That's Jefe to you ...

According to an article in the Austin-American Statesman, the number of Hispanic-owned business has grown 25 percent in Central Texas, reflecting a state and nationwide trend. Specifically:

... almost 3,000 Hispanic-owned businesses launched from 1997 to 2002 in Central Texas, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Texas is home to almost one in five Hispanic-owned companies in the United States. The state ranks second behind California in the number of Hispanic-owned businesses.

Such companies in Central Texas had $2.2 billion in sales in 2002, the Census Bureau estimated, a 53 percent increase from five years earlier after adjusting for inflation.

Nationwide, the number of Hispanic-owned businesses grew 31 percent — three times the national average for all businesses. In Texas, it rose 33 percent, and in Central Texas it increased 25 percent.

The Census Bureau report "certainly indicates that the Hispanic population is not only growing, but becoming an integrated part of the economic community. They're business owners as well as employees," said Steve Murdock, the state demographer who works at the Institute for Demographic and Socioeconomic Research at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

In Texas, about 18.4 percent of businesses are owned by Hispanics, Murdock said. That is more than twice the national average of about 7 percent, according to the Census Bureau.

It reflects not only rapid population growth but also the older, established Hispanic community that has been part of the Texas economy for centuries, Murdock said.

Nationally, the Census Bureau said the number of Hispanic-owned businesses grew from about 1.2 million to 1.6 million from 1997 to 2002.

That's right, bitches - we're gonna OWN your ass! Where'd you think all the chips and salsa you eat comes from, anyway? You'd better get fitted for your sombreros now, you crazy gringos.