On what planet is this acceptable?

[Nyoibo]

If intelligence, drive and basic English skills are a requirement to live in the US it's going to be a lonely place to live.

[elsporko]

Its better to be lonely then let the country be dragged down by those who can't pull their own weight.

[jackfaire]

Its better to be lonely then let the country be dragged down by those who can't pull their own weight.

Does that mean we should kick out the citizens born here who don't pull their own weight? That would be awesome.

[ladyneeva]

Define "pull their own weight"... because there are a LOT of people who, by your standards, probably don't "pull their own weight", but since they speak English they're ok?

[the_std]

Its better to be lonely then let the country be dragged down by those who can't pull their own weight.

There are thousands of non-English speakers in your country that work harder than the average English speaker. A lot of immigrants, legal or not, come in to work their fingers to the bone so that they can provide their families with a better life. Speaking a specific language does not make you a better person.

[elsporko]

Speaking English in an English speaking country means you are able to contribute socially and politically to the country. If they don't speak English then they are open to crime, exploitation, and other things. If somebody is in need but can't tell anybody they need help then instead of going to a food pantry or something they'll just go out and steal food.

People born in the country who don't pull their own weight have nothing to do with immigration. If anything it shows we need the immigrants who are able to pull their own weight to make up for the lazy natives. Why should we also allow immigrants who don't pull their own weight into the country?


Think of America as an employer. Should an employer hire somebody who can't talk to them? Should an employer hire somebody who won't do the work? The employer hires the best that comes to them. That's how immigration should work. We pick the best and those who don't meet the standards don't come in.

[kiwi]

I say if the potential immigrant doesn't have the intelligence are drive to learn even basic English then we shouldn't want them.

bolding mine

how utterly ironic...

[AdminAssistant]

If they don't speak English then they are open to crime, exploitation, and other things. If somebody is in need but can't tell anybody they need help then instead of going to a food pantry or something they'll just go out and steal food.

What the hell, man? If they're in a Hispanic community, there's likely a bilingual shelter for them where they can get help. Honestly, I think it's just a matter of time before we become a bilingual nation.

[Fryk]

In my opnion, the United States shouldn't become any kind of "-lingual" nation. We should keep all languages unofficial and not deliberately promote any of them. Spanish, German, Farsi, Xhosa... all of it should be welcomed here and treated equally.

[fireheart17]

And its America's responsibility to let them in why? Life sucks for them but that doesn't mean we have to give them a free pass.

Please tell me you're referring to illegal immigrants and/or refugees. Of the two groups, refugees either need to leave or end up being killed or tortured (usually war-torn zones). Australia's had a similar problem, but more focused in the SE Asian area than in general. The solution (known as the Pacific solution) in the early Noughties was to place them in detention centres designed specifically for them while their applications were processed. More recently there have been issues with possibilities of Tamil Tigers being aboard the boats used to transport the asylum seekers, however these have been rarer.

If intelligence, drive and basic English skills are a requirement to live in the US it's going to be a lonely place to live.

From the sounds of things, so is Australia. (not referring to one state in particular, but going from a LOT of AdelaideNow comments, people would rather be happier if everyone spoke English.)

Its better to be lonely then let the country be dragged down by those who can't pull their own weight.

There are plenty of people who were born, raised and live in their home country who don't pull their weight. Why should they be treated different from the immigrant?

In my opnion, the United States shouldn't become any kind of "-lingual" nation. We should keep all languages unofficial and not deliberately promote any of them. Spanish, German, Farsi, Xhosa... all of it should be welcomed here and treated equally.

I feel that Australia should be the same. Like in the US, there's a LOTE requirement in the curriculum, but the language on offer varies from school to school (I did do a survey on this for my state: the most common languages on offer are French, Spanish, German, Japanese and Italian. Some of the more odd languages are Vietnamese, Hebrew (that's a Jewish school however) and to a lesser extent, Kaurna (Aboriginal language).) Most high schools offer at least two languages.

[XiaoTortuga]

Language ability has nothing to do with intelligence, nor does it have anything to do with your productivity as a member of society. Language ability also has nothing to do with whether you are in a country legally.

This is not about how this mom should speak English. It is the fact she does not and the school administrator wanted a 7 year old child to translate for a distraught mom about that child being sexually assaulted even though there was an adult capable of doing the translating.

Why would you think it is acceptable to put a child through that? And hey, this child speaks English so deserving of being treated with dignity and respect, like a human being, even if his mom isn't.

[Arcade Man D]

The parent is at fault for not knowing English. Everybody should be required to know English before being allowed to immigrate into America, if they don't speak it then we would know they are illegal and can deport them. Anybody who lives in America but refuses to learn English doesn't deserve to live in America anyways.

If everyone who comes to a country should learn the native language, why aren't we speaking Apache, Cherokee, or one of the many other Native American languages?

[elsporko]

Because the Indians sucked at creating a nation and fighting wars. Besides if I moved to a reservation where the main language was some Indian language I would learn it so I could talk to people. I wouldn't expect everybody to bend to my needs and provide translators.

[Arcade Man D]

Because the Indians sucked at creating a nation and fighting wars. Besides if I moved to a reservation where the main language was some Indian language I would learn it so I could talk to people. I wouldn't expect everybody to bend to my needs and provide translators.

Point two, however, the US is a nation of immigrants. There have only been 11 generations (using ~30 years as the size of a generation) of Americans. Only 10 of those generations were born in the USA.

Point three, requiring immigrants to know the language before they come here, are you including refugees in that? Are you that uptight about the use of English in the US that you'd rather let people be systematically murdered by their own governments than allow them to come here and learn English here?

[elsporko]

The number of generations America has had a native population is irrelevant. Just because we use to let anybody in doesn't mean it is a good plan in this current world environment. As for refugees we can let them in, but they should learn the language if they want to stay. Otherwise they won't be able to become productive citizens.