Why Bush wants Americans to learn Hindi CHIDANAND RAJGHATTA
TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ SATURDAY, JANUARY 07, 2006 01:53:08 AM]
WASHINGTON: Uncle Sam wants his wards to learn Hindi so he can be seen as Uncle Shyam. Hindi has been identified as one of the critical foreign languages that Americans need to learn in greater numbers to win international brownie points and be economically competitive.
Americans are also being urged to study Farsi, Arabic, Chinese and other languages that have so far been marginal in the US scheme of things so that the country can overcome the image of being an insular bully and stay ahead in a fast changing world.
President Bush is asking Congress for $114 million in next year's budget to push Americans into uncharted linguistic territory under what is being called "National Security Language Initiative."
Bush said learning foreign languages would help Americans relate better to other cultures and show that they care.
"When somebody comes to me and speaks Texan, I know they appreciate the Texas culture," Bush, who actually speaks decent Spanish, joked at the US University President's Summit on International Education, where he announced the initiative.