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Language is a powerful tool in the melding of various cultures into one. It will either bind people together or hopelessly separate them. We must take care, therefore, how we approach this challenge in our midst. The notion that we should train every American child to be multi-lingual is a juggernaut gaining momentum in public forums. It is joined at the hip to the debate on immigration and taken together, they are a hot-button issue in America today. While I certainly see the utility of speaking multiple languages, that is not the real issue here. At stake is the American way of life, not as we travel abroad, but right here at home.

In short, proponents of multi-lingual education are selling out to a growing crisis in this nation as millions of immigrants, legal and illegal, cross our borders and settle in our cities. Immigration is not the enemy, here. After all, we are a nation of immigrants. The question is whether we will remain one nation or continue to pursue the current trend of multiculturalism, which seeks to splinter us into racial factions. In Gestapo-like fashion, Political Correctness now hovers like a dark cloud over this nation to keep the peace. Are we better off for it? I think not.

Compulsory language education has always been in force in this country. Our chosen language is, and has been for centuries, English. Regardless of their nation of origin, it has long been incumbent upon everyone who settles in America to learn our nation's language. Traditionally, they have done so. My grandparents immigrated here from Germany and Hungary. I can still remember my grandmother's thick, German accent. Nevertheless, she spoke English and she made sure that her children spoke English.

There are very good reasons for making such a demand of newcomers to our shores. Chief among them is the fact that citizenship in America is balanced upon privilege and responsibility. The right to vote, for instance, carries a tremendous responsibility for the voter to be well-versed on the laws of the land, the candidates and the issues. One must cast a reasoned and ethical ballot. How does a non-English-speaking citizen do this, unless he first schools himself on the issues from all quarters? Currently, he listens only to those broadcasts and journals spoken or printed in his language. Understandably, these tend to be slanted toward their special interests and may or may not give him the full story.

I used Spanish as an example since

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