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Just because they have to learn the language, doesn't mean they can't keep their native tongue in their homes and their small communities. But, why do we have to listen to a recording that says... 1 for English, 2 for Spanish.. soon we will have 3 for Chinese, 4 for Italian, 5 for German, 6 for Japanese, 7 for Islam, etc..
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72 comments
Hispanics... small communities?
Uh huh.
What teensy weensie middle of nowhere town do you live in, Celtic(not English)Mist? Ane do you ever plan on leaving it?
Because we are finally catching up with the rest of the world.
And Islam is not a language. Try Arabic or Farsi.
I must admit, though, in transnational companies, English is used as a common language.
Most businesses want all the customers they can get, including Spanish-speaking ones. When CelticMist has sunk his life savings into his own business and is working 80 hours a week to make it succeed, he's free to turn Spanish-speaking customers away. He shouldn't complain if his bank is less impressed by his principles than his profits, though.
Yeah its a pretty stupid comment, but not all that fundie and definately not xenophobic. The comments to this are more fundie than half the ones on the main page. She thinks people should learn english in America. Yep she obviously HATES foreigners. Oh but of course we all know how people like that really think. Can't pass up any chance to lump someone in a group and pass judgement on them. She has a mole? Obviously a witch! Burn her!!
"I still don't understand why Americans are so xenophobic about other cultures and languages. They seem to be the ones that are horribly inadequate the moment they step out of US boundaries."
I could say I've never known anyone who didn't spend months learning the language of a country they were just visiting. But thats a small sample, not enough to make a general comment on. So I will defer to your knowledge on the subjec,t which of course must be a sample size in the millions. Surely, being not under the influence of prejudiced, dogmatic, and/or religious type influences, you wouldn't have made that comment otherwise.
So accepting that as true, why does the xenophobic label only apply to someone leaving the US not learning their destination's language and not to someone entering the US?
Chinese is not a language. At least not one you can listen to.
AND IF YOU DON'T WANT TO LISTEN TO THE LIST OF LANGUAGES, MAYBE YOU COULD, LIKE, Y'KNOW, PRESS 1.
Said it before, I'll say it again.
Until you have to press 2 for english, this still "Your country" Which I don't see happening any time soon.
You don't have to listen to that recording. You can just press 1 and skip over the rest. If you inflict it on yourself, you can't complain.
Which, clearly you don't, because it doesn't say "2 for Spanish." It says "Para Espanol, toca dos" or something to that effect.
This is RSTDT, definitely, and part of the reason I don't like racist quotes ending up on the FSTDT page is that we get some fragmentation.
We're all anti-fundie here, but that doesn't necessarily mean we're all liberal. I am (obviously, to those who read the ol' blog), but I knew there would be some regulars who didn't find this quote distasteful.
However, for the record, I do.
To throw this phone out of the window because scientific advancements such as what created this are against the will of your deity, press 1.
To bitch and moan hypocritically about words used by this system in describing your delusions, press 2.
My local VA has "1 for English, 2 for Spanish..." Damn all those illegals sneaking across the border just so they can clog up the Veterans Administration phone lines!
Yeah, that was sarcasm. I'm also a naturalized citizen.
@#383474: BAAAAAAW THEY'RE DIFFERENT FROM ME AND I'M BEING REMINDED OF THEIR DIFFERENTNESS AND EXISTENCE isn't xenophobic? Especially when referring to easily skipped messages on an automated, PRIVATE phone system? Complete with offensive-to-anyone-but-a-WASP slippery slope?
Yeah, I'll get back to you on that one.
Apart from the "7 for Islam", this isn't fundie and it's far from racist.
If you move into a country, you should speak the official language. That's not a bigoted comment, it's a rational viewpoint- for a start, how can you survive in a society when you can't even buy a bus ticket? FSM help you if you ever need an ambulance.
Even regardless of this, translation services need to be paid for, and the money certainly doesn't come from wealthy corporate donors. The taxpayer ends up footing the bill for newcomers' inability- not something that seems very fair.
@ agentcde: I'm guessing you're under the age of 15. Why not hurl insults at real racist comments, or would that be too much trouble?
@Fed Up: "I'm guessing you're under the age of 15."
Save the ad homs for the fundies. Great way to insult those under 15 by using their age as an insult, too.
The idea that this person is having a tiff because of translations provided for the convince of those who maybe, just maybe, CAN speak English but speak Spanish BETTER is ALMOST as depressingly amusing as those defending such behavior.
Yes, people moving to a country would be wise to learn the dominant local language. Sadly, you do not just magically learn English or Spanish or Whatervian the moment you cross an imaginary line in the sand.
Um, first, Islam is not a language, it's a religion. Second, just because you can speak English doesn't mean you can speak it very well. Lots of people speak English but understand recorded messages easier in their native tongue.
Fed Up: I think what CelticMist meant was that people in America should speak American English (which is good) and forget their native language (which is bad).
A surprising lot of people get castrated for speaking any language other than English. Hell, even British slang get blasted.
@ArmandT:"Just because they have to learn the language, doesn't mean they can't keep their native tongue in their homes and their small communities
I don't think CelticMist is implying that non-english is a bad thing.
If you really think about it all the road signs (at least in the US) are written in english and few store clerks are bilingual. Its just a matter of learning the common language which, in my opinion, isn't racist or xenophobic.
