English Language the Latest Casualty of Space Race (Guess we finally lost it)

Fox News ^

[Raymann]

Along with training in spacewalks, robotics, and piloting a spaceship, NASA is requiring that all future astronauts learn to speak and read Russian.

The rules are plain and simple: If you flunk the foreign language requirement, you can't go into space.

[jakerobins]

I thought NASA was going to be an muzzie out reach program....Why aren’t they learning Arabic? (I would laugh if it wasn’t so pathetic!)

[Venturer]

That’s understandable, since we have now given the Space Station to Russia and we may have to catch a ride with them.

[brivette]

nyet.

[svcw]

Why is this a problem? We are going to have people serving with the Russians, seems like they should know the language, I am sure the Russians speak English.

[Genoa]

Do the Russians have to learn English? English is the worldwide lingua franca.

[Genoa]

If the Russians speak English, then why do the Americans have to learn Russian? To be PC?

[isom35]

make them all learn esperanto. then they can also enjoy that william shatner movie.

[Diogenesis]

[markman46]

do you have info to back up that statement???

[Soothesayer9]

Special Forces requires the same, though I hear they’d prefer Arabic to Russian.

[jboot]

Onerous requirements thin the herd. I saw where NASA is recruiting college students to be astronauts. They probabaly want the old Shuttle hands to roll quietly off to post-NASA careers, just like they wanted the Apollo astronausts off the books before the Shuttle program launched.

[Reeses]

English is the worldwide lingua franca.

There are now more Chinese than Americans that speak Engrish, but Chinese might become the new lingua franca. Spanish, Italian, French all had their day. Then they discovered socialism.

[LibLieSlayer]

Things will change after obama... and there will be no more joint space projects... only 100% American. China and the rooskies can partner up... if they do not kill each other first.

LLS

[Huck]

A perfect picture of American decline. In debt to China, and having to learn Russian to get into space.

[Huck]

So we know what they’re saying behind our backs!

[ari-freedom]

What? Americans are incapable of learning more than one language? That’s even worse than the French.

[Reeses]

NASA is recruiting college students to be astronauts

Straight white Christian men need not apply, the only demographic to ever walk on the moon. Astronauts have mostly become funding props to add drama and capture the public's interest. When a robot rocket blasts off, or blows up even, it doesn't garner even a mention by the mainstream media.

[c-five]

If I were on a Russian craft with a Russian crew, I'd sure want to know what those guys were laughing about. But that's just the opinion of one old cold warrior. Doveryai, no proveryai.

[dfwgator]

The only Russian they need to know, "сукин сын"