Press 1 For English

Off Topic Politics & World Issues
1

-Im not a racist in anyway and I dont want to be hounded for expressing my views.-

Why is it that everyday and everywhere I look I see that many of the products that I can buy in our stores also have to be written in spanish. As for the title too, I cant call any type of help line for anything with out proceeding in my own lanugage.

THEY NEED TO LEARN OUR LANGUAGE. PEROID

Can we not see that our ways of life are being changed in front of our eyes without even knowing it? Why do kids in our schools have to take spanish, when the own native speakers could learn ours? Is it right for us as Americans to alter our way of life to learn apart of theirs when WE are America? Im not only picking on Mexicans but also any other immigrants who think they can come here to make us change our ways of life.

If the government is allowing Mexicans or any other types of immigrants to come into our country legally or illegally surely they would find a better system of teaching these people to speak our language. I understand the circumstances in Mexico and I realize that its not a very good place to live, Iv been there, and not the good parts either. I mean if I had a better chance to have a better life in another country then I would want to move there also.

But that does not mean that I would force those country men to learn my language to better suit me. I am perfecty fine with people comming to live in our country and having a better life style, I just think that we shouldnt be forced to learn for them.

Another thing, a while back when some controversy was building up over security between the American/Mexican borders, there were hundreds of Mexican Americans at my capital protesting. Is it right for them to tell us how to run OUR country?

What are some of your views of this?

As I said before I am not racist and I welcome anyone to America to better their lives, I just cant stand the fact that we must change so manythings just to suit them. Is this just me or am I wrong to think this ?

2

Beside your little excursion into Mexico, have you ever spent a significant amount of time in a country in which English is not the official language?

In many countries, you will find that many street signs, subway maps, and telephone information services are also available in English and other languages. Very convenient for foreign travelers and residents who don’t happen to read or speak Italian, Russian, German, Japanese or what have you.

One mark of an advanced civilization is cosmopolitanism, defined as being familiar and comfortable with a variety of languages and cultures. The mark of narrow-mindedness and provinciality is a rejection of all that is foreign. Which would you rather the US to be?

Incidentally, is English in fact your native language? It was not immediately apparent from your post.

3

Could have been worse. You could have been asked to press 3 for English.

4

All immigrants should, as quickly as possible, learn english. Allowing groups to tribalize, such as in the Paris suburbs, is simply a formula for disaster.

We do not need or want a Balkanized United States.

5

I think assimilation is the bigger part of successful immigration, and unfortunately, the accommodations for other languages makes assimilation worse, not better.

And, conversely, I am huge proponent of of the study of languages. I don’t think the American systems emphasizes foreign language enough.

That said, we are not like Europe. We don’t have a history of having so many distinct languages over a concentrated geographical area. Treating unlike countries alike is not necessarily a good idea. Plus, Europe has its own set of assimilation problems - ones we should learn from and avoid.

6

[quote]Varqanir wrote:
Incidentally, is English in fact your native language? It was not immediately apparent from your post.[/quote]

Hey! No hitting below the belt.

7

[quote]thunderbolt23 wrote:

I don’t think the American systems emphasizes foreign language enough.[/quote]

No, it certainly does not. The foreign language ability of most Americans is dismal.

Meanwhile, as a look around at our very own T-Nation will attest, people from countries like Austria, Switzerland, Finland and Norway have a greater command of the written English language than most of the posters for whom English is purportedly their mother tongue.

Millions of foreigners are learning–and mastering–our language, along with the two or three other languages they may speak, while people in the States whine that an American might have to take a Spanish class, or look at a label in the supermarket printed in a foreign language, or…the horror…press an extra button on his phone to continue the recorded message in English.

I am all for immigrants learning the language of their adoptive country. Hell, I busted my ass for years to learn to speak and read Japanese. But I’m still grateful for the bilingual street signs, the English newspapers, the English subway station maps, the multitude of people around me who have made an effort to learn my language…and yes, when dialling a help line, the option to press 2 for English.

8

[quote]Monkey23 wrote:
Why is it that everyday and everywhere I look I see that many of the products that I can buy in our stores also have to be written in spanish. As for the title too, I cant call any type of help line for anything with out proceeding in my own lanugage.[/quote]

Maybe businesses who print bilingual labels get more sales? Just because you’re Hispanic doesn’t mean you like brushing your teeth with Preparation H.

9

You forgot the illustration, Pookie.

10

[quote]Varqanir wrote:
You forgot the illustration, Pookie.[/quote]

Do you have one of a woman shampooing with Neet?

11

[quote]pookie wrote:
Do you have one of a woman shampooing with Neet?
[/quote]

No, but here’s a bald Natalie Portman, which is pretty close.

12

I agree that Immigrants should learn English as the language our country. But what incentive are we giving them? The illegal aliens come here and get jobs picking fruit without having to learn English. I do think signs and advertisements should be in both languages, but Mexicans are never going to learn English, unless they are refused jobs because they don’t speak it. Whose fault is this? Americans who hire them. Stop hiring illegal immigrants who can’ speak English.

