Quiet Stranger said:
I'm sure we've all seen online servers that say "Speak English or you will be kicked" or "English only" This to me seems racist because it takes away freedom of speech (or SOME right I'm sure, not that online people care about your rights) so do you think this is racist? Even a little?
It's like this.
Racism is specifically discrimination against someone based on their genotype. Liberals and organizations like the UN have created definitions that have extended it to other things, but those definitions are political constucts intended to be used to argue specific points. For example a broad definition by the UN creates an excuse for the UN not to interfere in places it doesn't want to, or a way that nations who run afoul of other nations in the UN can make cases based on racism and national sovreignty to avoid having action taken. Cynical, but accurate when it comes to the UN (which will look for any excuse not to get involved it seems).
At any rate, the issue of language in the USA is a touchy one, and involves people like me who believe that being able to speak and understand english should (barring a handicap) be a requirement for citizenship, even going so far as to say that we should have mechanisms in place to remove citizenship from people that were born here and might be the second or third generation even. There are a lot of reasons behind this other than simple conveinence, such as the way language barriers create closed ethnic communities where the people living there act like they are from some other nation, and even consider that their homeland, even if they are American citizens and should be part of our culture, not simply garnering the benefits. Then of course there are issues like education, and the problems the system has to endure trying to provide equal educations for kids who don't speak the language even if they are born here. A lot of resources are wasted that otherwise wouldn't be if all the students were required to speak the same language.
Understand that I have no issue with people knowing, and using, other languages, as long as they know english and can speak it fluently. People here temporarly (like tourists) are of course an exception as well.
At any rate, most games that I've seen that specified languages typically had other dedicated language servers, or ones that didn't specify. There are for example european and Asian servers other than the North American ones in most cases.
All told the issue of language is a big deal in the US, whether it should be included under things like freedom of speech is debatable. Typically the arguement is made more along the lines of it being wrong to deny someone services because they don't speak english. There is a distinction between that and running a forum (especially a private one) that requires a specific language.
In general however it's mostly argued in terms of public services. Despite many attempts by liberals, there isn't yet a requirement in most places that requires things to be in more than one language. Providing a game in say English only in the US is no differant than say publishing a book only in English
In the end the issue exists in the US to any extent because we never specified a national language. To be honest in many other countries, like say Japan, you'd be laughed out the door if you made some of the multi-lingual arguements (like the one about servers) the way they are made in the US.
Now, one important bit I'm going to add for those that read this far:
I used to be quite liberal on this issue, one of those guys who made arguements about how it was paranoid to get all upset about people speaking their "secret language", and so on.
Things changed in part because I became older and less naive, but also due to the kind of work I did. Simply put I think ease of communication is nessicary, and not speaking the dominant language of the land where you live in work puts everyone in danger.
To put things into perspective, let's say your working security and roaming a set path back of the house at a casino like what I did for many years. Periodically using electronic checkpoints to show that your doing the prescribed route correctly and checking the right things. Some kitchen worker comes running up and yammering at you in a language you don't understand and wants your attention. By security you don't stop doing your job without a good reason, you follow the route, you stand at your post. There are a bunch of reasons why someone (even inside might want to distract you). Of course a concerned person is sufficient to call for a translator while staying where your supposed to be. Let's say it's a legitimate emergency here, and some dude a few hallways down slipped on a wet floor and stabbed themselves with a knife or something, and needs help from an EMT. As security I can certainly call an EMT (I have a radio after all) but I have no idea what this guy wants, and for all I know he wants me to head down another hallway with him while some dudes come in through other doors (which could be anything from some ridiculous crime movie scenario, to the guy helping some kids he knows get on the gaming floor via the back of the house entrance despite being underage). In the time it takes to get a translator, have the translator sent to where I am, find out he needs an EMT, get the EMTs sent down, and the problem dealt with the guy who had the accident could be dead. Now imagine for a second that your that guy who is hurt and needs help and your left there for half an hour to die while this gets sorted, when a co-worker going for help who speaks english probably could have gotten someone there in a position to help within 5 minutes.
Despite what people might think, I've dealt with people from all over the world, the casinos I worked for had no language requirements, and got inolved in these "worker exchange" programs where people would pay a service to come work in the US at a low end job for so many months where they would (even after the fees) make more money than they could back home. Without going into the whole program, it needless to say caused a lot of issues, including making the linguistic situation far worse than it should have been to begin with.
I've been involved in all kinds of incidents, and the bottom line is I'm one of those guys who thinks it's a safety matter for people to speak the language of the land where they work. I furthermore think that there is no reason for people not to speak the language of the place where they live for the long term (as citizens or otherwise). I'll also be honest in saying that when you have to deal with minorities who get in trouble, one of the first things a lot of them are going to do is pull the "I don't speak english" card, to jerk your chain (or hope some oppertunity to escape comes up). You catch some guy shop lifting, bonus jumping, begging for money (a no-no in a casino), engaged in "flea" behavior, or maybe running around scrounging out of garbage cans in the food court (I kid you not). Even if you've got the guy on video tape you generally still have to question them for your own reports, and that can mean having to take security away from other jobs to babysit the guy while a translator can be located. I increasingly have little tolerance for non-english speakers in the USA.
I know many people are going to disagree with me, and this gets away from the central subject of game servers, but this is how I see things.
... and yes, before anyone asks, if I was to take up residence in another country for the long term, I'd do what I needed to in order to learn the language, assuming it wasn't a requirement to begin with (which it is for some countries apparently).
