English has become “lingua franca”

Tom Still raises an interesting point in his latest column:

English has become a second language for much of the world, without anyone in Washington, Madison or elsewhere decreeing it must happen. There are somewhere between 380 million and 400 million native speakers of English – and at least as many others who speak it as a second language. Within a decade, according to a 2004 report to the British Council, 2 billion people will be studying English and half of the world (about 3 billion people by then) will speak it to one degree or another.

English has become “lingua franca,” or universal language, for reasons that speak to the influence of Western culture, economics and politics. The rise of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries spread English beyond the mother islands, and the dominance of the United States since World War II has continued the spread of the language. Today, only Chinese and Hindi are spoken by more people as their native tongue. English is already the world’s most widely learned second language, and millions more are clamoring to learn.

English is the language of the Internet, motion pictures, science and sports. It is the “cash” language spoken in the corridors of trade, and the diplomatic language spoken in the corridors of power. People want to learn English because they need to. It’s necessary for them to function in today’s world.

Why, then, Tom asks, should we legislatively give English a more prominent place in the US by passing a law?

Here's another question: the Left is always complaining that the rest of the world doesn't like us, and that we don't do things like everybody else. Well, here's their chance to be consistent. Everybody should learn English!