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Went to Social Security office in Texas and didn't hear English spoken for 30 minutes
page: 8share:
Originally posted by otie1
I feel like the minority in my own country.
So do minorities.
Living in El Paso and complaining about Spanish seems silly to me. But I don't think the OP is racist, just opinionated. I see her point, but it
makes me wonder what the real issue is. I would think that the problem isn't how the OP reacted but how the staff were behaving. If it's a
government office and everyone is speaking Spanish it must mean that the majority of people in need of Social Assistance in El Paso are Hispanic. It
makes me think the gov't is racist, not the OP. Think about it, that office has made the assumtion that everyone who comes through that door is
Hispanic. It's as though they think only Hispanics are unemployed... Seems racist to me.
On the other hand, the people in the office probably used to speak english all the time, but they were probably getting yelled at by the Spanish speaking crowd for not speaking Spanish! So they start speaking in Spanish, and now the English speaking crowd are up in arms!
I'm in Canada and when I go to Service Canada for whatever reason, they speak to me in English and in French. I don't understand why any gov't service in any part of the world wouldn't be similar... Poorly managed I guess...
Robb
On the other hand, the people in the office probably used to speak english all the time, but they were probably getting yelled at by the Spanish speaking crowd for not speaking Spanish! So they start speaking in Spanish, and now the English speaking crowd are up in arms!
I'm in Canada and when I go to Service Canada for whatever reason, they speak to me in English and in French. I don't understand why any gov't service in any part of the world wouldn't be similar... Poorly managed I guess...
Robb
reply to post by PollyPeptide
You do realize that the Social Security office is for more than getting benefits right? Things having to do with citizenship, getting social security numbers etc...
You do realize that the Social Security office is for more than getting benefits right? Things having to do with citizenship, getting social security numbers etc...
. EVERYONE in North America should make an effort to learn to speak French and Spanish as well as English. If you want to live in a place, you should
speak the languages spoken there. Go to Europe and you will find that most people speak at least two languages there, a lot speak 3.
Wow. Your OP is perfect example of the 'destruction' of 'our' culture...
America has no official language and people are allowed freedom of religion.
Argument over. Winner? Me.
Argument over. Winner? Me.
Originally posted by muse7
Me gusta hablar en español!
It pleases me to speak english, not spanish...
Xedocodex
Yngvarr
Me
I did say successfully.
You know those movies where the hero stands up before the frightened troops and gives a speech to his people that rallies them to action?
That is only possible because those are his people. How successful do you suppose the hero would be if his 'people' were all factionalized in to little tightly knit, totally atomized little political units, that can each be manipulated by different and usually counter-productive sociopolitical forces?
So, success, I suppose, is relative.
Do you all think that those two examples are examples of where diversity has been successful? America and Rome?
Maybe what we think of as America is really a byproduct (or the intended product?) of WWII. Everyone had a dog in the race and so it possibly galvanized an 'America' that was and had been factionalized all along. I don't know, I was not alive then. But I do know that some men that could not qualify for the service committed suicide rather than not be able to rush to the defense of their county and Europe. That's a pretty good trick, just in terms of people-management.
Again, I don't know, this is a terrible knot to try to unravel.
Thanks for responding.
P.S. Successful languages have little to do with race and ideology. They are living things. They adapt, reproduce and produce new offspring and eat other languages. Spanish is like the Star Trek Borg of languages. It will assimilate us, but in the best way possible. Don't be afraid, let it happen.
Maybe it's American vernacular English that is facing an apocalypse. My suggestion is to go with it, relax, let it happen. Don't fight the Borg.
I can't express enough to you all how learning some Spanish, even poorly, has helped me to feel more included in society. Trust me, just like music can overcome many of the artificial boundaries we are suffering with, so can learning a new language. Food, music, language, we will overcome these problems through these things, I think.
Any large city in America. Take Chicago for example, you have Greek Town, China Town, Pilsen and The Little Village (Mexican), Little Italy, etc.
Yngvarr
…and Rome.
