Things that irritate me

[TJones]

I am an engineer!

Custodial..........or trains ?

[nmainguy]

Most every Persian person I know owns a business (Car dealership, Rugs, Restaurant), Doctor, Lawyer, or an Engineer.

The only Persian I know-besides Puma-is my cousin's wife. She is an Endocrinologist.

No disrespect to Persians...my experiences in the U.S. match yours and I find many of the girls to be exceedingly cute

Though its irrelevant, Persians are not "cute"-they are uniformaly beautiful. But since you've brought in the "cute" factor, from what I've seen you are nothing to write home about-looks wise..

don't sell yourself short. when children are being taught in Spanish here, that is holding them back. my mom is from here and didn't speak a word of English. when she went to school, it was more difficult because there weren't as many opportunities to listen to English i.e. tv and radio. she said it was hard but it forced her to learn English well. when you're being taught in Spanish for years, it hinders assimilation.

from your spelling it makes me think otherwise.

VERY true.

And I learned Spanish at a young age. It was mandatory in HISD when I was in elementary school-the most formative years for learning a foreign language. It ultimately gave me the power to employ skilled Spanish bi-linguals like myself. That in turn secured a profitable income for us all because mutual respect reaped rewards. Now if someone thinks English only is the only road to take then take it. But if you think assimilation on both sides of the language border is the way to go then get on my train. You'll not only reap the monetary rewards but will also reap the rewards of a stable society.

[HtownWxBoy]

And I learned Spanish at a young age. It was mandatory in HISD when I was in elementary school-the most formative years for learning a foreign language. It ultimately gave me the power to employ skilled Spanish bi-linguals like myself. That in turn secured a profitable income for us all because mutual respect reaped rewards. Now if someone thinks English only is the only road to take then take it. But if you think assimilation on both sides of the language border is the way to go then get on my train. You'll not only reap the monetary rewards but will also reap the rewards of a stable society.

Where I grew up in Pennsylvania we took a foreign language in high school... French or Spanish... I am now kicking myself for taking French!! I love the language, but it sure as heck is not helping me here!!

[houstonmacbro]

I don't know. I saw the most racist thing ever recently. It was on "latino" TV and they were making fun of blacks.

It was much worse than Sambo. Big lips, teeth and all.

I think it may have been Mexican TV. If we tried it here Al and Jesse would have a heart attack.

Well, hopefully we'd ALL have a problem with it. Not just blacks.

But it is weird. My partner (more 'Spanish' in appearance than African, although he of course has African bloodlines as well) and I goto Puerto Rico all the time and the whole island is anywhere from 1/2 to 3/4 percent brown skinned people (whether they think of themselves as black or not is another question since there are so many mixed-race couples and families), but it is weird to watch television. Not a brown face anywhere.

Interesting.

According to a study conducted in 1996 by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB ) <http://idbdocs.iadb.org/wsdocs/getdocument.aspx?docnum=479869>

the total estimated population of African descent in Latin America is approximately 150,000,000

Wow, I didn't know the figure was that high, but I did know it was a lot. I only recently discovered that there is a sizeable black population of African Mexicans.

Where I grew up in Pennsylvania we took a foreign language in high school... French or Spanish... I am now kicking myself for taking French!! I love the language, but it sure as heck is not helping me here!!

But it would in Europe and parts of Francophile Africa (mostly in the Western countries).

[Vertigo58]

Once again we've lost the premise of the TOPIC.

• Parrot was concerned that the person was flying this Mx flag in protest on the 4th of July.
  and I still like the coochie...coochie...boom...boom!
  Oy vey! ...what a nafka!
  

[musicman]

Now if someone thinks English only is the only road to take then take it. But if you think assimilation on both sides of the language border is the way to go then get on my train. You'll not only reap the monetary rewards but will also reap the rewards of a stable society.

learning multiple languages is a good thing. IMO teaching the language of spanish is great, teaching in spanish at the expensive of not learning more english isn't.

The universities here teach foreign languages using the immersion method. at least most do. With children, it is definitely the best way to learn english because they are sponges.

Wow, I didn't know the figure was that high, but I did know it was a lot. I only recently discovered that there is a sizeable black population of African Mexicans.

as a black i thought you would have realized that. i even know black vietnamese. it would be interesting to see what would happened if they applied for a scholarship here.

[Pumapayam]

Custodial..........or trains ?

Mechanical, my brother tells people I am a train operator all the time.

