It seems like many or most immigrants come to the USA and don't bother to learn English.   They stay in their insular communities with their own langauge.   The older generation seem to be the most reticent. \n\nWhy don't they "get with the program" and learn english?  How will they understand what is going on?  What if they have an emergency and the doctors don't talk their language? Is this laziness?  Why do they not make the effort to go to language school?
216625
It Is ONE OF The Requirements For American Citizenship That You Must Learn The ENGLISH LANGUAGE\n\nAnd The TRUTH Is That MANY ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS DO NOT WANT TO BECOME CITIZENS\nMANY Would Rather LEECH Off The US TAXPAYERS- A Majority Of ILLEGAL ALIENS Live And Work In This Country And Then Send Their Money Back Home To Their Families (Whatever Nation Their Families Live In) Therefore DRAINING The Economy Even Further. \nWhen The US Dollar Leaves The US... Its GONE From The American Economy.\n*****************************\n\nPosted by The Watchdog - April 6th, 2006 \nDavid M. Bresnahan\nApril 1, 2006\nNewsWithViews.com \n\nDear President Bush: \n\nI’m about to plan a little trip with my family and extended family, and I would like\n to ask you to assist me. I’m going to walk across the border from the U.S. into Mexico,\n and I need to make a few arrangements. I know you can help with this. \n\nI plan to skip all the legal stuff like visas, passports, immigration quotas and laws.\n I’m sure they handle those things the same way you do here. \n\nSo, would you mind telling your buddy, President Vicente Fox, that I’m on my way over?\n Please let him know that I will be expecting the following: \n\n1. Free medical care for my entire family.\n2. English-speaking government bureaucrats for all services I might need, whether I use them or not.\n3. All government forms need to be printed in English.\n4. I want my kids to be taught by English-speaking teachers.\n5. Schools need to include classes on American culture and history.\n6. I want my kids to see the American flag flying on the top of the flag pole at their school with the Mexican flag flying lower down.\n7. Please plan to feed my kids at school for both breakfast and lunch.\n8. I will need a local Mexican driver’s license so I can get easy access to government services.\n9. I do not plan to have any car insurance, and I won’t make any effort to learn local traffic laws.\n10. In case one of the Mexican police officers does not get the memo from Pres. Fox to leave me alone, please be sure that all police officers speak English.\n11. I plan to fly the U.S. flag from my house top, put flag decals on my car, and have a gigantic celebration on July 4th. I do not want any complaints or negative comments from the locals.\n12. I would also like to have a nice job without paying any taxes, and don’t enforce any labor laws or tax laws.\n13. Please tell all the people in the country to be extremely nice and never say a critical word about me, or about the strain I might place on the economy. \n\nI know this is an easy request because you already do all these things for all the people who come to the U.S. from Mexico. I am sure that Pres. Fox won’t mind returning the favor if you ask him nicely. \n\nThank you so much for your kind help. \n\nSincerely, \n\nDavid M. Bresnahan\n\nPosted in Border crossing, Pro-Illegal Groups, Mexico
34390
I agree that sometimes people are just in a hurry to answer, so they don't catch their mistakes. I am guilty of that many times. However, I think that many are non-English speakers, or  are just learning to speak and write English. So they are not really that familiar with the spelling of the words that they just hear on TV, songs, etc. This is a venue for them to learn.
324550
1) Learn to write in complete sentences and spell. It makes you look more intelligent which, in turn, will make people give a crap about what you have to say. \n\n2) Most Americans do not have a problem with immigrants. We realize that we are descendants of immigrants. In fact, we welcome immigrants for rejuvenating the country. \n\n3) Regardless of the reason, people who come to this country without following the proper channels have committed a CRIME. We do not look kindly upon criminals. There are methods for immigrating legally and thousands and thousands of people have gone through those channels, waiting YEARS, and paying the proper fees. Why are some people better than those who follow the rules? Perhaps the immigration procedures are a bit stringent, but nevertheless, they are the LAW. \n\n4) You are obviously still in school and do not yet pay taxes. Once you do, you'll realize that most of us work until mid-April SOLELY to pay our taxes. Then we see that our hard-earned tax dollars are being spent on jailing illegals (20% of the Cali prison system is made up of illegals), educating their children, providing social services for them since they are not educated, do not speak English, and do not make enough money here, and providing FREE health care (something our own citizens do not enjoy). Between police, fire, health, teachers, and government workers, we spend too much time and money dealing wtih these people who are here ILLEGALLY. We as a country cannot even provide for our own, why should we have to do so for others? Why are these illegals elevated to a higher status than our own? And why do YOU think that these illegals are entitled to get anything from ME?
