本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛I am very happy to see that more and more friends are contributing to our forum. However, one thing has been a puzzle to me. Since most of visitors at this site are existing or would-be Canadian permanent residents, why don't we discuss IT-related issues using English? I do believe we need to use our mother tongue if we want to discuss Chinese literature such as the Dream of Red Mansion (The Story of a Stone).

I understand that many friends in Canada are experiencing great pressure. To be or not to be, it is a question. It is no use to complain about Canada's system. Since we have chosen to live in Canada, we must be down-to-earth. One of commanding tasks is to learn English. If one is not self-motivated in this matter, he/she will be severely confined in the Chinese communities. However, we cannot always elude some issues that needs your English proficiency. I can enumerate a bunch of cases in which you need to use English:

1) If you are a programmer, you may need do a presentation or attend a conference call

2) If you are going to buy a car, you need to bargain with dealers.

3) If you are going to fix your car, you need to understand a lot of terms related to a car, such as idle, thermostat, front wheel bearings, muffler, dash lights, suspension, hood, .... just name a few.

4) If you are going to see a doctor, you need be able to describe your symptoms .

5) If you wish to plan for your retirement, you need to know a lot of financial jargons.

6) If your kids are going to school, you need to review a lot of papers they bring home on Friday.

One can add more to this list.

Maybe I am carrying coal to New Castle. If one or two friends follow my suggestion, I think I have not wasted my time in writing this note.更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net