Me
I was just wondering if any of the proponents of diversity on this thread are capable of providing an example of where this has ever worked successfully.
I did say successfully.
You know those movies where the hero stands up before the frightened troops and gives a speech to his people that rallies them to action?
That is only possible because those are his people. How successful do you suppose the hero would be if his 'people' were all factionalized in to little tightly knit, totally atomized little political units, that can each be manipulated by different and usually counter-productive sociopolitical forces?
So, success, I suppose, is relative.
Do you all think that those two examples are examples of where diversity has been successful? America and Rome?
Maybe what we think of as America is really a byproduct (or the intended product?) of WWII. Everyone had a dog in the race and so it possibly galvanized an 'America' that was and had been factionalized all along. I don't know, I was not alive then. But I do know that some men that could not qualify for the service committed suicide rather than not be able to rush to the defense of their county and Europe. That's a pretty good trick, just in terms of people-management.
Again, I don't know, this is a terrible knot to try to unravel.
Thanks for responding.
P.S. Successful languages have little to do with race and ideology. They are living things. They adapt, reproduce and produce new offspring and eat other languages. Spanish is like the Star Trek Borg of languages. It will assimilate us, but in the best way possible. Don't be afraid, let it happen.
Maybe it's American vernacular English that is facing an apocalypse. My suggestion is to go with it, relax, let it happen. Don't fight the Borg.
I can't express enough to you all how learning some Spanish, even poorly, has helped me to feel more included in society. Trust me, just like music can overcome many of the artificial boundaries we are suffering with, so can learning a new language. Food, music, language, we will overcome these problems through these things, I think.
edit on 6-12-2012 by Xoanon because: .
I hate to be cliche but after 8 pages, continuing with this thread, really is like beating a dead horse.
Ive been on this site for about 6 years, under one username or another and rarely have I seen someone move to the other side of the fence on a topic.
At least the thread was civil, for the most part.
Ive been on this site for about 6 years, under one username or another and rarely have I seen someone move to the other side of the fence on a topic.
At least the thread was civil, for the most part.
Originally posted by Cornczech
SO...what are ya'll's opinions on the destruction of our culture...and what are ya'll's opinions on how "political correctness" has destroyed our American culture.....
El Paso Texas is majority hispanic and has been well before it ever became part of Texas. The Culture there isn't being destroyed, it is what it always has been. Immerse and enjoy or move back to BFE East Texas were your ideals and culture still live strong.
edit on 6-12-2012 by
Procession101 because: (no reason given)
Originally posted by Cornczech
Hello Ya'll!
I am sure this post may SEEM "racist"...but...
I went to the social security office today to FINALLY change the last name on my social security card..(yes..it took me over 15 years to change my last name after my divorce to Mr. H)
So...I get a number...A48...I wait for 30 minutes and my number is never called.....I hear Spanish over the intercom...but never English...I wait and wait...finally I complain....the people at the FEDERAL SOCIAL SECURITY OFFICE are calling ALL the number in SPANISH!!! I complain...maybe they should call the !@#$%^&* numbers in ENGLISH..you know, the PRIMARY language of the USA? (or so we think)
Not ONCE, In over 30 minutes did I hear English spoken in an AMERICAN government facility! When I was FINALLY called....the woman spoke to me in...SPANISH! I refused to acknowledge her until she spoke English.....so...my point?
What the heck is going on in America? There is even a MOSQUE in EL PASO!!! I NEVER would have imagined this....when I grew up in BFE East Texas..there was not even a CATHOLIC church, (most of the people in my old town were Baptists)
SO...what are ya'll's opinions on the destruction of our culture...and what are ya'll's opinions on how "political correctness" has destroyed our American culture.....
Or am I really a "racist" because I resent that I couldn't even understand what was being said inside an American government facility because I only speak ENGLISH....
So, being from the north east my great grandparents barely spoke any English.. they all spoke Italian. my grandparents spoke mostly English and their kids (my aunts n uncles) don't speak a word of Italian but speak English.
