• pingveno@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    Go from Wales, Alaska near the Bering Strait to the southern tip of Florida. You have traveled 4,580 miles (7,370 km) in 14 states and provinces. At no point were you not in a jurisdiction that was predominantly English speaking.

    Mandarin Chinese may have the most number of native speakers, but English has the most number of total speakers, and those speakers are spread much more widely around the world.

    The US is a business, economic, and geopolitical powerhouse. So was the British Empire.

    I’m not saying that every other language should crawl in a hole and die. I’m currently taking a crack at learning Spanish. But there are pretty solid reasons why Americans make assumptions, even if they are erroneous sometimes.

    • boonhet@lemm.ee
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      7 months ago

      Go from Wales, Alaska near the Bering Strait to the southern tip of Florida. You have traveled 4,580 miles (7,370 km) in 14 states and provinces.

      I really want to do that, though I was thinking Washington (state) to Florida. Want to drive the Florida Keys at one point definitely. I’m a foreigner though, idk if they even let you stay in the country for vacations that long lol

    • GiddyGap@lemm.ee
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      7 months ago

      I think the point is that Americans assume that people speak English in countries where English is not the predominant language without first making even the slightest effort to adjust to the local language and customs. And it really comes across as assholery.