I throw it back that he simply cleans teeth (he is a dentist)

[millennica]

Wow, I didn't know the figure was that high, but I did know it was a lot. I only recently discovered that there is a sizeable black population of African Mexicans.

African Mexicans are concentrated on the Caribbean Coast in Mexico, particularly in a place called

Costa Chica. Several years ago when there was terrible flooding in that part of Mexico, they and their community got quite a bit of press, but other than that they are largely invisible, Many Mexicans are unaware of the African Mexican presence or their influence in Mexico. There is a very informative exhibit about African Mexicans that was mounted in NYC and has been traveling around the country. In November/December 2006, it was in the SF Bay Area. The exhibit also included several movies on this group. Don't know if it has been/will be stopping in Houston, but if so it is definitely worth seeing.

[millennica]

learning multiple languages is a good thing. IMO teaching the language of spanish is great, teaching in spanish at the expensive of not learning more english isn't.

The universities here teach foreign languages using the immersion method. at least most do. With children, it is definitely the best way to learn english because they are sponges.

The best time to learn any language, particularly more than one is as children because it is much easier to pick up languages before reaching a certain age. It is possible to learn another language as an adult and many do, particularly with good instruction, but often the instruction provided at the university level and frequently the high school level in the US isn't that good. The Defense Language Institute in Montery, CA is well known for teaching adults (mainly people associated the government and military) to speak other languages.

In addition to English, I am fluent in French and Haitian Creole. When I began school my mother sent me to bilingual French-English school where I had instruction in both languages. My kindergarten year was conducted entirely in French by a native French speaker. Starting in first grade all students received 1/2 instruction in French and 1/2 day in English. I learned Haitian Creole much later as an adult. Over the years, I have come to realize how rare it is for most Americans to speak languages other than English unless they come from homes where another language was spoken and they later learned English. I've always thought that speaking more than one language was a distinct advantage and there is some research evidence that suggests that being bilingual does confer some intellectual flexibility.

as a black i thought you would have realized that. i even know black vietnamese. it would be interesting to see what would happened if they applied for a scholarship here.

I am Black, but not surprised that Black people don't know about the African presence in Latin America or lots of other information about Black people since much of it is not widely known. The reason I know is related to my professional background. As far as their being Black Vietnamese, that's not surprising. There are many Black Asian people, especially here in California. Many are the result of Black servicemen serving in Japan, Vietnam and other Asian countries. Others, like my spouse, are from the Caribbean where there is some degree of intermarriage between Asians or Indians (depending on the country) who live in these countries and Blacks. My spouse is Black but his last name is Yeong; his parents are from Jamaica and his grandfather was Chinese, but my spouse grew up in NYC. Sorry for rambling and for not being able to show the quoted material as others do. I haven't figured it out.

[musicman]

Sorry for rambling and for not being able to show the quoted material as others do. I haven't figured it out.

made sense to me. i didn't know about the indian/carribbean connection til i met my parents neighbors. it took me years to realize that they were from trinidad, not india. i know quite a few chinese peruvians.

[TheNiche]

...from what I've seen you are nothing to write home about-looks wise.

I am unsure of the context in which you think that you saw me, but at least your conclusions would seem to indicate that you're no peeping tom, for I am a veritible Adonis! [/sarcasm]

Nmain, go piss on someone else's leg.

[musicman]

Nmain, go piss on someone else's leg.

don't excite him please.

[houstonmacbro]

don't excite him please.

Man, y'all are rough up in here today.

[nmainguy]

Even the Vietnamese people are smarter. They learn the native language and ASSIMILATE quickly.

Many of the Vietnamese were granted entry under special status. Many of you may not be old enough to remember the KKK's welcoming arms to Vietnamese shrimpers in the 70's but Red and H2B might.

However it has been my experience that many of them assimilated easily into US culture. Maybe out of gratitude for being rescued from what surely must have been a hell-hole compared to Mexico?

But back to the topic...another thing that irritates me is people who delicate flower about the Mexican flag flying in the US but have no problem with displays of the Confederate States flag. After all, they were a foreign country that attacked the US and killed over 300,000 of our citizens.

This is a great resource that illustrates the US death toll caused by the Confederate States under their foreign flag. http://www.civilwarhome.com/casualties.htm

Maybe someone else has a similar resource to site which shows how many US citizens have been killed by Mexicans under their foreign flag.

