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.
where english is the norm and a speaker speaks another language in public, they assume the conversation, though spoken out loud is fairly private, between him and who he is talking too. it is way fun to nod and speak a few words back to him in their same language. seems to take people by surprise. we should try to know a few words in as many languages as possible.
I love diversity. It makes the world exciting to me.
I live in Europe and everything I buy or look at has instructions/ingredients, etc. in at least 5 languages, none of them English.
Big deal.
If I can read one language, it can help with others.
I guess it's time for my (not so much a) joke again:
What do you call a person who speaks several languages: multi-lingual;
What do you call a person who speaks three languages: tri-lingual;
What do you call a person who speaks two languages: bi-lingual;
What do you call a person who speaks one language: American.
where english is the norm and a speaker speaks another language in public, they assume the conversation, though spoken out loud is fairly private, between him and who he is talking too. it is way fun to nod and speak a few words back to him in their same language. seems to take people by surprise. we should try to know a few words in as many languages as possible.
I was recently walking around in a small French village when I heard a man speak to his children in, of all things, Thai.
I made a comment to him in Thai and now I'll have an additional family to visit during my next trip in a few months.
He was surprised that I spoke any Thai and what was I doing in this small village at the same time he and his family were visiting there.
I like to view the world as inclusive, rather than exclusive.
I have no fear of others, it's the way of the world.
It's all ebb and flow, forever changing.
The only constant is change.
I'd rather go with it than make myself crazy fighting losing battles.
Your attempt to belittle my qualifications is just your pathetic attempt to derail the debate.
You never said you had qualifications, you made a comment and I questioned it.
Do you have a degree in psychology?
Is that what you're asserting here? I'm just asking for clarity.
It's a free country. A lot of people don't dig more government "requirements".
They should be required to learn how to speak and interact with those that reside in such. The base language IS English, and those who wish to come here should at least learn how to do the minimum to obtain normal relations with its citizens.
I honestly do not care what people choose to speak outside of this aspect, but they should KNOW how to interact outside of their native tongue. We aren't talking about tourist at a certain specific focal point relying on the adaption of the language for such, we are talking about an INFILTRATION of our nations base cultural language being pushed aside to fit a demand that a NATION adjust to fit an influx of people who have no respect for this country and its base.
If I planned on living in a country that did not speak English, I would learn its language. Not simply because their laws may demand, but out of a respect for those there and a simple fact of basic wisdom that demands one adjust to fit their surroundings. Those that do not are ignorant, disrespectful, and worthless bags of flesh who do not deserve the air they breathe. Sounds harsh? Live a while in an area infiltrated by the garbage that thinks otherwise and you will change your tune. These aren't misunderstood people, they are garbage that needs to be purged from the nation because they do not respect anything in it.
I seriously don't understand why lots of Americans have this aversion to other languages. In most countries on this Earth multiple languages and a bilingual society are just an accepted way of life. There's nothing wrong with it, we live in a world of many different languages.
Seems like it's just American redneck culture to hate on other languages. Nothing more, nothing less.
I seriously don't understand why lots of Americans have this aversion to other languages. In most countries on this Earth multiple languages and a bilingual society are just an accepted way of life. There's nothing wrong with it, we live in a world of many different languages.
Seems like it's just American redneck culture to hate on other languages. Nothing more, nothing less.
I will admit that, in most countries of the world, they are required to learn a second language, almost all of them learn English either by choice or by force. Why? Because English is the language of business, it is the international language. There are actually very few people in this world that can actually speak more than two languages fluently. Most of them are business travelers in places like Europe. I knew an Italian model who knew five languages because she traveled all over Europe for work. But there are something like 40 different languages spoken in all of Europe. It isn't practical to have people learn them all.
Now lets contrast and compare.
In America we are taught the language of business English, because it is basically our native language. Our country is very large so you can anythig a person really ever wants to do without leaving this country. While our neighbor to the north has a province that speaks French and our neighbor to the south speaks Spanish. Neither of those countries are our primary business partners, so international businessmen do not need to learn the languages of Mexico or Canada. If they are learning a second language they are better off learning Chinese, Japanese, French, Russian, Arabic, or German.
So why is there a big push for people to learn Spanish? Because of the overwhelming amount of Spanish speaking people entering the country. We are not learning Spanish so we can trade with Mexico, we are not learning Spanish so we can move to Mexico, we are learning Spanish so we can talk to the Mexicans that are moving here.
So why are there so many Mexicans here? Because we have what amounts to an open-border policy where we either let Mexicans into the country outright, or give them amnesty once they have been here for a while. Which encourages a new wave of Mexicans to come to the country who will also receive amnesty. All the while huge sections of the country are becoming Spanish only zones, where in many restaurants, grocery stores, and other shops, it can be hard to find someone who speaks English.
There are places where all the billboards are in Spanish, and the shops names are all in Spanish. It wasn't like this 50 years ago. So what has changed? What comes next?
It wasn't like this 50 years ago. So what has changed? What comes next?
Abduction by the Mexican Gastapo, and forced to learn Spanish.
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.
