h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I think learning a second language is still quite important, as well as useful, especially because our technology has facilitated international interaction. With all the international commerce and other affairs, being multilingual gives you a great advantage at the very least.

I doubt English will become an international second language, at least not easily. English has far too many irregularities in its grammar and spelling, not to mention all the words that don't sound they same way they're spelled.

Personally, I am indeed learning multiple languages - four to be exact: Chinese, English, Spanish, and Japanese. I definitely get enjoyment from this knowledge, especially since I'm interested in a lot of Chinese, Taiwanese, and Japanese (pop) culture, and it's amazing how much usually gets lost in a Japanese-to-English translation. (I've noticed that professional American translators have a tendency to suck - how does a Japanese word that was originally LOANED FROM ENGLISH get a more accurate translation in the Chinese version than in the English version?)

Learning another language can be great fun, as well as being a great advantage. I think that it is more rewarding to learn the language of a culture that you have an interest in, it can help increase your appreciation and understanding of that culture.

For myself, I speak English, French, Italian, and am starting to learn Russian. I find that surrrounding yourself with as much language material as possible really helps you to get to grips with a language. Don't just rely on coursebooks. Get hold of foreign nexspapers and magazines, use the foreign language subtitles and audio on English dvd's, buy some foreign films, and definately try to travel to the country.

PoochyEXE - was just curious to know if you were considering adding Taiwanese to that list of languages you're learning