I don't htink it's too much to expect drivers to speak the language enough to effectively communicate. The signs are in English...and what if there is an accident? How can you ask them for their insurance information if they don't speak English? And no...the whole country shouldn't have to learn their language when the native language is English. Pandering to feelings here is wrong because it's a safety issue. Oh...that doesn't mean the citations are ok...if it isn't illegal then they shouldn't have done it.
Signs are typically based around symbols and numbers. If someone knows the signs then they are no more dangerous on the road.
It's not too much to expect. And the penalty for not being able to communicate adequately is that you might be arrested if you don't can't follow valid instructions and you don't have the chance to offer an explanation that might prevent a ticket. That doesn't mean you can be ticketed for not speaking English.
No. Prime example why: And who knows what they might assume these say: Those signs warn drivers about weather, kidnapped kids in the area, escaped fugitives, road work, detour info...all kinds of things there are no symbols for on the LED sign. And there is still the issue of accidents and communication with other motorists.
I read somewhere that commercial airports are having the same problem with Foreign Airline pilot's that can't speak or understand english
I'm going to defer to the experience of pretty much every government around the world who evidently think it's not too much of a problem as they recognise drivers licenses from other countries.
Here in Europe, such a law would pretty much make it impossible for a lot of people to drive very far. When I drove up to Sweden a few years ago to visit my relatives, I drove in two countries (Denmark and Sweden) whose languages I did not speak. I have also driven in Italy, but do not speak Italian. I constantly see cars here from other countries, and I doubt very much that all or even most of the drivers speak French even enough to communicate.
One of my sisters has lived in the Dallas area for 21 years. She said police in Dallas have become frustrated with what they see as drivers pretending not to understand English in attempting to get out of a ticket.
I agree with you here for reasons of practicality. And while Async's experience in Europe is as valid as my own, I would never drive in a country where I couldn't at least establish basic communication -- which can be done in most of Europe by speaking very basic English, French or Russian, so it's not really a big problem. However: ... I still feel the need to point out that English is NOT "native" to North America. Your argument on terms of practicality is strong; don't muddle it by introducing false naturalisations.
^(to Packard)The primary language of the natives in the US is English. At least until Spanish takes over... If we were to associate language with geography, rather than human populations, when describing a language as 'native', then none would satisfy that criteria.
What's the native language of England? Gaelic? Pictish? Latin? Danish? German? Norweigian? French? I lost track of how many times the damn island was conquered. Since the US was founded by English expats who spoke English, I think it's safe to call it the "native" language of the country.
Currently 'chav' It's has it's roots in Modern English, but references lower-brow Neanderthal and has totally abandoned all forms of grammar, except the verbal period of 'innit' which has a similar role to the Japanese languages 'desu'...
Or worse. I took a "Spanish for Law Enforcement" class a couple years ago. I only remember two things. #1 - In the Spanish Language/Mexican Culture, a knife is considered a tool, not a weapon. So, if I'm presented with a situation where I'm dealing with a Mexican with a knife I need to say, "Drop the tool" not "Drop the weapon" as there have been documented cases of the guy just not understanding or comprehending that he has a weapon. #2 - What do Mexicans and Billiards have in common? The harder you hit them, the better the english. You're a fucking idiot. The "international" language of aviation is English.