See how that works? Lol
Oh and for now I do live in Texas. I do hang out with a Mexican family on occasion and the kids there all speak English while the parents speak both Spanish and English. Guess what the grandparents speak? All Spanish
Sounds familiar
I actually clicked on this because I had this experience today when I went into my doctors office this morning. We don't actually have a whole lot of
Spanish speaking people in my town, so it was very odd to hear primarily Spanish between the staff and the patients. It didn't really bother me, but
I just thought it was strange to hear it more than English.
reply to post by ManFromEurope
For the love of god, people study the history of things if you want to argue.
The Statue of Liberty wasn't even intended to be about immigration, but liberty.
And the stupid poem has been misinterpreted a thousand ways to Sunday.
freadomnation.blogspot.com...
For the love of god, people study the history of things if you want to argue.
The Statue of Liberty wasn't even intended to be about immigration, but liberty.
And the stupid poem has been misinterpreted a thousand ways to Sunday.
It appears that the "huddled masses" quote was misinterpreted a while back to mean that we want your down trodden, your poor, your unfortunate, your disadvantaged, your uneducated, and we will provide you with a free education, free health care, and allow you to become democrats.
Actually, Emma Lazarus wrote the "huddled masses" poem as part of a campaign to build the pedestal of the statue. The poem was called The New Colossus, and it was written in 1883, and not even inserted onto the pedestal of the statue until 1903 when it was engraved onto the base.
The poem was forgotten and not even a part of the celebration of the opening of the statue in 1883, and it was not until 1903 that it gained much attention outside the original contest to raise money.
In fact, the original intent of the statue had nothing to do with immigration, it had to do with freedom and liberty.
France was thanking us for being the first nation ever to make the rulers of their country aware that freedom and liberty was possible. This is ultimately what lead to the French Revolution. Of course the French Revolution failed because they fought for the rights of man (man as a single entity) while the founders of the U.S. fought for the rights of individual men (we all have inalienable rights that cannot be taken away by anything other than the government).
freadomnation.blogspot.com...
edit on 6-12-2012 by timetothink because: (no reason
given)
reply to post by pacifier2012
You miss the point that that have been speakers of another language, but in order to survive and work here they had to speak American English. get it?
You think you could survive in another country without eventually learning their language? It is impossible for a country to cater to the language differences of every person to come to their shores. And it is just ignorant to expect a country to cater to those who do not speak the common language of that country.
You miss the point that that have been speakers of another language, but in order to survive and work here they had to speak American English. get it?
You think you could survive in another country without eventually learning their language? It is impossible for a country to cater to the language differences of every person to come to their shores. And it is just ignorant to expect a country to cater to those who do not speak the common language of that country.
reply to post by Cuervo
So you don't know history enough to know our founders were English?
The USA was founded by English ex-pats! Surprise!
So you don't know history enough to know our founders were English?
The USA was founded by English ex-pats! Surprise!
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A chlorine gas leak that sickened nearly 200 people at a Tyson Foods plant in Arkansas last year happened because a worker
who couldn't read the English-language label on a barrel of chemicals inadvertently poured bleach into it, the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention said in a report released Thursday 12/6/12. Kelly P. Kissel AP
This is a good reason to have an offical language. I have no problem what language anyone speaks away from the work world, but somewhere we need to be on the same page.To be fair Tyson argued that the person responsible could speak english.
This is a good reason to have an offical language. I have no problem what language anyone speaks away from the work world, but somewhere we need to be on the same page.To be fair Tyson argued that the person responsible could speak english.
Originally posted by Cornczech
Hello Ya'll!
I am sure this post may SEEM "racist"...but...
I went to the social security office today to FINALLY change the last name on my social security card..(yes..it took me over 15 years to change my last name after my divorce to Mr. H)
So...I get a number...A48...I wait for 30 minutes and my number is never called.....I hear Spanish over the intercom...but never English...I wait and wait...finally I complain....the people at the FEDERAL SOCIAL SECURITY OFFICE are calling ALL the number in SPANISH!!! I complain...maybe they should call the !@#$%^&* numbers in ENGLISH..you know, the PRIMARY language of the USA? (or so we think)
Not ONCE, In over 30 minutes did I hear English spoken in an AMERICAN government facility! When I was FINALLY called....the woman spoke to me in...SPANISH! I refused to acknowledge her until she spoke English.....so...my point?