459479
Well, there is a difference between moving to a country to settle, in which case it is perfectly reasonable to expect to learn the language, and just visiting!\nI've just finished reading J K Jerome's 'Three men on the Bummel' which was written over  100 years ago, but raises a similar point, about the prevalence of anglophones in Europe compared with our lack of polyglot skills ourselves. He put it down to weaknesses in our education system, and I think he had a point. For example, I can't speak French, I can only speak 'O level French' which seems to be a language unique to English schools!
331700
We make easier for different cultures by printing literature in different languages. Making easier for them to function in society. The downside to that it helps to keep them separate because they do not have to learn the language. And in turn they group around others that are the same as their selves. That is one way we are failing as a society to assimilate others into our country. Its is a very complex problem with no easy answers. Many of the individuals that I have known that came in legally are proud of the fact that they made it in that way. And other than not having perfect English, they acted like "typical" Americans. I guess sneaking in through the back door into the country does not en still one with a sense of pride? It more than likely does not help that, we for the most part, turn a blind eye towards the situation hoping it will go away or right itself.
563821
I was born in this country.  I speak English.  In order to communicate we need a common language.  When a bunch of illegalmexican immigrants comes in and refuse to speak English there is no reason why we should cater to them and change everything to Spanish.  This is positively absurd, and I am sick and tired of having to press 1 for English.  The illegalmexican immigrants will not dictate to me that I now have to read Spanish everywhere.\n\nThe time has come to actively campaign against them and to fight aginst them.
75778
Well, I have some ideas as to why you perceive this to be the case, whether or not it is.  A great many people on the Internet (I do not have IM, so I'm speaking more generally) are using English as a second language.  If they take their time, really carefully compose their sentences, we wouldn't even know that they had not been using English for many years.  Their English teachers would be very proud of them.  But IM goes too fast for that; you have to be quick to keep up with the dialog.  So a non-native speaker who has not been using English very long will start to get incomprehensible.\n\nOf course, there is also some hostility and resentment on the part of some people toward what they feel is an "invasion" from "foreigners."  In any country with a good bit of socialism (housing, medical care, whatever), it is easy to feel that the newcomers are getting preferential treatment over the citizens.  I know this has happened a great deal in England, for example, and to a lesser but still noticeable degree in the US.  This builds up an attitude that anyone from a third world country who tries to learn English is trying to "come over here and use up our scarce resources."  It may or may not be true of a given person, and there's no reason to assume it is true, but the inflated bureaucracy that is in place to "care for" immigrants is horribly expensive, and breeds resentment.
269569
You are right.  Americans, who almost *never* learn a foreign language, don't appreciate how difficult it is to actually learn new languages!\n\nBy the way, you English is excellent (not perfect, but better than a lot of English-speakers I've seen!).  If you *do* want suggestions, use capital letters--at the beginning of a sentence, and when referring to languages and nationalities (English, England, France, French, Hindi, etc.).
228569
This is only an issue because these people are too lazy and don't want to work for anything. Illigals are even getting gov assistance, and now we are makeing it so that they don't even have to learn english. that is a good question tho... why ARE we bickering over legalizing a bunch of free loaders who can't communicate with the general population? Yea, that will be good for the country *scoff* But we can't deport them! That might hurt their feelings... god, america is really irritating me lately!
