Answering the phone WAS: Licensing snafu

[John Esak]

> I've often discussed this with ``spanish'' friends from the U.S.
> Southwest, and they've always said that bilingual education is a losing
> proposition, that it's critical to be able to speak English fluently to
> get
> along in the main stream society.
> 
> Bill

Hmmm, send some of those thinkers our way. I live in the middle of
Pennsylvania... did that register completely... the *middle* of
Pennsylvania.... to be exact the western most edge of the Poconos.
Yesterday, Karen and I were in Lowe's and there was not one English speaking
person in the entire building. The person taking our money at the check out
line started out in Spanish... and when they realized that Karen wasn't
responding in Spanish, just shut up. It was clear she didn't know enough
English to understand my wife. Everyone before us in the line was Mexican,
everyone behind us was Mexican. Every worker in the giant several hundred
thousand foot place was Mexican. No one was speaking English as they were
doing their work. The entire place was conducting business in Spanish. *We*
were the foreign language speaking people.

I'm sorry, this is unacceptable to me. I won't go through my bona-fides as a
non-racist, non-prejudiced person... I've got 'em in spades, believe me.  I
am not prejudging anything, I'm judging straight ahead with clarity of
thought and nothing hidden deep inside my psyche guiding my beliefs.  A
business in the heart of America should be run in English, not Spanish, and
I disagree with anyone who thinks otherwise. I am not against catering to a
second language if the population in the area requires it, or there is
tourism from other countries involved, but cater to it as a *second*
language. It is offensive to me to hear a different language being spoken as
the default around here. It was nice in Spain when people could communicate
to us in English, also Rome, though not as much... it's a good thing to help
tourists. It is *not*, however, a good thing to change our language to suit
the enormous press of illegal people here from Mexico and South America. We
should have our heads examined.

And, if you want to hear something *really* amazing. I swear to you this is
the God's honest truth. I took my college friend Harry, his wife Sue and
their daughter Raven to Philadelphia a couple weeks ago. We went to see the
Liberty Bell. At the front entrance to the new building, security was
checking everyone's bags and identity, etc. I got to the guy at the end of
the table and he asked me *in Spanish* where I was from. I was so taken
aback that I answered him in very pointed Spanish, telling him that I wanted
to see his supervisor... because I was offended that at the Liberty Bell
exhibition in my native country, a foreigner was asking me in *another*
language than my own where *I* was from. I then proceeded to demand that he
tell me where *he* was from, and to get his supervisor over here while he
was at it. I demanded that the supervisor make this kid show me his driver's
license, and I wanted to hear him speak to me clearly in English, or I was
going directly to the local newspaper to get a reporter and camera man. The
supervisor got upset and huffy. He was Mexican also. But, he had the kid at
the table show me his license (which I couldn't even see :-), and ask me all
the questions he needed to ask me in English.... which the kid could barely
do.

You may think this is all funny. I think it is sad.

John