Speaking English in the United States

[Bertha Venation]

One of the housekeepers here at work (a law firm), who is from Guatemala, just stopped me in the hall to ask me about the normal temperament of another co-worker, a paralegal, on my floor. Apparently the housekeeper and the paralegal had a bit of a row on the elevator that wound up with the paralegal telling the housekeeper -- who had been speaking animatedly in Spanish to another housekeeper -- "and speak English."

Why are some people personally offended when others speak in "foreign" languages in their presence? I don't understand it.

And don't get me started on Ron Unz & his ilk.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

1. Not offended if I'm not involved...

.. but is really aggravating when your coworkers are chatting away in a different language about some issue on a project that I'm also working on... communication is bad at best when we're all speaking the same language... leaving someone out unneccessarily is just bad manners.

I just 'ahem, excuse me, but my ...... is rusty. Are you guys talking about something I should be aware of?'.

[FredScuttle]

11. Here's a suggestion...

mind your own business.

BTW, if they're "chatting away in a different language (you) don't understand", how are you so sure they're talking about your project?

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

35. Thanks for assuming guilt....

.. but when they're looking over the spreadsheet and specs, it's easy to make the assumption.

Next jump to conclusion?

[sangh0]

38. Yes, we know it's easy to make assumptions

but the question was how do you know the assumption is true?

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

41. Funny, the whole DU & FreeRep boards exist...

.. on the pure sake of 'assumption'.

At least with my coworkers, I DO try to watch & listen & gage their actions and reactions and by no means jump in the middle of a table conversing in a different language at LUNCH!

Sheesh. Do some people just like to pull wings off flies or what?

[sangh0]

45. No one here said your assumption was wrong, and no one accused you

of anything. All that was done was that you were asked how you knew that your assumption was right.

I can think of many non-work-related reasons why they would be looking at your work, and talking in another language. It's possible that you are correct, but it's also possible that you are wrong. All you've given us is the fact that they were looking at your work while talking in another language. I don't think that's enough info to come to any conclusion, so I asked in the hopes that you would respond with more.

Instead, you got snippy. No one insulted you or accused you of anything. You were asked to support your claim. There's nothing wrong with that. I've said nothing to you to justify your implying that I enjoy other people's pain (ie "Do some people just like to pull wings off flies or what?")

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

47. Mind your own business?

... from a poster and I get 'snippy'?

Oh well, let's just end it this way....

I work with many nationalities. I enjoy their company and often have them teach me simple phrases in their language. We are friends.

When my close-coworkers who I know very well are UNINTENTIONALLY excluding me from information that may be vital to my job and my performance, I have no problem POLITELY speaking up saying 'hey guys, are you chatting about anything I need to know about?' .. SMILING the entire time ...

I REALLY don't worry about if I've made an incorrect assessment of the situation because they'll laugh and say 'oh no, we were just going over the stuff ...'. I'll say back, 'oh okay... no problem.. just let me know if you find out something...' and I'll go back to my work etc.

Believe me I am NOT paranoid that they're talking behind my back or conspiring against me in a 'foreign language'. If they were, there is nothing I could do about it anyway.

I ENJOY people of many different cultures.

I've tried learning a foreign language and found it quite difficult so I EMPATHIZE greatly with people trying to speak English as a second-language. Futher, I GIVE THEM the benefit of the doubt if their english (written) has a few holes in it and make no attempt to correct it.

So you might can understand now, how my reaction to the first poster telling me to MIND my own business or butt out didn't quite set well with me when I ADMIRE people who can speak more than ONE language.

How many more whacks do we want to give this dead horse?

