dunbother I actually agree with you, but at the same time I do see the reasoning behind such an apparent contradiction -- it's almost a lesser-of-two-evils kind of dilemma, where the given, about which nothing can be done, is that there will be a substantial population of non-English speakers. This is, I repeat, simply a given, so don't try to do an end-run around the argument by asking why they're here in the first place, etc. -- separate, though related, issues, those. Now, you've got a democracy, and you've got all these people who do not have a voice. Why don't they just learn English? For whatever reason, many simply will not -- not really. So you've got these non-English speakers. That has lead, historically, to great injustice. So you give them the vote, insofar as this way they aren't as likely to suffer discrimination, etc., or at least can have some recourse. Witness Muslim rage in Europe for an example of a perpetual foreign clbutt.... As well, they pay taxes, and the social contract is imagined in such a way in a modern democracy that every one who contributes ought to have a say. Etc.
|
