Hispanic man refuses to speak English at Health care townhall

[WeDidIt]

Run time: 03:20 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeXJNUIq3UM   Posted on YouTube: September 06, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: September 06, 2009 By DU Member: WeDidIt Views on DU: 7156

 
Xenophibic insanity.

[Alameda]

1. Couldn't the congressman put a stop to the heckling?

I'm sick of this xenophobic bull sxxt. Let's face it, almost half the country was formerly Hispanic. Respect The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

[enlightenment]

5. Which part?

Seriously. If it's easier, you can just refer me to the appropriate Article or Articles of the treaty (here is a copy, in case you don't have one bookmarked: http://www.mexica.net/guadhida.php ).

I'm not sure what the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo has to do with this situation, so I'm interested.

[kiva]

7. Reallly? Norwalk Conneticut was part of

the land the US got in the Mexican-American war? Guess someone should tell all of the historians and geography professors.

[Confusious]

8. We got a third of the land mass from mexico

And most of the people were Navajo, Pueblo, Cherokee ( moved from the east ) and other indians.

I don't think anyone alive today was around during the signing of the treaty of Guadalupe, so anything dealing with people doesn't really apply.

[sasquuatch55]

80. Fucking pigs! I 'm embarassed of my white race!

nt

[Hatalles]

2. Bigots. KKK members. Nazis. The lot of them.

[1Hippiechick]

3. I believe the bishop wanted his question to be heard by his Hispanic, non-English speaking friends

What translation arrangements were made for not only the deaf, but for the non-English-speaking listeners?

[jwirr]

4. Good point. I admire his bravery in that hostile crowd.

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[rhett o rick]

10. Good grief, dont start that national language shit. I dont know any Spanish. Fool. nt

[Confusious]

60. Every other country has one?

I don't see why not us?

[rhett o rick]

70. You missed my point entirely. If we did, what language should it be? Spanish? nt

[Confusious]

90. Well, since you seem so dense

English, of course.

[rhett o rick]

71. What's the "official language" of Canada? Prove that "every other country has one". I think you

pulled that out of your butt.

[Confusious]

88. English and french

In france, the national language is french.

Mexico, the national language is Spanish

http://www.aboutmexico.net/mexico/languages.asp

[rhett o rick]

110. So Canada has to "national languages", and according to your link Mexico

has many. "During the 1990s, an amendment to the Mexican constitution led to the acceptance of indigenous languages as national languages. Thus, legal documents can now be written in all indigenous languages, as well as in Spanish."

The right wing bigots want English to be our "national language". That doesn't mean you are a rightwingnut, you just agree with them. I'd be surprised if you can find very many liberals or progressives that support having a "nation language".

[Confusious]

113. Yes, I think Mexivco has to many in that case

I have nothing against people speaking different languages. As a matter of fact, I was quite distressed to find that only 33 people speak the language of my grandfathers grandfather, Ponca.

But legal documents should be accessible by the most people possible. Is someone of modest means suppose to pay for a translator on top of a lawyer?

Yes I agree with them in this case, god ( If there is one ) help me. I see a national language a a way of bringing a diverse set of people together into one group. Otherwise, I see it devolving into a bunch of jealous ethnic groups afraid of each other. You can't tie beads together without string. Something needs to be the string. And communication transmits the values that we want to hold, becoming the string.

And I know I won't find liberals supporting it, and that's probably why moderates see us in a the light they do, fighting for people from other countries, and not for the people who are already here, and that's why we loose some elections, and liberal got a bad name.

[Democracyinkind]

77. Blah Blah Blah. NOT! Check your facts, please.

[Confusious]

89. blah blah blah see above

[Democracyinkind]

91. How about Switzerland? Belgium? South Africa? India?

well, anyway.

as you noted above, conflicting with your previous post, not every country has ONE.

[Confusious]

101. Symantics

Sophistry, twisting words to prove I'm wrong. Very right-wing.

[Democracyinkind]

102. Impressing.

[roody]

12. Perdon? No te entiendo.

[Confusious]

61. sprechen englisch

Das ist das Vereinigte Staaten.

[Democracyinkind]

78. die Vereinigten Staaten. Lerne besser Deutsch bevor du hier rumprahlst, Junge.

Stolzer Grammatik-Nazi.


LOL

never forget it was a really close vote back in the day, we could just as well all be speaking german on DU today.

