Culture Matters

Omega said:
Having a "common culture" is part of the definition of a nation state. Is destroying that commonality in pursuit of diversity and equity the beginning of the end of the American experiment?
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Spot on. People like to call America the melting pot. But what happens when you add too many ingredients to it? It boils over.
 
Gamma Gobbler said:
I was in San Antonio last week and went to a McD. I order a 1/4lb meal with Cheese, large with a coke...in store. The girl looked at me and said,
No sé hablar inglés. I went to Taco Bell.
Your point of truth is?
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You are in luck. I happen to know quite a few of the McDonalds franchise owners in San Antonio, so if you get me the one that you were at, I can get to the bottom of it for you. It is highly unusual that a non English speaker would be face to face with customers. Typically they work back of house and will take steps to learn English. McDonalds itself offers English Under the Arches (I believe they still call it that, or something similar.) McDonalds covers all of the costs.

Got to give the girl credit for taking a job at McDonalds even when it has to be tough not knowing the language. Starting somewhere and doing the best she can. I would think it would be rather intimidating for her.

Sort of hard to believe there was not someone there that could have taken your order. You sort of cut off your nose to spite your face.
 
psycho_dad said:
You are in luck. I happen to know quite a few of the McDonalds franchise owners in San Antonio, so if you get me the one that you were at, I can get to the bottom of it for you. It is highly unusual that a non English speaker would be face to face with customers. Typically they work back of house and will take steps to learn English. McDonalds itself offers English Under the Arches (I believe they still call it that, or something similar.) McDonalds covers all of the costs.

Got to give the girl credit for taking a job at McDonalds even when it has to be tough not knowing the language. Starting somewhere and doing the best she can. I would think it would be rather intimidating for her.

Sort of hard to believe there was not someone there that could have taken your order. You sort of cut off your nose to spite your face.
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Lol. Sure you do.
 
psycho_dad said:
You are in luck. I happen to know quite a few of the McDonalds franchise owners in San Antonio, so if you get me the one that you were at, I can get to the bottom of it for you. It is highly unusual that a non English speaker would be face to face with customers. Typically they work back of house and will take steps to learn English. McDonalds itself offers English Under the Arches (I believe they still call it that, or something similar.) McDonalds covers all of the costs.

Got to give the girl credit for taking a job at McDonalds even when it has to be tough not knowing the language. Starting somewhere and doing the best she can. I would think it would be rather intimidating for her.

Sort of hard to believe there was not someone there that could have taken your order. You sort of cut off your nose to spite your face.
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I know a Chinese woman that came to the USA back in the late-eighties and spoke no English. She was from Guangzhou (Canton) and spoke Cantonese and Mandarin. She now speaks fluent English, albeit with a fairly strong accent. She learned almost all her English by taking a job as a bagger at Kroger's and paying attention! Spanish to English uses the same alphabet and is a lot easier than Cantonese or Mandarin to English.

As an aside, she always wore a face mask when outside, even back in the eighties. It was just a habit because the air pollution was so bad back in Guangzhou.

I also know a Korean woman that has been here since the 1980's and speaks almost no English. Her American husband speaks for her.

It all comes down to motivation and desire.
 
psycho_dad said:
You are in luck. I happen to know quite a few of the McDonalds franchise owners in San Antonio, so if you get me the one that you were at, I can get to the bottom of it for you. It is highly unusual that a non English speaker would be face to face with customers. Typically they work back of house and will take steps to learn English. McDonalds itself offers English Under the Arches (I believe they still call it that, or something similar.) McDonalds covers all of the costs.

Got to give the girl credit for taking a job at McDonalds even when it has to be tough not knowing the language. Starting somewhere and doing the best she can. I would think it would be rather intimidating for her.

Sort of hard to believe there was not someone there that could have taken your order. You sort of cut off your nose to spite your face.
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He ordered a quarter pounder meal with a coke. Even if she spoke zero English, she would understand the order. If she somehow still did not know what those words meant on the menu. It is simply a dos (#2) with coke. Can you imagine two adult human beings not being able to accomplish this task?

Of course, she could speak enough English to work the counter. Otherwise, she would be flipping the burgers or cleaning the place.
 
ProV1 said:
He ordered a quarter pounder meal with a coke. Even if she spoke zero English, she would understand the order. If she somehow still did not know what those words meant on the menu. It is simply a dos (#2) with coke. Can you imagine two adult human beings not being able to accomplish this task?

Of course, she could speak enough English to work the counter. Otherwise, she would be flipping the burgers or cleaning the place.
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I can't imagine 2 children not being able to accomplish the task. Deaf people, Blind people, Drunk people. All sorts of people all over the world can order at McDonalds. I guess there are a few that cannot.

Cuarto de Libra con queso. Coke. Grande. Someone in the ordering process was a complete idiot. I think I know who.

She could speak English. You know she could.
 
psycho_dad said:
I can't imagine 2 children not being able to accomplish the task. Deaf people, Blind people, Drunk people. All sorts of people all over the world can order at McDonalds. I guess there are a few that cannot.

