pasamanos

English translation: red line

05:29 Oct 27, 2020

Spanish to English translations [PRO]
Government / Politics

Spanish term or phrase: pasamanos

I would appreciate any help in figuring out if there is a specific term for this out there

"Esto ignora y viola los acuerdos informales, los llamados “pasamanos” o límites democráticos a los que se atuvieron ambos partidos"

Derek Voglis KudoZ activity Questions: 7 (1 open) Answers: 40 Puerto Rico
Local time: 08:55

English translation:red line

Explanation:
Red line = a boundary or limit which should not be crossed.

Another option could be "line in the sand" =i.e. a point (physical, decisional, etc.) beyond which one will proceed no further.

These expressions are used frequently in political contexts...

"“This ignores and violates the informal agreements, the so-called "red lines/lines in the sand" or democratic limits by which both parties abided”"

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Note added at 3 hrs (2020-10-27 08:52:07 GMT)
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Note that the source term appears "in quotes", signifying that it is an expression or metaphor, whereas "tacit understandings" is simply a synonym of "informal agreements", which immediately precedes it. If it weren't for the quotation marks in the original, I would agree wholeheartedly with Muriel's suggestion.

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Note added at 3 hrs (2020-10-27 08:54:50 GMT)
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And I certainly don't agree that idioms can't be translated. They are simply a bit more tricky than straightforward literal text.

Selected response from:

neilmac
Spain
Local time: 14:55

Grading comment

4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

4 +3

red line

neilmac

4 +2

guardrails

patinba

2 +1

tacit understandings

Muriel Vasconcellos

3 -1

differential limit

Lisa Rosengard

Summary of reference entries provided

Informal contracts or agreements

Sonia García

guardrails

Leagh Gallegos

Answers

45 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

tacit understandings

Explanation:
Based on your context.

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Note added at 47 mins (2020-10-27 06:17:19 GMT)
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tacit understanding definition | English definition dictionary ...
1 implied or inferred without direct expression; understood. a tacit agreement. 2 created or having effect by operation of law, rather than by being directly expressed. (C17: from Latin tacitus, past participle of tacere to be silent)

Muriel Vasconcellos
United States
Local time: 05:55
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 468

1 hr confidence:

peer agreement (net): +3

red line

Don't cross the line in the sand
Rather than cross the red line, it was better for the negotiations to fail...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line_in_the_sand#:~:text=Line%20in%20the%20sand%20is,not%20partake%20in%20drinking%20alcohol).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_line_(phrase)

neilmac
Spain
Local time: 14:55
Works in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 200

8 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +2

guardrails

Explanation:
Quite literal

Donald Trump and the Seven Broken Guardrails of Democracywww.theatlantic.com › politics › archive › 2016/05 › th...
May 31, 2016 — The Seven Broken Guardrails of Democracy. The American republic was long safeguarded by settled norms, now shattered by the rise of Donald ...

This is how democracies die | Steven Levitsky and Daniel ...www.theguardian.com › us-news › commentisfree › jan
Jan 21, 2018 — Norms of toleration and restraint served as the soft guardrails of American democracy, helping it avoid the kind of partisan fight to the death that ...
(PDF) Demagogues and the “Guardrails of Democracy”www.researchgate.net › publication › 328391321_Demag...
Purpose Contemporary American politics has been characterized

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Note added at 9 hrs (2020-10-27 15:01:11 GMT)
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A few more examples to show this is the specific term you are looking for:

The Catholic Church as the guardrail of democracy in Poland ...dawidtatarczyk.com › the-catholic-church-as-the-guard...
Sep 23, 2019 — Will the Catholic Church act as the guardrail of democracy in Poland? My research project, generously supported by the APSA small research ...

Blueprint for the Death of a Democracy: Where Are We? | Post ...www.postalley.org › 2020/10/22 › blueprint-for-the-de...
5 days ago — And Donald Trump has broken down one guardrail of democracy after another. To say the least, he is not civil. He declares his political ...

The Broken Guardrail of Democracy That Let Donald Trump ...forward.com › opinion › the-broken-guardrail-of-dem...
The Broken Guardrail of Democracy That Let Donald Trump Get This Far. J.J. GoldbergJun 3, 2016 Image by Getty Images. Image by Getty Images.

patinba
Argentina
Local time: 09:55
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 272

1 day 2 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): -1

differential limit

Explanation:
In other contexts the answer would be a handrail, guard-rail or banister used as a protective barrier.

