Michael Paige ("Don't declare English U.S. national language," Dec. 2 letter): I am interested how you wrote, "I suppose that's just because English is the language of Americans" in reference to other countries' uses of English in ATMs and the like. I'm sorry, but I take it you aren't aware of how many countries have the official language of "English"?

Did you know that those in England, which once had an empire larger than any other, speak "English"? The English language has been around much longer than this country.

Yes, I do believe America is getting stupider (all those people who couldn't find New Jersey) and should be taught a second language. But until then, don't mistake Americanization for globalization. This "melting pot" needs standards so there isn't mass chaos at the grocery store because no one speaks the same language.

How many languages do we need to know? From how you speak, it sounds like we should know all of them. I'd like to see you try that yourself.