Free Association Thread 5

[latecomer91364]

The one thing that's stood out to me in all my foreign travels, is that America is just about the only country where we can converse (at least minimally) in only one language.

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Europe, even counting the Balkan and Transcaucasian states of Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan, is only slightly larger than the U.S. People who live and do business there typically learn more languages than Americans because they have to. If I drove in Europe the same distance as the length of California, I would conceivably have to ask for directions in several languages (LOL - I'm a guy: I don't ask for directions!). Depending on where in Europe you drove that distance, it could be more than five.

It's more of a necessity for them, not so much for us.

Still, in L.A., I run into plenty of people who speak very little, if any, English.

 

[Trumpire]

The one thing that's stood out to me in all my foreign travels, is that America is just about the only country where we can converse (at least minimally) in only one language.

If only that were true...

I've spent 98% of my life in this country, & have noticed (especially online without inflection & things) how many quite-common words have multiple meanings, all accepted by the majority... So if one uses a word with one meaning, & another hears it thinking it has another meaning, they will start arguing over the disagreement in mis-comprehension.

 

[latecomer91364]

The one thing that's stood out to me in all my foreign travels, is that America is just about the only country where we can converse (at least minimally) in only one language.

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Having been skipped over by Mr. Trump, repeating post:

Europe, even counting the Balkan and Transcaucasian states of Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan, is only slightly larger than the U.S. People who live and do business there typically learn more languages than Americans because they have to. If I drove in Europe the same distance as the length of California, I would conceivably have to ask for directions in several languages (LOL - I'm a guy: I don't ask for directions!). Depending on where in Europe you drove that distance, it could be more than five.

It's more of a necessity for them, not so much for us.

Still, in L.A., I run into plenty of people who speak very little, if any, English.

 

[Trumpire]

Having been skipped over by Mr. Trump, repeating post:

Europe, even counting the Balkan and Transcaucasian states of Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan, is only slightly larger than the U.S. People who live and do business there typically learn more languages than Americans because they have to. If I drove in Europe the same distance as the length of California, I would conceivably have to ask for directions in several languages (LOL - I'm a guy: I don't ask for directions!). Depending on where in Europe you drove that distance, it could be more than five.

It's more of a necessity for them, not so much for us.

Still, in L.A., I run into plenty of people who speak very little, if any, English.

Which is the excuse you give for not apologizing if & when they stand up. (Your post was not there when I made mine, FYI.)

 

[latecomer91364]

Which is the excuse you give for not apologizing if & when they stand up. (Your post was not there when I made mine, FYI.)

I don't want to get into an argument over this, but I don't understand your first comment: The excuse I give for not apologizing if and when who stands up? Who is theoretically apologizing to who, and for what?

PS: My post may not have been there when you hit the 'quote' box to start typing your post, but it was most assuredly there when you clicked to 'submit' the post. It happens to all of us, two people working simultaneously. I've scrolled up and had to edit my post a number of times because somebody got there first.

 

[Trumpire]

I don't want to get into an argument over this, but I don't understand your first comment: The excuse I give for not apologizing if and when who stands up? Who is theoretically apologizing to who, and for what?

PS: My post may not have been there when you hit the 'quote' box to start typing your post, but it was most assuredly there when you clicked to 'submit' the post. It happens to all of us, two people working simultaneously. I've scrolled up and had to edit my post a number of times because somebody got there first.

The person(s) you run into... It was a joke.

PS: It was most certainly not there.

 

[latecomer91364]

The person(s) you run into... It was a joke.

PS: It was most certainly not there.

I try really hard not to run into people who don't speak English, because I never understand where they're injured.

 

[SamScribble]

I try really hard not to run into people who don't speak English, because I never understand where they're injured.

I find myself in two minds over the question of one language for the whole world (in which case, the USA, the British Commonwealth – including India – and the Internet have probably reduced the choice to English) or many languages.

I was born in England, but my maternal grandmother’s first language was Welsh. I also spent a few years of my childhood in New Zealand where I picked up a sprinkling of Te Reo Maori – which is a lovely language, but about as useful as a chocolate teapot in the rest of the world.

In the relatively small office in which I worked when I lived in London, about half of my colleagues spoke English as a second language. (The favourite word of one of my colleagues, a native French speaker, was ‘thingie’.) When I left London and moved back to the country, my non-English neighbours were Dalmatian, Italian, Portuguese, and Danish. They all spoke English. But they all spoke English with their own tweaks. Most of the tweaks made sense. These days, I find that I have adopted a few of them. I guess that’s how languages work.

 

[latecomer91364]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_languages_by_number_of_native_speakers
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_languages_by_total_number_of_speakers

English is not the most commonly used language, but I guess Mandarin Chinese is less important for us, as it is more concentrated.

I do wonder how much I'm missing, not being able to understand that language. With China taking a bigger role in the world politics and trading, it might be useful to invest in learning that language (not for me/us, but for next generations)

Sheer numbers do not make a language more influential. The great 'peasant class' of China are unseen and effect no direct political or economic change on the world at large.

