Please speak English!!!!!

[yeartolate]

I am a nurse and it is a frequent problem.

 

[justapixel]

Do you guys ever look at the context sensitive google ads at the top in threads like this?

There is one for the English Language Dictionary, one for Disability Insurance, one for being a host family for Scandanavian kids, one for Blackspeakers.com....

People who come here permanently should try to learn English. I think most if not all of them do. We should be patient while they are learning. This country would not be as wonderful if it wasn't the melting pot it is. Foreign language speakers/immigrants have been the backbone of this country since its inception, and even if they never learn, (and many didn't even back in the 40s) their children do.

 

[fabshelly]

If the majority of the population is going to be Latino before long, maybe we should all learn Spanish. Ben Franklin wanted the official language to be German.

 

[Hound 109]

imo - About half of the posters here see a political problem here.

I think this perceived problem is far less traumatic than what is being stated here, and if it IS a problem then the immigrants aren't the one's causing it.

I think the other half need to examine their comments.....imo the comments are racist.

Hound

 

[fabshelly]

ITA, thank you. I moved to Hawaii, I learned some Hawaiian, Japanese and Korean, because a huge number of people here speak these languages. It's polite and thoughtful.

 

[tropical depression]

If the majority of the population is going to be Latino before long, maybe we should all learn Spanish. Ben Franklin wanted the official language to be German.

sieg heil, muchachos.

 

[tropical depression]

imo - About half of the posters here see a political problem here.

I think this perceived problem is far less traumatic than what is being stated here, and if it IS a problem then the immigrants aren't the one's causing it.

I think the other half need to examine their comments.....imo the comments are racist.

Hound

I'm covered no matter how you spin it, and I don't need to press 1 for english.

 

[Planogirl]

I see and hear about this often. I'm not sure who should learn what but I do know that we need to be able to communicate to function well as a society. Is the answer for everyone to become bilingual? Or should there be a common mandated language?

It can be difficult at times in the city. I suspect that many of those who don't speak English wind up in the cities. I don't know a bit of Spanish so if I run into a clerk or someone else who doesn't speak English I just smile, shrug and go elsewhere. I don't get angry with them but I don't get anywhere either.

 

[jmskinner]

I'm tired of every restaurant I go to here not having employees that speak English. Its a real pain at a drive-thru. I think I've eaten at more places where they dont' speak English than that do. I want turkey, not ham on my sub. I want the meatloaf at Boston Market, not dark meat. I should NOT have to learn Spanish to be able to order my food!

Grrr.....vent over!

I saw you were from Frederick, we lived in Rockville a couple of years ago. I realized what a melting pot the DC area is. We were in a furniture store and I overheard a salesclerk introducing another salesclerk to help them because she spoke Russian.

Back to the subject of this thread, I ran into this problem in DC quite a bit. Funny, now I am back in West Texas I haven't. But finding a good paying job without speaking Spanish is getting more difficult.

 

[JennaTX]

I see and hear about this often. I'm not sure who should learn what but I do know that we need to be able to communicate to function well as a society. Is the answer for everyone to become bilingual? Or should there be a common mandated language?
It can be difficult at times in the city. I suspect that many of those who don't speak English wind up in the cities. I don't know a bit of Spanish so if I run into a clerk or someone else who doesn't speak English I just smile, shrug and go elsewhere. I don't get angry with them but I don't get anywhere either.

I agree something needs to be done for people to be able to communicate.

The only thing that really bothers me is when people get angry that I can't understand them when they are speaking Spanish. I would not go to another country whether to live or visit and get angry if they did not speak my language.

 

[Planogirl]

I agree something needs to be done for people to be able to communicate.

The only thing that really bothers me is when people get angry that I can't understand them when they are speaking Spanish. I would not go to another country whether to live or visit and get angry if they did not speak my language.

The irony is that if you went virtually anywhere in Europe, locals would know enough English to communicate and yet we often have problems in the U.S. I don't understand why there are so many here who don't know English and like you said get angry when you don't know Spanish.

 

[bigmerle1966]

Is FICA social security?? I have been working for 23 years and have never paid into social security. Railroad workers do not pay into social security-we also do not collect it.

Can I ask why? I've never heard that.

 

[JennaTX]

The irony is that if you went virtually anywhere in Europe, locals would know enough English to communicate and yet we often have problems in the U.S. I don't understand why there are so many here who don't know English and like you said get angry when you don't know Spanish.

Maybe since they do have an "official" language. But really I can't see how that would help us.

I probably should know more Spanish with living in Houston. But like alot of people I took it in Jr High and High School, but unless you use it, you don't remember it.

I can order beer and ask for the bathroom but that is about it.

 

[aprilgail2]

Can I ask why? I've never heard that.

Some workers - mainly railroad workers and Federal, State and Local government workers - have their own government pensions and don't have to pay Social Security. We pay into railroad retirement instead of social security, we put more in and we also collect more when we retire-you collect your railroad pension at 50 when you retire and then railroad retirement kicks in at 62 and you collect both.

 

[Cindy B]

At Dunkin' Donuts, they won't hire you if you speak english.

Around here its Dunkin Donuts and 7-11. We have had the Latino McDonalds for such a long time, its not even noticeable. There are a few Walmarts I won't go to because the entire staff is Spanish speaking and no one speaks English.

The last straw at a grocery store was when the manager was using the intercom for announcements in Spanish. (It was announcements for the employees something like dairly aisle 5 or something like that)

 

[LuvN~Travel]

Stating the obvious:

Fast food workers get orders wrong all the time. And there is no Spanish translation for "Egg McMuffin."

Huevos McMuffin?
Sorry, couldn't resist. Carry on...
Kim

 

[Chuck S]

The last straw at a grocery store was when the manager was using the intercom for announcements in Spanish. (It was announcements for the employees something like dairly aisle 5 or something like that)

I think I'd rather have the dairy spill on aisle 5 cleaned up, rather than worry about whether or not the person cleaning it speaks English. What I don't like is the ever growing percentage of our food that actually comes from foreign countries...not specialty items, but every day items like noodles and canned vegetables. Why? Because so much of our productive farm land is being turned into housing subdivisions. Look at the pet food thing from China...that contaminated gluten could just as easily been used in foods for humans.

 

[NeverEnufWDW]

Remember the good old days -- when you could always count on an English-speaking teenager running the drive thru ?

Our government has refused to enforce our laws for so long that this is where we are at. Put me in charge of Homeland security and I would get this country cleaned out ASAP. Don't tell me that the government is too stupid to figure out where the illegals are - most of the politician's maids would be a good starting place.

 

[marciemi]

Remember the good old days -- when you could always count on an English-speaking teenager running the drive thru ?

You say that like it's a good thing! I usually can't understand many teen's sullen mumblings at all either! Bummer since I now have 2 of them!

 

[PghLybrt]

I posted this in another thread but I think some people on this thread need to read it. There are actually more people (percentage wise) that speak English born in foreign lands today than in the early 1900s. The "problem" is not getting worse it is actually getting better. But I am glad to see that so many people are so tolerant of others that just happened to arrive here after they did. Seriously maybe our official language should be more along the lines of Navajo , if you really want to play the "well I was here first" game.

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homep...D/question.htm