Date: 9/10/2009 8:39:00 PM
From Authorid: 7830
Why should students in other countries be forced to learn english, when its barely spoken in their own country? It happens all the time. Buck up and be happy to expand your education and learn another language..sheesh.  |
Date: 9/10/2009 8:53:00 PM
From Authorid: 54444
If you don't want to learn Spanish, then don't. It is not a prerequisite to success. To each his own. Some hispanics will learn English and some wont bother. Those that do have the best chance at success here, but it is there right and choice just as it is yours. I am bone white and 100% american
born in Kanssas City Missouri. Your argument falls on my deaf ears. If you don't want them here do what you need to do, but I welcome them and there culture. hardest workers you'll ever find. I say ree open boarders through canada, usa and Mexico. It would be great to make them states.  |
Date: 9/10/2009 9:12:00 PM
From Authorid: 64514
I think its great to learn other languages and cultures. Sorry you don't feel the same.
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Date: 9/10/2009 10:09:00 PM
From Authorid: 62220
I definitely see your point: i refused to take spanish for this reason alone and took french instead. i REFUSE to learn another language to get along in a country that speaks english and should continue to do so.  |
Date: 9/10/2009 10:33:00 PM
From Authorid: 47218
Actually, people all the world over learn how to speak english so that they can do business with us, including people in China and Russia. In some countries (e.g. Switzerland) most people speak 2-3 languages and don't think a thing of it.  |
Date: 9/10/2009 11:01:00 PM
From Authorid: 42945
Wish I had learned to speak Spanish, Arabic and French!!!If you don't wish to learn it, don't!!   |
Date: 9/11/2009 6:25:00 AM
From Authorid: 48809
Mr. Nascar, I totally agree with you and I see no reason to force anyone to learn a new language if they do not want to. All those that WANT to learn Spanish or... any other language should have that opportunity, but no one should have to learn a language if they do not want to. Some things we must learn if we want to be educated ... but if we must learn Spanish...then why are the Mexicans not forced to learn English?  |
Date: 9/11/2009 7:56:00 AM
From Authorid: 4995
I agree with Posey's comment.  |
Date: 9/11/2009 8:00:00 AM
From Authorid: 24673
Good point Posey. When people move to a different country, they should learn the language of that country. Our family is made up of ancestors from many countries and they all learned to speak english. Being taught another language can be fun because you can understand what they are saying without them knowing you know!  |
Date: 9/11/2009 8:28:00 AM
From Authorid: 53284
I see and understand your point. I live in California. When my kids took a second language in high school I had them take Spanish. When I was in high school, I took German. I've never used it. If I'd taken Spanish, it would have been much more practical.  |
Date: 9/11/2009 9:11:00 AM
From Authorid: 15157
So when we go to other planets to live one day, those who inhabitant that planet should learn Our lingo? Cool!!!  |
Date: 9/11/2009 10:22:00 AM
From Authorid: 2030
Nothing wrong with learning another language. It should be required, as a mental exercise if nothing else. However the official and required language of the United States should be the one the constitution is written in.  |
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Date: 9/11/2009 10:25:00 AM
From Authorid: 47218
psshaw, you all. No one's being "forced" to do anything. As for needing to learn a predominant language in order to reap economic advantage, that's life. In fact, it mostly works to our benefit, since people mostly have to learn english in order to do business with us. As much as everyone complains about the Spanish here, most of us get away with only being able to speak english, which is not the norm in many places. We are very sheltered here. |
Date: 9/11/2009 10:28:00 AM
From Authorid: 13297
The whole world learns English to get ahead. In fact, England was the dominant super-power directly before the US and it is the only time in recent history that a back-to-back leading empire with the same mother-tongue has occurred. It is for these reasons that English finds itself so popular. Not everyone, but people from every country (the world over) learn English to get ahead since English is often the de facto business language. I myself have been in numerous business meetings and seen the whole thing conducted in English even when it was the mother-tongue of no one in the room but myself. I speak 5 languages - English being one of them. I think you are not forced to learn Spanish to survive - you may choose to learn it to get ahead if you wish to do so. English was never made the "official" language of the country and there-in lies the rub. That is why Spanish is gaining such footing and there have been so many political debates on the subject. In many European countries there are multiple official languages. For example, Belgium has French, Dutch and German as its official languages. Switzerland has French, German, Italian and Romanish as its official languages. Often inhabitants speak the local dialect of their region which may or may not correspond to the proper language (ie Swiss German dialects do not resemble high-German very much if at all - both spoken and written). Also inhabitants often speak more than one of the official languages but rarely all of them. Anyway, enough of my language diatribe. It just happens to be something I'm passionate about and therefore don't understand others passion to cling to English so fiercely. We are not in any danger of English fading into obscurity when so many people on the planet speak it as a second language (many particularly well if not better than native speakers)... cheers, Jamie  |
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Date: 9/11/2009 11:01:00 AM
From Authorid: 48809
Kiki... the people from outer space won't have to learn our language....they already know it! lol. |
Date: 9/11/2009 1:11:00 PM
From Authorid: 15157
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Date: 9/11/2009 1:26:00 PM
From Authorid: 10657
Personally, I wish when I did take Spanish and French that I would have remembered things better lol. My reasons for taking them were a little different. Two years of Spanish and you went on the Spain trip and two years of French and you went on the France trip.
I didn't pay enough attention. I can read and write both fair enough but eh, the actual speaking gets me every time lol.  |
Date: 9/11/2009 3:37:00 PM
From Authorid: 61897
Most people in other countries know more than one language and English is usually one of them. People that emigrate here that don't know English are usually poor and don't have much education even in their own language, much less know English. Those who are able to, DO learn English as soon as they can. It opens up doors, helps them get better paying jobs and helps them not to be discriminated againts as much for not knowing English....
Also, other countries DO employ and DO make their employees learn English or whatever language helps target their main tourist type or large population type EVEN IF IT'S NOT AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE EITHER.  |
Date: 9/11/2009 6:46:00 PM
From Authorid: 14314
It never hurts to learn another language, it always helps, and being bilingual does help when you apply to a job. I am from México, and live there too, I learned English, and I like having a second language  |
Date: 9/11/2009 7:01:00 PM
From Authorid: 64365
I met a woman from Denmark, long ago, and she told me that they had to take English as a second language to better accomodate the English speakers when they visited the country. I thought that was pretty neat. I don't see anything wrong with learning another language for any reason. I have a neice from Colombia who speaks 5 languages, fluently, besides her own, taught my nephew spanish, and they are teaching their two little boys to be multi-lingual. What's the big deal? Really.  |
62163 Category:(Discussion) Created:(9/10/2009 8:22:00 PM)