[Confusious]

103. Yea, I know

I was about ready to die at the end of German II.

Die Das den der FFFRRRAAAKKKKKKK!!!!!

[Democracyinkind]

105. Lol. I can imagine how it must be for an english speaker to get used to that.

Remember what Mark Twain said about the German language... He was soooo right.

[Confusious]

107. Yea, my teacher brought that up

I told her at the final, I'm ready to die. I'm a science major, so I only have to suffer through calc.

[TheEuclideanOne]

15. You would have felt right at home in that crowd. I bet you are upset you werenot there to boo along

He did speak English. He asked the congressman, in English, if he could ask his question in his native language. The congressman gave him permission, then translated his question afterwards. Why is that a problem for people like you? If you went to Italy and asked, in Italian, if you could ask a question in English, do you think that the audience would react the way the small minded folks like yourself and the audience reacted?

[rpannier]

19. I've lived in Europe been through most of the countries

in many parts of Italy "Yes they would have." at a public meeting about issues involving the government the audience would have been angry if you didn't ask the question in English.

Like everywhere in the world, there are places in Italy where they wouldn't have cared and places that the reaction would have been exactly the same as the reaction by people in this video.

[izquierdista]

16. Illegal migrants?

Who was at fault? Was it the migrant, or the employer who, seeing that Bush had cut INS workplace inspections by 95%, decided that it was time to cut payroll, get rid of the pesky union, and pocket some more money?

Maybe you should change your nick to just plain Confused.

[Confusious]

54. Maybe you should look into it a little more

It was going on a long time before bush.

And the employers should be hung by their thumbs.

[kayakjohnny]

17. Other countries weren't set up to welcome people from all nations of the world, like we are.

Unfortunately, that's what comes with the turf of being a nation for all people. Hell, it's practically written in our constitution.

And we'll end up sinking or swimming on that premise.

But I see your frustration and I see the concern about where this will all end up.

[Confusious]

55. Yea, but my family came here LEGALLY

Some where here before any white man set foot in America.

I have no problem with them coming here Legally. I think we should take in more poor people. But I think they should come here and assimilate.

[plantwomyn]

82. Ask your ancestors who

where here before any white man set foot in America about being forced to "assimilate". Only by some miracle have the tribes endured with true ethnic identity.
Every "nationality" that immigrated here was subjugated and discriminated against. Read the old newspapers from Chicago when the Irish and Polish "legally immigrated", not pretty. During WWII Filipino immigrants were drafted as citizens into the military, after the war their citizenship was revoked. And don't even get me started about Japenese AMERICANS during WWII.
Ya, assimilation is great.
Without the diverse ethnicities in America there is no America. Taco Bell, Chili's, Papa John's, and even burgers are Mongolian, the original Burger King was Genghis Khan!

[Confusious]

92. I probably know more about it then you do

From stories from my grandfathers grandfathers grandfather, and O, the other side of my family is IRISH.

I don't mean they should give up their identities, its just your reactionary imagination. Do you not agree that everyone who come here from lets say Pakistan and China and Mexico should learn English, or would you like them to speak their own languages? Should they learn US history? Or should we just drop that? They can wear whatever they like, they can eat whatever they like, I don't care. But we, as a country, need to communicate and have something to share to be a country, or else we are going to become a bunch of little ethnic groups that hate each other and don't get along.

There is alo more then one definition of Assimilate

1 a : to take in and utilize as nourishment : absorb into the system b : to take into the mind and thoroughly comprehend
2 a : to make similar b : to alter by assimilation c : to absorb into the culture or mores of a population or group

assimilation works both ways. Pizza, nachos, indian food, etc

[plantwomyn]

