Languages (was Re: [Sca-cooks] globetrotting)

[jenne at fiedlerfamily.net]

> My great-grandfather, z"lt, by the time he died spoke and read 5 languages
> with varying degrees of fluency: Yiddish, Hebrew, Russian, Polish and
> English. I'll probably push another button here, but I am astounded by
> current-day immigrants who come to the US and are unwilling or unable to
> learn the language. The entire concept of "bilingual education" is bizarre
> to me. Just my $0.02.

Many, many people of our great-grandparents generation, especially women,
did not learn English, even when they were forced to work in factories.
One of the major problems in public health and welfare efforts of the late
19th century was the need for more and better interpreters.

Pity they don't make science students read authors like Jane Addams and
Jakob Riis anymore.

-- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa
jenne at fiedlerfamily.net OR jenne at tulgey.browser.net OR jahb at lehigh.edu
	"Index your brain."