Speak English or Die!!!!...well, at least if you want to eat.

[pistol]

Originally Posted by ky toker

When I was in Germany, I learned German and spoke pretty darn good because I kept trying to do so.

When a group of us went to Italy, a couple people had handbooks to use and we did our best.

Respect, courtesy and adjusting to culture.

Some don't give a damn and just want to bleed others for what they can get; leeches. Others do.

dude, come on, "ein bier bitte" doesn't count as German! That's merely a survival phrase that all Americans traveling to German speaking countries must learn. You aren't fooling me Ken!

[ky toker]

Originally Posted by pistol

dude, come on, "ein bier bitte" doesn't count as German!

I can't believe you'd go and insult me like that thinking I'd only order one. Wzie bier bitte. How's that!

[Corona Gigante]

Ger: Noch ein ander!

Spa: Uno mas!

Fr: Doesn't matter because no waiter will deign to catch your eye.

[ky toker]

Originally Posted by Corona Gigante

Ger: Noch ein ander!

Spa: Uno mas!

Fr: Doesn't matter because no waiter will deign to catch your eye.

The french are just so easy to point fingers at; here I have a couple

[mikey202]

Originally Posted by ky toker

The french are just so easy to point fingers at; here I have a couple

HAHAHA!!!

Ok...I misspelled a word..honestly..I was a little intoxicated at the time
Now...The problem I see,is this.When we as Americans,start to give a little here and give a little there,as far as our American Culture is concerned,I have a big problem with that.
This country, is what freedom is all about, America=Freedom.

Here are 3 real situations that I have encountered:
1)At the University of Florida, some of the International Students,complained that the display of the American Flag in the Class room,offended them, and wanted it removed.That is .It spawned "a flag in every classroom" initiative.
People want to come here to reap the benefits of this country,and then insult us at every turn.SHUT UP AND GET YOUR DEGREE!!!! You're here on a student visa.This is America,why did you come here?
2)In South Florida,the company I work for, wanted delivery drivers to learn spanish to communicate better with customers.YA...
3)I too was stationed in Germany,and lived on the economy and learned to speak THE LANGUAGE OF THE COUNTRY THAT I WAS LIVING IN!!! I found that if I at least tried to speak Deutch(german), 99% of the Germans would start to speak english.English is taught in the schools.
But, the first time I walked into Gasthaus and asked the bartender if he spoke english,guess what? He said,"no!". And rightfully so.Another person at the bar,who was an American dependant,informed me that the bartender was a really nice guy, but I needed to at least try to speak German to him.From that point on, I at least tried.It's all about "Respect".

[mikey202]

Originally Posted by pistol

dude, come on, "ein bier bitte" doesn't count as German!

It does count...as long as you can say."Wo ist der Krankenhaus,bitte!"

[mikey202]

Originally Posted by Corona Gigante

I don’t mean any disrespect to anyone here, but

Some of the people who seem to feel the most strongly about the language issue seem to be the same ones who are either not able to, or refuse to, take the trouble to follow the most basic rules of spelling and punctuation correctly. In my humble opinion, and I’m not talking about anyone specifically, but if you think Shakespeare is “gay”, if you haven’t cracked a book since high school, if you can’t spot at least half a dozen grammatical and syntactic errors every time W opens his mouth, then you need to pick another stick to beat up on immigrants with. You have no right to complain about anyone else’s use or abuse of the English language.

Speaking as an immigrant myself. Just my . Take it for what it's worth.

That's the problem...they don't try to use or abuse it.Anyone who at least makes an effort, I've always been patient and understanding, and try to help them out.Shakespeare was gay?

[Bubba -NJ]

My Father , Grandmother and Aunt all immigrated to the USA from Germany , they all learned and spoke only English when here . The only time I ever heard my father speak his native tounge was on the phone with relatives in Germany . Oh yeah and there's nothing quite like a Geno's cheesesteak at 3 am when your totally hammered after a rousing night at the club's , and with a designated driver . Sounds like a good idea for lunch this week .