Cops, Firefighters Forced to Learn Spanish

NewsMax.com ^ | July 10, 2002 | Michael L. Betsch

[Schatze]

Command Spanish offers customized Spanish courses to both the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and the Texas Probation Academy for an undisclosed fee.

"It generates an awful lot of money," Slick said of Command Spanish's local, state and federal government contracts.

Ah, the truth comes out. It's all about the money. ...

[LibWhacker]

How do you attend to those needs in any kind of conceivable way?

Demand that they learn English, or live with the inconveniences of not knowing it.

[Jagdgewehr]

Make no mistake. Requiring that all government workers, agency staff, and emergency/LE personnel learn to speak Spanish makes the "liberation of Aztlan" one step closer to fuition.

Adiós, La Cultura de Gringo.

[Illbay]

Demand that they learn English, or live with the inconveniences of not knowing it.

Okay, so here's your "dream scenario":

Alarm comes in to station, Fire & Rescue 1 & 2 respond. Within minutes of the alarm first going out, they arrive on the scene, to find two bewildered-looking middle-aged people, man and woman, sitting on the curb, weak from smoke inhalation.

The firemen begin shouting at them: "Anyone in there? Is there anyone left inside? Children? Old folks?"

The dumb hispanic couple, who haven't bothered to learn English, just as generations of immigrants before them did not, look at them without comprehension.

The firemen turn and look at one another, shrug, squirt their hoses on the fire till it goes out, then leave.

Later, the charred remains of three children and the grandmother are found in the rubble.

That'd be acceptable to you, though, right?

Or how about this? The firemen, realizing there's no way to know for sure, plunge into the burning building frantically looking for anyone who might be there. Unlike the usual situation, they don't even know who might be there, so they have to look throroughly. Meanwhile, the fire burns out of control, and the Firemen suddenly have to make a frenzied escape. Or try to; before they get out the building collapses partially trapping one man, who burns to death, and seriously injuring two others.

Again, I guess that'd be acceptable to you, just as long as the message that we hate people who don't speak English is enforced.

What a putz.

[Sweet_Sunflower29]

Demand that they learn English, or live with the inconveniences of not knowing it.

Uh...you'd think that *that* would be the obvious solution, wouldn't you?

I wonder how many millions of dollars *I* could generate from the government of...oh, say...Pakistan, so I could speak English, wear my Levis', a tank-top and my keds, smoking a Marlboro while getting some sunshine on my face during my solo walk down the street? I'd sure hope that government would see to attending to my American characteristics!

Oh wait...I'd be stoned to death on the spot.

[sarcasm]

We simply must have multi-lingual police and fire departments. We need, at a minimum, individuals who are able to speak at least 50 languages in each police precinct and firehouse nationwide. I'm sure that you wouldn't object to a increase in your local taxes so that we an provide this service.

[Dakmar]

Suppose that couple spoke Hmong, or Urdu, instead of Spanish. Are you going to require firefighters to learn every language known to mankind?

[Jagdgewehr]

Good argumenmt for bilingual firefighters, but what about the case where several languages are spoken in one area? For instance, in San Diego there is Spanish, several Southeast Asian dialects, Ethiopian and a smattering of other languages spoken within the city limits.

[Illbay]

We simply must have multi-lingual police and fire departments.

I'm not saying we "must have" anything. But a decision to do so is NOT a slap in your face. That's all I am saying.

[LibWhacker]

Newsflash . . . America owes you N-O-T-H-I-N-G, cholo.

Learn English or get the hell out, loser.

(I knew I'd flush a RAT out of the woodwork with that one.)

[sarcasm]

It's called picking my pocket to enable individuals who lack the desire to learn the English language.

[Illbay]

The fact is that the vast majority of LEGAL immigrants to the U.S. speak Spanish. Hmong speakers number a few tens of thousands, tops. And most who speak Urdu speak English as well, since English is taught at all levels of public education in Pakistan.

This is a thorny subject, to be sure, but all I'm trying to say is there is a very practical reason why Spanish skills would be desireable.

You do NOT have to speak fluent Spanish to be able to help in doing your job. I speak minimal Spanish (my wife, however, is fluent) but I can speak enough to communicate IF I HAVE TO.

[operation clinton cleanup]

Just learn two spanish phrases:

Stop or I'll shoot!

Get out of the burning bulding!

[Khepera]

Tendremos que todos aprender el español si seguimos dejando a inmigrantes ilegales en este país de México(Méjico). Desde luego podría ser peor, podrían forzarnos a aprender Farsi

[Illbay]

Very few first-generation immigrants EVER learn English. This has been true for almost three hundred years. Check out Ben Franklin's criticism of German immigrants to the American colonies in the 1740s.

I am NOT for simultaneous translation of public documents, nor for spanish-language election ballots, etc. Legal documents should ALWAYS be in English.

But that's not what we're talking about, is it? We're talking about essential emergency services like fire fighting or policing. This will help THEM do a better job.

[sarcasm]

The vast majority of the illegal aliens in the United States (including your housekeeper) speak Spanish.

[sarcasm]

Why are you neglecting the immigrants who do not speak Spanish? Are you implying that Spanish immigrants are unable to learn the English language?

[Feudal]

Imagine a world where the "dumb couple" actually learned the language of the country they lived in and participated, in some small way, in the community they have chosen to live in. Imagine if that "dumb couple" had actually taken a little of there precious time to learn English for there own dam safety as well as the safety of the family, friends and neighbors! Imagine, if you can, the "dumb couple" actually taking responsibility for there own actions instead of attempting to force the culture, government, and society as a whole to cater to them! Oh Wait?!?! Responsibility is only required of the white middle class tax paying American citizen. My mistake.

[Jagdgewehr]

Two useful Spanish words for cops to know,"Manos arriba!"

[Illbay]

As I've told you before--and you never seemed to get the drift--I never knew what the status of my EX-housekeeper (she works for someone else now) was, and I didn't care. She showed me a valid-looking SS card and that's the number I used to do the tax thing. If she got in trouble with "La Migra," that was her look-out.

Second, we're not talking about "legal vs. illegal" immigration here, are we?

I doubt seriously that any professional firefighter is ever going to worry about whether the victims have their papers in order before putting out a fire or rescuing their loved ones.

We are Americans; we are superior to every other culture, because MOST of us understand proper priorities. You save someone's life when it is danger; you don't watch them die because they can't speak the "right" language.