4 ms·

So you'd be fine with expats in Portugal if they learned Portuguese? (Doesn't say one way or the other if the person in the article learned the language.) Conv

So you'd be fine with expats in Portugal if they learned Portuguese? (Doesn't say one way or the other if the person in the article learned the language.) Conversely, are you upset by immigrants in the US that don't speak English?

zeruch 4y ago
I like how you are trying to find an angle here. My expectation for those wishing to live in Portugal are analogous to how I feel about those emigrating here to the US: don't just treat your new home like a blank slate to impose your will on. It's a relationship, treat it like a balanced one. Yes, I think language requirements matter (I hold that basic language proficiency for standard cases should require at least elementary English sufficient to participate as a citizen); I also advocate for all US citizens to be required to achieve substantive skills in a second language...note, my first language was not English, and I'm still functionally bi-lingual. The reason I don't mention this for Portugal is that they already do this, and most Portuguese born after the revolution, and certainly in urban areas, are bi-lingual or polyglot. And yes, I think unless you are on a work visa with a set end date, you should make at least a modicum of attempt to "fit in". That doesn't mean subsuming your own historical identity, but making a functional attempt to expand it since you were inspired enough to transfer yourself to a whole other context...adapt accordingly by pulling from and contributing to. I'm not upset by those that don't speak English in the US, but that is itself context specific. If you decide to move here at a comparatively young adult age, and do little to acclimate, then yes, I find that obnoxious. I've harangued those in the Portuguese diaspora in the US for that very same behavior; living in suburban enclaves lost in time (manay emigrated to the US during the Salazar regime).

zeruch 4y ago

I like how you are trying to find an angle here. My expectation for those wishing to live in Portugal are analogous to how I feel about those emigrating here to the US: don't just treat your new home like a blank slate to impose your will on. It's a relationship, treat it like a balanced one. Yes, I think language requirements matter (I hold that basic language proficiency for standard cases should require at least elementary English sufficient to participate as a citizen); I also advocate for all US citizens to be required to achieve substantive skills in a second language...note, my first language was not English, and I'm still functionally bi-lingual. The reason I don't mention this for Portugal is that they already do this, and most Portuguese born after the revolution, and certainly in urban areas, are bi-lingual or polyglot. And yes, I think unless you are on a work visa with a set end date, you should make at least a modicum of attempt to "fit in". That doesn't mean subsuming your own historical identity, but making a functional attempt to expand it since you were inspired enough to transfer yourself to a whole other context...adapt accordingly by pulling from and contributing to. I'm not upset by those that don't speak English in the US, but that is itself context specific. If you decide to move here at a comparatively young adult age, and do little to acclimate, then yes, I find that obnoxious. I've harangued those in the Portuguese diaspora in the US for that very same behavior; living in suburban enclaves lost in time (manay emigrated to the US during the Salazar regime).