[sangh0]

49. You're right

and I apologize. I must've skipped past the "mind your business" remark or forgotten it. I can see how that wouldn't sit too well with you.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

50. No problem... helps get my post count up! <n/t>

[FredScuttle]

52. I still think you should mind your own business

If someone came up to me at work when I was in the middle of a conversation with someone else and had the gall to say "Gee, are you guys talking about something I should be aware of?" I would tell said person to take a flying leap, or some other such direction in business-appropriate language.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

55. Okay.... so?

Type A personality huh? Doesn't fit well with my more low-keyed laid back.. and hopefully IF I actually WORKED with you or someone like you, I'd have the common sense to know what approach to take with the different types that one must deal with in business.

And again, thanks for immediately assuming I'd be a buttinsky for the sake of being a buttinsky and not giving me the benefit of the doubt that tact & diplomacy is called for in most/all situations and I do try my best to act on the situation, not oblivious.

So would the 'Mind your own business' be in English or the foreign language you were speaking?

How do you say 'mind your own business' in Spanish? Mi espanol es muy mal!

[FredScuttle]

58. There is no polite way if horning in on a conversation

and demanding, however sweetly you put it, to know if the conversation is about, or impacts you. It's rude and arrogant.

You've stated that you would only interrupt your non-English colleagues if you felt they were (your word)UNINTENTIONALLY excluding you from the conversation. Well! Bully for you, rescuing your poor co-workers from the egregious crime of excluding you from the conversation. I bet that happens all the time, eh?

Put yourself in their shoes...I'm sure that you wouldn't appreciate someone else horning in on your conversation, especially if that conversation had nothing to do with that person, would you?

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

60. Isn't it time for a beer?

ANYway.. no, I never said 'only non-English'! If I hear english speakers talking about OUR work... yes, I'll perk up and listen more and remain quiet unless I overhear something contrary to known facts on our project.

Unfortunately I'm speaking of a specific PERSON who often speaks another language with someone and he/she is OFTEN very wrong about their perceptions of their work AND/OR just hasn't 'gotten it'. Too often I have to undo/redo the work... and they sit opposite me. NOT that I STRIVE to eavesdrop... but overhearing innocent comments about work that impacts our TEAM'S productivity, I DO feel it's better to 'butt in' early (politely again.. even if it's waiting for the other person to leave and say 'I overheard you say... and I think we need to clarify..') to avoid problems.

So again, I gage the situation and the intensity and the timing of their convsersations.. and I do respect their privacy, opinions, etc at a personal level.. and give EVERYONE the same RIGHTS of not being intruded upon even if I 'overhear' an English conversation. If someone has a problem with me butting in to 'correct a falsehood' which betters THEIR work.. well, okay... I'll just butt out more often and tell the boss that I tried to be supportive but it wasn't wanted.

Bud, bud light, or Sam Adams? I'll buy the first round.

(all eavesdroppers welcome too!)

[FredScuttle]

61. Jeez....it's a good thing we don't work in the same office

or it may come to pistols at dawn before long.

Let's agree to disagree....and I'll take a Sierra Nevada, please.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

62. Two Sierra Nevadas coming up!

And no, I think if we actually worked together there'd not be a problem. I feel there is a lot of baggage you're throwing my way because of a few sentences that don't convey the complete picture of timing and interpersonal relationships that I DO value.

I have had a co-worker who CONSTANTLY barged in even when I was chatting about MINOR problems or issues HE had NOTHING to do with... so do I know annoyance at that? Sheesh, I'd ask him to leave and to stop interrupting us.

Believe me, I am no 'Alan'.. and I am congenial and diplomatic as I can be. I'd guess you'd never even notice I was 'butting in' without being told.

Hey, want some garlic fries to go with the beers? Nachos?

[FredScuttle]

70. I'd prefer some North Beach pizza

[Slickriddles]

72. Was soll n/t bedeuten?

[Karenina]

76. Kein Text

n/t

[Slickriddles]

78. Spasiba, Gracias, Vielen Dank Meine Gnadige Frau

[ieoeja]

23. Only time I've ever seen that happen.

Is when one of these individuals is having a hard time understanding something prompting the other to try explaining it in their native language. I did it myself with someone in our Paris office. Using my extremely limited French I was able to explain something she was having difficulty understanding in English.