117. It seems you do not assimilate.

or take into your mind and thoroughly comprehend.
Assimilate
1 a : to take in and utilize as nourishment : absorb into the system b : to take into the mind and thoroughly comprehend
2 a : to make similar b : to alter by assimilation c : to absorb into the culture or mores of a population or group
You say you don't "mean they should give up their identities" but in fact your own sighted definition says just that..."to alter by assimilation c : to absorb into the culture or mores of a population or group"
This is what the government did to your grandfathers grandfathers grandfather. And by the way to mine too. And therefore to you and to me. Should they learn U.S. History? Yes. But remember that the victor writes the history. I think our ancestors stories are just as valuable, and I don't care what language they use to tell us their stories.
Would you deny the Nations the right to speak their language during ceremonies? Would you demand that the catholic church stop having mass in latin? Would you stop the gaelic mass at St. Patrick's in Chicago?
Yes I would like them to speak there own language. Just as I am joyous that the tribes still speak there own language. Out of self preservation, everyone who intends to live in this country for any extended period should learn english, if for no other reason than to understand the vitriol being spewed against them.
BTW, the Pastor in the video SPEAKS ENGLISH! He requested permission to ask a question in his native language. He got permission from the speaker, who is bi-lingual, to do so. The Rep. from CT translated his question, answered him and didn't seem to hate him for speaking spanish. We can communicate and share in many different languages and be inclusive of all the "little ethnic groups" and the best way to do so IMHO is NOT to hate each other and to actually get along.
We can never consider ourselves a global nation if we demand that those who wish to communicate with us do it in english and english only. Our Friends would be insulted and our enemies would laugh.

[bitchkitty]

84. Assimilate?

I'm glad you're not in charge. My family would be deported, in spite of having been here for centuries.

Who are you to dictate which customs and cultures are "American?"

[Confusious]

94. See above response it applies to you too

[rhett o rick]

86. What assimilate? Like the first Europeans did? nt

[Confusious]

95. See above response it applies to you too

[treestar]

119. Yeah, so did mine, so what?

In the 19th century, there was no restrictive and nonsensical "immigration law."

[AsahinaKimi]

22. wow...

And this is progressive thinking? Are you sure you are on the right website?

[Confusious]

53. Sorry I don't bow down to your line on everything

I thought thinking for yourself WAS liberal.

I'm not a chicken to say I am one, instead of Pro-gress-ive.

[AsahinaKimi]

62. i dont see this kind of thinking as liberal ...

its very conservative.

[Confusious]

106. Sorry, I have 1 thing I can't tow the line on

Do you not agree that everyone who come here from lets say Pakistan and China and Mexico should learn English, or would you like them to speak their own languages? Should they learn US history? Or should we just drop that? They can wear whatever they like, they can eat whatever they like, I don't care. But we, as a country, need to communicate and have something to share to be a country, or else we are going to become a bunch of little ethnic groups that hate each other and don't get along.

[rhett o rick]

87. It was a progressive that said for the first time that the earth was round. It was a regressive

(republican-like) that stuck to the idea it was flat. And spouting rightwingnut talking points isnt thinking for yourself.

[Confusious]

96. And you are the judge, jury and exicutioner on what is a right wing talking point

Fall in line, or your excused from the group. That sounds very right-wing to me.

[Lost-in-FL]

27. Senador Tacredo? Is that you? or is it Lou Dobbs??

Confusious here is not very bright I think.

[Confusious]

56. I'm sorry you equate agreeing with you as intelligence

You must not learn much.

[Lost-in-FL]

73. Calling yourself Confusious is a disgrace to the name go back to Freeperland were u belong. nt

[Confusious]

97. oooooooo Snap!

How much time did you spend thinking that up?

[Lost-in-FL]

112. Tancredo... you still there?? nt

[me b zola]

29. Ugh

Someone you know had a bad experience. The other person involved didn't speak english very well, so you jump to the conclusion that he was in the US illegally. Do you realize that the US has always had enclaves of immigrants and their descendants who didn't/don't speak english and maintained customs from which they originated? The majority of these immigrant groups originated in Europe.

Not only do you jump to the conclusion that the guy involved in an accident with your girlfriend was here illegally, you then insinuate that an American citizen would never give a false name, have no insurance, and take off.

Your post is a steaming pile of xenophobic crap. If the guy was hispanic, add to that racist too.

[Confusious]

59. You have a very low bar for racism

I'm sure for you, everyone who disagrees with obama is racist. Not only that, you can't read. It wasn't MY girlfriend, it was a friends. "They" means someone else. He's a nice fellow, not racist in the least. But of course, you've made your judgment, and I'm a racist and so is my friend, even if I say we're not.

I have no problem with legal immigrants. I have a problem with illegal immigrants. don't care if they are white, yellow, red, blue.

of course, I didn't mention his race, but you read into it, and with your judgmental attitude, I am a racist.

[jberryhill]

45. Are you retarded? People have been speaking Spanish in the US longer than English

Quite a bit of this country was settled by Spanish speakers whose families have been here longer than yours.

