Way to change the subject

I did and learned Spanish, so if i ever decide to take a trip or move to Spain i'll use it.
But im not going to move to another country and constantly use a language thats isnt native to the country on a daily basis
I took time out of my life to learn their language, why cant they do the same?

They don't have the same opportunities as you.

Im quite sure that to become a LEGAL American Citizen you need to learn to speak and write proper English

You mean to tell me that a young man that has lived in this country LEGALLY for 7 years never had the opportunity to learn English AT ALL?

Please.

I learned enough Spanish from just living in Los Angeles for 11 years to be able to get by in Mexico.

So why did you say this:

And one day I got a Bill from my Gas Company in Spanish...me and my GF are saying to ourselves WTF does this say?

I'm sorry I didn't know the proper context of the statement.

I thought Hio was talking about illegal immigrants.

But even under such an assumption; Hio was implying English is America's native language. When we all know it is not. We are a nation of immigrants, and even though English is the most populated form of language in this country, immigrants should not be under some kind of 'obligation' to learn it; whether or not they wish to get by easily by learning English is their prerogative.

Hence why English is the 'national' language and not the official language.

President Theodore Roosevelt once said, "We have one language here, and that is the English language, and we intend to see that the [assimilation] crucible turns our people out as Americans."
Today America's linguistic unity, which enabled the melting-pot crucible to forge one nation out of millions of immigrants from all over the world, is under attack as never before. Record numbers of non-English speaking immigrants threaten to overwhelm the assimilative process. And instead of encouraging new immigrants to acquire the English fluency needed to succeed in our society, the policy of our government is to promote "diversity" by operating in ever growing numbers of foreign languages.
This multilingualism is causing a growing underclass, which is segregated and walled off into linguistic ghettos. A century ago such immigrant ghettos were marked by extreme poverty, 80-hour workweeks and child labor. As the industrial revolution matured, immigrants discovered that language skills were the key to entering the emerging "middle class." This, coupled with mandatory public education and reduced immigration, resulted in the successful assimilation of ethnic communities into American society.
But today, in segregated classrooms, so-called "bilingual education" keeps immigrant children from learning English, by teaching them in foreign languages. And millions of people cannot find good-paying jobs, because they lack the ability to speak English with customers, co-workers or employers.
Alarmed by these developments, 30 states have enacted laws makingEnglish their official language; often by passing citizens initiatives with vote margins as high as 9-1.
Opponents of making English the official language charge that it is "anti-immigrant," or that it is merely symbolic and therefore unnecessary. These charges are false.
Learning to speak English empowers immigrants. By more than 2-1 immigrants themselves say the U.S. should expect new immigrants to learn English (1) and by a 9-1 margin Hispanic immigrants believe learning English is essential to succeed in the U.S. (2)
Official English doesn't mean "English only." None of the 30 states with official English laws prohibit government agencies from using another languages when there is a compelling public interest for doing so. These include: protecting public health and safety, assuring equality before the law, promoting tourism, teaching foreign languages, providing for national defense, and many other legitimate, common sense needs.
Having English as our official language simply means that for the government to act officially, it must communicate in English. It means the language of record is the English language, and that no one has a right to demand government services in any other language.

ProEnglish: Why English as an Official Language?


And I say, if someone wants to come here to live, why do I, as a born citizen, have to learn Spanish in order to communicate with people? They came HERE, THEY need to learn OUR language.

If I were to move to Japan, I would be expected to learn Japanese, or French if I moved to France, and on and on. And our tradition has always been that new immigrants learn English as part of their citizenship education.

Why now, with this huge influx of illegal immigrants do we suddenly have to change everything that WE, as a country, have done for centuries?

I'm just sick of making allowances for people who only come here to make money and have no love for this country and don't even respect it enough to learn it's language.

Also, as to your statement 'it should be their perogative if they want to get by....' sure, absolutely. But we certainly shouldn't be making concessions for people who don't learn English.

Why do you have to press 2 for Spanish, but that is the only other option besides English? Shouldn't we also have Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Sudanese, and all the other languages of people who come here to live? Aren't we in that regard discriminating against every other language BESIDES Spanish?

Figures Gary doesnt understand expressions of the younger generation.
It meant that me and my girlfriend were puzzled to get a letter back in spanish from our company rather then english.

It is an obligation to learn the English language if you want to be successful in life in America and be safe in this country too.

So now all police cars should be issued a cop that can speak Spanish aswell as English?
Should the Stock Market have people slinging Sell and Buy phrases in Spanish in New York?
Here is my Favorite:Should the NATIONAL Anthem now be changed to Spanish because people are lobbying for it?

Im not saying that they should learn it immedietly when they jump off the boat (or cross the Rio overnight) but make a fricken effort