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

36. That's understandable...

... hence my 'polite interruption' of 'excuse me...' and not Hey you morons....

[JuniorPlankton]

2. People are afraid of the unknown

Plus, not understanding what the others say makes them feel inferior.
(I know it shouldn't be case, but often it is.)

[cjbuchanan]

3. All I can figure is a fear of the unknown

I asked a family member, who often asks why they can't just speak English, and it seems she thinks they are talking about her. I don't get it myself, but there we go. If someone is making fun of me right to my face, it doesn't mean much to me if I don't know what they are saying.

[markdd]

10. Probably fear that they are talking about you

I worked in a factory where the employees were heavily Hispanic. One of the clerks who did not speak Spanish was always nervous using the restroom when people were in there speaking Spanish. She started laughing when they laughed, their eyes would go wide (hearing an Anglo laugh at their jokes) and they'd leave immediately. It got so that they would go quiet whenever she came in the room. :shrug:

[Sirveri]

4. There was a case a while back

where a bunch of guys were speaking spanish and talking about how to take down and kill the officer that was stopping them for a minor traffic stop. Why are people afraid, because they think they're talking about them. And rightfully so, hell I've had people who speak English talk about me on the bus and seemed to think that because they were talking in hushed tones that I would not notice.

[Bridget Burke]

14. Gosh, that's amazing!

Do you have an actual link to this dreadful case? What was the outcome? In most places, they would have been unsuccessful because the officer had studied Spanish. One needn't be a fluent speaker to understand such a dangerous conversation.

And what do you imagine all those people are saying about you? Should the transit company insist everybody on the bus speak English?

[Bertha Venation]

17. "In most places . . . the officer had studied Spanish."

Do you have an actual link to this *ahem* fact? Most places??

"One needn't be a fluent speaker to understand such a dangerous conversation."

I wouldn't have understood Spanish speakers if they were plotting to attack me. I'm not fluent; I know a little Spanish -- enough to get by in the markets in Santa Ana.

Answer sarcasm with sarcasm, I always say. :)

edited to clarify the sarcasm at pointing out the alleged "fact"

[Sirveri]

57. I saw it on the TEE VEE

And it looked pretty genuine, like the camera on the dashboard of a cop car. Not a good source... oh well not my problem, I'm not trying to make a point here, I'm just babbling.

Also read what I write next time, I said they were speaking ENGLISH. In hushed voices. and I could fucking tell because I could hear what they were saying. That post is a post for another time.

I'm not really voicing a opinion one way or the other. Just saying that people are assholes and to plan accordingly.

[HalfManHalfBiscuit]

5. The only time it should be unacceptable is for safety reasons

A drilling company I worked with long ago had an "english-only" policy because miscommunication could result in accidents.

[Speck Tater]

6. If you can't understand them

then perhaps they are making fun of you or plotting to steal your wallet. It's a perfectly normal human fear. One thing most people can't tolerate well is uncertainty. That's why people flock to closed-minded religions that claim to give certainty (or to closed-minded scientific philosophies that also claim to give certainty.)

Embrace the uncertainty!

[JayS]

7. Here it would certainly be considered rude to demand that...

...someone speak the language you want them to. On the other hand, it would be considered somewhat rude to carry on a conversation with someone in a language that co-workers cannot understand, if it can be avoided...but it would be rude to mention this to them. :)

[Pillowbiter]

8. Yeah, it may be partially uninclusiveness

and the average white person gets very upset if they are not included. Oh the bitter irony.

Me, having a Japanese speaking wife, her Russian speaking freind, a Polish speaking nanny, a Spanish speaking LAN gaming friend and his Serbian speaking girlfreind, I think I'm forgetting how to speak english myself.

If only I was smart enough to be bi-lingual.

