Dudes dating girls who don't speak english.

[aaron.young]

hmmmm

[BongMan]

He has a point though, if you are to become a Canadian citizen you should have at the very least basic language skills in either French or English.

[miss.myra]

um maybe seguin doesn't realize the difference between 'not speaking the language' and 'having a poor or below average command of english'

ps- how many languages do you speak fluently?

[BongMan]

English and broken drunkn English :) but you dont see me applying for citizenship in Turkey do ya? :)

[matéo]

yeah b/c theres a ton of people trying to escape this dictatorship we have here in canada in order to live somewhere free like turkey.

Keep in mind not everyone has a choice to come here. People come here to escape the hard life they were used to living somewhere else. They come here b/c theres many people in the same situation as them and canada has helped them build a new life. This is what Canadians should be proud of. We have a country that allows people to live life as they would where they came from. No pressure to learn the language, or go out of their way to adapt to something that is totally different from what they were used to. So, big deal you have to talk slower and pay more attention. I dont get it.

[Akeel]

Originally Posted by Séguin

My problem is people who live here who can't speak either one of our 2 national languages. Guys or girls. I have no problem with them keeping their native tounge, especially when they've been dealing it with most their lifes. If your going to move to another country, learn to speak the language there.
But that's just my opinion.

as ignorant as this guy is...i actually agree with him, because some (albeit I dont know how many) immigrants do not make the effort to learn english...why bother learning english if you live in surrey, richmond, main st, etc if your surrounded by people that speak your language and you can function more or less day to day communicating in your native tongue?

I think the majority do make the effort though, eg: my mom and aunt moved here over 20 years ago after there parents died and had no family at home, they started out in a new country with literally nothing and very basic knowledge of english - both learned how to speak english and while they may not have an extensive vocabulary, can function with ease in an english speaking society.

[Play-it-hard]

Yeah Those relationships often don't work out, My great uncle met an asian woman on a vaction, they ended up getting married and she came out here.. She spoke very little english but loved me and was so nice.. took me out and bought me things .. with his money... she ended up taking him for all he was worth and moved back home.. after she learned to speak english haha.

[jono]

I met this girl in a bar in Bulgaria who didn't speak a word of English. We made out for a bit but she didn't understand "do you want to come back to my hotel room" so it didn't work out between the two of us.

As you can see the language barrier is a harsh mistress.

[Hot Karl]

for a guy who spins weird crap and rocks a hello kitty avatar, you'd think he would be tolerant of different people like immigrants. ya know? the folks who built this fucking country?

[cutienikki]

Originally Posted by wizzfish

I saw a crew of asian paris hiltons on the weekend.
they were all dolled up.
two girls walkign in front of two girls.
the two girls in the front were carryign their dressed up mini poodles
the two in the back were yacking on cell phones.

I felt silly staring.

oh man where was I and my fog horn when i needed it! haha

[stephen_c]

why do people insist the chinese population can't speak english?
majority of chinese under 40 i've come across DO speak english,
of course some are more fluent than others.

this may come as a surprise to many of u but,
chinese ppl do value the importance of learning english
along with all the other elements of being educated.
this value is constantly instilled from old to young.
the notion that chinese are disrespectful by
refusing to learn english is totally false.

this is one of those things where ppl ARE prejudice
whether they like to admit it or not.
you are using the minority example to stereotype the majority.

[Lee]

I have to deal with language barriers everyday, and in some cases its rediculous. Some of these people I work with moved here over 10 years ago and can barely understand a word I say to them. I then have to speak broken Chinese to them and at that point all is lost.

Trying to enforce the "English only in the workplace" rule is kind of hard, when they dont understand what "English only in the workplace" means.

[vaporize]

so much racism in this thread

oh how i <3 the interweb

[C_squared]

there's nothing wrong with white dudes wanting a dip in the rice...even if they encounter communication issues.

You can learn a lot from yourself in those sort of situations. Be open minded people.

[P.A.R.T.Y]

Sure, there is a certain amount of racism, but it`s not all that bad.
We all know that stereotypes amount to shit.
I may have a younger asian girlfriend, but that doesn`t mean that I planned it to happen. It just so happened that I shared a taxi on a rainy night and we hit it off. Sometimes you see old azn guys with young white girls; does this make them gold diggers? I once dated a Spanish girl who spoke like 20 words of English. She was so hott, a freakin model in the magazines. When were dancing together, it didn't matter who was saying what, a lot of it was non-verbal communication. However, I agree, in the long run it wouldn't have worked.
To all the open-minded people in the world, I rejoice.

[vaporize]

being asian and all, SOME asian women do want men with higher status aka more money

lol now im stereotyping my own people, but who cares i love white women more anyway :p

[veN]

For those people who seem to think that learning a new language is easy and that people who have not yet aquired functional english language are lazy, there is something you might be interested to know (i was just talking to someone about this yesterday, heh)...

It is actually increasingly difficult to learn a new language after the age of 14 or so. When you are born, you can hear all tones. All baby babble around the world sounds the same. Once you get older, your ears and brain stop being able to recognize (and therefore its harder to properly immitate) tones and accents that are not a part of your native language. Therefore, it's really hard to speak a new language well! Especially one as crazy as English.