Cuarto de Libra con queso. Coke. Grande. Someone in the ordering process was a complete idiot. I think I know who.

She could speak English. You know she could.
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You know the franchisees....I thought you were going to get to the bottom of this?
 
ProV1 said:
He ordered a quarter pounder meal with a coke. Even if she spoke zero English, she would understand the order. If she somehow still did not know what those words meant on the menu. It is simply a dos (#2) with coke. Can you imagine two adult human beings not being able to accomplish this task?

Of course, she could speak enough English to work the counter. Otherwise, she would be flipping the burgers or cleaning the place.
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I have no doubt you could find a way to order a quarter pounder in any language. LMAO. :cry:
 
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ProV1 said:
Or we could use common sense. Do you think you could order that in a McDonalds in Mexico?
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Probably but that all depends on whether the person taking the order is a willing participant in the exchange.

Here is the original post.

Gamma Gobbler said:
I was in San Antonio last week and went to a McD. I order a 1/4lb meal with Cheese, large with a coke...in store. The girl looked at me and said,
No sé hablar inglés. I went to Taco Bell.
Your point of truth is?
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If this indeed happened and the order taker continued to not to be able to take my order my options become pretty limited, right? I could point to the menu, hold up fingers for the meal number, hope for the manager to come over, etc but if they still cannot understand what I want, I guess I move on.

All that being said, psycho dud claimed to know several franchisees in San Antonio which is what I was responding to. But thanks for your contribution BN.
 
winbypin said:
Probably but that all depends on whether the person taking the order is a willing participant in the exchange.

Here is the original post.


If this indeed happened and the order taker continued to not to be able to take my order my options become pretty limited, right? I could point to the menu, hold up fingers for the meal number, hope for the manager to come over, etc but if they still cannot understand what I want, I guess I move on.

All that being said, psycho dud claimed to know several franchisees in San Antonio which is what I was responding to. But thanks for your contribution BN.
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First, I don't buy that she simply said no English and that was it. If you believe that, I guess you will believe anything. That said, a simple dos and coke would have done the trick. You would have to be a pretty aggrieved dude to storm out if the Micky Dee's chick did not have enough English for your liking. Funny how he was able to understand No sé hablar inglés but could not order the burger and coke. LOL.
 
ProV1 said:
First, I don't buy that she simply said no English and that was it. If you believe that, I guess you will believe anything. That said, a simple dos and coke would have done the trick. You would have to be a pretty aggrieved dude to storm out if the Micky Dee's chick did not have enough English for your liking. Funny how he was able to understand No sé hablar inglés but could not order the burger and coke. LOL.
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Neither of us were there and all we have is his take on the situation. I never said I believed him, just what he said. I agree, it seems like a low barrier to get over to get a burger but if the order taker still shrugged her shoulders after all your attempts....then what?

What I don't believe is some random cross country coach/HS teacher (?) in Ohio knows several of the franchisees in San Antonio.
 
ProV1 said:
America has never had a singular common culture.
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Of course it has...pride in being American.

The "newcomers" don't give two chits about being American, it's handouts and economic transaction.
 
psycho_dad said:
I can't imagine 2 children not being able to accomplish the task. Deaf people, Blind people, Drunk people. All sorts of people all over the world can order at McDonalds. I guess there are a few that cannot.

Cuarto de Libra con queso. Coke. Grande. Someone in the ordering process was a complete idiot. I think I know who.

She could speak English. You know she could.
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Yes, the person who hired a non English speaker to serve customers in an English speaking country is the idiot.

If you want to live and work here know the language or get out. I can't move to a foreign country with no language skills and expect the host nation to bend over backwards to accommodate me.

Only in America.
 
ProV1 said:
First, I don't buy that she simply said no English and that was it. If you believe that, I guess you will believe anything. That said, a simple dos and coke would have done the trick. You would have to be a pretty aggrieved dude to storm out if the Micky Dee's chick did not have enough English for your liking. Funny how he was able to understand No sé hablar inglés but could not order the burger and coke. LOL.
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No habla ingles is a running joke. If you never heard Spanish in your life you'd know what that meant.
 
y2h said:
Of course it has...pride in being American.

The "newcomers" don't give two chits about being American, it's handouts and economic transaction.
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Pride is not a culture.

All immigrants in our history were "newcomers".
 
y2h said:
Yes, the person who hired a non English speaker to serve customers in an English speaking country is the idiot.

If you want to live and work here know the language or get out. I can't move to a foreign country with no language skills and expect the host nation to bend over backwards to accommodate me.

Only in America.
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I have traveled to many places in the world not knowing the language and have been welcomed with open arms. The country did not hire the McDonald's worker. McDonald's hired her. Even you if believe the tale that she did not know enough English to place and order for a #2, take your grievances to McDonald's.
 
psycho_dad said:
He did not get me the location. There are more than a few franchise owners in San Antonio. I know what their policies are and I find it very hard to believe his story.
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Yes. How many of those owners do you know? How do you know their policies?
 
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