PB

[Karenina]

22. Na ja, PB

Murikans miss out on so much fun. It's so sad. Even on this board I've witnessed posters from far-flung regions being SKEWERED by Americans for links to articles THEY felt were important to see that had not yet been translated. What got me was the HOSTILITY and PERSONAL ATTACKS! :wtf: HEY, don't get your knickers in a twist. Give it an hour and someone will decode it for ya, you monolingual eingebildet nitwit! ;-)

There are NEVER fewer than 2 languages being spoken at whatever gathering I attend. NEVER. The MORE the MERRIER!!! One of the most fun evenings I EVER had was playing "Secret," 12 in attendance, 7 languages. We took care about seating so no 2 first language folks were next to each other. It was absolutely HILARIOUS! The REALLY weird thing was that sometimes the 6th, 9th or 11th got a correct understanding of the original message but by the 12th it was CONSISTENTLY MANGLED again.

There are moments I feel sorry for Americans that their arrorgance and assumption of superiority locks them out of the richness of human contact.

[Loonman]

9. Nothing for nothing, but I can understand most Spanish dialects

From Central and South American countries, and a great deal of Puerto Rican vernacular.

On average, it happens a lot less than most people think("they're talkin' about me!!!"). What makes my knowledge useful is when the "gringo"(myself) reacts when he is mentioned.

A simple "perdone?" freaks people right out, and they usually don't talk to me at all, ever, again if folks find out I can eavesdrop on them in plain sight.

Learning Spanish was the smartest thing I ever did.

[tishaLA]

12. Somebody needs to warn that paralegal

about criticizing people because of the language they use in private conversations. It can leave the business open to legal action.

[Fenris]

13. There was a rash of letters in the Houston Chronicle last year

Decrying the fact that employers in Texas are looking for applicants who are bilingual.

Read my profile.

[Bertha Venation]

18. checked your profile . . . and may I say

that I have always liked you, Fenris. ;)

[Fenris]

19. Aw..thanks!

:toast:

I've always liked you too.

[Bertha Venation]

27. LOL I just love it . . .

Texas, Northern Mexico. LOL

[Fenris]

29. Yep. Stolen fair and square.

Thank you "Manifest Destiny" and President Polk.

A joke in the Southwest is that the Mexicans are engaging in reconquista one immigrant at a time. And I couldn't be happier for them.

;)

[Bertha Venation]

30. I like it!

I'm somewhat ashamed to admit I knew little of what Polk did until I read Michener's Texas. I read it shortly before * started his war, and the parallel is pretty obvious.

Too bad most people don't seem to know that * learned nothing from history. Or, since we got Mexico, maybe he figures it's okay to lie to start a war. Yeah, that's the lesson he took from history! :eyes:

[Fenris]

56. And he has a History degree from Harvard!

:scared:

[Bertha Venation]

65. amazing what the rich & influential can buy their kids, ain't it, Fenris?

:scared: indeed

[Fenris]

73. I'm content with my History degree from Southwest Texas State

Teacher's College.

"We've got a lot of brains in this room here tonight. Boys from Harvard. Couple from Yale. Few Rhodes Scholars. And one from Southwest Texas State Teacher's College!

(applause)

And he rules the roost!"

That's a paraphrase of a line LBJ used in a speech once, I believe at his inaugural. I'm happy to attend his Alma Mater.

The rich may send their kids to UT, but Southwest Texas is the only school in Texas to send one of their own to the White House. And I'm damn proud of that. Even if we aren't top tier.

[westsidexview]

15. english is the coin of the realm

in the state where i am from, english is the only legal language for legal documents, contracts, and etc. i believe america works because of the dominance of a single language. with one language, millions of people can efficiently communicate.

[tishaLA]

20. They were housekeepers on an elevator

and they presumably were not entering into contracts on the elevator. Sheesh.

BTW, if one language allows people to effectively communicate, how do we explain the chim in chief?

[Bridget Burke]

21. And what state is that? "Realm" sounds a bit royalist to me....

I believe the reasons America works are a bit more complex.

