Someone may ask me: "Do I know a foreign language?" The facts in some detail are that I took Spanish in high school and was terrible at it. I will never forget how the class guffawed when I mispronounced the sound of "See (Si) Senora" with "Sigh Senora". Since I sensed right away that learning a foreign language is a "bridge too far"for me, I aceeded I would never learn it unless forced to do so by essential life transactions.
It was also a requirement in college, so had two essentially disastrous semesters in undergraduate school (at least in one term receiving an "F") and at FSU (where there a graduate school requirement)---for meeting the requirement took "Reading French" but failed.
As all other diploma requirements were satisfied, it was not until I studied written Spanish on my own in Saint Petersburg some four years later that I finally was able to return to FSU in Tallahassee (in 1976) for a written Spanish test that I at long-last passed.
It was also a requirement in college, so had two essentially disastrous semesters in undergraduate school (at least in one term receiving an "F") and at FSU (where there a graduate school requirement)---for meeting the requirement took "Reading French" but failed.
As all other diploma requirements were satisfied, it was not until I studied written Spanish on my own in Saint Petersburg some four years later that I finally was able to return to FSU in Tallahassee (in 1976) for a written Spanish test that I at long-last passed.
Now I could have answered this "Do I know a foreign language?" question with an answer that in truth would be so general and evasive as to be essentially dishonest. For example, I could strongly and positively affirm "Oh yes, a foreign language was an essential requirement for completing my graduate studies."
Of course we often would much prefer hearing a lie than the gory details necessary to really know and understand the truth. FAIR WARNING: in my campaign for the presidency, do not expect from this candidate grand generalities regarding societal dysfunctions. To the contray, I prefer that our nation hear from a relatively few individuals sharing with other Americans through their personal electronics the in-depth details of their pain and suffering deriving from the poisons of alcohol and/or from shamefully incessant recurrent cannon fodder employee abuse and practices.
No doubt there will be some who will flip the channel to settle for "Great Again" re-runs of the Howdy Doody Show. How many will seek this harbor in the revelry of blind childhood innocence?
No doubt there will be some who will flip the channel to settle for "Great Again" re-runs of the Howdy Doody Show. How many will seek this harbor in the revelry of blind childhood innocence?
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