Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Meh. I'm indifferent. Most people here speak English anyway.
Even in countries where there is an official language, accommodations are made if there are enough of a given minority who have immigrated there and need assistance in their native language, so this isn't going to FORCE anyone to quit speaking Spanish or Arabic or Chinese or whatever they intended with this bill.
Totally fine with them wasting some time on it.
Who said the intent was to stop people from speaking another language? Didn't you read the part that it would save us billions of dollars not having to print government documents in several different languages and paying for interpreters for them? I'd hardly call that a waste of time pushing for this bill to go through.
From the Republican who accused Eric Holder of casting aspersions on his asparagus? His English could use quiet a bit of work.
That has nothing to do with it. No one is completely perfect in any language and it's a lame excuse not to push this bill through when it will save us billions of dollars.
I support this only because it will chew up time with all the deliberating, spouting of platitudes both pro/con, voting on, signing off on, etc. that might otherwise be spent looking for creative ways to rob us.
Why on earth does anyone else care what language the govts endless and pointless forms are printed in? They are mostly in gibberish(a.k. govt speak) anyway.
Because we spend millions each year printing forms in a bunch of different languages.
The number of people in this country who do not either speak English or aren't eager to learn it, is very small. This legislation is not needed and its only purpose is to try to impose a symbolic dominance on those who come from other cultures. But for some people who have not yet learned English well, many publications that deal with medical treatment or legal issues are essential. Make learning opportunities more widely available for learning English. That would be the best way to approach this issue. Whenever I have a document written in English/Spanish/French, I welcome the opportunity to improve my skill with those other languages.
Why on earth does anyone else care what language the govts endless and pointless forms are printed in? They are mostly in gibberish(a.k. govt speak) anyway.
Because, as others have said, it would save a LOT of dollars. (I don't know it would actually save "billions" -- maybe it would -- but it would definitely save millions, anyway.)
If nothing else, I think that any kind of publication printed for U.S. residents should only be in English, but with 800 numbers available to request the material in other languages.* I would have absolutely no problem with that, but I do have a problem with getting instruction booklets in Spanish and English when this requires extra pages that I will never read. Not only does this waste dollars, but it also wastes trees.
*Perhaps an exception could be made for states in which at least 20% of the population is Hispanic.
Because, as others have said, it would save a LOT of dollars. (I don't know it would actually save "billions" -- maybe it would -- but it would definitely save millions, anyway.)
If nothing else, I think that any kind of publication printed for U.S. residents should only be in English, but with 800 numbers available to request the material in other languages.* I would have absolutely no problem with that, but I do have a problem with getting instruction booklets in Spanish and English when this requires extra pages that I will never read. Not only does this waste dollars, but it also wastes trees.
*Perhaps an exception could be made for states in which at least 20% of the population is Hispanic.
No, even that shouldn't be an exception. Learn English or leave! Most of those cities/states that have a large number of Hispanics also have large numbers here illegally.
Official English should be mandated at the federal level. Half of our states have already made English their official language.
The number of people in this country who do not either speak English or aren't eager to learn it, is very small. This legislation is not needed and its only purpose is to try to impose a symbolic dominance on those who come from other cultures. But for some people who have not yet learned English well, many publications that deal with medical treatment or legal issues are essential. Make learning opportunities more widely available for learning English. That would be the best way to approach this issue. Whenever I have a document written in English/Spanish/French, I welcome the opportunity to improve my skill with those other languages.
Did you not read the article? This is about saving us billions of dollars on the federal level by not having to print government documents in several languages and not providing interpreters at the taxpayer's expense. We have plenty of opportunities to learn English. Many just don't want to. They can take their own interpreters with them for medical treatment and legal issues at their own expense.
It's ridiculous for you to claim that this is about imposing a symbolic dominance on other cultures but then English is our language.....so what? Half our states have made English their official language I guess that makes them racist or some other stupid label?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
