Mexicans fear U.S. immigration plan

[Scott & Lai 12]

You Americans are already trying to speak a foreign language - English - (with fairly patchy results), so learning another one can't be so hard

Excuse me??? If English is a foreign language for us, then what, pray tell, is our native language??? I've been speaking English since I first formed words... Granted, we may not speak English the funny way you people across the Pond do, but then, you also don't speak English the same way that your forbears at the time this country was founded did, either.

[Ban Hammer 13,550]

So why don't you Americans stop speaking American and start speaking English..

You don't 'meet with Jim' - you 'meet Jim' etc etc to the power 1 billion ^

It's impossible to meet someone and not be with them

and all the nouns you use as verbs - shudder- good job bill shakespeare died before you traitorous Colonials started butchering our lingo

pidgin english from bongobongo land if you ask me old fruit - we lend you a great language and this is what you do with it - we are going to take it back and make you rotters learn spanish so there

ah you're gonna be a big hit in the states with that attitude

[Leney 0]

Perhaps we should just be totally ridiculous and all be forced to speak in binary code or go back to Latin! Perhaps Pig Latin if you're feeling frisky...Or better yet just grunt and point while we eat meat raw and scratch our behinds. Be sure to send us a postcard from your soapbox.

[Captain Oates 911]

So why don't you Americans stop speaking American and start speaking English..

You don't 'meet with Jim' - you 'meet Jim' etc etc to the power 1 billion ^

It's impossible to meet someone and not be with them

and all the nouns you use as verbs - shudder- good job bill shakespeare died before you traitorous Colonials started butchering our lingo

pidgin english from bongobongo land if you ask me old fruit - we lend you a great language and this is what you do with it - we are going to take it back and make you rotters learn spanish so there

ah you're gonna be a big hit in the states with that attitude

Don't worry - I know most Americans have little tolerance for banter or much else and are armed to the teeth with guns etc by virtue of the constitution - so I won't be deploying that attitude while I am spending all those lovely cheapo dollars you guys are selling me. Doesn't mean I won't think it though... got any technology to stop that yet ? eh ?

hasta la vista baby - bed time

[Scott & Lai 12]

I still want to know what our native language is, if English is a "foreign language we are trying to speak."

[natty bumppo 297]

So why don't you Americans stop speaking American and start speaking English..

You don't 'meet with Jim' - you 'meet Jim' etc etc to the power 1 billion ^

It's impossible to meet someone and not be with them

and all the nouns you use as verbs - shudder- good job bill shakespeare died before you traitorous Colonials started butchering our lingo

pidgin english from bongobongo land if you ask me old fruit - we lend you a great language and this is what you do with it - we are going to take it back and make you rotters learn spanish so there

ahhh ... how good it feels to be part of two countries separated by a common language

so many items we will need to rename ... what will we ever do ?

in sooth I know not why I am so sad .....

does this mean iambics will soon be popular again ?

[pedroh 21]

I didn't say they weren't...I was telling a story about someone who *legally* immigrated and was annoyed with Spanish speakers. I don't care where someone comes from, I care that they get here legally and they should do their best to fit-in.

amh, yeah, puerto ricans are americans, and they fit in very well in the states.. puertoricans are a subculture that allows them to have a constant switch between english or spanish and don't give a fukc.. i like that..

[natty bumppo 297]

I didn't say they weren't...I was telling a story about someone who *legally* immigrated and was annoyed with Spanish speakers. I don't care where someone comes from, I care that they get here legally and they should do their best to fit-in.

amh, yeah, puerto ricans are americans, and they fit in very well in the states.. puertoricans are a subculture that allows them to have a constant switch between english or spanish and don't give a fukc.. i like that..

yes people from puerto rico are USC. is there a problem with their immigration status.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Question: How do we morally justify letting any Cuban who reaches our shore stay here with a Green Card and not doing the same with Mexicans?

I'm not looking for geopolitical reasons... can it be morally justified?

Is it just?

oh yeah, i didn't know the mexicans were fleeing a dictator

There are tons of dictatorships around the world. Why the preference for Cuba? There is no good reason other than what someone here alluded to - money.

Our immigration policy is based entirely on the almighty dollar. There is nothing moral about it. It is extremely unjust and that makes disobeying it just fine.

Now all we need is someone to issue a fatwa saying so

[Ban Hammer 13,550]

So why don't you Americans stop speaking American and start speaking English..