[RedScare]

Not only do I remember the welcoming party for the Vietnamese shrimpers, I also remember my time as an assistant DA, dealing with some of the "assimilation" of some Vietnamese. Coming from such an incredibly violent country, some of the Vietnamese formed criminal gangs in the US. They figured out quickly that if they only terrorized their own people, little attention would be paid to them. Vietnamese had a natural mistrust of government and banks, which was a terrible combination. Home invasion robberies were virtually invented by the Vietnamese gangs because they knew their fellow expats kept their money at home, and would not call police.

For a time, the Chinese mafia would employ the Vietnamese gangsters as hitmen and robbers. The Viets would get a cut of the loot. Before long, the Viets would stash their money in 2 different places, hoping to keep some of their money from the robbers. The hitmen figured this out, and would terrorize the homeowner for BOTH stashes, keeping one for themselves, and giving one to the Chinese mafia.

I bring this up for 2 reasons. One, to show that the Asians did not assimilate as quickly as some misinformed posters claim. Many do not learn English. I know many Chinese and Vietnamese, and the wealthy Asians may assimilate, but the poor ones often do not have the means to educate themselves, something that is of the utmost importance if one wishes to assimilate. The fact that you do not hear much about it does not mean it does not occur.

The second reason I bring this up is to show that Mexican immigrants are no different than other nationalities. The Irish, Italian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Nigerian, and many other groups who immigrated have produced some prolific criminals. The Mafia was legendary in its ruthlessness. The Russian mob is brutal in the Northeast. The Jamaican drug gangs of the 80s sent murder rates skyrocketing. And of course, the English thought nothing of kidnapping and selling Africans to other English, who had immigrated to America. They also formed one of America's most feared terrorist groups, the KKK.

I realize that old people like Vertigo58 fear change. I understand that it is harder for adults to learn new languages. I actually feel sorry for him, seeing that every racial and ethnic topic on this forum is flooded with his posts. But, I wish he would at least be accurate about what he posts.

[musicman]

Many of the Vietnamese were granted entry under special status. Many of you may not be old enough to remember the KKK's welcoming arms to Vietnamese shrimpers in the 70's but Red and H2B might.

However it has been my experience that many of them assimilated easily into US culture.

drive down park place east of 45 and broadway west of 45 and you might change your response.

[nmainguy]

Not only do I remember the welcoming party for the Vietnamese shrimpers, I also remember my time as an assistant DA, dealing with some of the "assimilation" of some Vietnamese. Coming from such an incredibly violent country, some of the Vietnamese formed criminal gangs in the US. They figured out quickly that if they only terrorized their own people, little attention would be paid to them. Vietnamese had a natural mistrust of government and banks, which was a terrible combination. Home invasion robberies were virtually invented by the Vietnamese gangs because they knew their fellow expats kept their money at home, and would not call police.

For a time, the Chinese mafia would employ the Vietnamese gangsters as hitmen and robbers. The Viets would get a cut of the loot. Before long, the Viets would stash their money in 2 different places, hoping to keep some of their money from the robbers. The hitmen figured this out, and would terrorize the homeowner for BOTH stashes, keeping one for themselves, and giving one to the Chinese mafia.

I bring this up for 2 reasons. One, to show that the Asians did not assimilate as quickly as some misinformed posters claim. Many do not learn English. I know many Chinese and Vietnamese, and the wealthy Asians may assimilate, but the poor ones often do not have the means to educate themselves, something that is of the utmost importance if one wishes to assimilate. The fact that you do not hear much about it does not mean it does not occur.

The second reason I bring this up is to show that Mexican immigrants are no different than other nationalities. The Irish, Italian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Nigerian, and many other groups who immigrated have produced some prolific criminals. The Mafia was legendary in its ruthlessness. The Russian mob is brutal in the Northeast. The Jamaican drug gangs of the 80s sent murder rates skyrocketing. And of course, the English thought nothing of kidnapping and selling Africans to other English, who had immigrated to America. They also formed one of America's most feared terrorist groups, the KKK.

I realize that old people like Vertigo58 fear change. I understand that it is harder for adults to learn new languages. I actually feel sorry for him, seeing that every racial and ethnic topic on this forum is flooded with his posts. But, I wish he would at least be accurate about what he posts.

[nmainguy]

I guess I screwed up. I meant to reply to Red and music but got way-laided by my own hand...

