87% Say English Should Be U.S. Official Language

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Jiro said:
that's fine. You and I thought it was funny but at least we didn't dismiss Shel and trivialize it.







way out of line. dismissing her. trivializing it. extremely immature.
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Your trivializing Shel90 calling me a racist (which I am not) and taking things into a realm your not entirely prepared to defend or even comprehend.

do only "white people" speak English?
 
Steinhauer said:
Your trivializing Shel90 calling me a racist (which I am not) and taking things into a realm your not entirely prepared to defend or even comprehend.
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huh? she said "that is a racist view"... which is no different from "that is sexist" or "that is rude" or "that is insensitive". and you took it too far with this reply

Steinhauer said:
hey ... psssst ... she doesn't really know ... she was conditioned to answer "racism!" when it comes to border control.

Probably never heard of OTMs.
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but hey - moving on... let bygone be bygone.

Steinhauer said:
do only "white people" speak English?
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yes. I speak Korean-American English :ugh3:
 
87% of whom? What kind of English? Should we use Texan down in Texas? Will people in other states ban my Texan? So many questions...
 
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Georgia's Governor Signs Bill Making English the Official Language of the State

April 25, 1996
Atlanta, GA - Late today Governor Zell Miller signed into law a bill making English the official language of Georgia. The new official English legislation encompasses all aspects of government operations, broadening the scope of a previous resolution that was included in Georgia's official English law.

Senate Bill 519, sponsored by Sen. Mike Crotts (R-Conyers) and Rep. John Mobley (D-Winder), passed the Georgia House of Representatives by an overwhelming margin (135-31). The legislation will set in place a policy regulating the use of languages other than English in most state operations.

U.S.ENGLISH Chairman Mauro E. Mujica hailed the news, saying, "We are delighted that Governor Miller and the General Assembly of Georgia have finally addressed the situation of multilingual government through action which has given the official English law universal application. It is now clear that the citizens of Georgia realize the importance of preserving the English language as a common bond -- the language spoken by 97 percent of the people in this nation.

Last month, Wyoming became the 23rd state to adopt English as its official language of government. In addition to the bills sponsored by U.S.ENGLISH that are pending in various states, U.S.ENGLISH is supporting H.R. 123, introduced by Rep. Bill Emerson (R-Mo.). H.R. 123 would declare English the official language of the U.S. government and has already gained the support of nearly 200 co-sponsors.

U.S.ENGLISH has been the driving force behind the enactment of official English legislation at both the state and federal levels since its founding in 1983 by the late Senator S.I. Hayakawa of California, a noted semanticist and an immigrant of Japanese descent. U.S.ENGLISH is the largest national, non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated to enacting laws to make English the official language of the U.S. government. The organization has over 1.3 million members nationwide.

U.S. English, Inc. is the nation's oldest and largest non-partisan citizens' action group dedicated to preserving the unifying role of the English language in the United States. Founded in 1983 by the late Sen. S.I. Hayakawa of California, U.S. English, Inc. (U.S. English) now has more than 1.8 million members.
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Biography of Chairman of the Board Mauro E. Mujica

Mauro E. Mujica has been Chairman of the Board and CEO of U.S.ENGLISH since January of 1993. Mr. Mujica, who himself immigrated to the United States from his native Chile, has a firsthand understanding of the obstacles facing non-English speakers upon their arrival in this country. His insight into the linguistic isolation of non-English speakers and his determination to help tear down these barriers made him a perfect successor to the late Senator S.I. Hayakawa, who founded the organization in 1983.

Since his election as Chairman of U.S.ENGLISH, Mr. Mujica has overseen a renewed drive to pass official English legislation at the state and federal level. His testimony before Congress was instrumental in the House of Representatives passing Official English legislation during the 104th Congress.

