Major anti-corruption legislation is taking shape in the federal Chamber of Deputies although many skeptics wonder if the new laws will be workable in a country where graft and deceit is so entrenched in public life.

A dull Oscar ceremony was livened up by Mexican director Alejandro González Iñarritu’s politically charged acceptance speech and the reactions of Sean Penn and Donald Trump, who sparked controversy with comments that some suggested were racist.

Personnel employed by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) will hit the streets Monday, March 2 to initiate a four-week survey covering 6.1 million home addresses nationwide.  The program will encompass door-to-door visits in target neighborhoods, subdivisions and gated communities located in Guadalajara and the Lake Chapala area, including the homes of full and part-time expatriate residents.

The government wants to allow foreign immigration and customs agents to carry arms while in the country, an issue that has historically been a source of tension with the United States.

Nowadays, the lead up to the Oscars, with the rush of other televised awards ceremonies, often turns the actual event itself into  a damp squib.  And with so many of the gongs considered a shoo-in, the major excitement often lies in seeing whether the presenter/s hit any highs or bomb dramatically.

In a rare public statement U.S. Ambassador Anthony Wayne has denounced aggressions against the press in Mexico.