Should the U.S. Declare English Our Official Language?

[PLFXpert 0]

Just curious what the DZ.com consensus is:

Recently 38 Senators voted against it:

Akaka (D-HI)
Bayh (D-IN)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Clinton (D-NY)
Dayton (D-M! N)
Dodd (D-CT)
Domenici (R-NM)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D- WI)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Harkin (D-IA)
Inouye (D-HI)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Kohl (D-WI)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murray (D-WA)
Obama (D-IL)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Sarbanes (D-MD)
Schumer (D-NY)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[Royd 0]

How curious! Those who truly love America see no need for a dominant language.

[Frenchy68 0]

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Edited for for spelling/grammar...

Maybe you guys should forget about English. How about gruntish?

"For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

[Skyrad 0]

LOL...Gruntish?

When an author is too meticulous about his style, you may presume that his mind is frivolous and his content flimsy.
Lucius Annaeus Seneca

[PLFXpert 0]

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Edited for for spelling/grammar...

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Maybe you guys should forget about English. How about gruntish?

Assumptions. How typical.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[StreetScooby 5]

I wonder what their logic is for voting against it?

We are all engines of karma

[matthewcline 0]

I don't think it is "needed", but doesn't most all countires have an "official" language?

Maybe if we did like all the others it would help our international standing, instead of trying to lead the way, we could follow the pack for a while.

An Instructors first concern is student safety.
So, start being safe, first!!!

[bbarnhouse 0]

For Spanish...press 1.
For English press 2.
That IS pretty much what we get when we make a phone call for various services in these parts.English as our official language? People in the US do not speak the Queen's English. We speak American English! Just ask any one of our friends from across the pond.

[kallend 2,151]

Why does it need one?

England gets along fine without English being "the" official language. If the English aren't worried about their language, why should we be?

The UK gives official recognition to a bunch of languages: English, Gaelic, Welsh and Cornish to name but four.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[lawrocket 3]

Yes, we should declare English as our official language. And we'll then translate the declaration into 478 languages and dialects so that all understand...

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[masterrig 1]

I don't know if, we should make English our official language but, at least on product labels, packaging and instruction manuals for products have the information in English FIRST! I was going to purchase something the other day and didn't because, the entire label was in Spanish except for the product name and the fact it was; "Made In The U.S.A."!!


Chuck

[Skyrad 0]

Piss off and make up your own language or learn how to speak English properly.

When an author is too meticulous about his style, you may presume that his mind is frivolous and his content flimsy.
Lucius Annaeus Seneca

[PLFXpert 0]

I think it's important for any immigrant to learn an official language of their new country. Communication is so important. It's important to me every citizen understand our laws, their rights and the issues to vote on.

In my line of work, I often come across companies in need of my product, yet no-one speaks English and thus we mutually loose. Let's not even go into the logistics of what it would take our company to set-up a department to accomodate non-English speaking business (and I work for a multi-billion dollar company). We already have paperwork in Spanish, and a few customer service reps that can translate---but frankly no-one wants to handle it b/c it takes about 10 x as long to sign up a new client going through a translator for the same commission as a client in which you do not need to translate. So, I understand both sides. Certainly I'll do it should the business come my way b/c it's the right thing to do. But that doesn't mean even I don't roll my eyes and feel a bit insulted.

I always try to put myself in other people's shoes. And there is no way if I moved to another country I would not attempt repeatedly until successful to learn their language. It's just respectful, imo.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[steveorino 7]

While I favor people in the USA speaking English, I'm not sure what making it the official language would accomplish.

steveOrino

[stevebabin 0]

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Just curious what the DZ.com consensus is:

Recently 38 Senators voted against it:

Here'e the details:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/immigration/englishvote.asp
Snopes lists this as "partly true".

"Science, logic and reason will fly you to the moon. Religion will fly you into buildings."
"Because figuring things out is always better than making shit up."

[Tonto 1]

Well, as someone who went from a country with two official languages, to one with eleven official languages, more than one is the thin end of the wedge...

Here...

1. Afrikaans,
2. English,
3. IsiNdebele
4. IsiXhosa
5. IsiZulu
6. Northern Sotho
7. Sesotho
8. Setswana
9. SiSwati
10. Tshivenda
11. Xitsonga

are official, with a strong push to make sign language a 12th official language.