And, yes, there are countries which have multiple official languages.

[Techn0Girl]

52. Are you retarded??? WTF?

Oh...Nice job. So you're going to defend the honor of Hispanics everywhere by slapping the faces of mentally disabled people everywhere.

Oh nice job. So very well thought out. Not reactionary at all.

Maybe you should get yourself one of those "Morans!" signs and carry it around to really make your point.

(I wonder how many DUers have a mentally disabled family member and read your post)

[jberryhill]

74. That's not a word commonly used for the mentally disabled...

...including a member of my own family.

Do you ever use the word "idiot"?

Do you know the origin of the word "idiot"?

The meanings of words and their usage changes over time, and I have not heard anyone in the medical profession use "retarded" to refer to a developmental disability in years.

Maybe its a medical term in your neck of the woods, but it has pretty much been associated with disability in normal usage about as often as someone says "I'm gay" to express happiness.

[Confusious]

57. quite hardly

Part of my family used to pack their teepees around the plains of the United States

[jberryhill]

76. I have Native American Ancestors Too, but so what

The First Amendment of the Constitution guarantees the right of freedom of speech.

And that includes the freedom to do so in whatever language you want.

Whether others understand you is your own problem.

[sasquuatch55]

81. If a white man can't understand what your saying it makes him paranoid.

Your probably talking about him and the atrocities his race perpetrated on your race!

[Techn0Girl]

93. Brilliant ....

Now that's just great.
Let's insult and stereotype white people because that's SO much better then doing it to Brown people.
You know what?
I'm White. And most of my family was killed off by other White people in the Holocaust.

People do bad and horrible things . White poeple do bad and horrible things . And here's a newsflash for 'ys : Black and Brown and yellow people do bad and horrible things as well (Can you say Rwanda? )

More and more I am convinced that places like DU become infiltrated by right wing agitators who only want to stir up trouble.

[Confusious]

100. Your the one who said my family hadn't been around long enough

I threw it back in your face, so now its "so what"

Your free to talk in whatever language you want. whenever you want.

But National business should be carried out in english.

[jberryhill]

123. The meeting was not "national business"

And the comments were summarized, and responded to, in English.

The man was more comfortable asking the question in Spanish, which was perfectly understandable to the person to whom the question was asked.

If you are on "national business" in a federal court, you get a translator if you want one.

The US simply does not have an official language.

We are all Americans, and we speak a variety of languages.

[donheld]

47. I'll bet Lou Dobbs is your hero

[Confusious]

58. Boy judgemental much?

I don't agree with you, throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Very Pro-gres-sive.

[rhett o rick]

72. Which language are you speaking? "Boy judgemental much?"????

Doesnt look like English to me. "Quite hardly"? Where are you getting these sentences?

[Confusious]

98. Sorry, I read a little to much

Maybe you should spend more time doing it. You could learn English.

[rhett o rick]

111. What does the sentence, "Boy judgemental much", mean in English? nt

[Confusious]

114. A question

"Boy" An exclamation.
"Judgemental" Inclined to make judgments, especially moral or personal ones; usually a pejorative.
"much" A slight addition of sarcasm, meaning it should be read as "a lot."

[rhett o rick]

115. I like to use internet shortcuts for words and sentences, but that is way beyond me. Peace to you.

[Quantess]

9. The audience's reaction was really overboard and knee-jerk.

But, the man's insistence on asking in Spanish was not exactly a persuasive move.

[plantwomyn]

118. It depends on who he wanted to persuade.

Maybe he was speaking for his congregation and he wanted to make sure they understood that he was "advocating" for them as a good pastor should. I think he knew what the audience's reaction would be and he stood up anyway. Brave move.

[W T F]

11. Those bigots in the audience need to check their pocket Constitutions

and read The First Amendment. (free speech isn't not limited to the english language)

[stlsaxman]

13. The applause after his question BURNED them racist m-f'ers!

[newmac]

14. What a bunch of inconsiderate pigs.

[GreenPartyVoter]

18. Those people are absolutely pathetic.

[windoe]

20. Remember how Archie Bunker was such a cartoon of a bigot, that it was funny?

It would be reality TV these days.

[Name removed]

21. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Techn0Girl]

24. Exterminate??

WTF ? Are you a Dalek ?

