[KSMountain]

Hey! Look at the ads that are coming up now on the left and right. 🙂 “CIA Linguist, etc.”

One thing, if deadzone was referring to French/German here in california, I think the benefit is much less, but still a long way from “totally worthless”.

[KSMountain]

Hey! Look at the ads that are coming up now on the left and right. 🙂 “CIA Linguist, etc.”

One thing, if deadzone was referring to French/German here in california, I think the benefit is much less, but still a long way from “totally worthless”.

[KSMountain]

[quote=deadzone]Bigger picture, learing additonal languages here in U.S. is totally worthless if you don’t actually spend significant amount of time overseas actually using the language.[/quote]

This is a crazily extreme statement, one that I find not to be true in my case.

For me, native English speaker, no other language spoken in the home. For starters, simply learning Spanish caused me to later realize things about English I don’t think I would have otherwise.

But beyond that, I’ve found it useful talking to various people I encounter here in the U.S. for whom Spanish is their primary language. This happens *really* often to me. It really helps develop a bond with those folks when you make an effort (even an “annoying” one) to communicate in their primary language.

For travel to Mexico it is of course invaluable, not just for speaking, but for reading the signs and knowing what is going on around you.

For travel to Europe I found that I could kind of wing it in Italy.

I am SO glad I had four years of Spanish!

Now the issue that CA Renter is talking about (how to educate kids here where Spanish is spoken in the home) I have little experience in that but my feeling is that she is correct and that 100% English in school would be best for the whippersnappers.

[KSMountain]

[quote=deadzone]Bigger picture, learing additonal languages here in U.S. is totally worthless if you don’t actually spend significant amount of time overseas actually using the language.[/quote]

This is a crazily extreme statement, one that I find not to be true in my case.

For me, native English speaker, no other language spoken in the home. For starters, simply learning Spanish caused me to later realize things about English I don’t think I would have otherwise.

But beyond that, I’ve found it useful talking to various people I encounter here in the U.S. for whom Spanish is their primary language. This happens *really* often to me. It really helps develop a bond with those folks when you make an effort (even an “annoying” one) to communicate in their primary language.

For travel to Mexico it is of course invaluable, not just for speaking, but for reading the signs and knowing what is going on around you.

For travel to Europe I found that I could kind of wing it in Italy.

I am SO glad I had four years of Spanish!

Now the issue that CA Renter is talking about (how to educate kids here where Spanish is spoken in the home) I have little experience in that but my feeling is that she is correct and that 100% English in school would be best for the whippersnappers.

[KSMountain]

[quote=deadzone]Bigger picture, learing additonal languages here in U.S. is totally worthless if you don’t actually spend significant amount of time overseas actually using the language.[/quote]

This is a crazily extreme statement, one that I find not to be true in my case.

For me, native English speaker, no other language spoken in the home. For starters, simply learning Spanish caused me to later realize things about English I don’t think I would have otherwise.

But beyond that, I’ve found it useful talking to various people I encounter here in the U.S. for whom Spanish is their primary language. This happens *really* often to me. It really helps develop a bond with those folks when you make an effort (even an “annoying” one) to communicate in their primary language.

For travel to Mexico it is of course invaluable, not just for speaking, but for reading the signs and knowing what is going on around you.

For travel to Europe I found that I could kind of wing it in Italy.

I am SO glad I had four years of Spanish!

Now the issue that CA Renter is talking about (how to educate kids here where Spanish is spoken in the home) I have little experience in that but my feeling is that she is correct and that 100% English in school would be best for the whippersnappers.

[KSMountain]

[quote=deadzone]Bigger picture, learing additonal languages here in U.S. is totally worthless if you don’t actually spend significant amount of time overseas actually using the language.[/quote]

This is a crazily extreme statement, one that I find not to be true in my case.

For me, native English speaker, no other language spoken in the home. For starters, simply learning Spanish caused me to later realize things about English I don’t think I would have otherwise.

But beyond that, I’ve found it useful talking to various people I encounter here in the U.S. for whom Spanish is their primary language. This happens *really* often to me. It really helps develop a bond with those folks when you make an effort (even an “annoying” one) to communicate in their primary language.

For travel to Mexico it is of course invaluable, not just for speaking, but for reading the signs and knowing what is going on around you.

For travel to Europe I found that I could kind of wing it in Italy.

I am SO glad I had four years of Spanish!

Now the issue that CA Renter is talking about (how to educate kids here where Spanish is spoken in the home) I have little experience in that but my feeling is that she is correct and that 100% English in school would be best for the whippersnappers.

[KSMountain]

[quote=deadzone]Bigger picture, learing additonal languages here in U.S. is totally worthless if you don’t actually spend significant amount of time overseas actually using the language.[/quote]

This is a crazily extreme statement, one that I find not to be true in my case.

For me, native English speaker, no other language spoken in the home. For starters, simply learning Spanish caused me to later realize things about English I don’t think I would have otherwise.

But beyond that, I’ve found it useful talking to various people I encounter here in the U.S. for whom Spanish is their primary language. This happens *really* often to me. It really helps develop a bond with those folks when you make an effort (even an “annoying” one) to communicate in their primary language.

For travel to Mexico it is of course invaluable, not just for speaking, but for reading the signs and knowing what is going on around you.

For travel to Europe I found that I could kind of wing it in Italy.

I am SO glad I had four years of Spanish!

Now the issue that CA Renter is talking about (how to educate kids here where Spanish is spoken in the home) I have little experience in that but my feeling is that she is correct and that 100% English in school would be best for the whippersnappers.

[KSMountain]

Not sure if this is exactly what you’re after but Sonos for music is really really nice. http://www.sonos.com

Their dedicated controller is very small and nice. They also have an iPhone app so you can use your iphone to control the music.

