Historically this is also the case, as we have widely accepted words such as Pyjamas, restaurant, Ciao and of course, the famous Bush-ist "Entrepreneur".

Just as a side point, I recently emigrated to Geneva, Switzerland. The multi-lingual paperwork here is a great idea in theory, until I get my mobile bill in French, the advertising in German and the first person I speak to on the helpline speaks Italian only.

Also, as I learn French, it's amazing how much of my mother tongue English, is actually bastardised French!

Engrish

skiingtheK12

hahahahahahaha priceless!

DaDuckster

+ Watch video

Un Chien Andalou

serialnick

Sorry, (wo)man? womyn?

Ah, f*ck it.

serialnick

NightElfMohawk

NightElfMohawk

notthatpopular

notthatpopular

notthatpopular

kahri

princepumpkinbeepster

scoutastic

scoutastic

CoJo, from Entertainment Tonight is more manly looking.

GOKOR

GollyG

Mediahohoho

Pithmaster

sumac

EDogII

PattyCake

Belgium, Switzerland and Canada all have multiple official languages. Nearly every other "Western" country has at least one (usually far more) minority languages, such as Sicilian, Gaelic, Basque, Catalan, etc.

Also, you vastly underestimate the economic pressure on immigrants to learn the langugage. A lot of nativists like you act like these immigrants are spitting in your soup by not learning English. In reality is that most immigrants eventually learn English and 99.9999% of their kids grow up using it. They know you can't get ahead in America without English!

Botswana Meat Commission FC

DaDuckster

I'm an immigrant to Germany and the German government requires B1 level German knowledge (lower intermediate) within 3 years. The big difference here is the fact that these classes are either completely free or low cost. After 3 years, I am more or less fluent in German but I work the normal 40 hour week and am able to afford additional language classes when I need them.

Anyone that feels it's so incredibly important and urgent for immigrants to learn/speak English should volunteer their time to teach people the language. Step up! Having a bunch of ignorant, xenophobic fucks mouthing off is worthless. Get out there and be part of the "solution"!

pukatronic

Priam

LoveHandles

LeGagneur

LeGagneur

Priam

Priam

Priam

Un Chien Andalou

Un Chien Andalou

Priam

Speed Limet 35mph

AuntPeniston

Don't immigrants already have plenty of incentive to learn English when they arrive in the US?

For those who choose not to learn it, is there some way of arguing that their choice is so harmful to the nation as a whole that it can't be allowed?

And yes, enforcement of this notion would be very difficult. I imagine if English were truly made the official language of the US by an act of Congress, almost nothing would change. I can't foresee some additional bureaucracy being tasked with evaluating and enforcing this new immigration requirement. Government and business would still accommodate non-English-speakers in many cases, for a variety of reasons.

I don't know, I must be missing something here. The current system of voluntary acts and incentives seems pretty efficient to me.

skahammer

LeGagneur

LoveHandles

phlox

brechtgirl

I have also seen them get mad if people dont understand them.

brechtgirl

leaderbean

TheLorax

now... where were we on the america's orifices?

Niko Bellic

lollie

UnstableMabel

Koreanish

FatTush

Do you think that their is the same or even a lesser level or accomodation of say Spanish than in the past?

notthatpopular

Liberace

Can you provide an argument countering my point about accomodation. Is there less or the same level of acceptance of Spanish for example than in the past?

notthatpopular

And while not referencing a movie (I was actually referencing the book - burn!) does not make your point any less valid, your passive aggressiveness does make you a dick.

spinachdip

nedzo

but if you're going to require that all u.s. residents be fluent in english, as has been suggested above, how do you apply the law equitably?

do you grandfather in or otherwise exempt current citizens who don't speak english? i'm not a 'law talking guy', but if you do, doesn't that make the law applicable only to a particular class, and therefore discriminatory?

nedzo

sanson

spinachdip

midtown43

major disaster

foolinthepool

notthatpopular

The notion of racism is that these desires to assimilate only arise when these cultures have in fact ALREADY assimilated into our culture. Who would question Mexican or Chinese contributions as nothing less than an improvement to our culture?

hominaray

foolinthepool

and i like how serif fonts look in all lower case.

nedzo

lizzybennett

As far as using my argument concerning bettering the lives of immigrants I thought it was clear that I think learning English would allow immigrants to get better jobs than the physical labor they are forced to gravitate to.