It's people (or rightwing infiltrating shills) like you that give Progressives as bad a name as any Evangelical nut job.
Go away.
Go make your own party.
Leave mine alone.

[Leftist Agitator]

50. Which party is that, exactly?

The one that lets Rightists do whatever they want to the detriment of us all?

Make no mistake, they must be dealt with, harshly, or we are all royally fucked.

Eliminate them, and you eliminate much of the discord, the utter nonsense that has infected our national discourse.

And by "eliminate" I mean by whatever means are necessary.

[Lost-in-FL]

28. You are on your own.

Too bad that the alert button is not working tonight.

[Name removed]

49. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Techn0Girl]

23. I'm not racist but....

It's a Town hall meeting where the man knows that 95% of the people there only speak English. And it's rude to exclude them just as it would be if I invited you over with several of my friends and we all spoke Hebrew (not that I can speak Hebrew but you get the idea).

It was rude. The man was going for publicity and little else in my opinion.

You don't have to be a racist to insist upon common courtesy from someone else.

[bc3000]

25. I concur.

Language is meant to communicate. Speaking Spanish in that scenario only served to hide his point from a majority of people there. I am bilingual and I think it is rude to use my second language when I speak in front of others who can't understand it.

Like most issues, this isn't black and white. Just because many (most?) republicans are racist and fear the idea of a bilingual society, doesn't mean I have to automatically take the opposite view and support the use of Spanish in the United States. Our language is English and that's how it should be. We've got the rest of the world out there trying to learn English as a second language because it is the standard for international business. It would be asinine for us to start moving in another direction.

Immigrants to this country need to learn English just as I needed to learn the native tongue when I lived oversees. That's just common sense. To make any allowances otherwise only serves to handicap the immigrant. This is definitely an area where tough love is in order.

[Techn0Girl]

109. Reading is Fundamental ... and so is speaking....

I think your point is well made. Without any reflection on the events that happened at that meeting (of which I am of two minds), I think it obvious that anyone who goes to another country is required to communicate in that country's native language. It's only obvious to anyone who has actually left America and gone to another country (lol).

America is a melting pot and I think every ethnicity should preserve their own cultural heritage. We have had large waves of immigrants who came here from Ireland, Poland, Russia, Vietnam (remember the boat people?) and now - the latest, from Mexico. It would be like the Tower of Babylon all over again if everyone insisted on speaking only their own native language. Why just learn Spanish? Why not be required to learn Polish and Russian as well? Why discriminate?

I think that some people who consider themselves Progressive just haven't thought it out far enough. Some people think they can take a stance on something that seems racially related think - poof! - they're Progressive. Because they sound like one.

I'll bet that a great many of the people here complaining about "English only" (for public speaking) don't even speak a second language or would be highly offended themselves if their work or school suddenly converted to a language different than their own. But they sound "Progressive".

I'm Progressive. I'm probably a Socialist more or less actually. I certainly believe in severe restrictions on Big Business and I believe in Labor.

But I'm not stupid. I know that people need to communicate and most people can only handle one language at a time at best. A common language us not a racist thing. It;s just common sense and HELLO ! That's the way it is everywhere else in the world - yeah, even in Mexico (go try to find an English-only public school in Mexico - right)

As a Jew, I know that we American Jews preserve our ethnic heritage by speaking Hebrew amongst ourselves or in Synagogue and we go to Hebrew school at an early age and learn the language. But we don't insist upon it in public. That would be silly.

It's not racist to have a common language. It's just common sense.

[Lost-in-FL]

26. So why then politicians use Spanish in their political campaigns?

Where you there to see if there were tax paying, law abiding US citizens that happen to be more comfortable using their mother tongue (Spanish in their case) for such delicate subject as healthcare?
He was obviously not speaking for the English only crowd as he expressed his intention beforehand. So the other 5% don't matter, right?

[Honeycombe8]

31. Was it a spanish area, where most of the people were spanish speaking?

Otherwise, it's rude to speak at a public meeting in a non-universal language so that some of the members can't understand...and the speaker knows that.

Of course, if he didn't know English, and he had an interpreter with him, that's different.

This would be true whether the attendee was speaking in Czech, Russian, French, or any language other than English...which, though it's not the official language of the country, is the only universal language in the country (and in the world, actually). Someone would only do that for the purpose of being irritating or riling others up, which is not the purpose of those meetings and the very reason that we here on DU got ticked at the hired gun wingnuts at those meetings.