[jmancuso]

My Mexican National neighbor told me they were disgusting with CISD....that the white kids should be REQUIRED to learn spanish so they could communicate with them.

Hubby ran and hid. The room got really quiet. I just did the old school "oh my" response. In my head I was popping a cap in her ass.

there's a lot of that sense of entitlement coming from mexico. you don't see chinese, arabs indians or russians demanding that the US cater to them in their native languages but god damn, just about everything is bilingual english/ spanish now. you should have told her that americans should move to mexico and refuse to adopt spanish and demand that the mexican government accommodate them in english.

[Howard]

But back to the topic...another thing that irritates me is people who delicate flower about the Mexican flag flying in the US but have no problem with displays of the Confederate States flag. After all, they were a foreign country that attacked the US and killed over 300,000 of our citizens.

This is a great resource that illustrates the US death toll caused by the Confederate States under their foreign flag. http://www.civilwarhome.com/casualties.htm

Maybe someone else has a similar resource to site which shows how many US citizens have been killed by Mexicans under their foreign flag.

Whoa the Conferderate Flag. How did that get under the radar? It needs a thread all its own. MOST HATED

[nmainguy]

drive down park place east of 45 and broadway west of 45 and you might change your response.

I said many. Clearly you read my response and confused it with an absolute. "Many" does not equate an absolute.

[KatieDidIt]

there's a lot of that sense of entitlement coming from mexico. you don't see chinese, arabs indians or russians demanding that the US cater to them in their native languages but god damn, just about everything is bilingual english/ spanish now. you should have told her that americans should move to mexico and refuse to adopt spanish and demand that the mexican government accommodate them in english.

Well they wouldn't pure and simple. The US just rolls over and let people use it.

I was at WAMU the other day and had forgotten my deposit slips, so I grabbed one from the box. I went completely cross eyed. It was swimming with words from both languages, and due to the way Spanish is, it was the majority of the words. It literally took me a minute to figure out where to write what. I parked my car and went into talk to the bank manager. He claimed they had to make this switch because a large portion of their clients is Hispanic.....This is The Woodlands.

What about the other large portion of their clents.........the 70%+ that are American??????????????

Go to a country learn their language. Respect their culture if you are going to USE THEIR SYSTEM. IF you are goingto drive on their roads, register your car and pay for that countries inspections. Don't demand special treatment OVER those born there. Assimilate Don't Dominate.

[musicman]

Well they wouldn't pure and simple. The US just rolls over and let people use it.

I was at WAMU the other day and had forgotten my deposit slips, so I grabbed one from the box. I went completely cross eyed. It was swimming with words from both languages, and due to the way Spanish is, it was the majority of the words.

2 or 3 weeks ago when the dynamo were having a game i noticed the electronic signs on the freeways were in spanish. said something like "dynamo game, exit lockwood take a left and go to scott." ridiculous IMO

[Vertigo58]

2 or 3 weeks ago when the dynamo were having a game i noticed the electronic signs on the freeways were in spanish. said something like "dynamo game, exit lockwood take a left and go to scott." ridiculous IMO

Whole new topic. But since we're shifting...

Once we did a country wide campaign during baseball season. If customer bought a certain amount of oil they could possibly win $, various prizes and a day at a ball game with a famous ball player. Posters were placed all over US complete with banners, etc. Only one small mistake. The whole thing was done in Spanish. We were bombarded with calls and email and everything under the sun. People angry why they were "excluded" from such a great opportunity. The banners were about 10 feet long and wording was backwards. The counter ads were mispelled in Spanish, but again the worst part was it was not "Inclusiveness". The ads implied that it was meant only for those that could read Spanish. Company lost thousands of $ and got a black eye in the process. We had to redo the whole thing and I'll stop there.

[jmancuso]

Go to a country learn their language. Respect their culture if you are going to USE THEIR SYSTEM. IF you are goingto drive on their roads, register your car and pay for that countries inspections. Don't demand special treatment OVER those born there. Assimilate Don't Dominate.

americans will only put up with so much of a group refusing to accommodate our culture and there will be a backlash. just about everyone i know is very fed up with bilingual crap. i can understand it in the southwest but it's all over the country.

[Rio Grande Valley]

Things that make me irritated: LAXATIVES!!

[houstonmacbro]

americans will only put up with so much of a group refusing to accommodate our culture and there will be a backlash. just about everyone i know is very fed up with bilingual crap. i can understand it in the southwest but it's all over the country.