There's no doubt that English is the dominant language. However, as a nation of immigrants, many first-generation Americans never become fluent. Their children will, if the education system is allowed to thrive. The fortunate ones will also learn their parents' language, to distinguish themselves from the typical monolingual American.

And in some parts of the country, for reasons of history and geography, Spanish will never disappear.

[Bertha Venation]

24. The point isn't about legal or political communication.

It's about personal communication.

I used to be puzzled that Orange County, CA, printed voter registration affidavits in English, Spanish, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Cambodian, and Vietnamese (and probably others). Because obviously, you must speak English to become a citizen.

But with time and reason, I realized that while one can speak enough English to communicate well and to transact business, one probably still understands things best in one's native language.

[sangh0]

39. Actually, it does involve the law and the company could be sued

for allowing the paralegal to create a "hostile environment"

[Bertha Venation]

67. Ok. Let me rephrase: MY point wasn't a legal matter.

I used the incident to pose my question. The question itself wasn't about legalities.

Clearly, the paralegal could get into some serious trouble, and if this continues -- I asked the housekeeper, since she's obviously comfortable enough to ask me about it (we don't know each other well), to let me know if it happened again. If it does, I will mention it to the paralegal's supervisor, if the housekeeper wishes it.

[Slickriddles]

74. Is that True?

Is it true that you have to speak English to become a citizen? That seems unconstitutional to me. As far as I know English is not an official language. I grew up in Brooklyn NY. and heard English, Spanish, Hebrew, Yiddish, French, Greek, Haitian, Russian, Chinese, Korean, and several others, and one time went up to the Bronx and heard Gaelic at an Irish football game. My ancestors came from Ireland and Germany und Ich sage English koennen meinem arsch lechen. Learn Spanish it's not that hard!!!

[Bertha Venation]

80. Yes. Here's a snip from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

* "an understanding of the English language, including an ability to read, write and speak . . . simple words and phrases . . . in ordinary usage in the English language . . . ."

. . . . This means that to be eligible for naturalization, you must be able to read, write, and speak basic English.

~snip~

[Bertha Venation]

81. Yes.

* "an understanding of the English language, including an ability to read, write and speak . . . simple words and phrases . . . in ordinary usage in the English language . . . ."

. . . . This means that to be eligible for naturalization, you must be able to read, write, and speak basic English.

~snip~

[Bridget Burke]

16. Comedian Paul Rodriguez said he shared an elevator.....

with some Japanese businessmen. They were speaking to each other--in Japanese.

He had to restrain himself from saying "You're in America! Speak Spanish!"

[Baclava]

28. LMAO !!!

I lived in Greece for a year, I only knew about six words of Greek and one of them was "Amstel"....got along fine...

[redqueen]

25. Idiocy

How do Canadians ever deal with so many French-speaking people around? Heavens to Betsy they must be terrified of being mocked behind their backs!

:eyes:

IMO it's just another conservative trait... nothing... NOTHING... should ever ever EVER change!



What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Bilingual.

What do you call someone who speaks three languages? Trilingual.

What do you call someone who can only speak one measly language? American.

[tishaLA]

40. I heard that joke differently

What do you call someone who speaks many languages? Multilingual.

What do you call someone who speaks three languages? Trilingual.

What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Bilingual.

What do you call someone who can only speak one measly language? Gringo.

[hunter]

48. Those damned Canadians...

Even when they are talking English, I know they are laughing about me behind my back.

[pnorman]

26. "If you don't understand the language,

go eavesdrop somewhere else where you do understand it." Wakarimasuka?

pnorman

[Karenina]

32. Wakarimashita.

:silly:

[Burma Jones]

31. Well, I hear a lot of Chinese here in Montgomery County MD

The street on which I live is a new development. A Chinese developer sold some 15 adjacent lots to Chinese (he was later fined for discrimination) and ONLY Chinese. We bought our home from one of the Chinese folks that had to go work in Seattle. Now, as soon as a home in our neighborhood comes up for sale, a Chinese family buys it. As a result, this is becoming a Chinese neighborhood with Grandparents that speak no english watching their Grandchildren (some of whom were born in the USA) that are bi-lingual while both bi-lingual parents at work.

