For starters, if you define someone who doesn't like having their name changed as a bad apple, you're a bad business leader. Yes, there are probably some bad employees that need to be let go. But nothing in this story suggested so. Being asked to change their names is demeaning - they have every right to complain. Anyone who runs a business with that type of authoritarian attitude - especially a business that's dependent on quality customer service - is in for a rude awakening. I repeat: even the owner admitted he messed this up. This isn't remotely true. For some businesses, yes, any publicity is good publicity. Not for a hotel. Not for a business that's dependent on referrals. Not for a business that's built around customer service. Without looking back at the story, can you remember the name of the hotel? I bet 95% of the people here wouldn't be able to - so all that free "marketing" goes to waste. The ones that do remember it are going to remember hearing about the crazy hotel owner in Taos also. And the townspeople certainly will remember it, and given the democraphics of the city, that isn't a good thing at all. Reputations follow customer service businesses around. This kind of publicity in no way will help in the long run.
So you honestly believe this story is big enough the whole world will remember it 5 years from now, or 2, or even 1 year from now? Really?
Sorry - I should have clarified. I didn't mean he hadn't turned it around because of his decisions - but simply because he hasn't had time one way or another. And if he changes his attitude, he can still have success. But the article suggests he doesn't seem to be planning to change his attitude (despite recognizing he handled things badly). That doesn't suggest a turnaround is on the horizon. But of course, we also don't know all the specific problems with the hotel (whether it was customer service, underlying finances, etc). I shouldn't have suggested that there's no way he will do so.
That's the point - no one will, except the town itself and people who have good reason to remember it - travel agents, reviewers, etc. There's no positive publicity from it, but there is plenty of negative perception.
it is bad business b/c he is new to town and getting a ton of bad publicity right off the bat. he has surely pissed off many in the majority hispanic town (again, i have been there and i would say its at least 60%) and i doubt they will be going there or sending any friends/relatives who come to visit there either. and should a stranger come to town and ask someone where a good place to stay is guess which one they wont tell them about. yes to the first and no to the second. what is your point? not at the expense of alienating yourself from a massive chunk of your client-base and having a bad reputation in the town that you just set up shop in. anyway, this sounds like a move to make the owner more 'comfortable' than his customers. i have lived in texas my whole life and i can say im as comfortable w/ juan as i am w/ john (no homo intended). are there really people who would be uncomfortable w/ someone named maria or jose...enough so that it would be a deterrent from staying in the hotel? if there are people like that out there why would you want to cater to them? furthermore, if there are people like that out there they are going to have a hard time finding a place to stay. yeah, or we could just make up stuff to back up ours like you just did. are you saying that people who wouldnt have otherwise stayed there now will b/c the owner makes the workers use 'american' names?
this whole episode is not good for business in anyway and if you cant see that than you really know nothing about running one.
Racist = To hate a person because of their skin color. I need an explanation abuot the correlation between making someone speak english, change their name to hating them. I must be racist since I call my hispanic friend Josh instead of Josue, and he is my friend, but im still racist.
Do you do it against his will and make him call himself Josh because you don't like Hispanic names? If not, I don't see the connection.
I was being sarcastic, If I dont like hispanic names it wouldnt make me racist either, people use the word racist to get benefits, not because they feel discriminated against.
I voted no, because I think the guy honestly thought this would help his business, and that he wasn't doing it to hurt hispanic people, but to make more money. It isn't like the guy has a secret plan to buy up all of the businesses and make all the Mexican people assimilate in a massive conspiracy to destroy their culture. He thought that it would be good business and didn't like people talking around him without the ability to understand what they are saying. It would have been interesting to delay the article and see if his changes achieved what he was hoping for (something that is tainted now by the publicity).
I took a few years of spanish in high school and when I was in class she made me change my name to Ivan. Racist bi***
WRONG Racism is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race
What the hell are you people talking about? Some of you are so fckuing sensitive I want to go choke a kitten. Whitten is an English name, not Scottish. Llewellyn is of Old English and Welsh origin. Not a commmon, modern English/American name. It is Celtic in origin, a language that barely friggin' exists anymore. Siobhan is Irish, also of Celtic origin. And I'll be damned if it ALSO DOESN'T HAVE AN ANGLICIZED VERSION. Look it up if you like. Wow....a white-folk name that is unfamiliar and difficult to pronounce. I bet white people are at fault. Wait, what? Yep: a white name that was Anglicized. Damn white people screw it up for everyone, I swear. The whole world needs to grow a pair. Bunch of b****ing nancies, I swear to Christ.
From the article, it seems the environment surrounding this hotel doesn't make these decisions 'good business'. In fact, it seems to be just the opposite. Other than that, I wasn't going to say this is racist. Even the attempt at focusing on speaking English. But then I got to the 'change your name' part....and man, I don't even know what that is. Seems rather pointless. Maybe I'll just call this whole thing and this guy's attempts stupid and call it a day.
You entirely miss the point. The first two Google searches claim that, Anglicized in origin or not (and really, that is the entire point), "Whitten" originates in Scotland, roughly a millennium ago (1 , 2). The English did a pretty thorough job pillaging their way around the world. They had a pretty good run for a while ("Sun never sets," etc.). That they and theirs failed to conquer Mexico and Central & South America (instead, leaving that largely to the Spanish & Portuguese) in the same way they conquered the US & Australia means that we still have Joses, and not just Joshes. My contention, intended humorously, was that Whitten's ancestors were quite likely raped and looted by the very same King's English that he now demands his Hispanic employees imitate in speech. His ancestors were once forced to bow to English dominion, so now New Mexicans must as well?