157032
I -somehow- agree with you, I know there´s no official language in the USA but for years English has been the predominant language and it is something that should be kept like that. On the other hand I think the American government should get more involved to preserve English, HOW? Simple teach English to those foreigners who come legally, I know there´s lot of issues now with that matter but lets set them aside for the meanwhile.Here for example there´s lots of ppl who come from sud America Africa and Asia no breaking ground news still Spanish comes second what the guv does here is to teach Swedish to those ppl who come there are schools that are called SFI (svenska for invandrare) Swedish for foreigners the classes and books are for free so there are no excuses for not to go and ppl are shown the benefits of speaking the language, these courses are not for illegal ppl but everybo knows here taking those courses will give em a better job indeed that ´s taken like a lil motivation. About other languages driving lessons and tests can be taken in English and Spanish as well as some university courses (English) .Now a days ppl are lazy to learn but not all I met lots of Mexican/Latin ppl in Miami who would speak English as well as up north in Chicago =).
333519
I would like to start a petition that ALL foreign languages be banned on our legal documents. After all, English is our national language. I don't see any other country that goes so much out of their way to make it easy for "guests" to get along.\n\nPersonally, I'm sick of it! During hurricane season our own governor came on TV and did one broadcast in English then another one right afterward in Spanish.  That made me so mad! \n\nBefore anyone starts on the whole issue of "everyone needs to be aware in an emergency"...well, if you are going to live in America, you can at least learn enough of the national language to get by in an emergency situation.
388518
The question is whether those who live here and didn't have expensive ESL education, making them bilingual in Spanish and English, should be expected or required to have any knowledge of that language.\n\nMany would like to be bilingual, but when I went through the LAUSD I could choose French, German or Spanish as my language (I chose French).  Now the program cuts are so severe, our children are only offered Spanish, if that, and many aren't interested in learning Spanish.
253401
Americans and Englishmen have always found people willing to speak their language because it's useful; this has led to the arrogant assumption that English is spoken by everyone, or will be.  This accords well with the political and economic ambitions of the "neo-conservatives" as well as the old-fashioned English imperialists.\n\nFor better than 90 % of the world's population, English is not a means of communication. Indeed, it may be in decline as a subject of study:\nhttp://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/02/0226_040226_language.html\n\nEnglish is a very difficult language to learn unless you've been immersed in it since birth. English spelling is said to be more difficult than any other language except Gaelic. English grammar, although it may be fairly simple, is riddled with exceptions. Verbs are very often irregular. Many people just aren't going to devote several years of effort to learn it!  English has gained its present stature because of the current economic and political power of English-speaking countries. In the past, every super-power has briefly seen its native tongue used internationally: France, Spain, Portugal, the Roman empire. In fact, one of the main reasons why Esperanto was never adopted by the League of Nations was that France blocked efforts to adopt it. At the time, French was "the international language", and France expected it to stay that way forever. They were proven wrong within twenty years.\nAlthough many people all over the world study English and often think they speak it well, the number of people who can participate in a non-trivial conversation in English is very small outside English-speaking countries. Knowing English may be sufficient to survive as a tourist in many places, but not for most. \n\nMe, I speak English; but I'd rather we all learned Esperanto!
294228
Actually I do know a lot of them do not. I lived in SF. In the mission district many illegals don't care about learning English because of the community. The same is for my fellow Asians. in China town there are many illegals and I asked them if they had the desire to learn English they told me no and its the same way in Dallas and New York in their Chinatown.
67035
Some get too damn lazy to spell correctly and/or to type in complete words. \nSome are just that dumb and don't want to learn.\nSome of these people's primary language is not english... like me, yet, I know how to spell and I know the differences between your, you're, they're, their, its, it's, etc. AND, it's a pet peeve to see how many people missuse (sp?) those.\n\nHey, at least I know I might have misspelled that and I care enough to question myself :oP
405965
52 other nations besides America have adopted English as their official language.  It sounds normal to me.\nPrinting all documents in several languages costs American citizens money.  People who want to live in America should learn English, as all immigrants in the past 250 years have. \n People should not be able to demand services from the American government in any other language but English.\nWould you move to a country without learning the language?
154420
It was not our choice for them to come here, so why should it be our responsibility to accomodate them because they do not speak english. If you come to the US knowing that English is the primary language you should be prepared to learn it.