Letters to the Editor
Mishima666
Published Letters: 128 Editor's Choice: 29
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The reason not to learn a foreign language
[Read the article: One nation, not just speaking English]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]We always hear about the "importance" of learning a foreign language so the student can get a job in some kind of international business. In fact, very few such jobs exist, and most of them also require a technical skill.
At my last job there was an anglo woman with a college degree who spoke flawless Spanish. I mean, no accent whatsoever. She worked as a receptionist. Another woman fluent in Spanish and German worked as an administrative assistant. One fellow fluent in Russian worked as a buyer. Two women, native Vietnamese speakers, worked as receptionists. Two men, natives of Croatia, worked as network techs. And we had five or ten natives of India working as programmers. One woman, fluent in French, Italian, and Hungarian worked as a kind of legal secretary. None of them work in "international business."
This is one of the great myths surrounding foreign language education. We already have millions of of foreign language speakers in the U.S., and a tiny fraction of them work in international business.
But based on that myth, college students are encouraged to take "two years of a foreign language." Two years of a foreign language in college is virtually worthless if you want to do international business. There are tens of thousands of college students around the country who, after two years of a foreign language, can't even have a meaningful conversation in that language. That's two years that could have been spent learning accounting, statistics, chemistry, physics, computer science, or business -- things that might actually help a student get a job.
That said, Spanish is a great language to learn, especially if you want to be a social worker. I learned it because a significant percentage of people where I live are from Mexico. It's fun to speak another language, and so there are lots of people to practice with. But telling thousands of people to learn it for international business? That's crazy.
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@ Karenn22
[Read the article: One nation, not just speaking English]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Karenn22 writes: "Today, only a tiny fraction of people need a foreign language to earn a living, but can anybody say with certainty that this will be the case in twenty or thirty years?"
Well, sure, but we already have millions of people who speak foreign languages fluently. Look at the statistics of people already in the U.S. and their country of birth:
China: 460,000
Japan: 130,000
Russia: 130,000
Spanish-speaking countries: millions; I didn't add them all up
Other countries: 3,480,000
http://www.dhs.gov/ximgtn/statistics/
Probably most of those people speak at least some of the language of the native country. Want to do international business in China? Great, you can compete with some of the 460,000 permanent residents from China who also want to do international business.
Any time some public figure talks about how "important" it is to speak another language, ask him or her if he or she does? Question: how many languages other than English does Obama speak fluently? From what I hear, one: Bahasa, a language spoken in Indonesia and Malaysia. Sure he does, he lived there. He didn't waste four years of a college education learning it. He was studying other things -- things that probably helped him get into law school and be successful.
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Desecration as a political act
[Read the article: What's wrong with science as religion]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Desecration of religious objects is an attack on a community. PZ Meyers is nothing more than a member of a long and ignoble tradition.
The Romans desecrated and destroyed the Jewish temple in Jerusalem (not to worry, just a building). Nazis burned synagogues (so what, just more buildings). They desecrated Jewish graves and headstones (so what, just pieces of rock). Neo-Nazis desecrate modern synagogues (no problem, just more buildings). The Taliban destroyed Buddhist statues (big deal, just more rock). Bolshevik soldiers pissed in communion chalices and crapped on church altars (whatever, just dishes and furniture). They destroyed religious icons (yeah, just painted boards). American interrogators of Guantanamo detainees have desecrated the Koran ("A newly completed military inquiry has found US personnel splashed a Koran with urine, kicked it, stepped on it and soaked it with water" -- big deal, just some book.)
Comes now PZ Meyers desecrating (we are told) a consecrated host (who gives a fuck, just a cracker).
Question: what does PZ Meyers have in common with the Roman army, Nazis, the Taliban, Bolsheviks, and the American military?
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Yet more.
[Read the article: Perspire to retire!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The one thing you have not factored in is that when you are 50 years old, you'll be laid off, out of work for six months ("only" six months if you're lucky), and have to start over at a job that pays 30 percent less than what you were making. Around that time you'll end up with a "high-deductible" health insurance plan that in effect pays for nothing at the same time you actually have to start going to the doctor on a regular basis.
Best wishes.