[Lost-in-FL]

34. He is a pastor speaking for member of a spanish community

but I think you were too riled up with the rest of them to hear what he was saying. If that person was speaking in Czech, Russian, French, or any language other than Spanish NO ONE would be so bend out of shape.

I do agree that it was rude but it was highly inconsiderate the reaction of the public. And I hope you are not equating a gun with speaking spanish.

[jberryhill]

75. The question was explained in a summary translation /nt

[Honeycombe8]

30. I agree. If someone wants to be heard and understood, you gotta speak English in an area like that.

I'm of french ancestry. I wouldn't go to a local meeting and speak french. That's weird and makes me think he was trying to be irritating or stir things up.

Unless he didn't know English, and had an interpreter with him.

[me b zola]

32. Yeah, he can't afford health insurance, but he should be able to afford an interpreter

So english is your second language and you drug around an interpreter with you everywhere until you became fluent in english?


French ancestry :eyes:

[Honeycombe8]

33. Lots of hispanics where I live. Everyone knows someone who is bilingual.

Otherwise called....interpreters. In fact, my yard men? There is one on hand to interpret. The others don't speak English.

But maybe he didn't care enough about all the attendees to include them in the discussion. Sounds sort of like those others that are showing up at the meetings, not wanting to include some with differing opinions.

[Lost-in-FL]

36. The pastor was their interpreter and...

He obviously didn't care enough about the attendees the same way the attendees won't give a crap what happens to the members of his community.

[edc]

40. I understan what your're saying

but what good would it have done to speak English to this pack of mono-linguistic knuckle walkers when you know in advance they will shout you down in their language if you speak it because they refuse to hear what you say and will shout you down in yours because they don't understand it? Listening to these fools shout "speak English!" to someone who probably speaks English as a second language better than they speak it is a hoot and also something to ponder.

[Lost-in-FL]

42. This is the same kind of people that is shouting down people on wheelchairs.

Working adults that went broke because they got sick. Why even be considerate?

[Honeycombe8]

68. You're saying "Well, they did it. So we will do it!" That's not an intelligent

discussion on an important issue.

My mom always said two wrongs don't make a right. Just because someone else acts like an idiot doesn't mean it's okay for you to.

This is all getting so silly. No point in having meetings at all..some are yelling at disabled people in wheelchairs, others are speaking in languages not understood by the meeting attendees.

As Gibbs said, we're getting into the silly season.

[Lost-in-FL]

79. Are you being condescending or just plain dense?

He ASKED if he could speak SPANISH to the Congressman and the Congressman said yes. He represents his community alone and he spoke in a language that his community could understand. He is a US-Law abiding citizen protected by the constitution to use any language he desires. This is a lesson on Democracy and if you don't like it you have a lot to learn.

[Honeycombe8]

116. Are you being dense, or too stupid or lazy to read my posts?

If so, you read where I clearly ASKED if there was some particular reason he was speaking Spanish. But you read that, I'm sure. You wouldn't just insult a poster for no reason, right? (yeah, right)

[Lost-in-FL]

120. Listen numbskull.

DIDn't you read where I clearly SAID he was SPEAKING SPANISH FOR HIS COMMUNITY! so they could ALSO PARTICIPATE AND UNDERSTAND!! I'm sure you read that already but racists don't reason.


But don't listen to me. There are plenty of other people that made arguments that those whining about this men speaking spanish in the crowd wrong so please ignore me. I am sure you aren't the only one and it does not affect my life AT ALL.

[Techn0Girl]

51. Exactly...

You know I know that the majority of DU ers here are sane sensible people. And I also know that, this being the internet, we're going to have our share of nutjobs just like the right wingers do (although we seem to have a heck of a lot less).

People here can agree to disagree about the benefits or helpfulness of speaking Spanish at that meeting. I get his point and the mob reaction (not unlike some of the reaction of some of the people on this thread) kind of makes his point for him.

People can agree to disagree over the usefulness of his action , but when I see people here calling to literally exterminate burn and kill people who they disagree with then I have to speak out. Such people are no better then the people the Pastor was trying to taunt.

Thank YOU for speaking out against the mob mentality that sometimes pervades Internet spaces.
More of us should.

[Butch350]

38. Common courtesy would be to shutup and let him speak.

He asked permission. All the fricken crowd had to do was just shut up for a moment. His question was relayed to the audience.