This is by far the best neighborhood I've lived in. There are always folks out watching the kids. There are gardens galore, there are people cooking outside WITHOUT A WEBER. My kids love the neighborhood too.

We sometimes go to "White" neighborhood parties. They seem to be annoyed at the Chinafication of the neighborhood, but some of them have Bush Stickers on their cars too...

The Spanish language thing is a hot topic here in Maryland after an ex-governor and present governor both slammed people only speaking Spanish. I have mixed feelings. I am bi-lingual (English and German) but feel that a common language is necessary for a common culture. English is the language of Science and Technology. It is the lingua franca for the world. More students are learning English in China than are learning it in the USA. India speaks English (as well as Hindi). I fear that Spanish or even a heavy accent identifies persons as part of the underclass, much as a heavy Appalachian or urban African American accent might.

I just don't want to see the kinds of things that go on between franco and anglo phone Canada...

BUT, after having lived the last 25 years of my life in NYC and Washington, DC, if I got offended by foreign languages, I would have to be put away as a screaming paranoid lunatic. I love the whole Babel deal.

[tishaLA]

42. It's kinda ironic

To call English a lingua franca. :D

[Burma Jones]

43. LOL n/t

[NewJeffCT]

69. it's the Chinese way

If the Chinese grandparents were back in China, the parents in your neighborhood would likely send them back to China to be raised. It allows the parents the freedom to work hard & make money while the children bond with the grandparents and the parents are secure knowing that somebody they trust is raising their child.

[Burma Jones]

71. Well, I like it n/t

[TrogL]

33. It's often justified

Ank speaks and understands multiple languages.

People will say the damndest, most insulting things in a different language if they think you won't understand. Ank usually answers them back in their own language, which they often find disconcerting, especially when he's spouting fluent Mandarin.

[Bertha Venation]

34. Ank/fluent Mandarin: That's beautiful!

But for me, I don't give a shit if someone's saying nasty, insulting things if they think I won't understand.

Unfortunately, the Veep tried to say a nasty, insulting thing today, but a lot of people DID understand him . . . .

[Lydia Leftcoast]

37. This is a silly American hangup with two causes:

1. Most Americans never study a foreign language (although this varies from state to state), and even if they do, most of them study it only for two years. Unfortunately, expecting to become proficient in a foreign language after two years is like expecting to become a professional musician after two years of lessons, which is why other countries require six to ten years of instruction.

This "fear of the unknown" is intensified by the basic anti-intellectualism of our mainstream culture. There's this weird attitude of being intimidated by someone who knows something that you don't instead of taking it as an opportunity to learn something new.

2. Middle America's stubborn monolingualism also stems from the way immigrants were treated in the first half of the twentieth century. Speaking your ancestral language made you a "dumb foreigner," and immigrant children were punished for speaking their home languages in school.

When my oldest aunt on my father's side started school in 1915, her teacher came to my grandparent's house and demanded that they stop speaking Norwegian at home because "they were in America now." I've heard stories like this from enough other people to know that this was not an isolated occurrence.

World War I intensified these chauvinistic tendencies, to the extent that several states banned the teaching of German (which was nearly as prevalent then as Spanish is now), and a few banned the teaching of any foreign language. In the states where foreign language instruction survived, it was considered a nice frill for the academically gifted, worth no more than two years' study, which would reinforce students' knowledge of English grammar and maybe introduce them to some literary classics.

Foreign language was considered such an elite subject that when I compared notes with my fellow grad students in linguistics in the mid 1970s, we found that all of us had had to fight to be allowed to take two languages at once. (I took three years each of German and Spanish, the two languages that my school offered.)
-----
Now contrast this with the situation in other countries. In most parts of Europe, nearly everyone studies at least one foreign language, and the university-bound students take two or three or even four. They start at about age ten and continue all the way through their secondary education.

