businesses that accept pesos on a regular basis.

[KingFlorez]

18. It's a private business, they can accept pesos if they want

Republicans are always trying to control someone else's affairs.

[bluewave]

26. Who cares if they take pesos? We should still seal the borders and punish employers

[Sequoia]

29. If we close Mexico's borders, than Canda can be sealed also.

I know of people who sneaked in to the USA through Canada.

[gollygee]

27. Whatever happened to capitalism and free enterprise

If Halliburton had a way to make money off pesos, you can bet they'd be doing it. Free enterprise is only good when large corporations profit. Otherwise, for small business owners and for individuals, our choices are limited. This isn't capitalism, it's feudalism.

[TZ]

31. many foreign countries accept dollars routinely

Any foreign country that has a decent size tourism industry will accept the dollar with no problem no matter where located. I recently went to Aruba whose currency is actually the Dutch Florin and had no problem ANYWHERE (even in the non-tourist areas) with using American dollars. Isn't it hypocritical to complain about a place near the border accepting pesos?:eyes: