[Vision2020] Words Bring Pause

[Sue Hovey]

Got it...

Sue
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ralph Nielsen" <nielsen at uidaho.edu>
To: "Vision 2020" <Vision2020 at moscow.com>
Cc: "Sue Hovey" <suehovey at moscow.com>
Sent: Sunday, March 11, 2007 7:22 PM
Subject: Words Bring Pause


> Sorry, Sue, not quite right.
>
> Belgium has 3 official languages" Dutch, French and German. Flemish  is 
> officially the same as Dutch, per agreement between the  Netherlands 
> (Holland) and Belgium in 1973. Walloon is the same as  French. German is 
> used by a small (100,000) minority of people next  to the German border.
>
> Canada is officially bilingual federally but Quebec recognizes only 
> French. The only officially bilingual (English and French) province  is 
> New Brunswick, more to please the Acadians, some of whom returned  from 
> forced exile in Louisiana, than the French in Quebec. In Quebec  all signs 
> must be in French but may be followed by the same wording  in English 
> underneath the French.
>
> In Flanders I noticed that all road signs were in Dutch only, just as  in 
> Quebec they are in French only. But in Brussels they are  bilingual, 
> probably because it is the capital of the country.
>
> In Montreal, Quebec, I saw ONE highway sign in English: a large sign  on 
> the main freeway, pointing south, saying USA, not EUA/USA. In  Ontario 
> road signs in bilingual areas are in both languages. In  federally 
> controlled parts of Canada, such as national parks, the  road signs are in 
> French/English.
>
> One of the favorite gripes of many Anglophone Canadians, like my  sister 
> in Victoria, is about how dreadful the French are. This  extends to France 
> as well. I understand that many Quebecers feel the  same about "les 
> anglais."
>
> When I was young and beginning to learn German in high school, a 
> Swiss-Canadian, who spoke both German and French, told me about how 
> narrow-minded many English tended to be. They made no effort to learn 
> anybody else's language, but loved to complain, "Ehoh, they cahn't  speak 
> English!"
>
> It must be nice to have somebody to look down on.
>
> Enough said.
>
> Ralph
>
>
>
> Sue Hovey suehovey at moscow.com
> Sun Mar 11 20:13:43 PDT 2007
>
> And so does Canada.
>
> Belgium has three, I think: French, Walloon, and Flemish
>
> Why now?  We have always been a nation of immigrants, and most of  them 
> are
> eager to learn English. When we pass restrictive laws such as this one,
> there should, at a minimum, to be a mechanism in place to provide
> non-English speaking adults with the classes to help them.  Didn't 
> happen,
> though.  We're big into telling folks what they must do if they want  to 
> live
> here, we aren't much into helping them do it, though.
>
> Sue Hovey
>
>
>
> -- 
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG Free Edition.
> Version: 7.5.446 / Virus Database: 268.18.8/717 - Release Date: 3/10/2007 
> 2:25 PM
>
>