You think you're speaking English but you're actually speaking American!

[Jingthing]

Resistance is futile.

 

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20170904-how-americanisms-are-killing-the-english-language

 

Quote

 

So it turns out I can no longer speak English. This was the alarming realisation foisted upon me by Matthew Engel’s witty, cantankerous yet nonetheless persuasive polemic That’s the Way it Crumbles: The American Conquest of English. Because by English, I mean British English.

Despite having been born, raised and educated on British shores, it seems my mother tongue has been irreparably corrupted by the linguistic equivalent of the grey squirrel. And I’m not alone. Whether you’re a lover or a loather of phrases like “Can I get a decaf soy latte to go?”, chances are your vocabulary has been similarly colonised.

 

 

 

[Been there done that]

You must lead a boring life.

[oldhippy]

There is no such thing as British English.

There is loso and hiso English in the uk, plus many languages in between, plus many dialects.

 

The neutral English is Kiwi English.

And no, I am not a Kiwi.

But I love them.

 

 

 

[Jingthing]

You must lead a boring life.

I do but I'm easily amused but that's totally irrelevant to the topic.

[rijb]

The author wrote a book about going a year without sex.  Maybe she just 'speaks' too much.

 

BTW:  You should use this pic for all of your topics.

 

 

[StreetCowboy]

You've got a fair point, JT.  For all our arrogant posturing, now our language is being affected more by American norms than vice versa.

 

I'm equally as upset at the impact on our country's regional dialects by the insidious influence of nationalised television.  We can all talk like scousers or cockneys, but can we still tell the difference from people from the next town by the way that they talk?

 

SC 

[Jingthing]

Spot on dude!

[samsensam]

haha, i may be a pedant or old school but i always order a small  coffee white or black, i also avoid the big chains in favour of smaller privately owned places whenever possible, in my experience i get better coffee and a more pleasurable experience.

[Jingthing]

2 hours ago, samsensam said:

haha, i may be a pedant or old school but i always order a small  coffee white or black, i also avoid the big chains in favour of smaller privately owned places whenever possible, in my experience i get better coffee and a more pleasurable experience.

The topic really isn't specifically about coffee orders. 

[StreetCowboy]

11 hours ago, Jingthing said:

The topic really isn't specifically about coffee orders. 

Not yet.

 

I have a large latte (I didn't know what a latte was until a few years back), and I worry about the calories, but with skimmed milk it would just be a white coffee.

[partington]

I nearly had a heart attack when my niece, born and bred in the UK started mentioning her school's "prom"!

 UK schools are now having these only because they've seen it on TV from the US - they had no existence in the UK until about 10 years ago.

 

 Now that's colonisation!

[rijb]

9 minutes ago, StreetCowboy said:

Not yet.

 

I have a large latte (I didn't know what a latte was until a few years back), and I worry about the calories, but with skimmed milk it would just be a white coffee.

 

[thaibeachlovers]

14 hours ago, StreetCowboy said:

You've got a fair point, JT.  For all our arrogant posturing, now our language is being affected more by American norms than vice versa.

 

I'm equally as upset at the impact on our country's regional dialects by the insidious influence of nationalised television.  We can all talk like scousers or cockneys, but can we still tell the difference from people from the next town by the way that they talk?

 

SC 

Used to be that British tv employed people that spoke properly. Unfortunately, all British public speakers now seem to talk like chavs. It's no wonder that all the sheeple think that's the norm.

What makes it worse is that anyone that does speak properly is bullied for being an upper class wally, true or not.

Even the ability to write correct English grammar seems to be vanishing.

[thaibeachlovers]

20 minutes ago, StreetCowboy said:

Not yet.

 

I have a large latte (I didn't know what a latte was until a few years back), and I worry about the calories, but with skimmed milk it would just be a white coffee.

Well done.

I for one despise going into a shop and being given a choice of meaningless options because the sheeple have become seduced by the consumer society and think it makes them superior to call things by stupid names. I went to have a coffee with a friend, and not knowing any of the choices published I asked for an espresso because I thought it was an expresso, which I believed was more like a proper cup of coffee. I didn't even know that espresso is a stupid tiny waste of money drink. Bah humbug.

Even ice cream is being taken over by the trendies with another load of stupid names to confuse.

[canuckamuck]

Blame Starbucks. It was them who figured out if you take low quality coffee and sell it in Italian sizes people will think it's classy.

It worked , and then they figured out if you take that bad coffee in Italian sizes and drown it in milk and sugar and all other forms of confectionery until there is no coffee taste left. The posers who can't handle actual coffee, will break down the doors for your Italian sized sweety drinks allegedly containing coffee; and they will pay 3 bucks for a rock hard stale cookie too.

 

[thaibeachlovers]

5 minutes ago, canuckamuck said:

Blame Starbucks. It was them who figured out if you take low quality coffee and sell it in Italian sizes people will think it's classy.

It worked , and then they figured out if you take that bad coffee in Italian sizes and drown it in milk and sugar and all other forms of confectionery until there is no coffee taste left. The posers who can't handle actual coffee, will break down the doors for your Italian sized sweety drinks allegedly containing coffee; and they will pay 3 bucks for a rock hard stale cookie too.

 

The other thing is how you can go into a restaurant of almost any description, and they will have an assortment of cake slices that they sell for at least a 100% mark up. Seems all anyone has to do to mint it, is to buy something that doesn't cost much, divide it up and stick it in a fancy wrapper, then sell it to the sheeple, who don't realise they could buy a whole cake for not much more than the slice they paid way too much for.

[thaibeachlovers]

10 minutes ago, canuckamuck said:

Blame Starbucks. It was them who figured out if you take low quality coffee and sell it in Italian sizes people will think it's classy.

It worked , and then they figured out if you take that bad coffee in Italian sizes and drown it in milk and sugar and all other forms of confectionery until there is no coffee taste left. The posers who can't handle actual coffee, will break down the doors for your Italian sized sweety drinks allegedly containing coffee; and they will pay 3 bucks for a rock hard stale cookie too.

 

sell it in Italian sizes people will think it's classy.

 

Soooooo true. The poseurs will pay any price if they think it makes them "special".

Restaurants that provide works of art, but which are about 2 mouthfuls, have made zillions from the trendies. I just don't get the point of paying a bundle just to be somewhere the chattering classes can see one, and then having to stop off at a takeaway to get some actual food on the way home.

[oldhippy]

7 minutes ago, canuckamuck said:

Blame Starbucks. It was them who figured out if you take low quality coffee and sell it in Italian sizes people will think it's classy.

It worked , and then they figured out if you take that bad coffee in Italian sizes and drown it in milk and sugar and all other forms of confectionery until there is no coffee taste left. The posers who can't handle actual coffee, will break down the doors for your Italian sized sweety drinks allegedly containing coffee; and they will pay 3 bucks for a rock hard stale cookie too.

 

Haha I do not understand what al this coffee talk has to do with the thread, but I have a coffee story too.

 

Dubai airport, fancy coffee shop, Starbucks clone.

I ask for a black coffee, girl asks me "what flavor?", I go ?????

She says cinnamon, caramel, vanilla, chocolate,.... flavor.

I answer "coffee flavor" please.

Awkward silence followed.

 

She probably thought I was a fool, and I thought the same about her and her customers.

 

[Jingthing]

Yeah, Starbucks mostly sells milk and sugar, not coffee. 

[oldhippy]

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

sell it in Italian sizes people will think it's classy.

 

Soooooo true. The poseurs will pay any price if they think it makes them "special".

Restaurants that provide works of art, but which are about 2 mouthfuls, have made zillions from the trendies. I just don't get the point of paying a bundle just to be somewhere the chattering classes can see one, and then having to stop off at a takeaway to get some actual food on the way home.

This pic is from an Air France promotion on Facebook - they call this haute cuisine and serve it in business class.

 

[swissie]

Returning to Topic:

 

Never mind English/ American lingo. At the end of the day, there is the English spoken on the 6 o'clock news. There is the "other English" consisting of 77 different dialects/slangs, even a different vocabulary. (same applies to other major languages.)

A wide variety of "English Dialects" can be heard in Pattaya. Not always easy for an non-native-English-speaker, "raised on school English" to take part of a conversation.

But then, most native English speakers can and will bring their spoken English to a sort of 6 o'clock news English, that can be universally understood by non-native-English-speakers.

Of course, some can not or will not. Only thing: The ones that "can not", should not enlist as as English-Teachers, trying to teach Thai-Kids "English".IMHO.
Cheers.  

[Ruffian Dick]

In the States, the news programs have been using the expression "gone missing" to describe some poor soul that has disappeared. One a good day I can think of half a dozen other Britishisms we are (temporarily?) borrowing as well.

[Boon Mee]

On 9/9/2017 at 8:23 PM, oldhippy said:

There is no such thing as British English.

There is loso and hiso English in the uk, plus many languages in between, plus many dialects.

 

The neutral English is Kiwi English.

And no, I am not a Kiwi.

But I love them.

 

 

 

Neutral English is what they speak in California.

Not the San Fernando Valley ...

[craigt3365]

On 9/10/2017 at 1:14 PM, thaibeachlovers said:

Used to be that British tv employed people that spoke properly. Unfortunately, all British public speakers now seem to talk like chavs. It's no wonder that all the sheeple think that's the norm.

What makes it worse is that anyone that does speak properly is bullied for being an upper class wally, true or not.

Even the ability to write correct English grammar seems to be vanishing.

Whats a chav?  A wally?

[Trentham]

I am sick of Google telling me I have made spelling mistakes.

[faraday]

Yup, went into McDonald's & was asked if I wanted to "upsize" my order.

 

Now, the correct form would have been:

 

"Sir, would you care to have a larger burger?"

 

My reply would have been:

 

"Madam, my burger is large enough"

[Boon Mee]

16 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:

Whats a chav?  A wally?

Basically, a w*nker of low social standing.

Edited September 15, 2017 by Boon Mee

[craigt3365]

Just now, Boon Mee said:

Basically, a w*nker of low social standing.

Thank you.

[Naam]

On 9/10/2017 at 2:07 PM, canuckamuck said:

they figured out if you take that bad coffee in Italian sizes and drown it in milk and sugar and all other forms of confectionery until there is no coffee taste left.

and then they called it "latte" (Eyetalian for milk) most neckhair raising are americanised French words as far as pronunciation is concerned, e.g. "lawngeray" for "lingerie" or the use of the expression "attitude" without an adjective

[anon467367354]

when was the last time shopping online you clicked "add to trolley"?