3rd World infrastructure combined with every official form and document available in every official language..

t

It's the year of the Pig.

[PLFXpert 0]

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While I favor people in the USA speaking English, I'm not sure what making it the official language would accomplish

In my opinion, for this reason:

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And there is no way if I moved to another country I would not attempt repeatedly until successful to learn their language. It's just respectful, imo.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[Frenchy68 0]

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I don't think it is "needed", but doesn't most all countires have an "official" language?

Canada has a couple. Switzerland has 3.
In the US, should there be a need for an "official" language, it is my opinion it should be at the state level, not at the federal level.

"For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

[PLFXpert 0]

You know, I didn't think about declaring such might open up further official language declarations...Hmmm....

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[PLFXpert 0]

I read that, too. What are you thoughts?

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[Andy9o8 2]

OK, time to cut through the bullshit and call a spade a spade.

Declaring English as an "official language" is as much about preserving English language rights as anti-gay marriage is about preserving the sanctity of heterosexual marriage. When all the winking and pontificating are said and done, it's all about bigotry and creating wedge issues that appeal to the
Lowest.
Common.
Denominator.

Gay marriage was an issue where one didn't exist, fabricated as a wedge issue to get Bush re-elected in 2004. And it worked brilliantly, I have to acknowledge. 51% of the drooling electorate, pulling their knuckles up off the ground just long enough to hang yet another chad for the Chimp Boy.

English-only bills, and their soulmates, dubbed "immigration reform", are the fabricated wedge issues of the 2006 and 2008 elections.

[freethefly 6]

Et'slay akemay igpay atinlay ethay officialway anguagelay asway
itway isway osay uchmay unfay otay eakspay itway!

(Translation; Let's make pig latin the official language as it is so much fun to speak it!)

"...And once you're gone, you can't come back
When you're out of the blue and into the black."
Neil Young

[stevebabin 0]

I think this was propagated for political reasons, and posting it on forums like this one is exactly the what the author wanted.

I don't think you can make a valid assumption where these people stand on this issue by only looking at this one vote.
From the snopes article:

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In other words, this amendment contradicted the previously passed amendment by declaring that English was to be regarded as "the common and unifying language of America" (rather than the "national language of the United States of America"), and that whatever obligations the federal government had to provide or honor documents and services in languages other than English should remain unchanged. This amendment also passed, by a vote of 58-39. (No Democrats voted against this amendment, although 14 Republicans and one Independent voted in favor of it.) Altogether, 22 senators voted in favor of both amendments, making it difficult to determine exactly where they stood on the "official language" question

Politicians who want to sway your opinion will go to great lengths to do so, such as omitting relevant facts, like in this case.

If the source has an agenda, be wary of their claims. If the information someone is trying hard to sell you concerns politics, it's a pretty good bet they have an agenda. If someone accepts the information blindly and passes it on, that makes them a tool.
(edited for punctuation)

"Science, logic and reason will fly you to the moon. Religion will fly you into buildings."
"Because figuring things out is always better than making shit up."

[PLFXpert 0]

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Declaring English as an "official language" is as much about preserving English language rights as anti-gay marriage is about preserving the sanctity of heterosexual marriage.

Interesting analygy as I support gay rights/marriage and at the present time, (though Tonto gave me something to think about) also support English as an official language. I've already stated my reasons for such. None of which fall into this category:

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it's all about bigotry

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[PLFXpert 0]

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I don't think you can make a valid assumption where these people stand on this issue by only looking at this one vote.

Of course you can't--or any other "poll" on DZ.com

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Politicians who want to sway your opinion will go to great lengths to do so, such as omitting relevant facts, like in this case.

That wasn't the only relevant fact omitted--and your chosen excerpt leads one to believe 38 Senators did NOT vote against an ammendment; thus something is still left out.

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If the source has an agenda, be wary of their claims.

Of course the source has an agenda (Laughing b/c I know who sent me the e-mail and I, too, checked Snopes first.) But, I know what you mean and certainly I am not one to worry about such irrelevances. I chose to post that in addition to my question for a reason. Certainly I haven't "accepted information blindly" but I definitely did pass it on.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.