Shirayuri said:
Muts, genuine question now; Does it annoy you when people living here, who aren't 'native', but can speak perfect English, choose not to do when in conversation with each other?
E.g. Two Chinese guys, who can speak perfect English and live in England, speaking Cantonese to each other in the middle of London?
Or two Italians, who can speak perfect English and live in England, speaking Italian in the middle of London?
And as a variation, for example, someone of Japanese descent who has been born and raised in the UK, and thus speaks perfect English, still choosing to speak Japanese while around other Japanese peers who also speak perfect English in London?
Obviously, these are but examples. Feel free to pick any race/language to replace those with.
How would I know that both/one/neither were tourists/native/visitors/whatever? Their private conversation is not my business, so they can speak klingon for all the difference it makes. However, you should not talk about someone in front of them but in a different language so they cannot understand what is being said about them. That is just rude.
However...
One thing I have found very annoying when encountering two (or more) people conversing in a foreign language in the UK, is when they talk loudly with no consideration for those around them, as if they were the only people there. What causes the annoyance is not the language they are speaking, but their lack of respect for those around them.
Anyway, I can see that attempts are being made to try and get me to trip up over my own words here, so I'm just going to come out and say this; I am quitting this discussion. The main points I wished to make are that Americanisms are a bastardisation of the English language and do not belong in the UK, local variations are often technically incorrect English but are forgiveable, and lastly that those to whom English is not their first language who are in the UK can be forgiven for making mistakes if they are at least making an honest effort to learn to do it correctly.
It really doesn't bother me when someone who was not born and raised here makes mistakes with the language, but if you were born and raised here, you've been living the language long enough now and received enough education on the language to know how to use it correctly. When concerning people I have not known very long, I will use their use of language as a means of gauging their intelligence, as on the internet it is the first you see of someone. First impressions and all that. Usually fairly accurate too, going by my former classmates/co-workers on my facebook friend list.
I'm sure a lot of you regulars here though are wondering why I don't correct you on the little mistakes I see you make regularly? Huh? Huh? That is because I respect you, enough that I would feel bad for offending you by pointing out such errors. That, and getting to know you all, I can tell that even though some of you make some repeated mistakes, that you are smart kind people really. I like more of you than you think. I know I must be a terrible person for reaching the conclusion that people who type dumb are dumb, but to me it is completely illogical that one who is smart would choose to type like one who is not, even though they have the ability to type like one who is smart.
END RANT
GOOD NIGHT
(I hope that my HMV parcel arrives tomorrow.)