As part of his efforts to increase the visibility of U.S. ENGLISH, Mr. Mujica has appeared on hundreds of television and radio programs including, "Good Morning America," "60 Minutes," "Lou Dobbs Tonight" and various shows on Fox, CNN, MSNBC, PBS, BBC, Telemundo and Univision. He has spoken on the importance of English at numerous college campuses and in front of several state legislatures. Mr. Mujica's leadership has increased the organization's membership from 165,000 in 1993 to over 1.8 million members today.

Mr. Mujica is a naturalized U.S. citizen. He holds a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Architecture from Columbia University and was made an Honorary Member of Emmanuel College at Cambridge University, England. He is fluent in Spanish, English and French, has a working knowledge of German and Italian, and is currently studying Russian.

Mr. Mujica was a member of the Advisory Board of the US-UK Fulbright Commission from 1995-2000 and the former Chairman of the US Fulbright Advisory Board of the US-UK Fulbright Commission from 1997-2000. Mr. Mujica is an international architect whose career spans 28 years.

An accomplished businessman, Mr. Mujica is a partner and investor in several international firms in Europe and the United States, with company interests ranging from architecture to real estate and investment banking.
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Reba said:
American culture varies by region and thru time, as do other cultures, but it is still an assimilation process by the newcomer into the contemporary American culture to which he moves.

Foreign-born newcomers assimilate into the current American culture if they want to become Americans. If they're just passing through, then they don't assimilate, and they remain visitors. Even moles and those who wish harm to America know that if they don't want to look suspicious they must appear to assimilate into American culture. There's obviously a difference between those who become "Americanized" and those who don't. If there wasn't a strong American culture, then there would be no obvious difference.

Regional American sub-cultures do stay consistent within each region. If one moves from one region to another and wants to become a member of the new region, then one begins to assimilate the language and culture of that region. It's still American but with a Southern drawl or Yankee twang, spiced with Cajun or calmed with tropical breezes. When people move from upstate New York to Hawaii, they leave behind the snow shovel and winter boots, and pick up the surf board and flip flops but they are still Americans.

When I visit family in New England they tease me about my Southern drawl, but when I'm at home in South Carolina I'm teased for my Yankee accent, but I'm recognized as an American everywhere I go.

I know people from many other countries, and yes, there is a difference between those who have become American and those who have not, for whatever reason. It doesn't mean that their English is perfect or without accent. It means they are identifying themselves as Americans (no hyphens needed).
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More than assimilation, it is a phenomena known as cultural contact that is not assimilation but of combining. It has far much more to do with values and practices than with your regional accent. The fact that you are recognized for the region in which you live is evidence of the fact that you have not assimilated completely at all. Language is but a representation of the assimilation, or non-assimilation, of the other aspects of culture that remain. You must understand that when one is forceably stripped of their native language, it is symbolic of being stripped of their very identity. That is what proposals such as this propose to do. The language is but a symbol of the other aspects of the culture that people are truly objecting to. It is a push toward forced assmiliation in which values and norms are expected to change to represent what it is that your (not you in the specific sense) ideas of a proper culture and proper values and norms are. It is ethnocentric at best, forced assimilation at worst. History teaches us over and over and over again that forced assimilation does not achieve the desired results.
 
sallylou said:
87% of whom? What kind of English? Should we use Texan down in Texas? Will people in other states ban my Texan? So many questions...
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Exactly, sallylou. 87% of those polled, which leads to the question, what are the demographics of those polled. Far too many variables and unanswered questions.
 
Steinhauer said:
Your trivializing Shel90 calling me a racist (which I am not) and taking things into a realm your not entirely prepared to defend or even comprehend.

do only "white people" speak English?
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Prejudice and racist attitudes are not necessarily based on skin color. :roll:
 
jillio said:
No, they are not. So much for you to learn and so little time in which to learn it.
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Thank god for drugs eh? Looks like business and brainwashing will be booming for you .... :roll:
 
Steinhauer, don't be ignorant about the mentally ill.
 
Steinhauer said:
Thank god for drugs eh? Looks like business and brainwashing will be booming for you .... :roll:
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What exactly does this have to do with any of the above? Your inconsistencies are beginning to have a negative effect on your cognitive processes.
 
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