Unless you're a waiter/waitress in a ethnic restaurant (and the menu isn't in English, so if I point to it and ask what's that? They can tell me) or a driver, they need to understand directions, otherwise who cares?
I agree. It seems if you’re not speaking the queen’s English these days, busy bodies will call ICE or border patrol on you even if you are an American citizen.
I believe people in the service industry should be required to speak the common language. Especially doctors and drivers. Food service I give a pass on as you can always point at the menu.
Since I live in SoCal, I never know what language I will hear when I’m out in public....Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, maybe English. Sigh
I remember my first time in Vegas. Standing in line at a breakfast bar. There was probably 5-6 different languages being spoken. I thought it was awesome.
Unreasonable and totally asinine in every possible context and any imaginable situation. It’s basically saying, "I'm too lazy or stupid to learn your language, but my nosiness demands I hear and understand your every word, so speak English, and speak up."
I can do pronunciation just fine so I don't really need to point, but if the menu is in spanish too it's even worse.
If I were on my own and walked into a restaraunt where the menu was in all Spanish I'd probably leave. On the border there are a ton of Mexican restsraunts and the issue above is extremely common
However, in public we speak English or sign language. People do not like to hear a foreign language. It makes people think they are being talked about.
So, it’s rude to ask but it’s also somewhat rude, if you speak English, to not do so in public.
Actually, I insist they speak Sohandeese. It sounds more like “wah wah wah” than whatever they’re speaking. If they refuse or look at me funny >BAM< natural selection.
Not if here talking to each other. Even if they’re speaking to me I wouldn’t require it. I wouldn’t understand them but I’m not the “speak English or leave type”.
If it was a business I may not go there simply because I couldn’t understand them.
The majority of the world’s people speak more than one language. Americans are some of the few who seem to think people have to speak English at all times. By all means, if living in a country, learn the language as best as you can. But if you are talking to someone who speaks a common language or your native language, it’s nobody else’s business that you do.
To me, it's about communication, conveying your intended message accurately to the receiver. If they're more comfortable doing that in another language, so be it. I live in a city that is 76% Hispanic. By all means, learn English. But everyone is at different stages of progress toward that goal, and I accept that.
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