{"id":2934,"date":"2008-11-19T11:55:40","date_gmt":"2008-11-19T15:55:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/?p=2934"},"modified":"2008-11-19T09:12:17","modified_gmt":"2008-11-19T13:12:17","slug":"yo-quiero-un-cerebro","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/yo-quiero-un-cerebro","title":{"rendered":"Yo quiero un cerebro"},"content":{"rendered":"

In today’s WSJ (likely $ required), there’s an article on how Taco Bell is trying to make a global push<\/a>. In case anyone thinks that idiotic American culture is something the rest of the world as outgrown, the article begins with this image:<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, a Taco Bell opened at a massive Dubai shopping mall. Patrons waited as long as four hours to buy beef gorditas and chicken chalupas at the chain’s first location in the Middle East.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In a feat of Baudrillardian self-cancellation, we learn that Taco Bell is a success precisely because it isn’t<\/em> Mexican:<\/p>\n

[David Novak, Yum’s chairman and chief executive] says the lack of authenticity in the chain’s Mexican cuisine is an advantage. “It owns its own category,” he says.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Still, it’s lack of Mexicosity isn’t enough for it to triumph in Mexico, as it turns out. The chain has made a run for the border only to find that “[t]he transactions in Mexico are not yet where we want them to be.”<\/p>\n

(All this is just an excuse to link to that Achewood strip about Taco Bell’s secret menu<\/a>.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In today’s WSJ (likely $ required), there’s an article on how Taco Bell is trying to make a global push. In case anyone thinks that idiotic American culture is something the rest of the world as outgrown, the article begins with this image: Earlier this month, a Taco Bell opened at a massive Dubai shopping … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Yo quiero un cerebro”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[170,446],"class_list":["post-2934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-achewood","tag-taco-bell"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4C7K-Lk","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4228,"url":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/yo-quiero-uno-momento-de-silencio","url_meta":{"origin":2934,"position":0},"title":"Yo Quiero Uno Momento De Silencio","author":"Gil","date":"July 22, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Gidget, the Taco Bell chihuahua, is dead.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":964,"url":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/anti-midas","url_meta":{"origin":2934,"position":1},"title":"Anti-Midas","author":"Gil","date":"May 24, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Great (lengthy) article about the messed-up-edness of Paul Allen's Charter Communications. I think Paul Allen's greatest skill was his ability to be friends with Bill Gates back in the day. From a financial perspective, Charter has turned into one of the ugliest U.S. companies still in solvency. Its $19.5 billion\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6509,"url":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/podcast-new-york-and-old-south","url_meta":{"origin":2934,"position":2},"title":"Podcast: New York and Old South","author":"Gil","date":"August 9, 2012","format":"audio","excerpt":"Virtual Memories \u2013 season 2 episode 9 Jane Borden - New York and Old South It's time for a new episode of The Virtual Memories Show! This one marks yet another milestone! (There'll be plenty of those, since we're still early days with this show.) I managed to interview someone\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Podcasts"","block_context":{"text":"Podcasts","link":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/podcasts"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bordenme.jpg?fit=1200%2C1056&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bordenme.jpg?fit=1200%2C1056&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bordenme.jpg?fit=1200%2C1056&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bordenme.jpg?fit=1200%2C1056&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bordenme.jpg?fit=1200%2C1056&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2140,"url":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/f-you-you-whining-f-72108","url_meta":{"origin":2934,"position":3},"title":"F*** You, You Whining F***: 7\/21\/08","author":"Gil","date":"July 21, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"In today's Wall Street Journal, there's an article about how customers are asking Starbucks not to close their favorite locations, following the chain's disclosure of the 600 stores is plans to close. The two complainants in the article come from different worlds, Bloomfield, NM and Manhattan. The person from NM\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Big Business"","block_context":{"text":"Big Business","link":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/big-business"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1470,"url":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/flat-panels-cratering-sales","url_meta":{"origin":2934,"position":4},"title":"Flat Panels, Cratering Sales","author":"Gil","date":"April 23, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Here's an article from BW about how Wal-Mart's flat-panel TV pricing for the 2006 holidays helped destroy a number of electronics stores. Looks like the chain's decision to sell a 42-inch Panasonic for under $1,000 sent its (partial) competitors off a price-war cliff: Along with Wal-Mart's determination to lower prices,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Big Business"","block_context":{"text":"Big Business","link":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/big-business"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8584,"url":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/episode-108-from-asterix-to-zweig","url_meta":{"origin":2934,"position":5},"title":"Episode 108 – From Asterix to Zweig","author":"Gil","date":"March 2, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Virtual Memories Show: Anthea Bell - From Asterix to Zweig \"There were a lot of books in the school library, and they weren't in English, and I was mad keen to get at them.\" Renowned literary translator Anthea Bell joins the show to talk about getting her start in foreign\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Comic books & strips"","block_context":{"text":"Comic books & strips","link":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/category\/literature\/comics"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bell2054.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bell2054.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bell2054.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bell2054.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-content\/uploads\/bell2054.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2934","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2934"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2934\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2935,"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2934\/revisions\/2935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2934"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/chimeraobscura.com\/vm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}