Welfare – A Safety Net or a Hammock?

Why is that every time I buy groceries I see another person paying with EBT (electronic benefit transfer) or WIC at the register line? Before I glance at them down from head to toe, I tell myself “relax, I’m sure this person must appear to be in dire need of it and nothing else”. Well was I wrong once again! These so called “poor-folks” have not one but two carts filled to the top with grade “A” meat and brand name food products while me the working taxpayer buys the generic brand and pays with cash. What is wrong with this picture? Time and time again, these are the same people who dress in designer clothes, own the latest smart phone and drink a high-end bottle of tea or juice at a Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s. http://foodstampguide.org/using-food-stamps/ With food costs rising managing my budget is mandatory and I have no shame in driving to the other side of town where I can get a decent bargain and save some money. This awful recession makes it very difficult to save when my taxes are being raised to expand government entitlements. I’m not opposed to welfare but I do condemn the Read More...

5 Ways to Define Success on Your Own Terms

If you were to strip yourself of titles, job positions and education, what would there be? Under all those layers of accomplishment would there still be a person considered to be successful? Society has taken great pains to define success not just by a person’s riches, but by the many accolades an individual possesses. Very often this definition is one-dimensional and equates to material possessions, fancy titles and wads of money. Think about all of those celebrities who have this and more, yet deep inside suffer from depression, engage in drug abuse and have legal problems. So how exactly does one define success? Who determines whether or not you are successful? Whose validation do you need? Success means many things to many people and should never be a form of validation by others, but more about how you feel about yourself. Here are five tips for how best to embrace the meaning of success and help you move forward. Let Go of Pre-Conditioned Beliefs – Many Latinos have been conditioned either by their families or society (maybe even both) to believe that their heritage is a disadvantage. What this has done is subconsciously prevented Latinos from dreaming and doing big. Read More...

All Princesses are Equal and Unique

I was born and raised in a smedium town in Southwest Ohio. I was the only kid that ate arroz con pollo, but I didn’t think I was different. I believed everybody was unique and equal. Everybody’s grandma didn’t speak English. Everybody’s grandma made rice and beans. And that’s how I found out I was Latina. I immediately wanted to see other Latinos, but I couldn’t. I saw my cousins maybe once or twice a year. My hometown was too rural for Telemundo or Univision. Dora and Diego weren’t born yet. So I did the next best thing. I claimed my favorite characters and people as Latinos. Polly Pocket Rodriguez. Superman Santos. Cheetara (Thundercats). Julia Roberts? She has Latina hair and my dad only has crushes on Latinas. (Sonia Sotomayor watch out!) You could imagine how excited I was when Disney announced that their next princess, Princess Sofia, is Latina. I was pleasantly surprised that they did not just claim her as “Latina” but actually made reference to her heritage. Her mother, Queen Miranda, is from the kingdom of Galdiz, inspired by Spain. However, I wasn’t surprised when Princess Sofia was criticized for not being a “Real Latina.” Because of Read More...

Why the Liberal American Woman is the problem

Weeks from a crucial presidential election there’s no question that the women’s vote will have a major impact in deciding who’s our next commander-in-chief. The preposterous, laughable and embarrassing dialogue about the war against women is an insult to the many women around the world who are constantly fighting for their rights or for their lives. At the Democrat National Convention, the obsession with birth control, abortion and the uterus were the staples of the convention’s platform that brought many viewers, including myself wondering who are these women and where are their values? http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/dnc-2012-sandra-flukes-speech-at-the-democratic-national-convention-full-text/2012/09/05/891a642a-f7ac-11e1-8253-3f495ae70650_story.html There’s no doubt in my mind, that most of these women who care so much about their uteruses now, didn’t care so much when they philandered their way all throughout college and during their 30s too. Trust me, I remember those college days well and believe me when I tell you a lot of these “ladies” try their hardest to delete those memories from their past by trying to rebuild themselves in the present. Have you ever heard the phrase “a tiger can’t change his stripes?” For a lot of them, well this is true. If the “uterus” is the common theme to alarm women to Read More...

Top 8 Simple Must Do’s for Media Interviews: It’s Your 15 Minutes of Fame, So Make It Count

You could say it was my 15 minutes of fame back in 1997 when I stood on the front steps of the Miami Beach Police Department shielding my eyes from the South Florida sun as I stared into the lens of a TV camera. I had a plastic device nestled into my ear with a live feed from news anchors in Atlanta who quickly rattled out questions about the unfolding high-profile serial killer saga involving the murder of Italian designer Gianni Versace on the steps of his Ocean Drive mansion. There I stood like the cliché of a deer caught in the headlights. I heard voices saying something faintly in my ear as the producer waved her hand prompting me to answer. I had no idea what they were saying. And to top it all off, it was live and in Spanish. That’s right, en vivo y en español. ¡Ay Dios Mío! For the life of me, I cannot tell you what I said that day, but in the chaotic days that ensued in the aftermath of Versace’s death and subsequent hunt for serial killer, Andrew Cunanan who was holed up in a houseboat off the intercoastal, CNN en Español Read More...