Also, that is why you retain the accent of the language you grew up with if you move to a new country after the age of 14. In most cases you are no longer able to assimilate to your peers accent (it has nothing to do with how your parents sound, bc if you were to move somewhere and learn another language before the age of 14, you would take on the accent of your peers and not your parents).

Anyhoo, on the original topic... I would find it supremely difficult to maintain a relationship with someone that I could not easily communicate with.

[stephen_c]

Originally Posted by Nev

i]Anyhoo[/i], on the original topic... I would find it supremely difficult to maintain a relationship with someone that I could not easily communicate with.

and must be as tall as u are which is pretty god damn tall.

[veN]

Originally Posted by stephen_c

and must be as tall as u are which is pretty god damn tall.

Absolument!

[stephen_c]

^
i had to look that word up.
now i feel stupid.

[Revolver]

Originally Posted by matéo

obviously I am a little judgemental to begin with but I always cringe when I meet some dude thats going out with someone who barely speaks english. Same goes for these guys who travel asia and meet some thai girl who they "have so much in common with". WTF? How can you have anything in common with someone who speaks 20 sentences of english. I can't help but judge these guys straight away.

I guess love speaks many languages but in my opinion only when the two people in love are those desperate for a companion.

huge point made about SE asia and thailand.

i could not beleive some of the shit i saw over there. ESP in pattaya thailand. holy mother of god its like mecca for old,overwieght,bald, englishmen who take stunningly georgeous outrageously young thai girlfriends and wives....like who the fuck are you trying to kid???? myself thinking back on it and writing about it is evan pissin me off a little.

...its gross.

Myself?...well i did kinda get involved with a girl from Cusco Peru for a while. stayed an extra month down there to be with her. she spoke decent but a little broken english and i speak decent but a little broken spanish. It was a fascinating expereince and enriched us both....

[Webber]

Originally Posted by Séguin

My problem is people who live here who can't speak either one of our 2 national languages. Guys or girls. I have no problem with them keeping their native tounge, especially when they've been dealing it with most their lifes. If your going to move to another country, learn to speak the language there.
But that's just my opinion.

agreed, except i don't have a problem if they have been here for less than a year. after a year of living in Canada you should be able to speak some english or french

[Revolver]

Originally Posted by Akeel

as ignorant as this guy is...i actually agree with him, because some (albeit I dont know how many) immigrants do not make the effort to learn english...why bother learning english if you live in surrey, richmond, main st, etc if your surrounded by people that speak your language and you can function more or less day to day communicating in your native tongue?

.

yeah your soo right!, someone could easily come here and function in their own ethnic bubbles and get buy just fine not learning any english.

I think thats fucking terrible horrendus and horible and i dont care if horrendus and horrible are the same thing!!!!

It supremely pisses me off. Having this happen squanders ANY idea of a canadian cultural identity and that is wrong

some may say "oh well, we are a immagrant nation"....wich i say bullshit. if your a south asian person who moves to england or germany you better start to obsolve(sp?) yourself into that countrys cultural identy.

in canada? oh no its ok...were too polite to have you adopt our lifestyle.

ITS OK if you dont know who wayne greztky is,what a beaver looks like, oh know the words to our national anthem.

ITS OK if you come to our country BUT DONT GIVE A FUCKING SHIT about its culture,its history and its society.

well...its NOT ok.

nothing irks me more than driving around richmond and seeing all the signs in mandarin first,then english...what about french?.

im not saying that once you come here you better take up curling,knock back some molsons ,eat bacon with maple syrup and completely forget your roots and ethnic culture.

that would be terrible.

but at least learn the fucking words to OH CANADA and tell me what a powerplay is!!

[yoko*]

Originally Posted by Séguin

I have no problem with them keeping their native tounge...If your going to move to another country, learn to speak the language there.
But that's just my opinion.

...and we're all so relieved to hear that we have your permission

Societies are not stagnant - it is *possible* that as cultural and ethnic compositions change (and they will change), and other languages become more prominent (such as chinese for example), other languages COULD rise to a similar status as an "official language" in certain areas of Canada. In fact, many organizations already accomodate to the diversity of languages spoken in Canada.

Many important documents are available for translation in numerous languages and many large companies perceive multilingualism as a great asset amongst employees. Many companies realize that it isn't a wise business move to take the stubborn stand that others should accomodate to them instead of vice versa, and to reject the undeniable multi-culturalism/lingualism of our society.. otherwise you risk ignoring a huge portion of the canadian population as potential opportunities for profit.

To say that one or two languages SHOULD be spoken simply because "the law says they are official" is kind of ignorant of the fact that laws and policies are intially created as a REACTION to the state of society. English and french did not become official languages before anyone knew how to speak english or french in Canada. To demand or expect something of a country which clearly does not reflect the reality of that country is silly.

[mapleleaf4ever]

Originally Posted by Séguin

My problem is people who live here who can't speak either one of our 2 national languages. Guys or girls. I have no problem with them keeping their native tounge, especially when they've been dealing it with most their lifes. If your going to move to another country, learn to speak the language there.
But that's just my opinion.

Agreed... I want to make a Shirt with three simple Letters on it.

S.F.E.
Speak Fucking English!!!


Anyways, yeah, I don't get how two People with huge barriers between them verbally can have a relationship. I've always believed and been told that relationships are built upon communication...