It is nice to see some people understand that Americans are horrible with other languages. It isn't because we are trying to be rude, or because we think other people should speak English. It is simply a matter of most people being hundreds, if not thousands of miles away from places where English isn't spoken as the primary language. And the year or two of foreign languages that we have to take is high school is usually badly taught by some non-native speaker who may or may not actually speak the language they are teaching. Once we finish the classes, the chances of us getting to speak the language regularly are practically nil unless it is Spanish. It is sad. On the other hand, with smart phones and the internet, we can often at least cope if we get to the point where the conversation progresses beyond the "where is the library" kinds of phrases we vaguely remember from school...
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It is nice to see some people understand that Americans are horrible with other languages. It isn't because we are trying to be rude, or because we think other people should speak English. It is simply a matter of most people being hundreds, if not thousands of miles away from places where English isn't spoken as the primary language. And the year or two of foreign languages that we have to take is high school is usually badly taught by some non-native speaker who may or may not actually speak the language they are teaching. Once we finish the classes, the chances of us getting to speak the language regularly are practically nil unless it is Spanish. It is sad. On the other hand, with smart phones and the internet, we can often at least cope if we get to the point where the conversation progresses beyond the "where is the library" kinds of phrases we vaguely remember from school...