I don't see any racism in asking potential citzens to do the same thing generations of their counterparts have done for centuries, even if it was due to a lack of accomidation rather than regulation.

notthatpopular

And again, you display a clear ignorance of this country's immigration history. The segregation that you speak of has been true for every single group of immigrants (remember, the draft riots depicted in Gangs of New York is considered a point when the Irish became "white"). Yet, just as with language assimilation, integration with the mainstream has occurred within three generations from arrival. Simply put, the natural segregation (as opposed to the Jim Crow kind) has not been harmful to anyone, not the immigrants themselvs or the nation as a whole. In fact, enclaves like the Polish diaspora in Chicago or the Greeks in Astoria, have only served to enrich American culture while serving as a soft landing spot for first generation immigrants.

Also, it's important to keep in mind that when people talk about how "hard" it is for immigrants to learn a new language, that's not "hard" as in "It's hard to walk five sets of stairs", but "hard" as in "Dyslexia makes it hard to recognize words." There hasn't been any significant advancement in the human brain's language center, and it gets exponentially harder (in the latter sense) to pick up a new language once you're past age 10.

spinachdip

Point well taken, I'll take back the "complete fucking idiot" for your thoughtful response, but at what point in history has your argument, then or now, been utilized to accept or provide for the "improvement" of immigrants lives? These arguments have all belonged to a long history of attempts to marginalize the most recent immigrants to the US.

The idea that all of a sudden these reforms are intended for the benefit of recent immigrant groups is a conceit that only a Fox Republican would believe.

Xenophobia for these groups whether Mexican, Korean, Indian, Chinese or otherwise has existed against these ethnic groups and the backlash against these people is a reaction to these groups success DESPITE the language barrier.

So your obvious paternalism is arguing for their benefit is a joke (or at best well veiled racism).

hominaray

notthatpopular

che_leo

biddledown

the cajun boy

sanson

sassypants

notthatpopular

Yes there hasn't been an official language in our history, but there also hasn't been the level of accommodation presently afforded to non-English speakers. It is far easier for immigrant groups to keep themselves separated from the rest of American society. Segregation of this kind will only lead to further ignorance and bigotry displayed by the woman pictured.

Also, I know I am just a "complete fucking idiot" but I think you mean "as more important than a a forced..." You have just mangled your argument then had to resort to calling me names. Yes, there are people who would like to use language as an exclusionary tool, but it can also be used to improve the naturalization process, and in turn improve immigrants lives.

I think I have made my point and now can focus my energy elsewhere.

notthatpopular

sanson

About six months ago there was serious talk that Belgium was going to break up into two regions (and it still may happen), and back in 1995 a referendum on Quebec separating from the rest of Canada failed by only a percentage point.

One of Africa's many problems is that some of its nations are made up of different tribes who aren't fluent in each other's languages.

As a general rule nothing good in terms of keeping a nation state together comes out of straying too far away from having one official language that everyone speaks fluently.

That does mean that woman can spell, or isn't going a bit overboard in her zealousness, but it needs to be established.

jt

Bos'un's Mate

LeGagneur

"NotthatPopular" it sounds like you're serious, so you should read your history and find out that English wasn't chosen as a national language for the specific reason that we didn't necessarily want to align with the British from who we were seceding.

Among other possibilities, Dutch and german were considered to some degree for this status. Ultimately I think most have accepted the notion of commonality on a working basis as more important as a forced homogenizing of language as a means of exclusion.

Oh, and by the way, you're a complete fucking idiot.

hominaray

Frankly, Belgium has had a far harder time, and we're all witnessing the continued breakdown of what for a time was Yugoslavia. That doesn't mean it can't be done, though, so long as the various cultural identities are recognized and respected by the government.

Colonel Mustard

nedzo

Which is exactly what a shit talker would want English to be, an official shit speaking language.

wassalam, to you my brothers and sisters.

Shariahpants

The truth is that without any language requirements, immigrants can ignore learning English all together. Is learning a new language a punishment? People are coming here for a better life, learning the language used by almost all businesses in this country can hardly be hurtful to achieving success. I do not agree with the idiot in the picture, but there is merit in reexamining the way in which people become American citizens, and perhaps improve the lives of all Americans.

notthatpopular

Queen of the Passive Aggressives

spinachdip

notthatpopular

bess marvin, girl detective

Priam

Bos'un's Mate

I think the wording of the statute seems straightforward enough to me. "Applicants for naturalization must be able to read, write, speak, and understand words in ordinary usage in the English language." That implies a working, conversational knowledge of the language - not your typical tourist's knowledge of a word or two learned out of a phrasebook.

