Everyone in the United States is either an immigrant or the descedant of immigrants, PERIOD!
What I'm saying is that the first settlers weren't moving to be part of the societies that were formed before they came. They were merely moving from one land to another and forming a new society in that region. Sorry for my term error, but my point was made before that.
You know, in Taiwan, many people refer to 'English' as 'American language' 美語 - literal translation from Chinese...
I resent that.
But as to the OP, I don't see the point, it just disadvantages recent immigrants without any particular benefit.
Oh, and I guess Native Americans never went to war with EACH OTHER? Right.
This is real life. There's no "original sin." Everyone has someone in their family tree with blood on their hands, if you go back far enough. It's just DNA - it says nothing about who that individual is as a person. I bet my ancestors had slaves. Does that make me pro-slavery? I bet your ancestors killed some people from other Native American tribes. Should I blame you?
Trying to guilt people who have nothing to do with whatever historical thing you won't let go of is completely pointless to the conversation. Nothing you've said has anything to do with having a national language. You're not even participating in the debate. Just flinging about emotionally-laden but argumentatively fallacious side-tracks from the conversation the rest of us are trying to have.
Most developed countries, with the best standard of living and the lowest crime, have a national language. The implementation of declaring an official language is well-known, well-practiced, and has nothing to do with ethnic, cultural, or territorial war. It is obvious to everyone but you that what you're saying has no bearing on the concept at hand.
Why resent it? Actually, it is largely because Taiwanese are generally very pro-American and the American dialect of English is what is typically taught here. And the word for U.S. literally means 'beautiful country'. What is there to be resentful about?
However, once again, to counter what some people have said, the country where I live has an official language, but many other languages are in use and are not under threat from the fact that Mandarin is official.
Oh, and I guess Native Americans never went to war with EACH OTHER? Right.
This is real life. There's no "original sin." Everyone has someone in their family tree with blood on their hands, if you go back far enough. It's just DNA - it says nothing about who that individual is as a person. I bet my ancestors had slaves. Does that make me pro-slavery? I bet your ancestors killed some people from other Native American tribes. Should I blame you?
Have you even actually carefully read all my posts?Trying to guilt people who have nothing to do with whatever historical thing you won't let go of is completely pointless to the conversation. Nothing you've said has anything to do with having a national language. You're not even participating in the debate. Just flinging about emotionally-laden but argumentatively fallacious side-tracks from the conversation the rest of us are trying to have.
Most developed countries, with the best standard of living and the lowest crime, have a national language. The implementation of declaring an official language is well-known, well-practiced, and has nothing to do with ethnic, cultural, or territorial war. It is obvious to everyone but you that what you're saying has no bearing on the concept at hand.
Everyone in the United States is either an immigrant or the descedant of immigrants, PERIOD!
That's actually a good point considering that every region of the country speaks a different dialect of the language. A man like with me, with a southern drawl, would have a hard time in Boston and visa versa.
Yes. The majority of the country already speaks it.
The majority of all legal processes are held in English.
Hey get this...the Contstitution is written in English.
All of our laws are on the books in English.
Our textbooks are in English.
I can keep going.
But my favorite, most selfish reason is that I'm sick and tired of pressing one for English when the VAST majority already speaks it!
It's horrifyingly easy to fall into the behaviors he's talking about. Look at Germany - one day everybody's told that the economy's bad because the Jews are taking everything, so they're going to "relocate" them. Sounds harmless enough, doesn't it? Next thing you know they're going along with the story that Auschwitz smells the way it does because it's a "sausage factory". They know what it is, but they have to go along with that story if they want to live. My area was settled by Germans in the 1800's, most of the white people here are of German descent and they're not inherently sick or vicious at all, a lot of them are wonderful. It's just that the ones over in Germany in the 1930's allowed themselves to be sucked in by xenophobic propaganda. Then it was too late.
I'm not American and I speak English, that's why I resent it. :lol:
I'm not saying that, I'm just saying if all official documents have to be in English, it places recent immigrants at an unnecessary disadvantage. An official language has no real benefit, except when used, like in Ireland or New Zealand, to preserve a tradition language. English is in no danger of being forgotten, whereas Maori or Gaelic are.
Can you give a hundred percent guarantee that there is absolutely no racism/bigotry nor ulterior motives within anyone who supports
making English the "Official language".
Because there seems to be a number of people on this thread asking that very same question.
Depends.
For most intents and purposes, the Indians were always here. Of course the anthros say they came from Asia...but if you're going to go waaaaay back like that, why not just say we're all African since everybody's DNA can be traced back there?
I think if I went to Sudan and tried to pass myself off as African, they'd laugh at me.
A pocketbook is a purse.
A tonic is a soda.
A bubbler is a water fountain.
Not difficult.
You can't give a 100% guarantee from any group of people on the planet that there is no racism or bigotry among those who support a political position. ANY political position. And it doesn't matter. It is about what is best for the United States. Unless the U.S. would like to become among the many bi/multi-lingual states with fractured identities, ethnic clashes and seperatist/irredentist movements...
Opps... may we now invoke Godwin's Law???
But they are still immigrants... hey, I am part Canadian First Nations myself... many Quebecois are...
It doesn't change the fact that in order to promote national identity and cohesiveness, the U.S. needs a single national, official language... and if states (like Hawaii and Alaska) declare a second language as official for State business, that is up to them... but the official language of the Federal government ought to be English...
I am asking this question because of an ongoing discussion .
here.
Should English be declared the official language of the United States?
How would handing down a verdict that english is the "official language" promote "national identity and cohesiveness" when so many people oppose it? And why would we even need "national identity and cohesiveness", except to oppose someone else's "national identity and cohesiveness"?
except no one said that...Please. Every time someone says they support making English an official language in America, someone says they just hate Mexicans. It's been racial for pretty much the whole debate.
Nope, a nation's history is never irrelevant, particularly when members of that nation try to characterize other people as "unAmerican" while doing perfectly American things.No, it isn't. We live in a different time, with a different culture, and everyone who perpetrated those things has been dead for a very long time. What happened hundreds of years ago is irrelevant to the situation now, and irrelevant to the discussion of what is the best course of action now.
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