THE PROFESSIONAL TRANSLATION GROUP
  • About Us
  • Our Process
  • Form Preparation
  • Testimonials
  • Resources
    • USCIS
    • Immigration Fraud
  • FAQ
  • Contact Us
  • En Español
    • Quienes Somos
    • Nuestro Sistema
    • Servicios Adicionales
    • Preguntas Frecuentes
    • Referencias

some news & thoughts

HUMAN TRAFFICKING RUNNING RAMPANT AROUND THE GLOBE AND WE ARE NOT SPARED HERE IN THE U. S. 

12/17/2014

 
PictureOne.org
According to statistics about 27 million people are being slaved around the world. Eighty percent are women and half of that percentage are minors. It is estimated that this slave trading industry brought in 32 billion dollars worldwide last year. These figures in reality are much greater for obvious reasons: Most people who are being trafficked have no way of getting any kind of assistance, especially in countries where women are looked at as property of whoever buys them. In Arabian countries, a woman is worth less than a camel, and the laws are designed to discourage victims from coming forward like in the recent case of a 25 year old woman from Norway, who got sentenced to 16 months in prison after reporting a rape in Dubai. Reported by Simon Atkinson of BBC News, according to their religious laws she was guilty of having sex outside the marriage, and instead of punishing her attackers, she was the one who ended up paying for this heinous crime committed against her. The Dubai rape victim was pardoned by Dubai’s ruler after international outcry, in order to preserve the region’s vital tourism industry intact.

If you are stuck as a slave in a place like this would you make matters worse on yourself by reporting your abductors to the local authorities? The vast majority of slaves can be found in India and in African countries, and the list of countries where slavery takes place goes on and on, but unfortunately our great country is not exempt from this list. We have all kinds of laws in place in order to protect women and minors here at home but still, statistics show that one third of the 2.8 million kids that runaway each year right here at home are recruited to pornography and prostitution within 48 hours. Each year, thousands of people are illegally brought into the United States, most of them lured here by their unscrupulous traffickers after selling their souls and bodies for huge amounts of money to these criminals with empty promises of an American dream. One that they will most likely never experience in their lifetimes. Instead, they are sent to brothels to pay off their debt by selling their bodies (in the case of women and minors). If they are men, then they are sent to labor jobs making so little money that it would take them years at end to pay off their captors for their freedom. The authorities do whatever they can to help, but in most cases it is very difficult for them to detect slaved individuals when these unfortunate people are coerced into silence with threats of deportation, and even death.

No matter what the present situation of our economy might be, we are still the richest country in the world with huge amounts of resources. Other countries might have their excuses to look the other way, but Americans know that we can all do a lot more right here at home to end slavery and human trafficking in our own backyards in this lifetime. We all have a role to play including the government, the private sector, international organizations, and all American citizens who would NOT just stand by if this terrible injustice was being inflicted on a member of their own families. YOU can do more… we all can. Visit The CNN Freedom Project and The Polaris Project to learn more.        


You are more powerful than you think

10/11/2013

 
PictureDoSomething.org
Every day I receive petitions from various groups our team has supported in the past and I take the time to read them and evaluate whether or not they are in agreement with my values, then I decide which ones I will support. It's amazing how powerful the Internet has become as a tool for change. I was never quite certain whether or not my signature meant anything to these organizations fighting to make a difference. How could 'I' possibly make any difference in the grand scheme of things?? And then it started happening ... little by little ... the petitions I signed (not all of them of course but enough to feel good about myself) started working. 

When people come together with a common goal and take 2 minutes out of their day to participate in this "free", "democratic" process that technology has made so simple for us to contribute to.... good things can happen.  

In terms of 'immigration', optimism is returning to those in support of reform. The House needs 218 votes in October to pass any immigration bill. According to a recent estimate, "That means about 23 GOP votes are needed." So immigration reform groups are on the move to target Republicans in the House - and they do this by showing how much their constituents support a real change in policy. What is their greatest weapon? You got it. The Internet. Regardless of the opposition, there is ALWAYS a way - and in today's day in age, it has never been made easier! Immigration aside, take 2 minutes to support the things you believe in... animal rights, civil liberties, the environment ... whatever it may be ... participate! Because you have never had so much power to do so.