To me, what best illustrates the difference between European and U.S. attitudes toward foreign languages is a passage in a mystery novel by Swedish authors Maj Sjoval and Per Wahloo. (No, I didn't read it in Swedish :-) ) In it, a Stockholm police detective is assigned to track down a Swede who has disappeared in Hungary. The detective protests that he doesn't speak Hungarian, but his superintendent assures him, "Don't worry. You can get by with English and German."

Imagine, nonchalantly assuming that a police detective will be trilingual and that most people he deals with will be at least bilingual.

What's really ironic about Americans getting their panties in a bunch about people who speak foreign languages is that Americans then go to other countries and once more get said panties into a bunch because the locals don't speak English or don't speak it well enough to suit them.

Almost all my foreign experience has been in Asia, but I've met plenty of long-term expatriates who have never bothered to learn the local language. I even knew a couple who had lived in Tokyo for 15 years but had never learned more than a few basic survival phrases. What was worse was that their children, who had lived in Japan all their lives, didn't speak Japanese. (This could have been remedied at an early age by putting them in a Japanese kindergarten and sending them to a Japanese elemenetary school, as many other expats did.) There were others, mostly male, who let their Japanese or Taiwanese wives do all the interacting with the outside world.

Hell, I even have an ex-military cousin who retired to Germany with his German wife but never bothered to learn more than basic G.I. German.

I've had the surreal experience of speaking Japanese with a group consisting of two Thais, a Korean, a Pole, and a Norwegian, simply because that was our only common language. However, I have always spoken English with people from English-speaking countries, and no one in Japan has ever demanded that we speak Japanese, even though most Japanese people have a poor understanding of spoken as opposed to written English.

[TrogL]

46. I was in Europe in the 70's

My high-school French was useless except to get me laughed at.

Most people were fluent in multiple languages - their own and those of surrounding countries.

The wierdest experience was being in a remote Norwegian village and having my shoes fixed by a native-born Norwegian speaking English with an Oxford accent.

[Karenina]

54. My kid gets to be

"the fly on the wall." He worked at a Japanese supermarket in L.A. and was the beloved cashier of many older folks who discovered to their shock that he could communicate as a "proper Japanese boy" despite all appearances to the contrary. He's got the body language down, the whole ball of wax. I don't know where he got it... A colleague of mine assured me he DOES HAVE IT. I'm sitting with both sons in a cafe with him, just smiling and looking stupid as they all chatter away.

Kid unit has regaled me with the FUNNIEST stories of being in situations where EVERYONE ASSUMED he could not understand a word.

I've had my own fun with that, being on a train with a group of middle-aged hikers who were headed off to the woods. There was a "clown" amongst them and he was a card. I kept my eyes on my book. At one point he made a comment that blew my cover. I burst out laughing until the tears rolled. His wife looked at him in ABJECT HORROR saying, "You DO realize this woman has understood EVERY WORD THAT HAS COME OUT OF YOUR FOUL MOUTH, don't you? He came over, hugged me and asked me if I still loved him. Just thinking about it makes me laugh again. It's a GREAT feeling.

[Cleita]

44. Well, I have heard this a lot in my life,

especially since I live in Southern California. I have tried to point out to these English only people that California was once part of Spain and Spanish the official language, so that actually we English speakers are the intruders not the other way around, however, Americans of WASP heritage really don't want to believe me.

[westsidexview]

51. there are ethnocentric fools but

boneheads who want to feel superior with their monolingual tunnel vision are assholes-period. those types are uptight about all things not just language.

[BonjourUSA]

53. To be honest ...

... if I lived in a country where the language would be universal perhaps I wouldn't make an effort for learning another one. Two centuries ago it was the situation for French langage.. But the times changed unfortunately for me and now I have to butcher English all over the world. :)

[DebJ]

59. not offended, made aware of their own inadequacy..typical

American is too lazy and pampered to learn another language!