What the heck is going on in America? There is even a MOSQUE in EL PASO!!! I NEVER would have imagined this....when I grew up in BFE East Texas..there was not even a CATHOLIC church, (most of the people in my old town were Baptists)
SO...what are ya'll's opinions on the destruction of our culture...and what are ya'll's opinions on how "political correctness" has destroyed our American culture.....
Or am I really a "racist" because I resent that I couldn't even understand what was being said inside an American government facility because I only speak ENGLISH....
Honestly, it's ludicrous that they don't go primarily will English. If they want to call out numbers in English and Spanish, fine. We have no official national language, but I believe we should. Should they provide a translator or native speaker if you don't speak English? For government entities, of course, as long as we have no official national language. But to not call the numbers in English is stupid. For those people who come to the US before learning English, or don't cram to learn it ASAP, they're hurting themselves more than anyone else. At the restaurant I managed for several years in college, and bartended at for years before that, our entire kitchen staff was Mexican (all green card or US Citizens) - non-English speakers were dishwashers, minimum wage (whatever it was in the early-mid 90's) the guys who spoke English and Spanish were more valuable. They could communicate with all of the servers, managers, bartenders...I wouldn't limit productivity by having a cook who couldn't speak English with the staff. Those guys made anywhere from $12-20/hour. Most of them were baffled that the other guys wouldn't bother to learn English and do better for themselves. I had a busboy who was eager to learn English. We would talk (I speak Spanish fluently) regularly, crossing languages mid-sentence, and he learned fast. Then he went to college, got a degree, and now is a foreman on a production line, earning over $60k/year. He cared to try.
Now that said, your fear and paranoia is not well-masked if you want it to be. There's a mosque - eek, run for your lives! So what?? I'm assuming the presence of Catholics would send a large percentage of your neighbors running for the hills as well.
While I wish people would integrate into our culture more, I consider the fearful cowards who can't seem to comprehend the freedoms the US offers apply to everyone, not just their demographic segment, to be an absolute embarassment to the US.
reply to post by Cornczech
Yes, the displaced natives and those conquered down south are flooding all of North America. Native populations suck!
It is best to keep your horse in your barn right now? What checks are in place to ensure illegal's cannot receive another's entitlements, or welfare?
What if an illegal person worked many years paying in to the system?
Do you really remember a time when Spanish was not dominate in El Paso?
I also grew up in BFE East Texas.
Yes, the displaced natives and those conquered down south are flooding all of North America. Native populations suck!
It is best to keep your horse in your barn right now? What checks are in place to ensure illegal's cannot receive another's entitlements, or welfare?
What if an illegal person worked many years paying in to the system?
Do you really remember a time when Spanish was not dominate in El Paso?
I also grew up in BFE East Texas.
edit on 6-12-2012 by Donkey_Dean because: (no reason given)
I agree that the numbers should have at least been spoken in both languages unless they assumed that no one in that area would ever speak English.
As for this...
...so what?
Are you worried someone will force you to join it?
- Lee
As for this...
Originally posted by Cornczech
There is even a MOSQUE in EL PASO!!!
...so what?
Are you worried someone will force you to join it?
- Lee
To those of you that are taking offense to all this, how many of you are taking time out of your free time to go TEACH English?
If it means so much to you, the world needs teachers, and you can go teach English as a second language classes. Someone has to do it.
Ah, but, it's so much easier to hate and criticize than it is to help, isn't it?
If it means so much to you, the world needs teachers, and you can go teach English as a second language classes. Someone has to do it.
Ah, but, it's so much easier to hate and criticize than it is to help, isn't it?
edit on 6-12-2012 by Druscilla because: (no reason given)