I hate Hyphenated anything. I am an American, my German, English, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, Polish, Irish and French ancestry means very little those countries are the ones we left. This is the country that we choose to give my allegiance to. My great grand father moved from Germany because he liked America better, he was very successful because he took on as many of the cultural norms as possible. Not the least of which was the language he only allowed that to be spoken in his house. Subsequent generations took on more of the American dream.
We are becoming a divisive society to which our allegiance is not to America but to our little click. I believe that we should have a common language. This gives the most people a chance of success in America to speak Spanish, Chinese, or other language limits ones potential. This is right because one key to doing business is being able to communicate. It further gives everyone a common bond, not a perfect bond but another one to assist in understanding. I am lucky as well to speak English because it is the language of business world wide. I am glad that I was lucky enough to have that be the primary language of this country. When I have traveled abroad I was lucky that so many people world wide speak this crazy disjointed language. Were I to make a new world I would choose a better language like Spanish or such. But due to colonial periods of English speaking peoples English is the most likely common business language. I am lucky because I have already learned the Language of the world. The people who remain stuck on their heritage are limited on their success.
Hyphenated Americans are stuck in the devicive world of heritage. Don't get me wrong, America is the melting pot and taking the best from the old and merging it with the new is what made America great. I just wish we could all be American first.
When I have traveled abroad I have also made every effort to learn the language of the country in question out of respect for their culture.
I feel an American citizen not attempting to learn the language to be disrespectful. Likewise I think Hyphenated Americans are disrespectful to their home as well.
I'm an American of American ancestry... hear what I'm sayin'?
Those that married into my Original American family have been here since the revolution.. (ok so on one side it took a scalping and kidnapping to win them over but... hey, it all worked out in the end ---heehee, wonder if my boyfriend knows I come from a long line of people who assimilate for love! )
Quote:
Wow. Lots of views not many posts or votes.
Maybe they are just not interested in ranting now.. sometimes we all need to take a break and lighten it up a little..
I think a lot of folks around here (meaning the US west coast, not TechIMO) are scared of this issue. It's a P.C. quandry for the bleeding hearts who would worry more about offending a culture that people actually came here to escape, than about promoting the things that make our culture the more desirable one.
Since JFK (and probably before), people have been thinking about what they should be "giving back" to America. Umm...except we can't ask the immigrants (not even the illegal ones) to give anything...that's not P.C.
That might show a disrespect to the culture that they LEFT BEHIND TO BECOME AMERICANS!
---heehee, wonder if my boyfriend knows I come from a long line of people who assimilate for love! 
)
Linear Mode
