rude young people whose speach I can't understand - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

davestlouis · #1 03-25-2007, 10:10 AM

I'm beginning to feel like a grumpy old man, but I have noticed that young people, many of whom are African American, speak in a dialect that I just can't understand, to the point that my order at McDonald's has gotten all screwed up twice this past week. They mumble and slur their words to the point that I really have to struggle to understand. I don't see how they think they'll ever succeed in life and get a job that doesn't involve flipping burgers if they can't speak intelligibly.

This is tied tangentially to the thread about Detroit, because the schools are obviously turning out kids who can't talk...I wonder how well they spell and I don't have high hopes for their creative writing skills.

Is this laziness? Do they think it's cool? I don't get it.

TheDon · #2 03-25-2007, 10:17 AM

I dont know.. Im 18 an dI have trouble understanding most people my age...

Jim B. · #3 03-25-2007, 10:22 AM

Then I doubt you'd understand ICE CUBE'S explanation about how the black gangs from Los Angeles tried to take over the drug trade in St. Louis about 15 years ago. (from his album "Death Certificate" (1991)

Anyway: http://www.seeklyrics.com/lyrics/Ice-Cube/My-Summer-Vacation.html

davestlouis · #4 03-25-2007, 10:29 AM

Wonderful...East St. Louis IL and the northern 1/2 of the City of St. Louis are a mess and the lyrics pretty much summarize the situation. Shame they couldn't have come in from LA and renovated some vacant buildings for mid-income people to draw them back into the city...

Brian Carlton · #5 03-25-2007, 10:33 AM

You're just too old and slow Dave. Not keeping up with the times. These young people are the new generation and they are what's going to propel this country forward in the future..............

Wes Bender · #6 03-25-2007, 10:33 AM

You'll enjoy being old and crotchity......... I do.

davestlouis · #7 03-25-2007, 10:39 AM

Oh boy, if these geniuses are the future of our country God help us all! I was thinking they need to take "English as a Second Language" classes so they can communicate with me.

davestlouis · #8 03-25-2007, 10:40 AM

...and get my order right dammit!

Kuan · #9 03-25-2007, 10:44 AM

I had this problem too at Starbucks. I asked for a soy latte, they confused it with chai latte. So I asked them what the problem was, they remade it, same thing. Then they finally figured it out. Soy... chai... soy... chai. Do they sound that similiar?

Brian Carlton · #10 03-25-2007, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davestlouis

...and get my order right dammit!

I really cannot eat the food in most of those places anyway. But, if you must go, the best staff is at McDonalds. Somehow, that company manages to train the kids to do the proper job the first time and without errors.

Now, go to Wendy's on the other hand and be prepared to cut your speech delivery rate to 33% of normal, raise your volume level to 50% above normal, and then be ready to repeat what you just said at least twice.

Just prepare youself before you go in there.........consider it to be moron land.

Palangi · #11 03-25-2007, 10:47 AM

I was in Memphis last week, working in a manufacturing / warehouse environment. One of the forklift drivers drove up and asked me something in some unintelligible dialect. It took 3 repeats before I could figure out that he was asking if I wanted to sell my Mercedes...

Jim B. · #12 03-25-2007, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davestlouis

...and get my order right dammit!

Black rapper ICE CUBE had this to say about young black people working in McDonald's

http://www.seeklyrics.com/lyrics/Ice-Cube/A-Bird-In-The-Hand.html

from his album: "Death Certificate" (1991)

Trakehner · #13 03-25-2007, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davestlouis

I'm beginning to feel like a grumpy old man, but I have noticed that young people, many of whom are African American, speak in a dialect that I just can't understand, to the point that my order at McDonald's has gotten all screwed up twice this past week. They mumble and slur their words to the point that I really have to struggle to understand. I don't see how they think they'll ever succeed in life and get a job that doesn't involve flipping burgers if they can't speak intelligibly.

This is tied tangentially to the thread about Detroit, because the schools are obviously turning out kids who can't talk...I wonder how well they spell and I don't have high hopes for their creative writing skills.

Is this laziness? Do they think it's cool? I don't get it.

Have you ever been to Liverpool?

Kuan · #14 03-25-2007, 10:56 AM

Ebonics isn't the only culprit. I've heard some really difficult to understand hillbilly drawls where it's like they have a permanent wad of tobacco in their cheek.

Then there's the African immigrants who think they're black and try to talk ghetto... don't even get me started.

And some Brits... Cockney?

The Swede · #15 03-25-2007, 10:58 AM

That sort of street talk has no race barriers. While living in WI, I came across plenty of small town white kids who spoke like this. Even SE Asian youth, they think they're gangsta'.

In the medical field, you deal with many lower-middle and lower income people and again, you see this in every race. Even some of the white nurses aides-- wtf?