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Speaking about Auctions:

D

Dick

Well-known Member
What will happen when one day a person at an auction says: I don't speak English and I don't understand what you're saying?
In our diverse society where English is not the official language and many things have to be printed in several different languages, this could be a BIG problem.
Look how many times you make a phone call and you have a choice for English or Spanish. Drivers manual's are printed in several different languages and much more.
What would an auctioneer tell someone if they said, I don't understand English and I want to buy (for example) that tractor? If the auctioneer said, that's your problem you don't understand English, is he opening himself to a lawsuit? You're discriminating against me because I don't speak English... Oh boy!!! This could turn into a real can of worms..
I hate to even mention this but I can see this becoming an issue one day. So in my opinion, auctioneers better be prepared for the worse and be able to ask of anyone in the crowd can help this person who wants to buy this tractor.
This is one good reason why our country should make English the official language and if you don't understand or speak OUR language, you'd better have someone who does help you.
What do you think?

Dick
 
I used to go to auto salvage auctions out in Co. and Wy. The auctioneer there would be taking bids in "Mexican" and English switching back and forth between bidders. It was fascinating to listen to him do it.
 
What gets me, I drove a truck for 25 yrs. The law says you have to be able to speak and understand English to have a CDL. Why do they print the books you study in other languages. I have seen drivers on the scales for inspection that don't know a word of English.How did they get their CDL.
 
I don't believe auctioneers speak English at all. thus the bidder needs to have some understanding of the process and signals (small finger wiggle, tiny nod, show of number) (and opting out Shaking left right "no", walking away, doing exactly nothing) resisting intimidation etc. I think it is a non-issue. Jim
 
How does someone who does not speak or understand English tell someone else that they do not and want to bid on something. If they use an interpreter the problem is solved.

Joe
 
I know what you mean about that. Loading equipment into shipping containers, the middle eastern guys couldn't understand a word you said, and wouldn't attempt to. The Russian, Czech guys, spoke very little English, but did their best to make sure everyone was understanding each other, and were very helpful. I actually miss working with some of those guys that were regular container haulers.
 
find someone on food stamps & look at one of the letters sent to them. Instructions printed in 7 to 11 languages, depending on the state.
 
What does a bidder need to be able to understand other than the price? I'll bet there are already a lot of areas in the country where close to half the buyers are not native English speakers. And there's a very easy solution: Have a digital display with the current bid, then you don't need to understand a word of what the auctioneer is saying.

I spent several months in Egypt back in 1993. All the store owners kept a digital calculator handy, which they would use to show you how much they wanted for something. Even if the price was marked, it was usually in Arabic characters and difficult to read. ("0" actually means "5" in Arabic, for example.) The calculator display made it easy to show anyone their asking price, regardless of the buyer's native language. And if you wanted to haggle, you could enter your offer on the calculator yourself.
 
On the other side of the coin, when I attended college studying engineering in upstate NY 35 years ago many of the professors spoke english with a very heavy accent (diverse nationalities) making it difficult to understand for this country boy.
 
I would expect them to do as we would be expected to do when we go to an auction in another country, either learn the language or get an interpreter, as the old saying goes "when in Rome do as the Romans do"!!!!!!!!! It should also be "when in America do as the American do"!!!!!!!!
 
If I'm dealing with something over the phone and get that message I have to push 1 for English, I figure heck with it I just take my business elsewhere I REFUSE TO PUSH 1 and if that doesn't satisfy them or isn't politically correct, they don't get my money. I satisfy my OWN priorities God Family and Country not the Left and PC lol. I'm NOT gonna beg people or jump through extra hoops to give them my money. This is America English is our language so why should I have to push 1 ?? If the Left says that makes ma a bad person JUST CALL ME BAD. If I go to other countries that speak a different language do you think when they call they have to dial 1 for their native language?? Maybe so just asking.

John T NOT politically correct and so proud and happy for it
 
The ALMIGHTY DOLLAR is a universal language.

If I can make a buck off you and you only speak Swahili, we'll figure out a way to communicate. Money is a great motivator.

The scenario you presented of the Spanish speaking person at an auction just isn't going to happen. It's silly to even discuss it.
 
I walked into a physics class at Clemson years ago (about 1974) and the young proff could barely speak English. Actually, he was a grad student teaching while the real proff sat in his office as many do.
I dropped the course and took it the next semester with someone I could understand. I was a student that took good notes in class and because of that, I did not have to study much for tests.
Richard
 
I think we would get along lol. Come to Florida next winter and we will sit a spell n visit, maybe Gary will feed you ribs YOU WOULD DO IT FOR HIM.....

You DO NOT have to press 1 for English when I answer lol

John T
 
I also hate to press 1. In fact a few years ago when I pulled all my accounts from bank 1 and moved to bank 2, I told the teller " one of the reasons I pulled my money was, at the ATM. I had to select English."
We are in THE USA!!
 
