Just a preface ~ Whooo boy, did I ever ramble tonight! Seriously, this one came out of left field and it not at all what I sat down here to type. The fingers have minds of their own sometimes.

I was reading an article this evening about the global spread of the English language. I had not thought about that more than in passing before. Sure, it registered that English was being taught in schools around the world, from dusty barely equipped schools in Ghana to elite academies in Hong Kong. I had never stopped to consider the ramifications of this though.

Apparently no other language ever has dominated the world like this. In countries like India and China, the population is starting to consider knowledge of English a basic skill rather than foreign language learning. Really. A basic skill for people in Asia. That blew my mind. The flip side is the implications for people in native English speaking countries. Are we at a disadvantage because so many of our people do not speak 2,3,4,5 languages, even haltingly?

Many in the US, too many, have a superiority complex with language skills that is completely unwarranted. I know people who get upset about immigrants who do not possess excellent English skills. This makes me shake my head in frustration. That immigrant who is being mocked by the US citizen is making an effort to learn a second (or third or fourth) language. The number of adults I know who possess even halting language skills in a second language is minuscule. The average US attitude towards languages is egotistical and absurd. As English becomes more common in the global community, it will be even easier for native English speakers to communicate anywhere, but at what price? Something common has low status.

One of my goals for this year was to become proficient in Spanish again. After tonights reading and giant tangential leaps, my desire has redoubled. Maybe I will think about boning up on my German too.