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David Bisset
Skotlando, United Kingdom
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Monday, November 22, 2004
Everyone speaks English
One of my concerns is language discrimination; so I am rather sceptical concerning the accuracy of this blogs title.
When the Americans (illegally) invaded Iraq, George Bush had certainly not provided them with phrase books; so I suppose that it was better to shout in English rather than saying nothing. Most questions did not receive any answer, of course.
There has been a little improvement; but the censored footage of the Fallujah invasion still provided plenty of examples of Iraqis being harangued in English; and it was certainly convenient that caches of insurgent documents were also written in English. Am I too sceptical or do I suffer from a bad dose of rationality.
The British troops (who are doing what they have to do with little enthusiasm) also suffer from the belief that everyone speaks English. I saw a roadblock set-up by soldiers who arrived by helicopter. A car was stopped and the occupants were gently encouraged to move a few hundred metres from it by carefully chosen English expressions combined with appropriate weaponry. One of the drivers pointed to his vehicle and by gestures indicated that he wished to get his mobile phone. He received a polite answer: "You will be permitted to retrieve your mobile in ten minutes". He listened with total non-comprehension; but wisely did not move towards his vehicle.
The BBC is proud of its correspondents. It claims that they have intimate local knowledge. This seems unlikely in Baghdad. However, the BBC showed a clip of an attractive female correspondent surrounded by children. She was apparently questioning the young locals. If you believe that, you believe anything.
However, everyone speaks English!
When the Americans (illegally) invaded Iraq, George Bush had certainly not provided them with phrase books; so I suppose that it was better to shout in English rather than saying nothing. Most questions did not receive any answer, of course.
There has been a little improvement; but the censored footage of the Fallujah invasion still provided plenty of examples of Iraqis being harangued in English; and it was certainly convenient that caches of insurgent documents were also written in English. Am I too sceptical or do I suffer from a bad dose of rationality.
The British troops (who are doing what they have to do with little enthusiasm) also suffer from the belief that everyone speaks English. I saw a roadblock set-up by soldiers who arrived by helicopter. A car was stopped and the occupants were gently encouraged to move a few hundred metres from it by carefully chosen English expressions combined with appropriate weaponry. One of the drivers pointed to his vehicle and by gestures indicated that he wished to get his mobile phone. He received a polite answer: "You will be permitted to retrieve your mobile in ten minutes". He listened with total non-comprehension; but wisely did not move towards his vehicle.
The BBC is proud of its correspondents. It claims that they have intimate local knowledge. This seems unlikely in Baghdad. However, the BBC showed a clip of an attractive female correspondent surrounded by children. She was apparently questioning the young locals. If you believe that, you believe anything.
However, everyone speaks English!