Immigration Reform Momentum is Coming to a Halt

7/9/2013

 
Picturesalon.com (Credit: AP/Alan Diaz)
It seems likely now that the Senate's Immigration Reform Bill has passed and is now in the hands of the House of Representatives, momentum to solving the U.S's immigration crisis of more than 11 million undocumented immigrants is quickly coming to a halt. 

It seems we've hit a road block between party lines where the pressure is on for Speaker John Boehner to maintain loyalty to his GOP constituents and find less effective solutions that will pacify Democrats and temporarily satisfy the issue at hand. There's no telling which long-term direction immigration reform will go, but one thing is for sure - if Hispanic voters aren't content with the outcome, the Republican Party will continue to suffer for it. 

Laura Matthews breaks it down for us in the International Business Times article, "Immigration Reform 2013..."

Changing the conversation

6/14/2013

 
PictureColorlines.com
Although this blog began as a tool to reveal the importance of preserving the Spanish language (since translating to and from this elegant language is my profession), I am also deeply involved in the daily struggles of immigrants here in South Florida where our office is located. My pleasurable hobby of spotlighting mistranslations has since taken a backseat to the current political climate regarding immigration reform in the US. Our team here has always followed the evolving policies surrounding immigration and joyfully engage in enlightening debates when the opportunity arises; however, we feel that only recently has there been a tangible shift in consciousness toward reaching viable solutions to our broken immigration system.  

Every so often (and when time permits), I would like to spotlight intelligent commentary and useful information from various sources using a jovial yet cautious discernment. I'd also like to share other critical issues (when possible) that are not so obviously related. We'll begin however, with a straightforward piece. This is Felicia Escobar's (Senior Policy Director for Immigration in the White House Domestic Policy Council) post on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) written just hours ago, and what remains to be the first step to "commonsense reform". Read the full commentary here.

TRANSLATORS' JOKE OF THE MONTH

5/23/2013

 

My cousin Angela grew up in Spain and came to the USA when she was already in her late 30’s. She is pretty and voluptuous. I've been trying to help her lose her accent, and for some reason she’s having a hard time pronouncing the word “teeth”. Recently she had some cosmetic work done on her teeth, and last week she came into the house and in front of all of my English speaking friends said (as she flashed a big smile): “Guys, look at my new TITS.”

Cuidado: no professional translators allowed onboard

5/8/2013

 
Warning: if you are a professional translator, “No el sube” a este autobus.

This is the perfect example of total negligence by the manager in charge of placing the public signs for one of the biggest bus manufacturers in the United States. Hint: They manufacture the ‘Articulated’ bus, have been in business since the 50’s and for years have signed contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars, not only in the States but in Canada and Mexico as well.

So, each of these buses is worth roughly half a million dollars and they could not bother to hire a real translator to do this for them, for perhaps less than a hundred dollars in some cases? It appears to me that they hired their ‘cousin’ who once took a two week crash course in Spanish before he went on his honeymoon to a Latin country. It is challenging to remain objective here, since all too often this apparent lack of respect and total disregard for the Spanish speaking community in the United States is becoming more prevalent.

Sadly, it is the very same company responsible for the first mistranslation which started this discussion: “Welcome to Ameri-Qua!”


Picture

Favorite Mistranslations from Around the World

5/7/2013

 
Here are some of our favorites, posted by members in one of our 
LinkedIn discussions.

Galina Pritchard (Senior Translator at CPC; Russian Federation)•
"The best mistranslation I ever saw was in a restaurant menu in Kazakhstan. It featured dishes like "bricks from cheese" (diced cheese), beef with bow (beef braised with onions - the menu was translated from Russian where "лук" means both onion and bow. However, "horse crudely smoking" (cured horse meat) definitely took the cake!"

Josephine Bacon (Owner, American Pie and Translation; London, United Kingdom)•
"My own favourite is when a translation agency in British Columbia asked me to check a set of questions that the police would ask suspect motorists in Hebrew. In one question they meant to ask "are you carrying a weapon?" but what the translator, who had clearly not learned Hebrew beyond first grade Sunday School had written was "will you give me a kiss?" The difference between "neshek" weapons and "neshika" kiss!"

Marcel Gallego (Technical Translator; Barcelona, Spain)• 
What about "Secretaria de dirección" being translated as "Secretary of address"? And for "Maquinaria para embalaje de botes de ketchup" - "Machinery for the packaging of ketchup boats"? I have seen a Mazda "Laputa" and a Nissan "Moco", though these are obviously for the Asian Markets (and Nissan, who own a full-fledged car making factory in Spain, should know better)."