I have already seen a variation of this happen at a farm auction here in Ontario. Some Sikh ginseng growers showed up late at a farm clearing auction and bid on a Hardi field sprayer until they got it. The three of them started crawling all over the thing after the auctioneer was farther down the line. They started getting all yappy and seemingly upset and took off to the auction trailer and from that point forward they miraculously couldn't understand english......Through various people they got the point across they couldn't understand even basic english and didn't want the sprayer and refused to pay a penny. They tried to get the idea going that the auctioneer was discriminating against them, but the auctioneer played the game right back by making sure he couldn't understand what they wanted. It was funny when he had them sign off their winning bid refusal and suddenly they could read and understand what was going on. To me they were just a few pathetic guys who didn't check a piece of equipment and needed a way out and the auctioneer proved the old stereotype of Canadians being friendly and polite.
 
Sometimes we forget about our heritage. At the age of 16 my Grampa came from Germany, he couldn't speak a word of English. My dad grew up speaking German till he went to school and then learned English there. He taught his parents to speak English at home. Grampa went on and bought a farm and raised 6 kids, served in the army during the Spanish American war. That's the way it was with a lot of families back then and it continues on now, just different nationalities.
 
MarkB_MI- "And there's a very easy solution: Have a digital display with the current bid, then you don't need to understand a word of what the auctioneer is saying."

Heck, at some auctions I've attended, that's a good idea. I couldn't understand the auctioneer yelling the current bid and I speak ONLY English. lol
 
a man that sometimes posts on hear told me about company he works for has been hiring lots of foreigners don't seem to understand english. that makes it hard to work with them. he plans to retire by years end.
 
The issue is that your, like my, ancestors came here legally, and assimilated while not forgetting their culture. Not hoofing it across the border, ignoring laws, and demanding rights. Big difference.
 
"I don't speak English and I don't understand what you're saying?"

Heck, I've spoken English for nearly 68 years and I can't understand what the auctioneer is saying.
 
What irks me about all this spanish is the fact that the goverment lets it become a requirement but when it comes down to a lot of our ansesters native languge it becomes against the law to use or speek it and that is German and as of WW1 it has been against the law to use what our ansesters did. By grandpa omly went up to second grade and German was all that was spoken in school and he was at least second generation born here in the states. Think it still is not legal to teach it.
 
Like I said, the almighty dollar is a huge motivator and the universal language.

Several years ago I was at a model airplane trade show when the Chinese were just starting to make inroads. We made friends with a couple of gentlemen manning a booth, calling themselves "Travis" and "Jarvis." They spoke very broken English, and then with a heavy accent to the point where it was difficult to understand. A customer walked up to the booth and purchased one of the products they had for sale. Travis, in a booming radio voice in perfect English said, "That'll be twenty-nine ninety-nine."

Discrimination? Ain't no discrimination going on here.
 
Amish and some Mennonites school do most beginning class in German- then English language so kids can communicate with the 'English'. 'Public" schools do base in English- but lots of ESL classes for immigrant students. Hassle with some Spanish bilingual instruction- but the La Raza sponsored teachers are having trouble when more than half the students in class don't speak spanish as first language, saying things in spanish and then translating doesn't work when students start cussin' in Chinese, Russian, Hmong as well as German, Serbo-Croation . Lots of Germans got cussed out WW1 and more in WW2, kids told to speak english to avoid incidents. RN
 
I guess the point I'm trying to make in my post is that our country caters too much to those who don't know our language. Maybe many of you don't know that when a non English person goes to a doctor, hospital, court etc. there is a translator provided for them. And guess who pays for that service,,, that's right you and me. Do you think you could go to any other country in the world and have a free translation service? My guess would be no.
In my opinion, if you don't speak or understand our language it should be up to you to hire a translator, not the taxpayers.
Since our government caters to non English speakers, I was just wondering how long it will be before there will so rules or changes at auctions. It seems all it will take is a few people crying to the right government agency: Those auctions are discriminating against me because I don't speak English. Then what do you think will happen?
 
> Do you think you could go to any other country in the world and have a free translation service?

Apparently you haven't traveled much outside the US. You can get around pretty well in most parts of the world if English is the only language you speak. Why? Because just about everywhere, people recognize the importance of being able to speak English as a second language. So, as an American abroad, you are indeed the beneficiary of a "free translation service".

Q: What do you call someone who speaks two languages?
A: Bilingual.

Q: What do you call someone who speaks three languages?
A: Trilingual.

Q: What do you call someone who speaks only one language?
A: American.
 
Yep, you're exactly right. Anywhere else in the world you are likely to find someone around that speaks English, at least well enough to help make the transaction.

Why? BECAUSE THERE'S MONEY TO BE MADE.
 
(quoted from post at 23:01:33 07/10/17) What gets me, I drove a truck for 25 yrs. The law says you have to be able to speak and understand English to have a CDL. Why do they print the books you study in other languages. I have seen drivers on the scales for inspection that don't know a word of English.How did they get their CDL.
Click to expand...


Back when I was a DOT cop we wrote up a few drivers for that. They were out of Quebec and my French was better than their English...and I can't speak French for squat!
 
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