Controversial topics!

Question

I recently had an amazing question-answer session on this website which turned out to be very controversial but productive at the same time. I think controversial topics provoke passion and really take intellectual conversation to a higher level... as long as people keep their wits about them.

I was wondering if you can help me make a list of controversial topics to discuss but seeing how this is a forum for learning Spanish, these topics must have a language/Spanish element to them whether that be cultural, historical, etc...

Lets begin creating a list and then keep your eyes open for the topic to be re-framed in a question shortly after.

Good way to learn history, politics, current events and more!

S

Answer 1

Etymology of Spanish! (ok, maybe I would be the only one interested, I'm a bit of a word fetishist)

• hey! me too! and my favorite dictionary is a leather bound one i own that dates back to 1890. has etymology for everything! - zenejero Nov 9, 2009
• my favorite is the etymology of Hebrew - aloshek Nov 9, 2009

Answer 2

In a future presidential election in the USA, if a candidate came forward that appealed to all of the minority groups in the country, then that candidate might have a good chance of winning.

I started to think of a suitable person and came up with a "Spanish speaking, disabled, dyslexic lesbian, born in California but educated in Tibet with a Muslim girlfriend." Obviously, they wouldn't be Democrat or Republican.

Answer 3

I say forget the next election. Let's stage a coup d'etat, make Spanish and French official languages and throw open the borders. Ok, please don't report me to the CIA or anything, I'm only kidding!

Answer 4

i would suggest the topic of what people think about converting to metric in the united states. oh man!

• About time too..... - 00515f39 Nov 9, 2009
• thank you... first time i have a supporter! i feel... HAPPY! - zenejero Nov 9, 2009
• I use metric at work and archaic at home. People that really want to use the old system should be forced to study slugs and poundals. - lorenzo9 Nov 9, 2009

Answer 5

Shane, you could also start the topic 'how to swear like a toddler in Spanish' and it would be totally and brutally cute yet practical in case a 5 year old calls you 'feo' in the street. (I'm talking about the insults a KG age can tell you. As an example, when I was a kid I used to think the word naive was an insult and I used it often )

Answer 6

There is no de jure (according to law) constitutional official language at the federal level in Mexico. Spanish, spoken by 97% of the population, is considered a national language by The General Law of Linguistic Rights of the Indigenous Peoples, which also grants all indigenous minority languages spoken in Mexico, regardless of the number of speakers, the same validity as Spanish in all territories in which they are spoken. Along with Spanish, the law has granted them –more than 60 languages– the status of "national languages".

Spanish is mistakenly referred to as THE official language of Mexico. It is only de facto (in practice) that Spanish can be considered the official language. It can be thought of as AN official language. Sites that state that Spanish is THE official language are in fact incorrect - there is no legal motion making it so in Mexico.

• Like I said before, it´s technical. - aloshek Nov 9, 2009
• technically, it's only technical! - zenejero Nov 11, 2009

Answer 7

Alright,

Some great ideas. I really like Aloshek's idea to start this whole thing off:

Thoughts on making Spanish an official language in the United States? Canada has French and English, why can't the US officially be a bilingual country as well?

Let the games begin!

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Does anyone think we should open a new forum for every new discussion topic or continue in this one?

Thanks,

S

• I think you should start a new one. People may pass over this thread because they feel they´ve read it already. (Just my thoughts) - aloshek Nov 9, 2009