OK - now we;re getting somewhere. 100% of my friends don't speak Spanish - or maybe they do and I just don't know about it.

I would agree with you that if your friends speak Spanish and you feel guilty because you don't, Rosetta Stone would be the way to go.

The difference between us is that I don't feel guilty not knowing how to speak Spanish because I don't have the occasion to use it and I don't see a need (no matter how hard I try) to learn it. On the highways at fast food rest stops, I find pointing to an object or a picture USUALLY gets me what I want when the person waiting on me doesn't understand English. Should I learn Spanish just for that instance? Don't think so, and with my luck - they wouldn't understand Spanish anyway.

back in the day, people used to know multiple languages. i envy those who are multi-lingual.
i think we don't put a premium on it because we're lazy.

I, too, remember the day when people spoke another language besides English - mostly from their parents who immigrated to this country. But, their parents spoke English but taught their children their native tongue.

I don't know whether it's so much laziness. I learned a 2nd language in high school. But, like anything else, you use it or you lose it.

At this stage of the game, I don't consider myself lazy not to relearn or learn another language without a really good reason to do so - like using it regularly so I don't lose it.

no, i'm talking long before we were thought of...hell, back in the middle ages, knowing five or six languages for the educated was nothing to brag about it. now, we're supposedly more advanced, yet many can't even speak english properly, and it's their only language!

LOL - at some English speaking people who can't speak English properly. How true, how true.

I think Europeans still tend to speak more languages because their countries are small and they travel a lot between them.

You know, it is for me. I don't like the local government intrusion. I don't want the local government to expand it's powers. I don't want big government, even locally. They aren't the feds. It's none of their business. The local cops have no business determining my citizenship any more than they have business determining if my federal taxes have been paid, or having anything to do with my social security payments.

I don't like, as an American citizen, being questioned as to whether I am, by people whose job it is not to determine that. They are free to run me for wants & warrants.

There is no guarantee whatsoever as to the quality of local cops or sheriffs, and it varies alot by local. Some are simply scary. That's not such a problem with Immigration, Federal Marshals, FBI, etc. I've been through the usual checkpoints in Arizona and NM and had my car searched, been questioned, etc. I don't have a problem with that.

As a small aside, for identity theft, no, I wouldn't leave a copy of my birth certificate or a passport in a car glove box.

National I.D cards issued by the feds would solve alot of issues , I dont have a problem with showing any officer of the law that I am a legal U.S. resident.
Even easier dont issue drivers liscence's to anyone who deosnt have a working visa or a green card . Dont issue social security cards to non citizens( which the feds do) I mean what the hell is up with that ?
I know its to collect tax money from them while they are working here but really they should be able to figure out some other way than giving someone a S.S. number.

i don't see how issuing national i.d. cards will solve anything. i think drivers licenses were treated as such, til states started issuing them to non-citizens. as for broadening police powers-people are in a huff because they think a cop will pull over someone to make sure they aren't here illegally, yet cops can pull you over for suspecting you're not wearing a seatbelt! i think the broadening of powers began years ago, with laws such as that. illegal search and seizure laws ignored for kids at school, etc, etc. is arizonas law misguided? maybe. do i understand why they're making the attempt? absolutely. tax revenue is down, many states are in the worst financial shape imaginable. when you look at the drain on states, you can see why some are attempting to make sure they're paying money on citizens. then there's the crime, drug smuggling and resultant violence...it's easy to crack jokes and such, but there really is a serious problem there. but i don't know that they have struck on the right solution.
it doesn't help tho when the feds attack az's attempt, without offering a solution of their own. if the feds are supposed to protect our borders, and take care of immigration issues, they should start working on this problem.

sorry if this has already been suggested
 

I believe Arizona, Texas, etc have a solution to the problem. They just start busing all the illegals to San Fransissyco

I do know multiple languages, but they are all computer languages... :D

I think it's unfair to call uni-linguists lazy, especially for those of us who have pursued a technical education. It takes a lot just to keep up, and studying skills not directly related to our work is often not an option.

You are so right. When Obama attacks the law as "misguided" (did he say "irresponsible"?) I get the impression that he doesn't realize there are Federal Laws on the books that are almost the same. I also realize he has little or no respect for the laws of this country in general or the Constitution in particular.

i only know one language, so i was certainly lumping myself in that category-altho i have to say, i'm far from lazy. i think we're plenty motivated about a lot of stuff, but not when it comes to communication with others. we just assume everyone else knows english.

actually, you're ahead of me-i really don't know much about computer languages! :D

The only time O'Dumbass cares about a law is when it benefits him.

Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Gerardo Parra was pulled out of the batter's box during his first plate appearance last night after several Arizona fans reported to stadium police that Parra looked suspiciously Mexican. "Under the new state law, we have to follow up on these things," said a stadium security spokesman. "And it's good we did. He didn't have the required paperwork." Parra told police he is from Venezuela, not Mexico, but had no official identification on him at the plate. "His wristbands had his name on them, but that's not good enough," said arresting office Lt. Michael Dellesardo. "It's pretty easy to get fake wristbands these days." Parra was arrested on the field and is now awaiting a deportation hearing. Arizona manager AJ Hinch replaced Parra in the lineup with Cole Gillespie. "Cole is our fourth outfielder and has great potential," said Hinch. "Because he's white."

If it was in Philly, they would have tazed him

If you ain't white, you ain't right!!

wait, wait..

If your not white, your not right!!

Your tazed and confused - it's tased.

The Democratic Party in a nut shell.

"If you're illegal, broke or a criminal; we'll take care of you.

If you're legal, working and an upstanding citizen; we'll f' with you"

Who f'in cares Queen....Just because you are 100 years old doesn't mean you have the right to be a condescending a-hole

:eek: