Thread: Philly cheese steak king wins battle over please speak english sign

Originally Posted by billyjeff2

Funny how many replies inferred the problem is related to spanish-speaking people. Hmmm...

.

...And your point?

As I tried to convey--I'm not suggesting forcing/requiring anyone to learn all the languages their potential customers may speak. But what we're really talking about here, at least in my view, is a belligerent attitude by a business towards people who simply want to BUY SOMETHING FROM THAT BUSINESS!!! Although I'm not claiming to know for sure, I surmise that it's largely spanish-speaking customers the sign is intended to apply to (don't think it's likely that too many israelis or egyptians are the ones ordering cheese steaks in south phila). And if I'm right about that, then what we're really talking about is a business that doesn't want to be bothered dealing with, what? 5 or 6 words in spanish that they'd need to know in order to SELL SOMETHING TO A POTENTIAL CUSTOMER?? Like queso=cheese, or seta=mushrooms? We're not talking about a large lexicon when it comes to ordering a cheese steak "wit".

Again, it simply makes good business sense to be able to transact sales with the largest number of customers possible. And that is why you see so many businesses willing to accommodate non-english speaking customers by going to the very minor effort of offering bi-lingual signage-it's GOOD FOR BUSINESS. It MAKES MORE MONEY.

The folks who find this objectionable are not coming from a business perspective. They see it as a threat. I don't. There's no possibility english won't continue to be the non-official, dominant language of this country. We aren't being "taken over" by foreigners. And pressing #1 on a phone menu isn't going to mark the end of the present culture.

My great grandmother came to this country and never learned a word of english. Her children did, however. And the others like her who came to the US and never managed to learn to speak in anything other than her native tongue did not result in her language becoming the dominant language of this Land--last time I checked there weren't too many Yiddish speakers overrunning our culture.

Originally Posted by billyjeff2

And by the way, it is NOT true to say that 50% of the states have enacted laws making english their official language. And there is nothing in the constitution mandating english as the official language of the US.

I don't know if it is true or not, but my >50% statement was based on the wikipedia article here:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English-only_movement in the Current Law section. I count 27 states in the list . I never said there was a Federal law.

I happen to live in an area where a significant percentage of my tax dollars are spent accommodating non-english speakers. The current estimates in my state to teach english to non-english speakers in the public schools is estimated to be in excess of $300-million/year. With a population of approximately 6-million, that's a tax assessment of $50 person/year. I'm not going to spend the time to look up the cost to the state government to print all documents and laws in multiple languages, to hire thousands of interpreters, to make signage in multiple languages, etc. Nor will I look up the costs businesses pass on to all consumers to provide signage and advertising printed in multiple languages, hire bi-lingual personnel, etc.

If you can sell more food to tourists speaking as many languages as you can, great. Have a ball. But don't pass those costs on to me as a taxpayer and consumer, please... take it out of your profit. (and yes, I understand I'll be giving up the tax revenue those non-english sales represent... but I think I'll still come out ahead). YMMV

Legally, it appears there's nothing wrong with his bumper sticker. I even have some sympathy to the point he's making. Over a beer, I'd probably have a pretty enjoyable conversation with him. But if I was after a meal and walked up to that window and saw that, I'd turn around and take my custom elsewhere. Why? Because I came to a restaurant to eat, not to have the owner's political view shoved down my throat (sic!) in a way that's clearly 'in your face'.

I just want my steak, man. I don't give a flying *&%£ on your views.

Originally Posted by majurey

Legally, it appears there's nothing wrong with his bumper sticker. I even have some sympathy to the point he's making. Over a beer, I'd probably have a pretty enjoyable conversation with him. But if I was after a meal and walked up to that window and saw that, I'd turn around and take my custom elsewhere. Why? Because I came to a restaurant to eat, not to have the owner's political view shoved down my throat (sic!) in a way that's clearly 'in your face'.

I just want my steak, man. I don't give a flying *&%£ on your views.

It shouldn't be considered politics but common courtesy! Each should be courteous and respectful of another, but things have gone a little backwards around here! If you ask me, the owner is only reminding his costomers that a little courtesy and common sense should be used!

Geno's is far from being a restaurant.

It's a shack with outside tables that are bolted to the cement.

However, if you wish to dine al fresco, you can sit down and enjoy the smell of urine, vehicle exhaust, and stale beer.

If you're lucky, you might even spot a bum vomiting in an alley.

Originally Posted by billyjeff2

We aren't being "taken over" by foreigners.

I wonder if this is what the native people thought when strange white men started showing up.

Being from Philly and spending a lot of years there as well as other places, I fully support him. What previous posts have said about Geno's are correct. It isn't a restaurant in the typical sense of the word. It is more like an oversized NYC hotdog stand. You basically go there and get a cheesesteak. Besides the English argument, Geno's and Pat's (across the street from each other) both have a specific way to order. If you don't order the way they want you to (for the sake of keeping the line moving) they will seriously not serve you or just be mad and rude. It's fully their right. As for tourists, I myself would have at the least a phrase book or dictionary to translate things for myself. I don't see the difficulty in finding the words you need. In addition, I don't think that Geno's would be as rude to a visible "tourist" as they would to a resident of Philadelphia (would be kind of obvious in my opinion) who didn't speak English. It's ridiculous that people have the time to get angry over a sign that the establishment has all the right in the world to display. That is regardless of anyone's stance on the sign.

I think it's good that he won. It seems like a lot of individual sovereignty is lost in our country today. Since it's his business he should be able to require people to speak english if ordering there - though I don't think he required people to speak english seemed more like a request with the language on the sign.
"This is America. When ordering, please speak English."
I think shop owners should also have the right to refuse service to people if they so choose - it's their shop and their wares, why do they have to serve you or sell something to you? Sure they may lose some business, but that's their choice.
I'm not prejudiced or anything, it just seems like our society is so prone to demand that you serve people regardless if they have a bad attitude and are rude and disrespectful.
I also don't think employers should be required to hire certain numbers of minorities or colleges accept certain numbers of minorities, it should be based on the most qualified person regardless of gender or race. Or who the employer chooses to employ, after all it's his business why does he have to employ you?
I understand some of these things are done to prevent discrimination, but we lose some of our own rights in the whole process.
Maybe I'm a little out there, but thats my thoughts on the whole thing.

Originally Posted by JMS

It shouldn't be considered politics but common courtesy! Each should be courteous and respectful of another, but things have gone a little backwards around here! If you ask me, the owner is only reminding his costomers that a little courtesy and common sense should be used!

I agree Mark -- it IS common courtesy to at least try to use the same language as the country you're in. But there are ways and there are ways. This guy might be trying to instill a little courtesy, but in my opinion he's doing it in a most discourteous way!

I always try to order or buy in Italian when in Italy, Spanish when in Spain, German when in Germany, French when in France, Greek when in Greece, Portuguese when in Portugal.... (you get the picture), but sometimes that just isn't feasible as a visitor (you ever tried to get your head around Danish?! It's more than hard!). So I would hope that the shop owner or restaurateur might have the courtesy and customer-focus to maybe help me out and speak in English if possible. Is that really so rude of me to hope for as a foreigner in any given country?

Or is that not this guy's point at all? Maybe he's not talking about tourists, maybe he's making a point about immigation in the USA. If so, I go back to my original point -- I don't want his poiltics shoved down my throat at lunchtime, I want his hot dogs shoved down my throat (though from other posts here it reads as if that might not be such a good idea!)