[Luis Gonzalez]

"However, nobody demanded ballots in Italian, hospital workers to speak Italian, etc. etc..."

BINGO!!!

What you actually just hit on is the true problem, government meddling in the language issue. Some people think that more government intervention is the answer.

WRONG!!!

It's the government printing those ballots, they need to stop it.

I would point out that your grandparents most likely used whatever Hospital was near them which had a good number of bilingual staff members.

P.S. Do your parents and their siblings (if they're still alive) still frequent Italian markets, deli's, and restaurants on occasion?

[mrs.dead]

P.S. Do your parents and their siblings (if they're still alive) still frequent Italian markets, deli's, and restaurants on occasion?

How many Italian markets, deli's and restaurants have you been to where they do not also speak English?

[DLfromthedesert]

The relatives that live in New York still go to Italian markets and bakeries. My parents live in Tucson, and occasionally go to Italian restaurants, as do I.

I don't see a problem with people of any ethnicity continuing to enjoy and be proud of their cultural heritage.

What I have a problem with is recent immigrants who continue to have allegiance to the country from which they came, as opposed to becoming proud citizens of the United States.

Of course, this is largely the fault of the current liberal mindset that has entrenched itself in our schools and media which espouses multiculturism, and denies ALL our children the proper teaching of American history and civics.