"Just because they have to learn the language, doesn't mean they can't keep their native tongue in their homes and their small communities" (but heaven forfend they dare use their backwards tribe-speak anywhere where God's True Chosen can hear and are speaking God's True Language, American.)
I honestly can't read this any other way. The moaning about the phone systems just totally keeps me from seeing this in any non-negative way.
In Britain we do things differently. Welsh/Gaelic/Cornish people dial a completely different number to get services in their own language, so it's less of a problem.
That said, it's estimated that this century, 90% of the languages currently in use will die out. I believe that "the only way to truly express an idea is in its native language", and that other languages, including minority ones, are gateways to completely different ways of thinking. I think the cultural and philosophical richness that will be lost if those languages die out is an awful thing to waste.
1 for English, 2 for Spanish.. soon we will have 3 for Chinese, 4 for Italian, 5 for German, 6 for Japanese, 7 for Islam , etc..
Wow, just... wow. Please tell me no one can possibly be this stupid... please. They hate Muslims/'Islam' - but they likely don't even know *what* they're hating.
English is a difficult language to learn, and many of the immigrants I know work an average of three (generally low-paying) jobs per adult to support their families. They don't have the time and/or money to take lessons, so they do the best they can by learning enough to get by... Their children pick it up way faster in school and can help translate/teach. It's not laziness or ill-will on their part... Their families are their priority. It's understandable, and I think it's nice when companies offer a Spanish line and/or translators, etc.
English is a difficult language to learn, and many of the immigrants I know work an average of three (generally low-paying) jobs per adult to support their families. They don't have the time and/or money to take lessons, so they do the best they can by learning enough to get by... Their children pick it up way faster in school and can help translate/teach. It's not laziness or ill-will on their part... Their families are their priority. It's understandable, and I think it's nice when companies offer a Spanish line and/or translators, etc.
Ok first, They put your language at the very top of the list so just press the button and shut up. It's not other's people's fault you were too stupid to figure out you don't' have to listen to the entire list.
secondly, Islam is a religion, NOT a language
and Third, YOU. ARE. A. RACIST. M.O.R.O.N!
CelticMist isn't the brightest knife on the sheds, or something to that effect. And this comment is really just a slow build to the facepalm that is the recording's option 7.
Poster is doing their best to mitigate what appears to be an underlying bigotry, and I want to believe that this one practices what she preaches. You can say that for fundies at least, they usually do practice whatever batshit insane doctrine they're ranting about.
being an immigrant, I actually agree - it helps to speak the "main language" of the country, makes it easier to get a good job and evrything.
Islam however is a religion, not a language!
Because we are finally catching up with the rest of the world.
not true, citizens of pretty much every european country with immigration problems feel the same way, doesn't matter if it's Germany, England or France ...
English is not an easy language to master. I'm reminded of the one about the foreign student in New York City who worked very, very hard at learning the vagaries of English spelling and pronunciation. Poor guy committed suicide after encountering a newspaper story about a Broadway opening. The headline said, "Brothers Karamazov Pronounced Success."
Nobody makes you push number two but some people, stop thinking that the world turns around yourself, need it. And for your information, STUPID MONOLINGUAL ILLITERATE, Islam is not a language, is a religion.
What the hell does it matter if they decide to include KLINGON?! You get your service in your language. You are not harmed or even incoveniencedd in any way other than getting your knickers in a twist over the fact that other people are still more comfortable in their native language. Yes, you heard me right, it's NOT THAT THEY CAN'T SPEAK ENGLISH, IT'S OFTEN BECAUSE THEY'RE MORE COMFORTABLE IN THEIR NATIVE TONGUE! I know if I lived abroad, and had to call a help desk for something, if I had the opportunity to talk to someone who spoke English, I'd sieze it...
Islam is a religion, not a language. The language you are thinking of is Arabic.
@Fed Up It's hard to learn a new language fluently, it takes a long time, meanwhile people need services, and it's easier for them to get proper service if they understand the language being used well. That's why it's good to have services available in many languages, so that people who immigrated recently can have the same quality of service as natives.
Ok, aside from Islam being a language there really isn't anything too bad about this post. I'm an immigrant and frankly I speak better English then half the natives I see on the internet. Sad. If your going to move to a country you should learn the language. If I moved to Japan I'd learn Japanese. But I recognize the fact that older people can't pick up English as well and that maybe people feel more comfortable speaking their native language. And hey, that's fine.
...7 for Islam,
Well done.
7 for Islam?
And 666 for Atheism?
It should of course be 1 for Nahuatl, 2 for Navajo, 3 for Cree, 4 for Ojibwe, 5 for Spanish, 6 for French, 7 for English, and so on and so forth...
Since when is Islam a language?
You whine about English not being the one and only language, and then you call yourself CelticMist?
And the problem is what, exactly? Press 1, simple.
Oh, and Islam isn't a language.
And the problem is what, exactly? Press 1, simple.
Oh, and Islam isn't a language.
Just press the 1, and you won't have to listen to the rest.
It's easier to learn a new language when you already know your own fairly well. Which is why kids with a different mother-tounge should have native-language studies along with the language of the country they live in.
@anti-nonsense, Farsi would also be an acceptable answer.
Odd that someone named CelticMist would be so opposed to other languages.
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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