In the field of governmental politics a barrier or differential defines limits for or between two political groupings:

(Pasamanos es un diferenciador que indica los límites entre los ideales de dos grupos en el ámbito de políticos y gobierno.)

("Esto ignora y viola los acuerdos informales, los llamados 'pasamanos' o límites democráticos a los que se atuvieron ambos partidos.")

"This ignores and violates informal agreements, the named differentials or democratic limits to those who adhered to both (political) groups."

An example is seen with the two main political groups in the United States: Democratic Party and Republican Party, with differential limits between the ideology of each group.

(Vemos un ejemplo con los dos principales grupos políticos en los Estados Unidos: El Partido Democrático y el Partido Republicano, con un diferenciador entre la ideología de cada grupo.)

"The Democratic Party and the Republican Party are the two main political parties in the United States, which have philosophies and very differing ideals on government. The democratic ideology defends (is in favour of) more prominent state intervention in the economy, and follows a more liberal left-wing philosophy.
The Republican ideology banks on less state intervention, while defending more conservative ideals in favour of tax reduction. Republicans (right-wing conservatives) are adamant that taxation must not increase, and that salaries must be established by a liberal market."

"There's a differential limit between the ideal based on social and community responsibility, and the ideal based on individual rights and justice."

("Hay un diferenciador entre el ideal basado en la responsabilidad social y comunitaria; y el ideal basado en derechos individuos y la justicia.")

("El Partido Demócrata y el Partido Republicano son los dos grandes partidos políticos de los Estados Unidos y poseen filosofías e ideas muy diferentes sobre el gobierno. La ideología demócrata defiende una mayor intervención del estado en la economía, y una filosofía más liberal y de izquierda.
La ideología republicana apuesta en una menor actuación del Estado, defiende ideas más conservadoras y la reducción de los impuestos. Republicanos (conservadores de derecha) defienden que los impuestos no deben ser aumentados a nadie y que los salarios deben ser establecidos por el mercado libre.")

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Note added at 2 days 15 hrs (2020-10-29 20:49:02 GMT)
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A differential limit indicates the disparities (differences) between the distinct ideologies of two political groups.
Differential is distinctive, pertains to diversity, and indicates a respectful difference.

Un límite diferencial indica las disparidades (diferencias) entre las ideologías distintas de dos grupos políticos. Lo que es diferencial es distintivo, pertenece a la diversidad e indica una diferencia respetuosa.

https://www.thefreedictionary.com/differential

According to the source text, the definition is a "democratic limit".
Según el texto original el significado es "un límite democrático".

"This ignores and violates (jeopordizes) the informal agreements, the so-called democratic limits of those who adhered to both parties."
"Esto ignora y viola los acuerdos informales, los así-llamados límites democráticos a los que se atuvieron ambos partidos."

Example sentence(s):

"Demócratas (liberales de izquierda) defienden la existencia de un salario mínimo y una tributación progresiva, (sistema progresivo y contributario de impuestos) es decir, porcentajes más altos para los que tienen rentas más altas."
"Democrats (left-wing liberals) are in favour of a minimum salary or wage system with a progressive system of contributory taxation, which implies higher taxation for those with higher incomes."

Reference: http://www.difenciador.com/demócratas-y-republicanos

Lisa Rosengard
United Kingdom
Local time: 13:55
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: English

Reference comments

2 hrs

Reference: Informal contracts or agreements

Reference information:
An informal contract is a type of agreement that will not require any sort of legal intervention to be considered enforceable. They are different from formal contracts because they do not need to be sealed, witnessed, or written. An informal contract is often called a social contract. This type of contract needs to be avoided if there is no trust with the other party you are contracting with. A verbal contract is considered informal and only works when the other party can be trusted to perform their contractual duties without a written assurance.
https://www.upcounsel.com/informal-contract

I do not think you can translate "pasamanos" as this is an idiom, so I would suggest a descriptive translation. Social contract or tacit agreement, like Muriel suggested, could work.

Sonia García
Ireland
Native speaker of: Spanish

1 day 20 hrs

Reference: guardrails

Reference information:
As seen on the headline of this article and several more. I truly believe "guardrails" is 100% the correct translation.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/05/the-seven-broken-guardrails-of-democracy/484829/

Leagh Gallegos
United States
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English

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pasamanos

English translation: red line

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