Your analogy is stupid. It very apparent this was not a social gathering between you and your Hebrew friends. If that was
the case I'd agree with your point.

How in the world would he have known that 95% of the people there spoke only english? (how did you know)?

I am not calling you a racist just intolerate of other people - just like the audience. I'm sure you'd blend well there.

have a nice night.

[AsahinaKimi]

64. Thank you for this..

I totally agree with your assessment of this video. HE CLEARLY asked permission to Speak in Spanish to the Congressman who knew Spanish. The Congressman did say go ahead. He was running the forum not the people in the crowd.

[Posteritatis]

104. It stuns me that this is such a huge leap for folks here to understand

"Shut up and let him speak" is not the most complicated idea in the history of political discourse, but it still seems to be a bit much for the "I'm not defending the shouters, but I'm going to defend the shouters" people here.

[MineralMan]

65. And, yet, the congressman understood him just fine, and even

translated for the audience. Communication took place and the question was answered. The rude one were the shouters. It is that simple. One person asks a question, which gets translated and answered. Common courtesy requires that you sit quietly and let the person at the microphone speak.

What a pity it is that your 95% of people there only speak English. That is a failure of our educational system. You will not find such ignorance in other industrialized nations. Only in this country is the inability to speak more than one language a source of pride.

Feh!

[Krashkopf]

69. Gotta call B.S. on that one, Girl

Did it ever dawn on you that maybe the Bishop felt more comfortable asking a complex question in his native language. The politician, who the Bishop knew was fluent in spanish, then translated the question before giving his answer. Nobody was excluded from the process. There was nothing rude, or publicity-seeking about it.

Get over yourself. And, stop listening to Lou Dobbs.

[Butch350]

35. Some of the people in this country are really starting to scare me!

[jeff30997]

44. Over here it's getting scary too !

:scared:

[hulka38]

37. So sad. But on the other hand it is reality and it's good that it's getting exposed.

[targetpractice]

39. Nuts... The Bishop wasn't obligated to anyone at that meeting.

He had the right to ask his question to the congressman when given the floor. He wasn't obligated to ensure anyone in the audience understand him, and nobody in the audience was entitled to infringe upon the bishop's freedom of speech. Kinda simple, really.

Upon edit: I will admit that it was kind of provocative, tho.

[davidhilton]

41. what a bunch of racists n/t

[jeff30997]

43. I'm French Canadian.

When I go to the U.S I speak English.So the old saying in true:
"When In Rome Do As The Romans Do" And on the Net 99% of the sites
I go to are in English.But the crowd's reaction was disgusting.I can't
believe it. Xenophobia and racism big time. :(

[MineralMan]

66. When I go to Canada, I speak English or French,

depending on the person to whom I am speaking. When I go to Germany, I speak politely in German, and excuse my inability to express myself adequately in that language. Then, the person to whom I am speaking generally switches to English to aid the conversation. When I am in Russian, I speak Russian, except when the Russian-speaker wishes to practice his/her English.

I speak no Japanese, but I find that most Japanese people I have met have studied English in school, so we can communicate.

Only in this country can you be assured that the person to whom you are speaking only speak English and that nobody capable of speaking your native language can easily be found, unless that language is Spanish. Then, a poorly-paid employee will be summoned from cleaning the toilets to act as a translator.

We are an ugly nation in that way. We need to begin second language instruction in grammar school, and continue it throughout our educational system. It would be possible to teach our children to have a basic knowledge of several languages...with at least the ability to be polite and express simple things in three or four languages by the time they graduate from high school.

We are remiss in this area.

[Posteritatis]

108. The saying's true, but many of the US' Romans speak Spanish, so... (nt)

[bhikkhu]

46. The sad part is that this is considered news

In many parts of the US regular commerce, media, politics and government is conducted in both Spanish and English. In many parts of the country Spanish predominated centuries before English, and was never really replaced. So someone spoke Spanish at a town hall...

[The Animator]

48. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that his speaking Spanish was more for...

the benefit of his congregation than for the teabaggers...

As a spiritual leader, maybe he felt he needed to represent the concerns of his congregation? Maybe his congregation is predominantly Spanish speaking. Maybe his flock is feels like they are being scapegoated, illegal does seem to be code for Hispanic these days...

