Originally Posted By RoadTrip For centuries people have come to this country from most every nation on earth without knowing the language. Somehow they figured out not only how to survive, but to prosper. Even those first generation immigrants who never learned the language relied on their children or friends to give them the information they needed, not the government. I would never REQUIRE that everyone learn English. At the same time it is insane to expect that the government should go to the expense of providing translation services for those who choose not to.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip Partly it is a matter of respect for the people in the place where you are. When I visited Quebec in Canada I purchased a French phrase book so I could at least attempt to speak in the local language. I was lousy at it, but I could tell the people really appreciated that I at least made the effort.
Originally Posted By SpokkerJones The de facto national language is English. It should be preserved that way for a very practical reason. It is better for any nation that any random person can do business/interact with another random person and be able to effectively and efficiently communicate. This is not to say that non-native speakers are not learning English. Many are, and that is partly because English language skills are still heralded as a very important thing to have. If we go the other direction and debase English, it will only encourage people not to learn it. This will only breed more divisiveness.
Originally Posted By SpokkerJones "It is unconstitutional and therefore illegal to require a declaration of an official language." How did you determine this? Any law declaring English to be the official language is going to have provisions for criminal defendants and victims. A ton of states have appointed English as their official language. The constitutionality of such laws is still an open question as far as the Supreme Court is concerned.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan The FACT is that there is no Constitutional requirement that Puerto Rico must officially speak English to become a state, and that is what Santorum said. So, he made it up. Not unlike him sitting on a stage telling people that in the Netherlands, old people wear DO NOT EUTHANIZE ME bracelets and yet many old people are euthanized against their wishes. It was utter nonsense, but Santorum doesn't let facts intrude on a good religious nut story. He's either unfamiliar with the facts, or he just doesn't give a hoot, driven by his own religious leanings. Either way, not presidential material.
Originally Posted By dshyates Choosing to declare an official language is entirely different that requiring a state to declare an official language.