And it's not an easy thing for an adult to learn a foreign language with any fluency. I know -- I lived in a foreign country for a year, and tried hard, and failed. Some people have a better affinity for learning languages than others. And the older you get, the harder it gets. The brain's ability to learn language naturally declines with age, starting in adolescence.

Oh, I almost forgot: Dipshit.

MisterHippity

Ryan Tate

oneninesevenfour

@notthatpopular: Sure, I'd love to. In fact, I already explained in an earlier comment. No immigrant group has escaped the clenching jaws of language assimilation. But going back to your original comment, I think it's funny that you picked, as an example for ALL Western nations, a country that's notorious for its comical paranoia about the effect of the English language on its culture. And really, you want to ape the French approach to immigrants and minorities? You might want to ask how the Paris suburbs how well that works out.

spinachdip

StuckInThe215

bonera

LoveHandles

Yes, Switzerland has four national languages due largely to its history and geography, but the point still stands that it is a Western nation (and a small one at that) with a multilingual infrastructure (many cities have different names in the various languages) that functions quite nicely. The same could be said for Belgium, where some streets have names in more than one language. The European Union functions as a whole on an entirely multilingual infrastructure.

Most nations have a declared national language -- or more than one (see above) -- but the move to declare English as such for America rises not out of national pride, but out of jingoism.

Colonel Mustard

Bell County

Care to explain?

notthatpopular

notthatpopular

iAlreadyHateYou

Bell County

iAlreadyHateYou

@notthatpopular:Do they have to "no" how to spell "know?"

contradicto

plasticene

richardmarxhatesmyhair

the cajun boy

spinachdip

As for your misguided worries about the second generation and beyond, if you look at the immigration history of this country, as a whole, the first generations all stuck to their native tongues and never learned English (unless they came from English-speaking countries, of course). The second generations tend to be bilingual, but by the third generation, almost without fail, they manage language assimilation.

spinachdip

plasticene

rightbrain

Bell County

If you're going to argue that Switzerland's multilingual identity resulted from its geography, we can also argue the prevalence of Spanish speakers Down South and West results from the US's own geographical history. I'm just sayin'.

iAlreadyHateYou

When speaking to others, I always use English first and another language if that person requests it so (and if I happen to know that language).

Also, you know the only reason people have trouble learning English? Accommodations are provided in the first place. Stop catering to them and they will feel more obligated to learn. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out.

iAlreadyHateYou

notthatpopular

notthatpopular

notthatpopular

iAlreadyHateYou

Actually no.

"Applicants for naturalization must be able to read, write, speak, and understand words in ordinary usage in the English language."

They have to no everyday usage much like one might learn a little Italian for a visit to Italy. There is no requirement for fluency, or even conversational knowledge. I know this because my girlfriend was recently naturalized and was astounded at how lax the language requirement was.

Dipshit.

@Tammany_Fall:I Dont think that argument holds water. Of course I realize their life is very difficult, but tens of millions of immigrants before today's have managed to learn English under equally difficult circumstances.

The problem is not with first generation immigrants not understanding English, it is the passing on, and acceptance of the second generation's use of another language as primary communication outside the home. Do you not think that the added barrier of language would not further segregate American racial groups?

notthatpopular

Colonel Mustard

ian spiegelman

rightbrain

BeRightBack

shitty pitty

famousauthor

your Mrs. Robinson

spinachdip

Tammany_Fall

rightbrain

Tammany_Fall

DonLaFontaine

bess marvin, girl detective

bess marvin, girl detective

Greg Johnson

MrInBetween

I remember about a year ago, Nancy Pelosi tried to push through a bill forcing businesses to hire an applicant even if they can't speak any English after an immigrant filed a lawsuit against the public library system when he wasn't hired because he could not speak the language. The job entailed direct costumer interaction, which would make it difficult for the person to fully perform the required duties.

Asking that people who want to become American citizens learn the common national language is not discriminatory, it is common sense.

notthatpopular

BeRightBack

the cajun boy

Colonel Mustard

/Nick Nolte

rightbrain

Bell County

nightwatchman_flamekeeper

JinxyMcDeath

Lizawithazee

busyness

LeGagneur

spinachdip

Shadowy Figure

tonashideska

bangbangbonnie