Army of Dog

this idiot would be in the middle of childbirth. 

Re: “Speak English around children,” by John B. Dodson, Tuesday Letters.

Let’s be honest, don’t most of us wish we were fluent in at least one more language? A parent giving his or her child the gift of a foreign language can only be an asset on this planet.

As for culture, if these thousands of beautiful Hispanic children were taught the richness of their culture, it could only help them to become successful. The Mayan and Aztec civilizations were far more advanced than those of the ancestors of the pilgrims.

Maybe one reason these children begin to fail in middle school is because the only place they read about themselves is when studying the Alamo, which doesn’t do much for a child’s self-esteem.

Andrew Goldsmith, Irving

The original letter in the reference line was arguing that new immigrants whose children were learning English should speak English in the home instead of their native language as a means of immersion to speed up fluency.  Dickhead here is taking that solid piece of advice and whining about bilingual children, the Mayan civilization, and the fucking Alamo.  I know that white lefties are supposed to be intensely self-loathing.  It’s in the manual between driving a hybrid and overusing the word “ironic.”  However, this screed seems to distinguish the writer even among the usual “white people are evil” mantra.

Let’s take the first point.  It is obvious that being bilingual is beneficial.  And if the original point had been that children should only learn one language, it would be a valid and well-thought-out retort.  If, however, the original point was that too many children of Hispanic immigrants are falling behind in school because they can’t speak English, then going on about the benefits of being a polyglot makes you sound like an enormous retard.  Guess which category Mr. Goldsmith falls into.

We then take a complete fucking left turn into a diatribe about Latin American culture.  Putting aside the fact that it doesn’t have thing one to do with the issue at hand, let’s examine the contention.  The Mayans and the Aztecs certainly had advanced civilizations at various points throughout their history.  Keep in mind, however, that the heyday of the  Mayan civilization began about a hundred years after Alexander the Great died.  That means that while the Mayans were using hieroglyphs, the Greeks were building massive libraries.  So the idea that Meso-American cultures were even comparable to, much less “far more advanced than,” the European and Asian cultures of the same time period is utter bullshit.

The last point can only truly be appreciated if you live in California, Texas, New Mexico, or Arizona and study your state’s history in school as a child.  The idea that Texas History classes don’t start mentioning Mexicans until the Alamo is so laughable that it makes me think this asshole is really an imposter.  Texas History lasts an entire year, usually the seventh grade, in public schools (at least it did when I was in school in the late 80’s).  You start hearing non-Spanish surnames somewhere around Spring fucking Break.