Re: Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama Discuss Space Policy

On Feb 25, 4:10 am, Ian Parker <ianpark...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Lets ask a simple question - Can Americans learn Arabic?

Oh, of course they could.

Learning a second language, however, requires a lot of time and
effort. Much of this effort is dull rote memorization. And it's a
skill that requires practise to retain as well.

So the fact that America has a privileged position - that classes in,
say, Spanish as a second language are treated like art or drama
classes, optional subjects not part of the core curriculum, essential
for promotion - benefits its educational system. People who are "all
thumbs" when it comes to second-language learning - like people with a
"tin ear" who can't seem to learn to play a musical instrument -
aren't barred from entering college, and pursuing careers in science
and engineering. And the enthusiasm of other students for learning
isn't blunted by at least one additional source of drudgery in the
school day.

If there was lots of interesting entertainment material produced in
Arabic, or if Arabic speakers were economically dominant, so that
learning Arabic was useful in gaining employment in the cities,
Americans would learn Arabic just as other people have learned other
languages in countries affected by one form or another of colonialism.

Of course, from the context of your other posts, the question is
really - are Americans willing to take the trouble to understand the
mind of the Islamic world?

Americans, like human beings generally, when in what they perceive to
be a position of strength and not weakness, naturally react to events
such as those of September 11, 2001 as follows: it is not for us to
understand them; it is for them to understand, and very quickly, that
this sort of nonsense shall not be further tolerated.

Cooler heads have prevailed - there are people in the CIA who *can*
read Arabic, and G. W. Bush, drawing on his experience in the oil
industry, believes the terrorists to be unrepresentative of the
Islamic world, with which we can continue to build ties of friendship.

I think the proper response of the rest of us to this is to be
pleasantly surprised by the statesmanship and sobriety of the American
response to terror, and not to annoy the American people with requests
to do even better. September 11, 2001 has left them in a bad temper,
and thus such efforts are likely to be counter-productive.

John Savard
.

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