How do you say "waste of time" in Spanish?
And here we have a nice slab of red meat that Bushco is hoping to toss to the conservative "base"--or what's left of it. Yes, the Republican-controlled Senate put aside all trivial concerns, like the economy, Iraq, and gas prices, and voted to make English the national language. Despite the fact that just about everybody in this country speaks English, it seems that nobody has ever made it official. Since this is an election year and the Republicans need all the help they can get, they decided to change all that.
Of course, none of this has anything to do with illegal immigration. I mean, a language law isn't going to help the National Guardsmen at our borders. (Telling them what they're supposed to be doing down there might, however.)
Oh, and here's the posturing from a Republican senator. Yawn...
Uh...Senator Inhofe? The US already requires immigrants to learn English before they can become citizens.
Here's a politically incorrect thought to consider--suppose Spanish does become a second language? With an influx of immigrants, legal and illegal, and the expanding Latino population in ths US, this could happen. Well, so what? Yes, you heard me, so what? What's going to happen?
A lot of automated phone lines already have options for English and Spanish. You press 1 for English and 2 for Spanish. I always press 1. No big deal.
There are some foreign-language channels on TV. Nobody is being forced to watch them. If Lucia from Venezuela wants to watch the latest installment in her favorite telenovela, whose business is it?
As it turns out, there are plenty of bilingual and multilingual countries. The Swiss speak German and French. Belgium has two ethnic groups that speak different languages. Spain has Catalans, Galicians, and Basques, all with their own language. In fact, in Barcelona, people are more likely to speak Catalan than Spanish.
This is just another effort to stir up debate as the GOP tries to create a wedge issue for November 2006, and it should be regarded as such. Frame it in a way to put the Goopers on the defensive, but otherwise stick to the real issues. Besides, by 2007, the GOP will have forgotten all about it. They'll have gone back to talking about gay marriage...er, Iran...er, whatever missing blonde girl is in the news this week. C'mon, maybe there's a comatose person somewhere to exploit for political gain! Let's get cracking!
Update: Something to help Senator Inhofe: a list of the requirements for US citizenship. Among them are "an ability to read, write, and speak English." In other words, we didn't need any "official" language to help immigrants become citizens, as the requirements were already there before the GOP thought of immigration as the hot issue for 2006.
Of course, none of this has anything to do with illegal immigration. I mean, a language law isn't going to help the National Guardsmen at our borders. (Telling them what they're supposed to be doing down there might, however.)
Oh, and here's the posturing from a Republican senator. Yawn...
"This is not just about preserving our culture and heritage, but also about bettering the odds for our nation's newest potential citizens," said Oklahoma Republican James Inhofe, who sponsored the national language amendment.
Uh...Senator Inhofe? The US already requires immigrants to learn English before they can become citizens.
Here's a politically incorrect thought to consider--suppose Spanish does become a second language? With an influx of immigrants, legal and illegal, and the expanding Latino population in ths US, this could happen. Well, so what? Yes, you heard me, so what? What's going to happen?
A lot of automated phone lines already have options for English and Spanish. You press 1 for English and 2 for Spanish. I always press 1. No big deal.
There are some foreign-language channels on TV. Nobody is being forced to watch them. If Lucia from Venezuela wants to watch the latest installment in her favorite telenovela, whose business is it?
As it turns out, there are plenty of bilingual and multilingual countries. The Swiss speak German and French. Belgium has two ethnic groups that speak different languages. Spain has Catalans, Galicians, and Basques, all with their own language. In fact, in Barcelona, people are more likely to speak Catalan than Spanish.
This is just another effort to stir up debate as the GOP tries to create a wedge issue for November 2006, and it should be regarded as such. Frame it in a way to put the Goopers on the defensive, but otherwise stick to the real issues. Besides, by 2007, the GOP will have forgotten all about it. They'll have gone back to talking about gay marriage...er, Iran...er, whatever missing blonde girl is in the news this week. C'mon, maybe there's a comatose person somewhere to exploit for political gain! Let's get cracking!
Update: Something to help Senator Inhofe: a list of the requirements for US citizenship. Among them are "an ability to read, write, and speak English." In other words, we didn't need any "official" language to help immigrants become citizens, as the requirements were already there before the GOP thought of immigration as the hot issue for 2006.
Comments