In my opinion, our American culture began to break down when we stopped insisting that Americans learn English. That doesn’t mean that people couldn’t also speak a second language as is common in the rest of the world. We remember having a flag in our classrooms, saying the Pledge of Allegiance, and learning reading, writing & arithmetic first. Some people even recall winning the “golden wastebasket” award for helping pick up classroom trash. Understanding other peoples cultures is key for having friends and often relatives. It’s just that I believe when you lose a common language, you fray the tapestry of a culture. SallyJones