Maybe he just wanted all the racist bigots in the crowd, pretending to be outraged about something else to "Out" themselves...

[zoff]

63. The limb won't break.

If he asked permission, then it must have been for the benefit of spanish speakers in the audience. Himes' district may be one the richest in the nation, but towns like Bridgeport and Norwalk aren't entirely WASPy. Quite to the contrary, they are home to many immigrant communities.

An earlier post was correct in saying that the First does not discriminate against language. And to echo another post, it may have been the bused in tea-baggers that booed the pastor. While bigots exist everywhere, whether overtly or covertly, Connecticut, like Massachusetts and New York, can still be called a progressive state.

[Krashkopf]

67. OT HEADLINE should read - Connecticutt Racists Heckle Spanish-Speaking Bishop!

[SlingBlade]

83. I salute the Bishop for his courage

It's a courageous thing to stand against a mob and do what's right
D.U. is no exception by the way :banghead:

[Divine Discontent]

85. THERE'S YOUR AMERICA! You think you're in the majority? THINK AGAIN! It's Nazi Germany all over.

The amount of hostility from that crowd (more than half boo loudly when he asks to speak in Spanish) and the anger showed in the 1st minute is mind-boggingly scary! Sheesh, JUST GIVE THEM THE COUNTRY!!!!! (the guy yelling at 48 seconds)

[Techn0Girl]

99. Nazi Germany....

Nazi Germany... Really?

Let me tell you something about Nazi Germany.
My grandfather, grandmother and all my nieces and nephews were killed in Nazi Germany.
My father was thrown in a Concentration Camp at 14 and left to work himself to death there (Uhhh... obviously he didn't die).
All my family's houses and earnings were confiscated and they were either killed or sent to Work camps to die.

Nazi Germany? Really? Because some mob mentality took hold and some people started shouting down someone?
Well no hysterical exaggeration there my friend.
It's Nazi Germany ! It's Nuclear War! It's Armageddon!

Whenever some under-educated person makes a hysterical comparison to Nazi Germany in order to advance a point you do all my family that was executed and the millions more who were murdered a grave disservice.

[Divine Discontent]

121. Nuclear War! Armageddon! Your words, not mine. Typical straw man. FAIL!

if you cannot comprehend how the ramping up of anti-Obama rhetoric, gun-toting, fist-fighting, and 'shield our children from that negro who's trying to talk to them in SCHOOL of all places!' doesn't sound like the start of a march to war against our current way of living, I'm sorry, maybe you don't get it.

And as for your personal story, yes, it's terrible, and what many of us our constantly trying to PREVENT from occurring - that's why it happened, people ignored it. You do understand there are several congresscritters who think Gay people, for instance, shouldn't be allowed to teach kids, or that they are a threat to our national stability - that's the start of a new nation that is terrifyingly creeping towards the behaviors of the "blame the Jews for our suffering!" mentality that gripped Germany and, had you made your comments to me a few months ago, it wouldn't have been laughable, but after this silly-summer of insanity - I strongly stand behind my comments.


God bless and protect President Obama

[Techn0Girl]

122. I "get it" very well thank you

I also get the difference between actual extreme fascism and hysterical rhetoric.

I'm not saying we don't have a lot of issues in this country.
I'm just saying it's hysterical and not within the bounds of reality to compare our issues to those of with Nazi Germany. And I am saying that people who do that do a disservice to the millions affected by trivializing the issue.

I'm also saying that Nazi Germany would never have elected a Black President.
We did.

So, yes. I get it quite well.

P.S. The comparison to Nazi Germany was in fact your words. You can go back and read what you wrote if you don't believe me.

[Jennicut]

124. Rep Himes is not my rep but I like him a great deal, knocked off Rethug Chris Shays in 2008.

We have TONS of Spanish speaking people in CT. I lived in Meriden (a smaller city) for a few years and it was all Puerto Ricans and some whites. I lived above a couple from Puerto Rico in a house apartment for two years and got along great with them. Nobody cared when they spoke Spanish at times .Sometimes I miss it there...good mems. I have no problem with him speaking Spanish...maybe the guy gets the words out better that way.

Himes was born in Peru and spent time in Peru and Columbia as a kid and then moved to N.J. when his parents divorced.
He and Rep. Murphy are very good for CT. Unfortunately even we have idiots here...they voted for Lieberman because the liberals sure didn't.