Too lazy to read up, but someone mentioned it before ...

If I were to move to Puerto Rico (my partner's native country) I would HAVE to learn Spanish. While there would be some people (banks and other places) that might accomodate me in English, I doubt very seriously I would be welcome to FORCE them to speak English all the time. And they're part of the US!

The same goes for France, Germany, or elsewhere.

Additionally, I couldn't just walk into France, Canada, Dubai, etc. take up residence, demand services, etc. AND make them speak English or be expected for them to accomodate me in English.

One more thing, and I might have said this already ... those that CAN walk across the border really make it unfair for persons that wish to immigrate here legally, but can't just walk (sneak) in. They get a 'privilege' that few others don't.

[millennica]

Too lazy to read up, but someone mentioned it before ...

If I were to move to Puerto Rico (my partner's native country) I would HAVE to learn Spanish. While there would be some people (banks and other places) that might accomodate me in English, I doubt very seriously I would be welcome to FORCE them to speak English all the time. And they're part of the US!

The same goes for France, Germany, or elsewhere.

Additionally, I couldn't just walk into France, Canada, Dubai, etc. take up residence, demand services, etc. AND make them speak English or be expected for them to accomodate me in English.

One more thing, and I might have said this already ... those that CAN walk across the border really make it unfair for persons that wish to immigrate here legally, but can't just walk (sneak) in. They get a 'privilege' that few others don't.

I don't want to get into an argument, but I wonder if these assertions about having to learn Spanish if one moved to PR, French if one moved to France, German if one moved to Germany and I'm not sure what language if one moved to Canada where they speak English unless it is the Province of Quebec are based on experience or simply conjecture. Having lived in at least 2 of those place and my spouse having lived in another one, I can say that it is possible to live in

France and not speak French and still bank, shop, and conduct routine business although there might be a lot a non-French speaking person would miss. Believe it or not many people in France speak English as do residents in Germany, mainly because all people all over the world want to learn English (because it is considered a world language as French once was) and also because in many schools in France and Germany, students learn English as a foreign language. And lots of people in Puerto Rico speak English.

I live in California and hear the same anger about those coming into the country who refuse to speak English, people and governments being forced to accommodate people speaking those foreign languages and feeling dominated by those who don't speak English. I had heard that people in Texas weren't as hostile as they were in California, but if the comments on this message board are any indication are representative, I guess that isn't true. I'm also surprised because from what I infer, many of those posting messages on this board are younger and I was under the impression that younger people were a more tolerant and open to diversity than elder generations which given my age is the category to which I belong. I guess the country still has a long way to go before it fully embraces the diversity and all that accompanies it.

I have to agree with RedScare, people of all ethnic backgrounds assimilate much quicker than lay people imagine. It is rare for immigrants not to be English speaker or not be assimilated by the third generation. Personally I have no worries about being dominated or having the US dominated by non-English speakers. I love the idea of real diversity, not just the drive by kind that many Americans seem to like. I feel that the US has been and will continue to be enriched my the people from different ethnic, cultural and language backgrounds coming to live in the US. I already speak 2 languages in addition to English and would love to learn Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, and others. Call me crazy, but I really don't see the problem, but again that just my opinion. I'm not looking to start an argument.

[Pumapayam]

I had heard that people in Texas weren't as hostile as they were in California, but if the comments on this message board are any indication are representative, I guess that isn't true. I'm also surprised because from what I infer, many of those posting messages on this board are younger and I was under the impression that younger people were a more tolerant and open to diversity than elder generations which given my age is the category to which I belong.

We are very tolerant, based on the fact that the largest minority(oxymoron!) is hispanic, (Mexican American) in Texas. But, my beef is that they need to embrace our culture as well. If they do not want to learn English, they obviously don't care about being an American. They are just here to make some money and send it back across the border because their economy sucks.

[musicman]

i've worked long term with many people in italy. when i go there, they speak many languages (italian, french, english) but i didnt see items translated into english (i don't work in touristy areas) until the olympics last yr. italians love to speak english, particularly american english. they are taught british english as electives. they don't vote in english, etc. IMO speaking/learning other languages is great, but i don't feel that changing ballots, signs, teaching IN spanish (not teaching the language of spanish) is appropriate for someone who really wants to assimilate. The money involved is really the main reason i'm against it. i've taken spanish and italian here and when i go visit the countries, i want to speak their language not english because i want to feel like i'm making an attempt to respect their culture.