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I wanted to respond to madcanadian's shout on my initial post about not needing to speak the language(s) to become its citizen.

Well, I guess I am....

Think. You're 50+ yrs old, force to live in a country not of your choosing. Your kids, because they love you, want you to move with them. In all honesty, you don't have much of a choice. Sure you could stay in the "old country", but how would you live? Who would be there for you when you're sick? What about money? So much harder when you live alone, even if you've lived there all your life.

It's not easy being older and living without your children, even if they've grown up. Those are the exact reasons why my Dad dragged the rest of the family to live in HK. It was his duty as a son to make sure his parents had family as they aged. This in spite of the fact my grandparents has 8 children, and at least 2 aunts and 2 uncles were still living in HK. They all wanted to be their parents in their golden years. That's his choice, and I see the wisdom in that.

Yes, learning a language and integrating into the culture is very important. I should know. I don't speak with an accent, and my writting skill is decent. I don't know French, that's something I'm not proud of. But there hasn't been one instance wheren I've actually needed it. If that means I can't live in France, oh well. I don't speak Mandarin either..... so China is out of the question too. :P

The old lady could learn. Sure. But how much can she learn? Even if she learns enough to pass the test, how usable is that in real life??

Officer: "What did the suspect look like?"
Old Lady: "There are 10 provinces and 3 territories in Canada."

Right, useful. Really. No, it is. At least she knows her geography.... Get real.

If you're able, and want to contribute to society, yes. Learn the language, and learn it well. There's no excuse for you. But you have to see everything in its context, there's no black and white. You could tell the lady was going to depend on her family for the rest of her life. There's no need for her to learn the language enough that she can be lost in any part of town and be able to get home; because she would never be alone without family.

Yes, it's a bad compromise. I totally agree. I see where you're coming from. But there are exception to every rule.

....that's why if anyone fails the test, s/he goes in front of the judge, and are asked several simple questions. If the responses are satisfactory, they're in like Flinn. Good enough for this future Canuck, eh?
posted by losir at 10:03 PM