We used a service to rip all our cd’s to uncompressed flac, and the Sonos plays those (and our miscellaneous mp3’s from back in the day), but it seems what we really use all the time are the Rhapsody and Pandora music services. Sonos hosts those very seamlessly.

Sonos is coming out with an iPad app too very soon now which is expected to be quite good.

Overall we’ve found almost anyone can use the thing to play the music they want to hear. It is great for entertaining to just be able to empower your guests to play what they want, while you concentrate on entertaining.

[KSMountain]

Not sure if this is exactly what you’re after but Sonos for music is really really nice. http://www.sonos.com

Their dedicated controller is very small and nice. They also have an iPhone app so you can use your iphone to control the music.

We used a service to rip all our cd’s to uncompressed flac, and the Sonos plays those (and our miscellaneous mp3’s from back in the day), but it seems what we really use all the time are the Rhapsody and Pandora music services. Sonos hosts those very seamlessly.

Sonos is coming out with an iPad app too very soon now which is expected to be quite good.

Overall we’ve found almost anyone can use the thing to play the music they want to hear. It is great for entertaining to just be able to empower your guests to play what they want, while you concentrate on entertaining.

[KSMountain]

Not sure if this is exactly what you’re after but Sonos for music is really really nice. http://www.sonos.com

Their dedicated controller is very small and nice. They also have an iPhone app so you can use your iphone to control the music.

We used a service to rip all our cd’s to uncompressed flac, and the Sonos plays those (and our miscellaneous mp3’s from back in the day), but it seems what we really use all the time are the Rhapsody and Pandora music services. Sonos hosts those very seamlessly.

Sonos is coming out with an iPad app too very soon now which is expected to be quite good.

Overall we’ve found almost anyone can use the thing to play the music they want to hear. It is great for entertaining to just be able to empower your guests to play what they want, while you concentrate on entertaining.

[KSMountain]

Not sure if this is exactly what you’re after but Sonos for music is really really nice. http://www.sonos.com

Their dedicated controller is very small and nice. They also have an iPhone app so you can use your iphone to control the music.

We used a service to rip all our cd’s to uncompressed flac, and the Sonos plays those (and our miscellaneous mp3’s from back in the day), but it seems what we really use all the time are the Rhapsody and Pandora music services. Sonos hosts those very seamlessly.

Sonos is coming out with an iPad app too very soon now which is expected to be quite good.

Overall we’ve found almost anyone can use the thing to play the music they want to hear. It is great for entertaining to just be able to empower your guests to play what they want, while you concentrate on entertaining.

[KSMountain]

Not sure if this is exactly what you’re after but Sonos for music is really really nice. http://www.sonos.com

Their dedicated controller is very small and nice. They also have an iPhone app so you can use your iphone to control the music.

We used a service to rip all our cd’s to uncompressed flac, and the Sonos plays those (and our miscellaneous mp3’s from back in the day), but it seems what we really use all the time are the Rhapsody and Pandora music services. Sonos hosts those very seamlessly.

Sonos is coming out with an iPad app too very soon now which is expected to be quite good.

Overall we’ve found almost anyone can use the thing to play the music they want to hear. It is great for entertaining to just be able to empower your guests to play what they want, while you concentrate on entertaining.

[KSMountain]

[quote=Eugene][quote]Cognitive dissonance at its finest- just to be clear, I have nothing against homosexuality, it’s the pedophilia and the treatment of women as sub-human there that irks me.[/quote]

It’s just a different culture and different morale. We think that it’s perverse for old men to have close relations with boys. They think that it’s perverse for women to go to bars or to wear revealing clothes. There’s no biological or any other reason for either of those beliefs.[/quote]
“Just”? So you think it’s just “different” but equally valid?

I think you’re stretching the moral equivalency argument quite far.

Do you think honor killings and throwing acid into classrooms are just a different but equally valid way of treating women?

Would you want folks to be able to adopt Sharia in certain communities in the US?

“or any other reason”…
You’re saying there’s no good reason why many societies oppose child abuse? Why *do* we have laws against it? Are we just being silly?

[KSMountain]

[quote=Eugene][quote]Cognitive dissonance at its finest- just to be clear, I have nothing against homosexuality, it’s the pedophilia and the treatment of women as sub-human there that irks me.[/quote]

It’s just a different culture and different morale. We think that it’s perverse for old men to have close relations with boys. They think that it’s perverse for women to go to bars or to wear revealing clothes. There’s no biological or any other reason for either of those beliefs.[/quote]
“Just”? So you think it’s just “different” but equally valid?

I think you’re stretching the moral equivalency argument quite far.

Do you think honor killings and throwing acid into classrooms are just a different but equally valid way of treating women?

Would you want folks to be able to adopt Sharia in certain communities in the US?

“or any other reason”…
You’re saying there’s no good reason why many societies oppose child abuse? Why *do* we have laws against it? Are we just being silly?

[KSMountain]

[quote=Eugene][quote]Cognitive dissonance at its finest- just to be clear, I have nothing against homosexuality, it’s the pedophilia and the treatment of women as sub-human there that irks me.[/quote]

It’s just a different culture and different morale. We think that it’s perverse for old men to have close relations with boys. They think that it’s perverse for women to go to bars or to wear revealing clothes. There’s no biological or any other reason for either of those beliefs.[/quote]
“Just”? So you think it’s just “different” but equally valid?

I think you’re stretching the moral equivalency argument quite far.

Do you think honor killings and throwing acid into classrooms are just a different but equally valid way of treating women?

Would you want folks to be able to adopt Sharia in certain communities in the US?

“or any other reason”…
You’re saying there’s no good reason why many societies oppose child abuse? Why *do* we have laws against it? Are we just being silly?

[Author]

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