Merrimack and the Bi Lingual signs

[CNHT]

Then please come back and make the argument that ignorance of the law is no excuse.

Telling someone in English that you can't read a sign that clearly says no alcohol because it's not in Spanish is not being ignorant of the law.
They didn't have to read any RSAs....

[J’raxis 270145]

I agree that retrofitting or replacing all the current signs with English/Spanish versions is a waste of money. However, based on his statements I have a feeling the councilor pushing this argument is probably just a typical anti-immigrant/xenophobe type, and his using this argument is just an excuse. So perhaps we can add Spanish to the signs the next time they're are up for their normal replacement/repainting schedule, so the additional cost would be minimal.

  Oh brother. That's interesting. Basedon his statements about what the punks said to get away with what they were doing, I get the feeling it's just the opposite and it's the punks using the excuse for why they can't understand there is no drinking in the park. We've given these punks a pass for so long, they can actually claim not to be able to read the park rules because they are not in Spanish, while speaking in English.

It's called pulling out the race card..

I doubt the lifeguard was thinking this was his big chance to be 'xenophobic', but was merely thinking, drinking is not allowed and so I have to tell them they can't.

Why do you people always have to pull out the race card or defend others who do? Does it mean if I'm a minority I can get away with being obnoxious or rude or harmful to others and you'll give me a pass? OK so I'm a Latino so should I have to follow the same rules you follow in a public place?

The statements to which I was responding were made by a city councilor (a politician), not the lifeguard, according to the original post. The opposition to providing people information in their own language based upon "they have to speak our language if they want to come here" is one of the typical lines anti-immigrant politicians use. That he was justifying it on cost sounds reasonable—so my response is to remove that justification and see if a new justification conveniently manifests itself.

[mvpel]

"No alcohol" in Spanish is "No alcohol."

[alohamonkey]

"No alcohol" in Spanish is "No alcohol."

Very good point.

[alohamonkey]

Even if it said "No drinking alcohol on the beach," any amount of rudimentary English would be sufficient to understand this.

I'm torn on this issue.  On one hand, I think it's a shame that we're one of the few countries in the world that is very comfortable speaking and understanding only one language.  On the other, I think it's ridiculous to go change public signs just because a few kids ignored one and broke the rules. 

I lived overseas, in Spain, for a year and found it very convenient that many of the public signs were in 2-3 different languages.  I am also fairly confident that if I had broken a law there simply because I couldn't understand a sign, I would have been let off with a warning.  Actually, come to think of it, I did almost get arrested there for buying burned CD's and DVD's off a street vendor.  The cops grabbed us, took us down to the station, and told me that there was a sign strictly prohibiting this activity.  I apologized, told them I didn't see or understand the sign, gave them the CD's, and they let me off with a warning. 

There is also a very good chance that the kids didn't know it was illegal to drink on the beach.  The U.S. is, by far, the strictest country in regards to public consumption of alcohol.  No other country seems to frown upon drinking outside as much as we do. 

I think this issue is being blown out of proportion.  After hearing the politician interviewed, I also think he sounded very "anti-immigration."  IMO, let the kids off with a warning and bust them the next time.  Don't worry about changing the signs.

[CNHT]

None of my family ever demanded that anything be put into their language and ran a business that way very successfully.

None of my family demanded benefits from the government or that anything special be done for them, including in the school system.

They came to the USA to work with the people here, and thus it behooved them to learn the language the best they could in order to do business with them.

All their children succeeded.

Even if you wanted to do this, how can you pick just one language?
When you start giving special privileges to one group, what about all the others? Should we then have signs posted in 200 languages so as not to offend any of the others? Who is going to pay for all of this?

Even a picture of a bottle of booze with a line through it, should suffice, in the manner of artwork on the restroom doors, for example, that show man/woman. Like mvpel says, not hard to understand no matter what language you speak...

[J’raxis 270145]

There is also a very good chance that the kids didn't know it was illegal to drink on the beach.  The U.S. is, by far, the strictest country in regards to public consumption of alcohol.  No other country seems to frown upon drinking outside as much as we do. 

Mideastern states ban alcohol outright. But yeah, among countries priding themselves on being "developed" or "enlightened" or whatever it is Western society is priding itself on nowadays, the United States is worst on this. We were founded as a Puritan theocracy in 1620, if you recall...

[CNHT]

Mideastern states ban alcohol outright. But yeah, among countries priding themselves on being "developed" or "enlightened" or whatever it is Western society is priding itself on nowadays, the United States is worst on this. We were founded as a Puritan theocracy in 1620, if you recall...

Yup that's true.... but the point was not whether any of us like the law, but did they understand it? All they had to be told was once, and that should have been enough to override any sign. Apparently they understood it when it was verbally told to them.

I drove my jeep on the beach for years before getting caught (fishing off the shore) but that's because I'd never entered at any point where there was  a sign. After that, I knew, and was subject to being ticketed or worse, towed.

(I think that is when I stopped fishing there... because it was too long to walk!)