13

Its sad. I know a few people who work in factories and there are mexicans(legal or illigal who knows) that refuse to learn english and have the balls to say we need to learn spanish.

14

Welcome to America. Now speak English.

One of the few issues that I’m extremely conservative about.

If I went somewhere else to live, I would bust my ass to learn their language. If you don’t want to learn English, then get the fuck out.

15

[quote]FightinIrish26 wrote:
Welcome to America. Now speak English.
[/quote]

I’d go with “Welcome to America. Now LEARN English.” I don’t have a lot of patience for people who have moved here and won’t make the effort, but I also don’t have much patience for those who would demand that people who come to this country just flip a switch and start speaking English. It just don’t work that way.

Agreed, me too.

16

Sometimes I wonder if it is a question of not wanting to learn. I work in retail sales, I see at least 10 people come in and ask “do you speak spanish”
I usually say no, and before I can get out “how can I help you?” (you know so I can at least attempt to help) 8 walk out the door because they don’t want to deal with someone who can’t speak spanish.

17

[quote]Monkey23 wrote:
-Im not a racist in anyway and I dont want to be hounded for expressing my views.-
[/quote]

This is the first sentement of a racist.

So what!? How does this hurt you? Is it too difficult to press the number 1?

What makes you think that they aren’t?

Because we live in a liberal society and our egalitarianism dictates that we are sentitive to the learning needs of our new citizens. It takes at least a generation to naturalize. Learning the language is only part of the process and shouldn’t be the focus of so much attention. Remember, many of our ancestors also had to learn the language and they weren’t expected to know the language right away. It was the children of these immigrants that first started learning English.

It doesn’t sound like you really understand anything. Do you understand the hardships that many of these people have to go to get here to begin with? Imagine if you had no other choice but to emmigrate to another country and had to learn a new language and new customes. You don’t seem to be able to speak the language all that well (as far as I can tell from what I am reading) either.

When have you ever been forced to speak Spanish in this country?

Many of them are legal citizens, so yes they have that right to protest. Do you think there would have been illegal immigrants waving signs in the streets?

Its not just you. Better get over it or move to a shack in Wyoming because its not going to reverse course, EVER. The US is a country of multiple cultures, not just one. We are lucky to have diversity and am glad to have multiple ethinc groups that speak many languages living in my community. It reminds me that I live in a world with more than one culture that is not just “ameri-centric”.

I am grateful that I can go into any grocery store and buy ethnc foods that wouldn’t be there without the high demand for it that these people bring. I am glad that there are festivals to celebrate diversity and I get to learn about them and where they come from. These people are my neighbors and they make my life more interesting.

Se habla Espanol.

18

[quote]Wreckless wrote:
Could have been worse. You could have been asked to press 3 for English.[/quote]

Speaking of language tolerance…

I was in Brussels last year. I came in on the train from Amsterdam.

(In the Netherlands as you probably know English is commonly spoken which can be a handicap for American tourists.)

My wife and I decided we wanted to go see Belgium because it is purported to be that gastronomic center of all Europe and I love Belgian beers. On the train from Amsterdam every half hour or so we got a report in French, German, Dutch, and English about the upcoming stops. This happened for most of the trip into Brussels. Once we got 30k from Brussels the reports quit coming in English, German, and Dutch (which I can get by in because of my knowledge of German). I found this weird because don’t many Belgians speak Dutch in the north?

It was a Wednesday and the EU congress was in session. Not a hotel or hostel to be found within walking distance of the train station. I speak about 50 words of French of which can get me a hotel, a taxi, something to eat, and directions (Europeans seem not to have any concept of east, west, south, or north).

I could find no hotel or taxi cab that understood (or they pretended not to understand) my French. When I tried again in broken Dutch again I got quizzical looks. I tried in English to which many replied, “ahhhh, American?”

This unfortunately, got me nowhere. “Sorry, no English,” they would reply in perfect English. The next time I go to Brussels what language should I practice on the train, Francais or Nederlands?

The only English in that town was a sign in the train station that said, “No Hotels, No trains, No Toilettes, No English”. I found it quite amusing.

19

I have spent plenty of time in countries where english is not spoken, where signs, menus, documents, etc. were not in english. You know what I did? I tried to learn the language or at least speak it to the best of my ability. So I either spoke the language or I did with out until I could communicate what I needed. It was no big deal, and I actually had fun trying to learn the language. The people I tried to talk to had fun with me too. If I go to mexico, I will speak spanish, not well, but I will speak it. If I go to france, I will try to speak french, in italy I will try to speak italian. I have been around the world, I am exceedingly well traveled and never once did I expect anyone in the land in which I was visiting to cater to me. Likewise people visiting and/or working and living here should learn english or do with out, period.

20

Im not talking about going to other countries as a tourist. I just think we need to find a better system to teach the legals and not only their children. Thanks alot LIFTICVSMAXIMVS for you o so never ending Knowledge on this subjuct. Im glad you think im a racist you fag but i have mexican in my immediate family and their family have tried and learned english.