One language is an interesting ideal (remember Esperanto?), but impossible to implement in reality.

 

[JKendallDane]

Sheer numbers do not make a language more influential. The great 'peasant class' of China are unseen and effect no direct political or economic change on the world at large.

One language is an interesting ideal (remember Esperanto?), but impossible to implement in reality.

We've at least gotten a start towards that. Most of the world knows what you're saying when you ask for a Coke.

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[latecomer91364]

We've at least gotten a start towards that. Most of the world knows what you're saying when you ask for a Coke.

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If only we could teach the world to sing
in perfect harmony...
Hippies gathered on a hill, hawking soda.

 

[Comentarista82]

If only we could teach the world to sing
in perfect harmony...
Hippies gathered on a hill, hawking soda.

Catch the Wave--Coke!!

 

[Trumpire]

Catch the Wave--Coke!!

Catch a wave & you're sitting on top of the world (before Columbus when they thought it had one).

 

[latecomer91364]

Catch a wave & you're sitting on top of the world (before Columbus when they thought it had one).

One summer day
She went away
She gone an left me
She gone to stay
But now she gone
An' I don't worry
'Cause I'm sittin' on top of the world

- Howlin' Wolf

 

[SamScribble]

One summer day
She went away
She gone an left me
She gone to stay
But now she gone
An' I don't worry
'Cause I'm sittin' on top of the world

- Howlin' Wolf

Ah, yes. On Top of the World.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHhw6vUDUHA

 

[latecomer91364]

Ah, yes. On Top of the World.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHhw6vUDUHA

At the top of the world - GAUSTATOPPEN, Norway

http://c8.alamy.com/comp/ANFHE8/on-top-of-the-world-posing-at-the-north-cape-monument-north-cape-norway-ANFHE8.jpg

 

[Handley_Page]

Gosh; that was big; it ran off the edge of my screen.
I've never managed to put up a picture, so I'll simply quote this one:

 

[latecomer91364]

Gosh; that was big; it ran off the edge of my screen.
I've never managed to put up a picture, so I'll simply quote this one:

I know, I still don't know how to fix that.

I'm not too far from JPL: My concern is, if they ever find aliens, will they be representative of 'E.T.' or 'Independence Day'?

 

[AnAngelReally]

I'm not too far from JPL: My concern is, if they ever find aliens, will they be representative of 'E.T.' or 'Independence Day'?

The point is why would they bother with a suicidal species like ours? There's no need to waste resources to conquer us when we'll destroy ourselves in short order.

 

[latecomer91364]

The point is why would they bother with a suicidal species like ours? There's no need to waste resources to conquer us when we'll destroy ourselves in short order.

If you go with the Ancient Aliens theory, then maybe they came back to see how their descendents are doing. Unfortunately, I don't think I have any Sumerians in my family tree.

 

[Handley_Page]

If you go with the Ancient Aliens theory, then maybe they came back to see how their descendents are doing. Unfortunately, I don't think I have any Sumerians in my family tree.

In my case, 'enquiries are proceeding' is the best answer I can give.
Frankly, I doubt I have any of the citizens of Sumer in my history.

 

[SamScribble]

In my case, 'enquiries are proceeding' is the best answer I can give.
Frankly, I doubt I have any of the citizens of Sumer in my history.

For some years, one of my cousins has been working away, trying to trace our family tree. So far, he has gone back 21 generations to a chap named Wulfstan. I don't think that Wulfstan was an alien.

 

[Handley_Page]

I gave up all pretence of my antecedents when I discovered I was adopted.

 

[JKendallDane]

For some years, one of my cousins has been working away, trying to trace our family tree. So far, he has gone back 21 generations to a chap named Wulfstan. I don't think that Wulfstan was an alien.

I gave up all pretence of my antecedents when I discovered I was adopted.

Due to my great-great grandfather and his siblings being orphaned in the 1860's, tracing the family history directly has been a problem. Fortunately, I discovered the family name traces directly to three brothers that came to America in the 1630's, which means we are all from that lineage.

They came from Yorkshire, so maybe we are long-lost cousins 28 times removed, HP.

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[latecomer91364]

Due to my great-great grandfather and his siblings being orphaned in the 1860's, tracing the family history directly has been a problem. Fortunately, I discovered the family name traces directly to three brothers that came to America in the 1630's, which means we are all from that lineage.

They came from Yorkshire, so maybe we are long-lost cousins 28 times removed, HP.

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Somewhere around here, I've got a big geneology chart my sister and my mom had done 30 years ago. My dad's side which is all U.K (evenly split Welch and British, a few from Scotland, and 1 single entry from Ireland). They started coming over in the mid 19th century, and all I can rememeber is that in the South of England, I have a whole pile of ancestors with the last name of 'Coffin' (pleasant thought) - Hey! any of you U.K. guys related to me?. Maybe that's why I like so much classic Brit-rock.

Mom's side is all Dutch (primary surname is Gantz), with 3 or 4 entries from the Caen area of France. I don't recall when they started coming over.