[Generic Other]

63. And when the non-native speaker speaks English, someone says

"What did you say?" And then louder and slower. "I--don't-- understand--you."

Or the native speaker smiles patronizingly and says "You speak English very well for a/an (fill in the blank). How long have you been in America?"

"Uh, I was born here? I've lived here all my life?"

[Rex]

64. Well Bertha, some people don't know American history very well.

I guess they believe that America (all of it) was settled by English speakers only. I live in South Texas and hear just as many people speaking Spanish, on any given day, as English. In a town close by (Castroville) they still speak German.

IMNSHO, some people have no tolerance for other cultures.

[NuttyFluffers]

66. live in the SF bay area... it doesn't bother me.

been rendered immune. besides you start to pick up bits and pieces here and there, which is fun because then you can start to decipher a bit here and there. most of the time what they are saying is general niceties if they recently met, and they say it with greater flourish which they'd normally be inable to do with confidence. a lot of times people have low confidence in practicing their 2nd tongue and often those more familiar are giving encouragement.

then there's those who are familiar and regularly switch between languages. there's some things that just don't translate easily, so switching is pretty necessary. also language holds world view, so often when dealing with issues in life they have a dual perspective, they can see from someone else's shoes. but to easily get into the flow of both they usually have to switch back and forth to really argue it eloquently.

i haven't a problem with it. only the little imp of paranoia bothers me, but it just spurs me to learn more. and after i learn more i find out there was nothing much to be afraid of. it's a great way to kill the imp before it grows into a bigger monster.

[Bertha Venation]

68. carpool mate & cellphone conversation in French

I drove a friend home from work tonight. Her phone interrupted our conversation. It was a dear friend, whom she hasn't seen for two years. She carried on a 15-minute conversation with him, mostly in French.

When she hung up, the first thing she said was, "I am so sorry for talking to Laurent in French, but it's his first language. But I figure I didn't offend you because I know you."

Exactly. She knows me. If she didn't know me, unfortunately she probably would've asked if she could call him back, and then she would've missed him because he was getting ready to board a plane in Cameroon, headed to Paris.

Funny thing is, I knew she was talking about me just a little because I understand a little French. But I still wasn't offended.

[Fescue4u]

75. Not offended but it is annoying.

Because I cant "tune it out"

I used to work in a call center. Well I worked right next to one.

There was proably a hundred call takers all but one speaking English.
There was one or maybe two assigned to take spanish calls.

For whatever reason, I could hear the spanish from across the room and I couldnt not tune it out. The 100 English speakers didnt I didnt "hear" unless I wanted to.

Nonethless I don't have a problem with Non English speakers, although folks who refuse to learn English are doing themselves a disservice in the long run.

[Nobody]

77. Maybe that paralegal thought that they were talking about him/her

Something like this happened at a bank to a friend of mine. He was behind a couple Spanish-speaking people, and when they left the guy behind my friend said that he hates it when people talk about him in front of him, even if it is in a foreign language.

My friend had this to say to the guy: "It's not always about YOU."

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

79. Some people think we're talking about them. I usually reply that

the world does not revolve around them. I may also say that it's pretty arrogant to think that they're just sooooooo important. I usually just get a fake uncomfortable laugh after that.

I myself don't give a shit what other people do. If by any chance someone was talking about me in another language and don't have the balls to say it to my face. It's really their problem not mine. I hang out with too many different people that speak too many different languages to really give a shit. But that's just me.
:shrug:

[Roaming]

82. I was always taught by my mom, who's German, that it's very rude

to carry on a conversation in a foreign language if other people are present who don't speak the language. I agree with her, if the people present are in any way familiar with the persons who are speaking. But if it's just a couple of people carrying on a conversation in a store, elevator, etc., I don't see what the problem is.