English should be the official language?

[oracle]

Would living in a Montana cave explain his mean streak?

First Joe, this idiot is lying. You ever notice how jackasses always know a whole BUNCH of people that are the opposite of your point? It's amazing really. And living in a cave? where do they live? How many ceo's do they rub elbows with? I mean, it's just dumbfounding, how someone with those kinds of people in their circle can find time to post at 7:00 in the morning, much less be interest in it. You think those super successful friends of hers are posting right now? I call bullshit.

Still doesn't justify the personal crap. Calling bullshit on what you perceive as bullshit is a right of yours that I will defend 'till I'm euthanized, but there's never a call for phrases like "dummy" and "put the peyote pipe and the babies down". That's just mean.

I didn't know that I was here to change your pampers, or be your play date. By the way, it was intended to be mean. I'm not in the business of pacifying folks on this site. As it stands everyone at some point or another is at each others throat. I started out trying to be nice and was given the bums rush. I learned quickly where you folks hail from theoretically. Everyone believes in free speech, until you piss them off. Well now I cut to the chase. If I perceive stupid, I call stupid. This site is designed merely to inspire pissing contests anyway. Do you REALLY think you matter to the other folks that come here? I know I don't. Nor do they, to me. So I don't really think I need your opinion, or code of ethics on what's mean or not. Let miss fao chipowah defend herself.

 

[rightwinger]

If it is so important to have English as the offical language, why did the Founding Fathers not authorize it many years ago?

It was probably a given, since there was no signer of the constitution named Sanchez.

There were signers of the constitution of Dutch, French, German and Scandinavian descent. They all spoke English, but knew better than to try to enforce an English language

It had something to do with freedom

 

[oracle]

So I guess those English only advocates would not have a problem if Hispanics became 51% of the population and changed it to Spanish only

Here we go. Captain contrary to the rescue. Do you think any other country would let that happen?

Let what happen?

We are a country of individual rights and personal choice. If we are going to degrade ourselves and become a country where the majority enforces a language on the minority, we should be consistent and accept the consequences if the minority language reaches 51%

If everyone learned english at birth, or upon entering the country as a path to citizenship it would be a non factor then wouldn't it? when the country was just about all white which ethnicity was the dominant? are they the dominant now? how has learning and speaking english hurt them?

 

[oracle]

If it is so important to have English as the offical language, why did the Founding Fathers not authorize it many years ago?

It was probably a given, since there was no signer of the constitution named Sanchez.

There were signers of the constitution of Dutch, French, German and Scandinavian descent. They all spoke English, but knew better than to try to enforce an English language

It had something to do with freedom

Yeah? What did it have to do with freedom? where did they write that it had to do with freedom? I bet there were more africans than scandinavian, did africans want to speak english? You know, since we're on that whole "freedom" thing. what option for dialect were they given?

 

[rightwinger]

Here we go. Captain contrary to the rescue. Do you think any other country would let that happen?

Let what happen?

We are a country of individual rights and personal choice. If we are going to degrade ourselves and become a country where the majority enforces a language on the minority, we should be consistent and accept the consequences if the minority language reaches 51%

If everyone learned english at birth, or upon entering the country as a path to citizenship it would be a non factor then wouldn't it? when the country was just about all white which ethnicity was the dominant? are they the dominant now? how has learning and speaking english hurt them?

Almost all second generation immigrants speak English. speaking English is also a requirement for citizenship.

Immigrants always spoke other languages. We have this romantic concept that our ancestors immediately spoke English as soon as they got off the boat. Some picked up the language quickly while others maintained their mother tongue
In every major city we had Little Italys, Chinatowns, Germantowns, Swedesboros where immigrants flocked together and still spoke their native languages.
Second and third generations always managed to pick up English as their primary language

What are you afraid of now?

 

[Xchel]

Words like faux pas are not English.

Yes they are.

no the word faux pas is french, the word patio is Spanish, sauna is a Finnish word, paradise is Persian and so on and so on I could go on all day telling you words we use daily that are NOT english that we use every day.

 

[Xchel]

First of all I am not Mexican. I am Cherokee Indian and Hispanic...so let's make it easy for you...get a life this is not England and we don't speak English here. Furthermore, making any language EXCLUSIVE to any part of life makes it a violation of freedom of speech in the constitution.

You aware the US PURCHASED the south west from Mexico for MONEY??

Are you aware that "Spanish" comes from Spain??

Stop with the renig bullshit.......

Go build a fucking casino dummy.....

at the point of a gun but that is not exactly what we are discussing either is it..do you mind staying on topic?

 

[Xchel]

He actually said that it should be the official language of the United States government...which I assume is directed at bilingual education. There is definitely an argument to be made that it compels people to assimilate more quickly, but not sure if it needs to be "official".

Maybe we should tell other countries to not have official languages either. As it stands, no other country is making their schools adapt their criteria to folks that think their native tongue is too cumbersome.

