Free Republic

Well, the day finally came for me to actually be a first-hand witness of why knowing and understanding English is so vitally important when one gets a driver's license. My Florida license expires next month and I will be on tour so renewing it in Florida will be impossible. So I decided to finally get a Tennessee license although I still claim Florida as my legal domicile. I gathered my official documents as required by the state of Tennessee for anyone getting a TN license for the first time. It was a busy day at the DMV (when isn't it...

As the debate and discussions about the health care bill take front and center positioning, it is important to note that at the core of being alive and a human being, it is our innate will to survive. Yes, times are tough these days. But it is the inner desire of oneself to survive, to make it happen, to succeed that is vital to our existence. When one chooses to rely on government, then the pure sense of being alive, of being in control of one's own life begins to erode. Sure, government is needed to provide for roads, infrastructure,...

Lawmakers pass bill to protect language freedom California would protect the freedom of a person to speak any language he or she chooses in a business establishment under a measure approved by the state Legislature today. The bill, authored by Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, is the lawmaker's response to a controversial proposal by the LPGA last fall requiring golfers to speak "effective English." The organization scuttled the proposal after loud objections by Yee and others, and the Democrat says this legislation will ensure it does not happen again. "No one in the state of California should be compelled to...

The Obama administration believes that an inability to speak English is a civil right. It is even more distressing that the administration, legally speaking, may be right. In April President Obama's Department of Justice threatened to cut off federal funding to Oklahoma if that state's voters approve a state constitutional amendment making English Oklahoma's official language, Sen. James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) revealed. The threat came in the form of a letter (PDF) from Acting Assistant Attorney General Loretta King to Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson. King wrote that "implementation of this amendment may conflict with Oklahoma's obligations to protect the civil...

The Virginia Frontier Culture Museum's English Farm installation features a yeoman farmer's house that was built in 1692 in Worchestershire, in west-central England, and more recently reconstructed in Virginia. Many yeoman farmers and other English commoners migrated from the western shires to America during colonial times, although their numbers most certainly did not include the builder of this house, who had to have been successful enough to own a small parcel of land on which to built a nice home.

Crackdown on 80,000 immigrant wives with free pass to Britain By SIMON WALTERS, POLITICAL EDITOR 01st August 2009 A highly controversial crackdown on immigrants accused of abusing welfare handouts is to be unveiled by Home Secretary Alan Johnson this week. He plans to ban wives brought here, mainly from India and Pakistan, from receiving child benefit and a wide range of other state aid unless they learn English, support British values and do voluntary work in the community. The move could affect up to 80,000 immigrants who are allowed to settle permanently in Britain each year after marrying a UK...

But anyways, for me, it wasn’t that great. At least, for playing “문명” (Civilization, if you don’t have a Korean font installed). But, you see, as an English teacher there I saw a parallel. The funny thing is that you would think that Korea would have the largest market for books teaching Koreans English from a Korean perspective. But, I cannot tell you how many times I came across expensive, no, very expensive textbooks published by large American or British companies that were published to teach the domestic market (Americans or the British) English. In America, the last time I...

It's no secret that Martin High School has been in trouble academically for several years. In fact, the state has threatened to take the school over if things don't change. Some say it's so bad that most students are having a tough time graduating, let alone getting ready for college. That’s why interim principal Dr. Severita Sanchez has been put in place. As our Concetta Callahan reports she's ready to get Martin High on the right track by having students speak English. Dr. Sanchez says her team has already started working on a plan of action because she says there...

Please use "a lot", since those words are actually in the dictionary. </grammar rant>

BAGHDAD — As Iraq continues to partner with U.S. forces to train, man and equip its Police forces in accordance with the Security Agreement, the Baghdad Police College plays a tremendous role in this training and professionalization of the Iraqi Police (IP) force. Part of this training is to teach the IP important language skills to ensure they have all the tools needed to be successful. The English Language Center is a major part of this critical training. Currently the Baghdad Police College has two classrooms dedicated to English language training, with a capacity of 36 students each. There are...

Doesn't Tehran hate all things Western?

PHOENIX — State senators took the first steps Friday to protect businesses from winding up in legal trouble for failing to provide translators for customers who don't speak English. Existing law prohibits discrimination in places of "public accommodation against anyone because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin or ancestry." That category includes restaurants, hotels, theaters and any place that offers services or goods to the general public. SB 1199, as unanimously approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee, would spell out that the law doesn't require any business owner to provide a "trained and competent bilingual person" to assist customers....

During this upcoming Independence Day, we need to honor and remember the soldiers who are risking their lives for us. Whether it's a soldier on the front lines or one in peace times, their sacrifice for America is great with a heavy price. Freedom, liberties and all the values we cherish as Americans aren't to be taken lightly or for granted. I had two friends give their lives in Iraq.

Why are Iranian police markings written in English? June 17, 2009 Post-election protests continued in Tehran for the fifth day on Wednesday. In many photos, riot police wear uniforms with the English word police on them. Ambulances, too, bear the word ambulance in English. Why not use Persian words instead of their English equivalents? Because everyone knows English. Like many capital cities, Tehran has its emergency personnel wear markings that are internationally recognizable. Street signs, too, are translated into English, and police cars are generally inscribed in both English and Persian. That makes the city more tourist-friendly without sacrificing clarity...

One of the baffling issues to me has been the argument by Democrats against making English the official language of the United States. President Obama displayed his commitment to Hispanic Americans by appointing Justice Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. If he really cares about immigrants and the poor, he would make English our official language and assure that all people learn to speak it in the United States. I have had the good fortune of travelling to a vast part of the world. The people we encounter almost everywhere we have traveled speak English. I’m not referring only to hotel...

... Next month, after 17 years of litigation, the United States Supreme Court will rule on the Flores case, deciding whether Arizona is complying with federal laws requiring public schools to teach children to speak English. The case has been long and tangled, splitting state officials along party lines. In 2000, a district court ruled that the state’s financing for English language learners was not “reasonably calculated” to cover the extra costs of educating them, and ordered the district to come up with a better plan. Last year, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld the...

Question : What is the official language of the United States of America? Answer : None. That is the reality, America actually has no official language, and this causes problems - especially when we have idiotic "press 1 for English" services, and even some voting rolls in Spanish. According to a poll released last night on Rasmussen Reports, 84% of Americans support legislation to make English the language of the land (which should have been already).

Eighty-four percent (84%) of Americans say English should be the official language of the United States. Only nine percent (9%) disagree, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Seven percent (7%) are not sure. The support for English as the country’s official language remains steady from three years ago. Eighty-one percent (81%) say a U.S. company should be allowed to require employees to speak English on the job, up four points from November 2007. Thirteen percent (13%) disagree. Eighty-two percent (82%) also reject the idea that requiring people to speak English is a form of racism or bigotry,...

News 8 Investigates: Airline mechanics who can't read English 10:03 AM CDT on Saturday, May 16, 2009 By BYRON HARRIS / WFAA-TV News 8 has recently revealed serious flaws in the way the FAA licenses mechanics who fix planes. There is evidence of years of problems in testing these mechanics. There is also evidence that hundreds of mechanics with questionable licenses are working on aircraft in Texas. Now there is evidence of repair facilities hiring low-wage mechanics who can't read English. Twenty-one people were killed when U.S. Airways Express Flight 5481 crashed in Charlotte, North Carolina in 2003. The plane...

Sorry Racehorse, you are banned from using this forum! abused second chance.