tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post9073459646649668674..comments2024-01-03T19:31:59.663-05:00Comments on Blast Furnace Canada Blog: Kenney: Right, and wrong on immigrationBlastFurnacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561725837264524099noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post-40271493387367115632009-03-22T19:20:00.000-04:002009-03-22T19:20:00.000-04:00My immigration officer during the interview said r...My immigration officer during the interview said right in the first minute of the interview that if either one of us (me and the wife) did not know English or French, he was required to withhold the visas. This was 8 years ago. <BR/><BR/>And this has been confirmed by 3 other couples (we know of) who have immigrated to Canada.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post-34861657277265783682009-03-22T17:51:00.000-04:002009-03-22T17:51:00.000-04:00I strongly feel that we can easily develop English...I strongly feel that we can easily develop English skills in new immigrants - without the "cut-off" Kenney is proposing. I do feel, however, that we can't require official language skills of everyone. The VERY LEAST we can do as a nation, is help foster those skills. This helps avoid bad language habits learned in old countries. This also lowers a barrier to immigration.<BR/><BR/>Should we WesternGrithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06658358114507615351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post-30150799396795036542009-03-22T15:02:00.000-04:002009-03-22T15:02:00.000-04:00Rural: Appreciate the comment.Jennifer: I think ...Rural: Appreciate the comment.<BR/><BR/>Jennifer: I think you do have a point there. It may be too much to ask to expect business level fluency from elderly immigrants, especially in the family class. But I still think they should know enough to handle day to day tasks such as grocery shopping, banking, going to the doctors and the like.<BR/><BR/>AVG: I did read the article, and what was BlastFurnacehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02561725837264524099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post-16963120053188970192009-03-22T13:51:00.000-04:002009-03-22T13:51:00.000-04:00I see no problem with our system now. I think its ...I see no problem with our system now. I think its more of an issue with refugees and not immigrants. and its not a huge problem. The second generation speaks perfectly well. I'd even say better than your average oil patch high school drop out or country bumpkin. I see this as just an attack on people who your typical isolated rural conservative just hates for no reason.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post-13677080335260002622009-03-22T13:24:00.000-04:002009-03-22T13:24:00.000-04:00Read the article again bud. Kenney is not advocati...Read the article again bud. Kenney is not advocating knowledge of English or French for potential immigrants, he is advocating knowledge of English or French for potential citizens!<BR/><BR/>Under current immigration law, you can, and many do, immigrate to Canada without any knowledge of English, French or Inuktitut.Altavistagooglehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09301901043837306524noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post-11303662348172729652009-03-22T11:32:00.000-04:002009-03-22T11:32:00.000-04:00My only caveat would be that elderly immigrants sh...My only caveat would be that elderly immigrants should be exempt. I talked a bit about this on <A HREF="http://canadasworld.wordpress.com/2009/03/21/jason-kenney-adding-insult-to-irony/" REL="nofollow">Canada's World</A>, pointing out that a) the older you are, the harder it is to learn a new language, and b) grandparents are an essential part of most immigrant families as they provide stabilityJennifer Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14610902519752808810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-899412892057690390.post-89996073317508123092009-03-22T09:41:00.000-04:002009-03-22T09:41:00.000-04:00Thank you for that. I agree that a basic understan...Thank you for that. I agree that a basic understanding of one or other of our official languages should be part of the critera and am also bothered by insular communities within our "multicultural" Canada. You have expressed it mutch better than I could, expecting imigrants (like myself) to be part of our Canadian identity not isolated from it is not unreasonable.Ruralhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11814103548500393628noreply@blogger.com