silverthorne

Depending, really, on how much the immigrant/illegal aliens/green carded workers really do impact us financially on a day to day basis. Honestly, other than giving all of us a really, really clear idea of how much they really do affect everything, it doesn't bother me. Let them do it. It just might be a very good lesson for all of us in reality and where, exactly, we all really stand.

Something I don't mind finding out.

But what does bother me is this: People maintaining that because the 'main' language is English, that it somehow makes it the only viable language to know and use on a regular basis in the states, whether or not you were born to English speaking parents, or even 'native' to this country.

Bear with me here, all I have is what I know talking to every day folks, the few things I learned about other cultures and countries by studying Spanish, French and Japanese in school, and a few educational books and magazine articles I read YEARS ago. So, feel free to disagree with the fine points and/or broad generalizations if you want, as long as you're polite about it. Just don't expect me to rise to bait, okay?

ANYHOW...

Okay, yes, I do agree--it is the main language expected to be used here. For the majority of the population, who are fortunate enough to have access to public schools (even if some of them are crappy and need some serious help themselves), that's the main language that gets taught. I won't disagree that it makes sense--many cultures/countries insist that their students learn English, because it is the most commonly used language 'bridge' between different cultures and countries around the world. You know English, then there are not that many places that won't be able to understand you.

But see, here's the thing--those other countries? Teach English--as a required course to those fortunate enough to make it into higher education so that they can talk outside of their own little world. It opens doors, they're surrounded by it, so it makes sense.

Funny thing is? America is one of the few places that doesn't acknowledge that knowing at least one other language is a necessity if you want to get ahead. Sure, you point and say, 'Well, of course not--I mean hell, everyone else is learning our language, right? You just said so!'

Kids, you just missed the point of WHY though. it's because those other countries? Would like to be able to talk to us, thank you very much. So...English? Required for them. It's everywhere.

Which marches us back to the point about the Spanish translation of the Star Spangled Banner (bear with me and walk away from the later parts where the people trying to get it heard have also started talking about the 'new lyrics' and shit to be added later. Right now, we're dealing with JUST the first translation--which is 'close' to the original lyrics. I'm not referring here to the politcial manuvering after that--I'm referring to the 'OMG!It got put in Spanish!' reactions when it first got announced (and which helped snowball everything after that).)

Okay. Look at a map. No, seriously. Go look at a map. Look east, we have LOTS of freaking water. Look west. Guess what? Same thing. Yep. Coast to coast swath, no doubt about it, we are English Speaking Americans. Great! Whoo Hoo! Good so far, even if you ignore all the legally here populace that speaks all sorts of things in their own homes, from Hebrew to Cantonese. And nevermind those 'indian' people with the Cherokee, Navajo, Apache, Lakota and other languages that were here first, and are STILL here, despite our 'best efforts'. English has won the day anyway, even with those *gasp!* heathens. Let's pat our bad selves on the back anyway, shall we? Well done, folks. We have an English speaking country. Go us!

Oh, but wait! Hold up. What's up north?! Oh no! Could it be? What Is That?!

Fuck! What do you know--It's Canada! Big wonking place? Has all the snow and blizzards and pissy moose (meese?) that we can't handle? Guess what? They? Speak French up there. Yeah, they have English--but French? That's the mommy language. (And funny that, but we have something called Creole living down in our very own country that speak the same thing...well, okay, sort of. At one point it really was French. XD). Hell, from what I understand, they take their French up there so seriously that folks in Quebec will not only laugh at our piss poor French if we tried to speak it up there, but they will actually fuck with you if you dare to speak it anyway and manage to mangle even 'just' a mere syllable or two; and then they will quit talking to you altogether.

Seriously. They will.

That's a hell of a 'tude there. It would suck to be us if Canada decided we were worth taking over and subjugating. Not only would we be fucked, but we'd have no one to talk to. Because, yanno...no one thinks it's important to learn French. Silly us.

But wait! THERE'S MORE!

Look south. Not just to that little ol' land mass down there--the one that is almost twice the size of our country--but a few islands and the like scattered around down there too.

Guess what they speak? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Damn if it isn't....*GASP* Spanish. (I need sparkly effects for that word right there...)

Espaniol. (No, I don't know how to make the little funky sign over the 'n' on the keyboard, sorry. But I know it goes there).

Yep, that's right, chicos and chicanas...that very same language everyone is having fits about being put into the National Anthem.

Now, I don't know the French distribution of legal American citizens very well, but I do know that all along the southern states--there are a LOT of Spanish speaking folk. There's TONS of them in California, which takes up a goodly chunk of the western coastline. We won't go into things like China Town or the Japanese folk living there as well as in Hawaii. AND they're also predominant in New York and New Jersey, by way of places like Puerto Rico (right next to the ITALIAN FOLK WHO STILL JABBER IN ITALIAN AROUND THE DINNER TABLE. Seriously. Been invited to their homes and have seen it for myself.). Also not to mention, like say, the Yiddish folks. Thanks to a Yiddish speaking babysitter, that's all I spoke until my English speaking mom fired her in a fit of pique. Guess she didn't know that whatever I was gabbing at her meant 'cookie please'.

Holy shit, but the Spanish speaking folks, legal as well as illegal, are everywhere.

Not to mention still living down south of us.

Good thing they don't mind 'Spanglish' and will actually be helpful if you try to learn.

Anyhow? Point is? It's not only that we have legal citizens that speak it as their primary language. It's not just that we have a glut of immigrants, illegal, legal, or on visas coming into our country that speak the language. It's that we have Spanish speaking folks here in the first place, and that their country borders one side of our country (and French in the other direction). It's that there are legally active people here that speak it. Quite a few of them, in fact. And they aren't even all Mexican. (Go on, call someone from, say, Puerto Rico a Mexican. I dare you. Mostly because I want to see what happens to your face. *eg*).

It's that we Do NOT Live In A Bubble, folks. America, for all the commercialization and predominant advertising that up until recently has been the 'typical' middle class white-American English speaking family with a house, two cars, dog, cat, picket fence and 2.5 kids, is not quite like that.

Sorry, but that's more like...oh...maybe a quarter of the whole populace. A very noisy quarter, but still. IT'S NOT TRULY REPRESENTATIVE OF AMERICANS AND THEIR DIVERSITY, and that includes the so-called 'predominent' language.

So yeah, someone perks up and says 'Let's do the Star Spangled Banner in Spanish? God PLEASE, YES! Let's hear it! Look! MORE AMERICANS DOING JUSTICE TO THIER COUNTRY BY SINGING IT IN THIER OWN LANGUAGE! One, that incidentally, is used just as often here in Texas as...say...oh...English. Go diversity (and yes, still ignoring the political 'it's a rallying cry for the immigrants' thing. Before that, it was an honest attempt at translation.).

Fancy that.