English is taught in every public school in Honduras where the common languages are Spanish and Mayan and Garifuna.

 

[Xchel]

how many spanish only speakers are ceo's where you work

The wealthiest man in the world is Carlos Slim, he speaks Spanish. SO think about it you dolt..and look where I live and then tell me how many speak Spanish dolt...all of them do every business owner where I live speaks Spanish. My former next door neighbor is the president of the country I live in.

 

[BDBoop]

Mexicans speak a dialect of Spanish but not all of them..some of them speak other languages. In fact, there are 68 languages of Mexico, but you clearly did not know that. So which language would it be that they speak? Some of them speak Nauhutl, Yucatec Maya, Mixtec, Zapotec, TZeltal Maya, Otomi, Totonac, Mazatec, Chotl*mayan*, and the list goes on and on including Qu' che..a mayan language common in Central America as well...but in just Nauhutl there are almost 2 million speakers and a lot of them don't speak Spanish...so when you ask what do they speak either Mexican or Spanish you would be clearly leaving out a good section of the population of Mexico that doesn't speak Spanish or even a dialect of Spanish, because NO Mexicans do not speak Castillian Spanish they speak Mexican Spanish and or a dialect of native americans. They also speak English, Chinese, Hebrew and the list goes on and on...do you really want to continue this or perhaps find out a little more about languages in Mexico before we go this route?

Google much?

 

[BDBoop]

Voted yes, but it begs the question, which version of English?

Cockney, Australian, Southron, Queens, yankee (ewwww), Texian, Nigerian, South African?

Ours. The one most of our citizens understand, most of the time.

 

[BDBoop]

Actually they aren't insulted at all...and you ask what do I speak Mexican or Spanish? Again why would I speak a Mexican dialect or any of the sort if I am Cherokee Indian? I wasn't born in Mexico nor was anyone in my family except those folks born there pre Texas independence.

You have personalized what was not intended to be personal. Being in a country does not automatically mean the language is named after it. That would be the point.

We do speak English. We take classes in it. When people come here and learn the language, they learn to speak in, hear and comprehend, English.

 

[Xchel]

Oh and Oracle, you can try to get a rise out of me with insults all you want, the more you insult me the more I know you are losing the argument, because when a person results to insulting the other person they are discussing a political issue with it means they have already lost the argument...so make your case or find somewhere else to play because in debate I will stomp your tail and I have been doing this since I was 16 and I am 40 now and I can tell you this, I don't need google to help me.

 

[BDBoop]

As long as French is the national kiss, Turkish is the offical bath, and Russian is the offical roulette, I guess I'm okay with that.

You bastard. Now I'm having euphoric recall.

/misses kissing more than anything.

 

[BDBoop]

Words like faux pas are not English.

Yes they are.

No they aren't.

The term comes originally from French, and literally means "misstep" or "false step".

 

[BDBoop]

What would be a better language?

Spanish - as in Cortes Spain Spanish???

French?

What the fuck is wrong with English?

What is wrong with the language being the "official" language for that matter?

Beats me. I'm about 75% firmly on the 'yes, it should be' side.

 

[BDBoop]

10 bucks says the majority of progressives believe the natives spoke Spanish.

$10 bucks says that was a pretty damn ignorant statement.

On the other hand, I took history going on 40 years ago, so I am of course wondering if the natives in what is now Texas weren't speaking Spanish.

I'm probably overdue for a refresh on American history.

 

[Xchel]

Actually they aren't insulted at all...and you ask what do I speak Mexican or Spanish? Again why would I speak a Mexican dialect or any of the sort if I am Cherokee Indian? I wasn't born in Mexico nor was anyone in my family except those folks born there pre Texas independence.

You have personalized what was not intended to be personal. Being in a country does not automatically mean the language is named after it. That would be the point.

We do speak English. We take classes in it. When people come here and learn the language, they learn to speak in, hear and comprehend, English.

No she did intend it and apologized for assuming I was Mexican which is fine, but she did make the assumption. No it doesn't automatically mean it, but we do not speak English either we speak a conglomeration of languages that we call English. Ask the English themselves and they will tell you that people in the US do not speak English, they speak American. Why? Because our language is heavy in foreign languages that we have picked up from being a melting pot. We don't use words like petro we use the word gasoline, we don't say cinema we say movie, we don't call a damn bathroom a loo either.

Oracle, yes I speak some Cherokee. My grandparents lived and were born on the reservation and no we aren't discussing in foreign languages to prove the point. I also am 100% fluent in Spanish but the speakers on this board speak English so we will keep the conversation on the topic. You want to IM me in Cherokee or Spanish go for it.

 

[BDBoop]

Gingrich is wrong...English should not be our official language..the USA is not England.

That's a matter of opinion. After all, America WAS a penal colony of England.

I think you're thinking of Australia.

 

[BDBoop]

Does anyone want any fish and chips?

Yes, and thankfully we have one of these nearby.

Welcome to Claddagh Irish Pubs