Joe_Cavalry All Day Every Day

Respect for others, perhaps. That's very much advocated by my culture, in contrast to individualism (freedom of expression at all costs, getting what one wants at all costs) as pop culture advocates (general observation from having been in contact with it for many years). I mean, you can express yourself respectfully.

"As far as your examples, they are merely anecdotes, not proof. I can come up with anecdotes that show the opposite. The point I'm trying to make is that on the whole, "In English, you can express a large amount of information with fewer words.""

... yes well... please prove it, Joe, because I honestly can't quite see that; restating something over and over doesn't make it true.

"I'm sorry but I'm an engineer."

I see. I don't think this is above you, though.

Never underestimate the role of society and culture in determining one's identity. Case in point: why do women in Muslim nations ask for rights to practise their religion - including the wearing of the veil? It's a part of tradition that's become part of their identity. Where I'm coming from, people are simply getting way too Westernised (or should I say Americanised?) for their own good - thinking that "me, me, me" should come first above all things. We're becoming too consumerist, and thus losing - slowly but steadily - that warmth that is a defining feature of the cultures we come from.

Cultural wisdom? Well many cultures have their own nuggets of wisdom that can only come from having been brought up in that particular culture. The collectives that that builds up into form cultural wisdom. Essentially, attitudes towards life - that are better and wiser than what we see coming out on pop culture every day.

We're losing these though - to my great regret. And I don't want anyone else to undergo that. Cultures mustn't be lost. They've been giving reference points to all societies ever since they came about. Some need recalibration, yes, but not everything must be lost.

Whoa there, don't get me wrong. I don't believe Hispanophone children are too stupid to learn English via immersion. Nor do I believe that English is the easiest language on earth. So your suggestion somewhere in this thread that you should identify those who are having trouble and give them the special lessons is valid. However, might I add a modertaing remark: for those who can handle English at the higher levels, give it to them straightaway, but give them their native tongue as well - both at a level that can engage them. Gives them an edge, no?

Also, your saying that "Do you think I got A's in English because they have lowered the standard so much?" is just flawed, seriously. Nobody's demeaning you. Stop your ad hominem attacks please.

So you really do resort to ad hominem quite easily, don't you, Joe? I'm trilingual, LOL.

And no, the structures of the three that I know are all fairly easy. They're just... different from one another.

"In English, you can express a large amount of information with fewer words."

Proof?

"Jeux Olympiques de la Jeunesse" (8 syllables) = "Youth Olympic Games" (5 syllables) = "青奥运" (3 syllables). Chinese wins hands down.

"Je veux y aller" (4 words) = "I want to go there" (5 words) = "我要到那儿去" (6 words; phonetically, 5). French wins this time.

"Je veux voir un film" (5 words) = "I want to watch a movie" / "I want to see a film" (6 words each) = "我要看电影" (5 words). French and Chinese tie.

... and you speak of concision in English? WOW.

Quod erat demonstrandum.

And please reference A war here. Which? WWII? Cold War? War On Terror? None of these justifies anything about linguistic spread.

Is it too much to ask to integrate into your host country who is allowing you to survive?

Guess not, but you shouldn't lose yourself either. And if you can get a shortcut to your second language, why not?

((On another note, I guess our contexts are different. Where I'm living everyone's integrating very well and forgetting their identities - we're an immigrant society too - but it also entails losing links to cultural wisdom, and that we recognise.))

Ease of learning to speak any language is dependent on the environmental factor. So unless you have a study to link to, I'm not convinced. Granted, I grew up in an English-speaking household myself, so I'd personally be inclined towards your view, but to keep things objective, I need evidence. After all, a Chinese-speaking home or a French-speaking home might produce children that think the language they speak at home is the easiest to pick up aurally, too.

Not to say that, Joe, but your argument is flawed and you do seem to be bringing in personal bias.

Just a disclaimer: I'm NOT saying that linguistic geniuses come from any particular race/minority group. They're just rare across the board. They come from across the board. And those who need help also come from across the board (of minority grouops, as it were). So bilingualism would be an attempt to help to raise standards across the board, no?

One more thing: you are what you speak. I quote the author of the Francoscopie series, Gérard Mermet: "each language carries with it a different perspective of the world". Ergo, language forms and shapes one's identity. So Terminator, are you, therefore, asking people to compromise their social/linguistic identity just so that they can survive?

On its own end, English has been much compromised already given the large number of loanwords in the language - and it's picking up more and more like nobody's business. It hasn't an identity of its own any more.