🚀 go-pugleaf

Esperanto League N America (elna@netcom.com) wrote:

: If an Italian who also speaks French and Spanish meets with a Dane who
: also speaks English and German, there is still no common language. This 
: is why I advocate an agreement that all educated persons learn an
: interantional auxiliary language, such as Esperanto.


: -- 
: Miko SLOPER                   elna@netcom.com         USA  (510) 653 0998
: Direktoro de la          ftp.netcom.com:/pub/el/elna   fax (510) 653 1468 
: Centra Oficejo de la     Learn Esperanto! Free lessons: e-mail/snail-mail
: Esperanto-Ligo de N.A.      Write to above address or call 1-800-828 5944

Sometimes a common national language isn't enough.  My neighbour is 
Italian; he's lived in Canada for about 40 years, and was around 20 when 
he left Italy.  He still has a strong accent, and uses phrases and idioms 
that clearly mark him as someone who is not a native speaker of English.  
(After 40 years.)  This summer, a relative of mine came to visit from 
Australia.  Same language, right?  Only in theory.  The two could figure 
out what the other was saying, but only with a lot of effort, arm-waving 
and loud talking.  Generally, communication was too difficult to be 
practical.  (As an aside, I would call both men "fluent", and I have only 
minor difficulties with understanding each one.)


John Peters, samideano.
Toronto, Canada.
(tagline under construction.)