You don't 'meet with Jim' - you 'meet Jim' etc etc to the power 1 billion ^

It's impossible to meet someone and not be with them

and all the nouns you use as verbs - shudder- good job bill shakespeare died before you traitorous Colonials started butchering our lingo

pidgin english from bongobongo land if you ask me old fruit - we lend you a great language and this is what you do with it - we are going to take it back and make you rotters learn spanish so there

ah you're gonna be a big hit in the states with that attitude

Don't worry - I know most Americans have little tolerance for banter or much else and are armed to the teeth with guns etc by virtue of the constitution - so I won't be deploying that attitude while I am spending all those lovely cheapo dollars you guys are selling me. Doesn't mean I won't think it though... got any technology to stop that yet ? eh ?

hasta la vista baby - bed time

you can always opt to stay in that united kingdom

[LaGreenEyes 0]

I didn't say they weren't...I was telling a story about someone who *legally* immigrated and was annoyed with Spanish speakers. I don't care where someone comes from, I care that they get here legally and they should do their best to fit-in.

They fit in just fine, just maybe not by YOUR standards. I, for one would hate to see a nation of clones "fitting in", losing their culture, their language, their standards and ideals... It doesn't matter where one is from or WHAT language they speak weather or not it's Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese, Vietnamese or whatever. A person who chooses to speak that language among friends and family in public is no less worthy of a person than you are. I can totally understand the need to use English in the workplace, to communicate in business, public services, etc. But it's the cultural differences that make this country a fun place to live.

From what you said, the billboard originated because someone "got tired of listening to people speak spanish" and since he referred to Puerto Ricans, 95% chance it was listening to people speaking to each other in their own free time, not people forcing anyone else to speak with them in spanish, or saying "I don't speak English". Many people who behave like that (wanting to impose on someone's language in their free time) are just paranoid and afraid that people are talking about them. Unless one is going out in a bikini walking through the center of town, chances are they were not talking about you.

[JoeMama 0]

So why don't you Americans stop speaking American and start speaking English..

You don't 'meet with Jim' - you 'meet Jim' etc etc to the power 1 billion ^

It's impossible to meet someone and not be with them

and all the nouns you use as verbs - shudder- good job bill shakespeare died before you traitorous Colonials started butchering our lingo

pidgin english from bongobongo land if you ask me old fruit - we lend you a great language and this is what you do with it - we are going to take it back and make you rotters learn spanish so there

ah you're gonna be a big hit in the states with that attitude

Don't worry - I know most Americans have little tolerance for banter or much else and are armed to the teeth with guns etc by virtue of the constitution - so I won't be deploying that attitude while I am spending all those lovely cheapo dollars you guys are selling me. Doesn't mean I won't think it though... got any technology to stop that yet ? eh ?

hasta la vista baby - bed time

you can always opt to stay in that united kingdom

I would hate to think that German would be today's official language of the UK if the USA didn't get involved in WWII and offer it's assistance to get the Nazis to back off from there. What do you think Charles?

[Leney 0]

@ Lagreewhatever

wow...here's a diagram to illustrate this basic fact to you:

The Point -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------->You

This diagram is not to scale. You are actually much further from the point than depicted.

Edited May 21, 2007 by Leney

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

We live in a global society, ...

But it's the jobs asking applicants to speak Spanish, not the immigrants....

Neither of these facts changes what I said: There's little choice of what that second language is that one needs to learn today in America. And this has far less to do with companies doing business overseas than it does with an ever growing workforce and customer base here in this country that is unable and unwilling to speak English. You can deny that all you want. Deep inside you know that's the case. If it was overseas business interest, we'd be learning Japanese, Chinese, German and maybe even French before learning Spanish.

French = Freedom English

I wouldn't agree in the French and German so much being needed though as far as a global economy necessity. We actually have seen a lot of jobs pop up that want Portuguese as Brazil is becoming a very important market for U.S. trade . That's my next project....learn Portuguese...

Well, unlike Portugal and Brazil, Germany and France are actually in the top ten list of US trade partners.

Edited May 21, 2007 by ET-US2004

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

We live in a global society, ...

But it's the jobs asking applicants to speak Spanish, not the immigrants....

Neither of these facts changes what I said: There's little choice of what that second language is that one needs to learn today in America. And this has far less to do with companies doing business overseas than it does with an ever growing workforce and customer base here in this country that is unable and unwilling to speak English. You can deny that all you want. Deep inside you know that's the case. If it was overseas business interest, we'd be learning Japanese, Chinese, German and maybe even French before learning Spanish.

French = Freedom English

I wouldn't agree in the French and German so much being needed though as far as a global economy necessity. We actually have seen a lot of jobs pop up that want Portuguese as Brazil is becoming a very important market for U.S. trade . That's my next project....learn Portuguese...

Well, unlike Portugal and Brazil, Germany and France are actually in the top ten list of US trade partners.

Ruh Roh, does this mean we have to be able to speak Canadian, too? No problem, eh!