ENCOURAGING THOSE PEOPLE

When I returned to the United States after a childhood overseas, I was conversant in more than English. This past week I've used Cantonese, Dutch, French, Hindi, Indonesian, Malay, Mandarin, and Yiddish, in addition to English. I've also listened in on conversations in German, Italian, and Spanish. Given that I live in San Francisco, this isn't surprising.

In a few of those tongues I am relatively fluent.


Some people in this country think that speaking a different language is just "encouraging those" people, and one should never do so because "here in America we speak English".

I enjoy encouraging "those" people, as well as communicating.


Consequently I was not entirely pleased at the comment "imagine wanting to speak Boer" in response to a serious question by someone else about the differences between Dutch and Afrikaans. Glib, off the cuff, and betraying stupendous stupidity and ignorance.

Linguistic bigotry is a frequent occurence. For many English-speakers, oversimplification of language matters is almost a way of life.

[So is stupidity, of course, and the bastards also vote.]

Some people irritate the spit out of me.





AFTERWORD / UPDATE:

It looks like I've been administratively de-subsubscribed and blocked from a linguistics group because I politely took umbrage to the juvenile hosebag that made the stupid comment about Afrikaans. As well as de-friended by somebody. Probably a farmer's regenerative organ.




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