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Spanish is definitely worth learning, if for no other reason than the US has a Spanish-speaking territory whose residents are full US citizens.
And most are bi-lingual English speakers. The territory you speak of is only a small part of the U.S. and so what? Doesn't change the fact that the huge majority of Americans speak our national de facto language of English.
And most are bi-lingual English speakers. The territory you speak of is only a small part of the U.S. and so what? Doesn't change the fact that the huge majority of Americans speak our national de facto language of English.
And most are bi-lingual English speakers. The territory you speak of is only a small part of the U.S. and so what? Doesn't change the fact that the huge majority of Americans speak our national de facto language of English.
People in Europe grow up learning English as their second language since early grade school. It's only in this country where so many people think if we do that, then we cease being an English speaking nation last time I checked, German was still spoken widely in Germany, Norwegian in Norway, and Swedish in Sweden. There is only ONE country, and one subdivision of a country, in this entire world, where its native language was almost entirely eradicated and replaced with another within the past 100 odd years. Can you guess which those are? So, I think it's justified to say that, you have an irrational Hispanophobia.
People in Europe grow up learning English as their second language since early grade school. It's only in this country where so many people think if we do that, then we cease being an English speaking nation last time I checked, German was still spoken widely in Germany, Norwegian in Norway, and Swedish in Sweden. There is only ONE country, and one subdivision of a country, in this entire world, where its native language was almost entirely eradicated and replaced with another within the past 100 odd years. Can you guess which those are? So, I think it's justified to say that, you have an irrational Hispanophobia.
In Europe, no one questions the wisdom of learning the language of at least one of your country's neighbors. But apparently it's treasonous for an American to suggest the same thing.
In Europe, no one questions the wisdom of learning the language of at least one of your country's neighbors. But apparently it's treasonous for an American to suggest the same thing.
Very true. Most people around the world take great pride in speaking several languages.
Most of my classmates all went to Spanish so I had to do French 'just cuz'.
I could actually use Spanish every day here in Colorado. French? Not so much.
And my Swahili experiment was even less useful. Ninakwenda maktabani.
In Europe, no one questions the wisdom of learning the language of at least one of your country's neighbors. But apparently it's treasonous for an American to suggest the same thing.
The US itself is a huge paradox. We're a huge country that has such importance in the world, so exposed to the world and its people, yet at the same time, many of our people suffer from extreme jingoistic island mentality. Only in this country does the average American actually take pride in being monolingual
Very true. Most people around the world take great pride in speaking several languages.
Most of my classmates all went to Spanish so I had to do French 'just cuz'.
I could actually use Spanish every day here in Colorado. French? Not so much.
And my Swahili experiment was even less useful. Ninakwenda maktabani.
I speak French (fluently, since I started learning it in first grade), Russian, Dutch, German, and Spanish. I suppose I throw off the average a bit.
Incidentally, although I can converse reasonably well in Spanish, I almost never use it -- even though I'm in San Francisco (which, according to nativist propaganda, is overrun by scary foreign people because of its "sanctuary city" status). It just so happens that I don't interact with monolingual Spanish-speakers on anything resembling a regular basis.
In Europe, no one questions the wisdom of learning the language of at least one of your country's neighbors. But apparently it's treasonous for an American to suggest the same thing.
The stupidity of that is something I can't explain.
Anyway, I don't earn anything if Americans keep on wanting to remain monolingual, their choice, it's just a stupid weakness you could avoid.
Plus, the whole argument continuously repeated by some Americans here (like Oldglory) is that "you lose a language".
Explain us then how I can still be perfectly fluent in English without ever meeting an Anglophone where I live, I'm curious to hear.
Do you really think that Dutch people or Scandinavians speak English everyday?
Nope guys, they don't and yet they often know English better than Anglophones themselves.
I speak French. It was very useful when I got transferred to Geneva for a few years. And the amount of work I sold because my competitors did not speak a word of French ...........
I didn't say "official". I said national de facto. Even congress declared English as our "national" language already when debate came up about making it "official" but the PC crowd in congress didn't want it to be "official".
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last time I checked, German was still spoken widely in Germany, Norwegian in Norway, and Swedish in Sweden. There is only ONE country, and one subdivision of a country, in this entire world, where its native language was almost entirely eradicated and replaced with another within the past 100 odd years. Can you guess which those are? So, I think it's justified to say that, you have an irrational Hispanophobia.
