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Thread on "Language Banditry" | ||
Tags: Language Banditry | Immersion | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : General discussion | ( Topic Closed) |  |
| cordelia0507 Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 5837 days ago 1473 posts - 2176 votes  Speaks: Swedish* Studies: German, Russian | Message 137 of 140 03 December 2009 at 3:00pm | IP Logged | ||
Don't worry - that is all too clear to me... People who have read other posts by me will know that. 1) I am not a native English speaker myself! I am completely in favour of dropping English as mandatory school subject across the EU. I am very fed with the way it is taken for granted that Europeans should speak English.. and that once we do speak it fluently, we are still at a serious disadvantage compared with native speakers. 2) I have been critisised for complaining too much about English as a lingua franca and the dominance of the USA.. So I am hardly an English supremacist! I don't really think that you understood my point of view in this matter at all, and frankly it doesn't bother me very much. I can't be fussed to repeat it again. If you think I am conceited, that's your prerogative. But rest assured that I don't look down on people who don't speak English. I was one of them myself until I was in my teens, and I am well aware that my current skills in English have nothing to do with intelligence or ability - just chance that worked in my favour. I am not a very talented language learner, unlike many people here. The EU and the world DOES need a common language though. In my opinion it ought not be English but that's a different discussion. 3 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| hombre gordo Triglot Senior Member Japan Joined 5582 days ago 184 posts - 247 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Japanese Studies: Portuguese, Korean | Message 139 of 140 03 December 2009 at 3:49pm | IP Logged | ||
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I cannot clearly say that I think you are conceited. I just think that your use of certain expressions may possibly come across that way.
I have not read your other posts in detail as I rarely use this forum. However, from browsing some of your previous posts I understand that you have had bitter experiences with English and are more of an Esperantist than an English supremacist. However, I understand that you like to assert certain views about the use of English and seem to voice an opinion against natives who have little will to use it. Whether you are actually conceited or not, I too couldnt care less. That is an unimportant matter and have no interest in debating it any further. What you dont seem to be able to do is put yourself in the position of a native English speaker being accosted or used. In Japan, I personally only get it once in a while but other people in other environments feel victimised as they endure it on a daily basis. On a daily basis anything like that can get quite tedious, dont you think? Please put yourself in the positions of those people before you comment. Please read about their experiences and try to understand their dissatisfaction before argueing against them. Dont they deserve a break once in a while? Cant some people once in a while have an all Chinese holiday? Parasitius compared you the the liberal voice expressing sympathy for the terrorist/ murderer in harsh and inhumane prison yet failing to feel what the victim`s families feel. I personally compare you to the infamous Richard Dawkins. You are a church going Christian like myself are`nt you? So you`ll probably know what I mean. Similar to Dawkins, you like to voice an opinion against something which you dont even try to understand yourself. Dawkins fails to recognise that many people find true happiness and grow immensely as individuals through religion and doesnt even understand much about religion or even attempt to broaden his understanding yet feels he can write an entire book condemning it without even trying to understand the feelings of people associated with religion. Similarly you dont even try to put yourself in the positions of those accosted English speakers or even try to understand their feelings yet stubbornly make your assertions with regards to your views on the use of English. Please put yourself in their position first. I see you dont even make an attempt to address any of the points I made with regards to the issue in my previous post. You just change the subject by stating that you are not conceited or a English supremacist. Have you even addressed the points made by other members? Or do you just inflexibly assert your own personal views? For the record, I too posted rather nicely. Please dont interpret anything as inflammatory. I am willing to debate this in a civil manner, but if this turns into an immature self-assertion-fest I have no interest. Edited by hombre gordo on 03 December 2009 at 3:53pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
 Jiwon Triglot Moderator Korea, South Joined 6435 days ago 1417 posts - 1500 votes Speaks: EnglishC2, Korean*, GermanC1 Studies: Hindi, Spanish Personal Language Map | Message 140 of 140 03 December 2009 at 4:14pm | IP Logged | ||
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"Cordelia, you seem to lack the willingness to view matters from the perspectives of others. Please try to put yourself in other people`s shoes before you argue against someone/some group. "
And in my opinion, you, hombre gordon, also lack the same ability that you accuse cordelia of not having. Please put yourself in the other people's shoes first. Try to understand why these people think in that way, without regarding your own opinion as the "norm" or the "socially acceptable". This doesn't mean I support cordelia's ideologies or reject your perspectives. It has nothing to do with my political ideals, those are my personal issues that I choose not to share with many people here. The only reason why I raise this point is because we are drifting away from this forum. @ Buttons: No xenophobia on this forum please. She might have her own reasons for working in London. As I see it, this thread has become an ugly distortion of what it was originally supposed to be. Besides, I don't see the point of bashing the so-called "language bandits". Aren't we all a bit of "language bandits" ourselves anyway, sucking the good juice from native speakers? Some people might do it in a more "civilised way", the others in a more irritating way. There's no point of keeping a thread that has become; a) a possible ground for flame wars b) a place where people vent their hatred on other more irritating language learners. This thread is closed. If you have problems send me a PM. 5 persons have voted this message useful |
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