Gasp! America is an English Speaking Nation!
April 28, 2006 · By H. Cameron
Calling all activists - President Bush thinks Americans should speak ENGLISH!
When the president was asked at a Rose Garden question-and-answer session whether the anthem should be sung in Spanish, he replied: “I think the national anthem ought to be sung in English, and I think people who want to be a citizen of this country ought to learn English and they ought to learn to sing the national anthem in English.”
Holy cow, imagine that - immigrants integrating themselves in the society and culture in which they choose to live in. What a novel idea…
Umm…I think you mean EngliSh?
Immigrant integration is a two way street between new arrival and the community in which they settle. Immigrants do not “integrate themselves”.
Welcoming communities tend to facilitate immigrant integration in a possitive fashion, whereas, communties that do not tend to have problems with racism and violence (see France as a prime example of where sestemic xenophobia caused the children of immigrants to erupted violently into the streets).
The United Nations recognizes Canada as a successful multicultural society. Several indicators of our success include:
Charter protection for immigrants, temporary residents and refugee claimants;
Broad access to social services, education and the labour market;
Timely and transparent system of citizenship acquisition with approximately 85% of immigrants becoming Canadian citizens; and
Significant governmental and non-governmental investments in integration programs.
There is nothing wrong with embrasing differences, while encouraging common ideals. I am very glad to be in a country that has learned this lesson (albiet the hard way).
So the next time you come accross an immigrant who is having trouble integrating, remember, if you offer a welcoming hand, they will take it. If you offer them a snear, you may just get it on the chin, and the fault will fall equally between the two of you.
Wow, even your typing is three steps to the right!
I have waited all week to hear something on the Conservative Budget and not a peep. What is up with that guys?
i would suggest president bush follow his own advice.
davidson You sound like a typical left wing ,anul retentive, politicaly correct,liberal. It seems more important to you “how” sombody makes a statement rather than the content of the message.
For the record , the US Constitution abolished English as the term for the language spoken in the USA, this effort to break away from the British create the term American as the Official language.
Check out many of the really old movies dealing with foreigner and the pre-WW2 era had people saying ” Oh, you speak American” , english has become a generic term for International trade and Globalization.
Ironically, when Quebec asserted its right to be a French based province to protect its Culture,France was in the Press as declaring English their Official Language for International trade.
English dominates all the major Airports for traffic controllers, and in the USA only the Oath of Citizenship so far can be in American or Spanish .
Do google searches for the proof, they speak American down their, it’s a form of english by not solely english.
1. Robert Chandler sez, for the record, at #7, supra, that “the US Constitution abolished English as the term for the language spoken in the USA, this effort to break away from the British create the term American as the official language.”
Wonder, Dr. Chandler, if you can tell us where in the US Constitution you find the basis for your contribution to this discussion. To make it easy, see http://www.law.emory.edu/simplesearch, which permits, inter alia, word searchs of the US Constitution.
But don’t feel bad. Our Beloved Leader’s undersecretary of state for spin told the Egyptions that the name of God is mentioned six times in the US Constitution. This in a country where they shout from rooftops several times a day that “[t]here is no God but Allah[.]”
2. Maybe you Tories can make English the official language of Canada.
Hail Harper.
My, but it’s been busy over at The Politic lately, as: Pete tells Ontario to fuck off. Holden thinks it’s just a ducky idea for all those greasy wetbacks tolearn English. After all, it would speed things up when you’re trying to get across that you’d like extra towels and a couple more of those little shampoos in the bathroom and, really, what’s the big deal with taking time off from your $5.15 an hour job to learn a