[PRCo] Re: PRCo] Re: Re: Re: PRCo] Re: Re: Re: PRCo] Re: Re: Re: PRCo] Re: Europa (Foreign Languages)

[Jim Holland]

THANK___YOU~!~!~!~!




Ken & Tracie wrote:
> But let me add, that while I agree that knowing more than one language is beneficial, I still expect people who move to the U.S. as permanent residents to learn English.
>
> It would be wrong of me to move myself and my family to Berlin and expect the locals to learn English.
>
> K.
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Ken & Tracie" <ktjosephson at embarqmail.com>
> To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
> Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2007 8:57 AM
> Subject: [PRCo] Re: PRCo] Re: Europa (Foreign Languages)
>
>
>   
>> Nothing new here, Fred,
>>
>> The Milwaukee Public School system started introducing sixth grade 
>> students
>> to Spanish during 1971-'72. They did this via a television program shown 
>> in
>> class over the local PBS station. Then the kids practiced the lesson with
>> their teachers.
>>
>> The idea behind it was a belief that Spanish was considered the second 
>> most
>> influential language in the world and that trade would increase between
>> South and North America.
>>
>> I cannot recall anybody complaining about it.
>>
>> This all occurred while Milwaukee winding down from all German 
>> neighborhoods
>> with German signs in the windows of German stores on Vliet, State and 
>> upper
>> North Third Streets.  There were several German newspapers and at least 
>> one
>> German radio program ("Fritz the Plumber").
>>
>> Mass was celebrated in Polish as well as Italian and English. Latin was a
>> common thread at church.
>>
>> Most Milwaukeeans of German descent were Lutheran. You found more German
>> Catholics in Chicago, Cleveland and Detroit than in Southeastern 
>> Wisconsin.
>>
>> The upscale subdivision of Washington Heights (or Washington Highland, I
>> forget the name at the moment), was going to be named "Kaiser Heights" by
>> the German planner. WW I put an end to that idea. But the crafty guy had 
>> the
>> last word. The streets were laid out in such a way which forms the shape 
>> of
>> a German helmet
>>
>> This was realized via aerial photography, though studying the layout would
>> have made it obvious. Look at an aerial photo of Wauwatosa (an older
>> "streetcar suburb") and you can easily pick it out.
>>
>> How can I tie this into traction? Lots of Polish immigrants used to say,
>> "Where the streetcar bends the corner around" rather than saying,  "Where
>> the streetcar turns the corner."
>>
>> Oh, and Roberta Hill loved taking photos of Pittsburgh streetcars using
>> churches as backdrops. ;-)
>>
>> K.
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: "Fred Schneider" <fwschneider at comcast.net>
>> To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
>> Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2007 8:17 AM
>> Subject: [PRCo] Re: PRCo] Re: Europa (Foreign Languages)
>>
>>
>>     
>>> Correct.   But rather than work with our neighbors, we have people in
>>> this country who fight teaching Spanish.  The Puerto Ricans think
>>> that learning English compromises their culture.   And the Quebecois
>>> delberately attempt to prevent English instruction until after age 10
>>> when it is impractical to learn a language.   Sad.   N'est pas?
>>>
>>> On Nov 10, 2007, at 11:07 AM, Richard Allman wrote:
>>>
>>>       
>>>> the political scientists will tell you that language differences
>>>> are the
>>>> most irreconcillable-maybe even more than religion. think about it-
>>>> if you
>>>> can't talk to your neighbor, building community becomes a challenge
>>>> and
>>>> suspicion of "otherness" rises to the top of the pond. Just look @
>>>> Belgium-threatened w/ break-up despite relative prosperity, the
>>>> always-
>>>> strong separatist movement in Quebec, w/ some thoroughly vile
>>>> demagoguery,
>>>> what happened in old USSR, the Balkans, Kuridsh regions of Iran, Iraq,
>>>> Turkey-some religious and ehtnic baggage for sure, but where
>>>> dialogue is
>>>> impossible, all else breaks down.
>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>> From: "Fred Schneider" <fwschneider at comcast.net>
>>>> To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
>>>> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2007 6:28 PM
>>>> Subject: [PRCo] Re: PRCo] Re: Europa (Foreign Languages)
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>         
>>>>> Sorry about that.   I was quoting a rather upset member of the
>>>>> Canadian diplomatic service who I met at the Baltimore Streetcar
>>>>> Museum.   When I asked him about politics, we went ballistic.
>>>>>
>>>>> But within your commentary I feel a certain dissatisfaction too.
>>>>> Sad isn't it that politicians in any country feel that they can only
>>>>> get support from their constituents if they are running someone else
>>>>> down.   Sort of like the newspapers which can only make money if they
>>>>> print bad news.   And the churches who are always right ... my church
>>>>> that is, your church is always wrong, or so it seems.   <BG>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Nov 9, 2007, at 6:12 PM, Joshua Dunfield wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>           
>>>>>> Fred Schneider wrote:
>>>>>>             
>>>>>>> And then we have 12 million people in Quebec and some others in New
>>>>>>> Brunswick and Nova Scotia who would like to break away from Canada.
>>>>>>> And if they do, then there is another group of Canadians in the
>>>>>>> prairie provinces who think more like the USA to the south.
>>>>>>> Crazy,
>>>>>>> isn't it.
>>>>>>>               
>>>>>> Quebec doesn't have 12 million people, much less 12 million
>>>>>> separatists; they got two chances to pass a referendum and
>>>>>> failed both times.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Language is certainly a political issue here (I moved to Montreal
>>>>>> a few weeks ago).  One of the former Parti Quebecois governments
>>>>>> even banned commercial signs in English.  Eventually it was struck
>>>>>> down by the courts, but they allowed a "reasonable compromise":
>>>>>> now French just has to be at least twice as big on signs.  And
>>>>>> despite
>>>>>> having caused an exodus of English Canadians from Montreal in the
>>>>>> '80s,
>>>>>> so that English is now definitely a minority language in the city,
>>>>>> the separatist politicians still rant and rave about how if they
>>>>>> don't
>>>>>> do this, that and the other to support French (which really means
>>>>>> suppressing English), French will vanish instantly.  The latest
>>>>>> threat
>>>>>> that will magically destroy French in Quebec is immigrants, who are
>>>>>> supposedly all learning English and not French.  There's no data
>>>>>> to back this up, but who needs facts?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> -j.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>             
>>>>>
>>>>>           
>>>>
>>>>         
>>>
>>>       
>>
>>     
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