English PLEASE!

I bet you thought this was about having English as the official language of the United States. While that is a good idea, I want to address a different problem. We in the United States seem to have forgotten how to speak the English language properly. Let's take a multiple choice test. Select which of the following is correct. You and a friend have the choice of traveling to a destination with different parties. Your friend asks you the following question. Which is correct English?

1. Who do you want to go with?
2. With whom would you like to go?
3. Who with?

You have just purchased an item at a local department store. You say thank you to the clerk. Which is the proper reply from the clerk?

1. No big deal.
2. Yup.
3. You’re welcome.

When asked to sign your name to a credit card receipt, you are being asked to sign your;

1. John Henry
2. John Hancock

I know this was a short test, don't you wish they were all short. However, I think you get the idea. If you really need to know the answers, they are 2, 3, 2.

Here are a few tips that will help you be better understood in any situation.

• Don't use a long word when a short one will due.
• Don't use slang that with an age group other than your own.
• Don't use cultural references with persons of a different culture. Keep in mind that different parts of the United States have different cultures.
• Don't use "sayings" to make a point. This can be especially dangerous when in the company of persons from a foreign country. To illustrate this point I will use an example from my personal experience. I was in a business meeting with Japanese customers. The meeting was going very well. One of my colleagues, when summarizing the discussion, stated that we were all thinking in "parallel". Each of our Japanese guests in the room got a concerned look on their faces. One of them said, "I thought the meeting went well and we were in agreement?” My colleague who made the "parallel" statement explained that parallel lines go in the same direction meaning that our thinking is in the same direction. A relieved smile came over our Japanese guests face. He told us that in his culture "parallel thinking" means the exact opposite because parallel lines never meet. Be well and speak English correctly.

Datadiver08