Paying Attention: Professionals Exist for a Reason

5/1/2013

 
Picture
Hi guys:

Are we having fun yet? :) 

Before I continue placing mistranslations on this blog, I need to clarify a few things to you, so that everyone understands exactly what it is that we are trying to accomplish here:

One of our goals is to expose ghastly mistranslations through this powerful communication tool called the Internet, so that corporations and entities around the globe who provide a source of income to the translation industry (rather than looking foolish by trying to save a buck by using Google, an ineffective machine, or an incompetent friend) use the services of a COMPETENT translator. Let’s face it: in our industry a machine has not yet been invented to replace the quality of work or human touch that a competent translator can provide. An electronic device or a ‘cheap’ unqualified translator can only produce below mediocre work which can reflect negatively on a company or entity’s image tremendously. It’s analogous with letting the guy in charge of the mail room at your company run the accounting department!

I have read your different profiles on LinkedIn and I was very impressed by the amount of demonstrated knowledge, intelligence and professional experience of my colleagues who have honored me with their participation in this blog.

We all have our own specialties and I claim NO authority in the fields of linguistics, technical terminology, science, fictional literature, etc. I do however, consider myself a near expert as a real-time interpreter for Political Asylums and Residency adjustment interviews for USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services also known as the US Department of Homeland Security) procedures, as well as a translator of legal documents meant for these processes. Therefore as professionals, we can all agree that translations are not a precise science by any means. There are many ways to interpret any given text; for example:

EXIT ONLY - something as simple as these two words can be translated from English to Spanish in many ways, to name a few: “Solo Salida”, “Solamente Salida”, “Salida Solamente”,”Unicamente Salida”, “Salida Aquí” or simply “Salida”, but NEVER in this world, “Exito Aquí", which in English means, “Success Here”. This very last translation is completely unacceptable by any standards as it makes no sense whatsoever and makes this great corporation look silly in the eyes of the consumer. Why does this happen? Because a company manager out there was not paying full attention, wanted to save a few dollars and decided to put his full trust into someone who was not qualified at all to translate this for him/her instead of hiring a competent translator.

The lesson here guys is: NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO IN LIFE, YOU MUST PAY FULL ATTENTION. Mediocrity, stupidity and greed can be very costly in many ways!

I encourage, appreciate and welcome any contributions of mistranslations in any language; mind you, I am only competent in Spanish and English so there is no way for me to evaluate mistranslations in any other languages. I can also only routinely collect mistranslations that I notice in the South Florida area, so as of now, I am “deputizing” all of you guys around the world as members of the TRANSLATION POLICE. Feel free to send in all kinds of mistranslations that you encounter out there. I will store selected posts and publish them in this blog in the order they come in. I will also give full credit individually for every mistranslation that you contribute to the cause. 

Time for me to go on PATROL ;-)


Signing off,
Alex


Now I know where to go when I want to be 'successful'

4/23/2013

 
Picture
This is the perfect example of why a company should invest in a competent translator.

A much better translation of this would be:
SOLAMENTE SALIDA


Your thoughts?

This translator should be busted by Indiana State Police

4/17/2013

 
This one is for the books. You're not dreaming ... this is REAL! This translator seems to be making up his/her own language altogether. When the translation is way below industry standards, the image of the hiring Entity diminishes and the message gets "lost in translation" LITERALLY! Feel free to leave your suggestions.

Picture
Picture
Our Translation
¡No eche gasolina y huya!

Váyase sin pagar y su licencia de conducir puede ser suspendida.

De acuerdo a la ley de Indiana si usted echa gasolina y no paga, puede perder su licencia. El Acta 1066 del Estado de Indiana fue aprobada por medio de ley en el 2001. 

Este mensaje de prevención contra el crimen es proporcionado por los vendedores de gasolina de Indiana y la Asociación de Tiendas de Abarrotes.                                  

<<Previous

    Author

    Alex Montalvo is the Director of the Professional Translation Group based in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Since 1999, he has provided legal document translation and interpreter services at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's six locations in South Florida. Prior to entering the translation industry, Alex was an English language teacher and instructor for U.S. Citizenship courses in Miami, FL. He is the co-author of 'The DOs and DON'Ts of the Immigration Process' set to be released this year.  

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Archives

    December 2014
    October 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Immigration
    Public Mistranslations

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.