Moving to BA from NYC - advice needed

[ramon]

To make generalisations based on race is ignorant at best. In United States as well they lie, they steal. they deport thousands and they put people in jail for just being black and poor.
There are 2 million people in United States jails Steve. That is 20 percent of the worlds total.
United States certainly aint nirvana

 

[steveinbsas]

Gee, Ramone, Who said anything about race? Or the US? Did I mention the race of the maid...or the real estate agents...or the lawyer? If Sleuth brings a bunch of computer stuff and leaves it in storage (with a mudzana) it will probably be stolen. Some maids steal, some don't. Some landlords return deposits, some don't. This is not a racial issue. Sluth deserves to know the reality of the situation. True, there are a lot of criminals in jail in the US. At least in the US there is a better chance of the criminals going to jail...where they usually do belong...which, of course, does make the US (generally) a safer place to live. The first thing I learned from my Argentine girlfriend about Argentina was simple: "Everybody lies." So far, that IS a generalization that has proved far more accurate than not.

 

[ramon]

Gee Steve you said numerous times in your posts that Argentinians are dishonest and are thieves and not to be trusted. To me this is insulting and speaks of hypocrisy.
Tell me Steve how many countries has Argentina invaded? How many lies were told to us by the Government there that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. Lies. lies and more damn lies.
People in jails does not make a society more safer as proven many times. Murder rates are higher in most large American cities than here .
In the United States of today if you are black and male you have 40 percent chance of being jailed . These crimes are mostly petty drug crimes . All this does to these people is harden them and when they are released they commit more serious crimes. There are 2 million people in American jails and still serious crime is worse than Argentina . What does that say

 

[RWS]

Ramón, even if everything else you've stated is accurate (and I'm not posting to discuss doubts), there is one mistake: Steve didn't write that Argentines in general lie or steal but, rather, that some do and that (by implication) people who move here should take precautions. Take it from me, as a native speaker of English (I've made similarly inaccurate inferences in Spanish, so I empathize!), that's all he said.
He was not accusing Argentines as a whole. After all, he chose to move and stay here, didn't he?

 

[ramon]

Some people steal no matter the race and by making a huge issue about it it seems that you are empathasing that your race is more honest.
In United States some committ mass murders does that mean we should warn people visiting there to avoid all public places.

 

[RWS]

Quoting "ramon":
"Some people steal no matter the race and by making a huge issue about it it seems that you are empathasing that your race is more honest."
That's not what came across to a native English-speaker. Believe me, I certainly didn't think that Steve was doing more than warning readers to exercise more caution than an exuberant visitor might otherwise think to employ.
Quoting "ramon":
"In United States some committ mass murders does that mean we should warn people visiting there to avoid all public places."
No, but it would be wise of visitors to the States to be alert (sadly: it wasn't always so).
[/quote]

 

[RWS]

Let me add, Ramón, that, in modern English usage, "race" generally refers not to nationality but to the major genetic groupings (Caucasian ["whites"], Negroid ["blacks"], Mongoloid ["Orientals"]). This might be another cause of misunderstanding (and, because of history, current law, and present-day social conventions, accusing an American of racism -- that is, of favoring or disfavoring other people because of membership in a particular race as defined above -- may be even more disparaging than accusing him of a moral crime).
I have Argentine friends and Argentine cousins. I'd be alert to a blanket disparagement of Argentine people, I think; and I really did not sense any in what Steve wrote.

 

[cbphoto]

Once again, you have gotten off subject... how did this turn into a discussion about language, race, etc...???Seeing that you have lived in NYC, I imagine you have a certain amount of "street smarts"... you will need those here also. From my experiences, living in NYC, SF, Istanbul, Berlin.... I feel safer here (BA) than any of those places. In NYC and SF you had to deal with gun violence, gangs.... In many ways it also depends on your age... When I was in my teens and early 20's, you run into more problems with youth...I am in my mid 30's now, and find for the most part I am ignored by those groups. I am not sure if in your late 40's, 50's, 60,s you become more of a target by thieves etc...but it sounds likely. I have found if you pay attention, you become less of a target...there is always an easier mark for them (thieves, cheaters, liers) just around the corner. So they leave you alone.I have only lived in BsAs for 3 months, coming from Istanbul, and I have not been ripped off once, by anyone.. (taxi, store owner, etc...) I hear on this forum of this happening all the time, and also hear from locals to "watch out"... I do, and ....nothing yet.In most places in the world, if you walk around with a big camera, a LV purse dangling, a wallet or cell phone sitting in plane site ...beware...someone will notice....I think what you were trying to differentiate before was "race" and "nationality"..... for the most part irrelevant.... it's all about the "individual"

 

[Sleuth]

Thanks for the advice. I'm 37 and have been in NYC for the last 14 years, so theft is not much of a concern. We were down in November and had no problems and met a lot of great people.
If anyone hears of any good apartment rentals, let me know.

 

[Manhattan]

Since I leave only a month or two before you - I'll keep an eye out and let you know. I'll only be looking in Palermo though. Feel free to e-mail me directly at [email protected].