Bern, SWITZERLAND — Almost every American has said or thought that tourists should “learn our language if they are going to visit our country.”

But did you ever stop to think how fortunate you are that everyone around the world is learning your language?

In a way, English speakers just lucked out that their language was drawn out of destiny’s hat. Just think about how far you can go with English.

Take, for instance, the United States and all it has to offer. The United States is an immense country with unlimited opportunity. You can work on the Pacific or Atlantic coast or somewhere in the middle. And you can travel around the entire nation without trouble because it’s all English.

Everyone knows English, right?

Well, not everyone. Contrary to the fact that Americans believe half of the world speaks English, only a little more than one-fourth of the world population does. Even though this percentage may seem low, it isn’t going to stay that way. People around the globe are learning English regardless of their close or distant proximity to an English speaking nation. Why?

Because it is necessary in order to survive in the business world.

In the paper last week, an article reported that Switzerland’s Zurich school system is integrating English into the elementary school curriculum of 7-year-old children. Why? Well, Zurich’s public school administrator, Ernst Buschor, said it is a simple response to the reality of today’s internationalized world.

Switzerland is only one of many countries that is making the English language an early-education priority. In France, children start learning a second language around 10. Their second language is German or English.

For those who choose English, they can pick up German, Spanish or Italian in the third round. But if they don’t, it is a given that English will be their third tongue.

Sure, many American high schools or colleges require some language classes. This elective option is first offered to kids at 12, which is near the limit of learning to speak a language without an accent. Did you know the best time to learn a language is when a kid is four or five?

The real problem is that most people don’t see the point of learning another language. And when you haven’t had the satisfaction of expressing yourself effectively to someone who doesn’t speak English, how could you realize just how cool this is?

For Americans, Mexico and Quebec seem far away, and for most states, both places are. And Europe? Whoa Nelly, you have to have a pretty penny to hop the pond. And people aren’t even curious about what is happening on the other side.

With the ever-growing number of English speakers worldwide, an English speaker’s need for the skill of speaking another tongue is continually decreasing. It’s sad but true.

Even in some non-anglophone countries, English is becoming the language that is spoken at the office.

And the English speaker has the ideal tourist situation. The English traveler can go to Germany, Scandinavia, Italy or just about anywhere else (especially in Europe), meanwhile getting almost everything they need and want.

Even if you don’t know what they are talking about, they know what you are saying because they have done your homework. So don’t complain and don’t insult them — at least don’t do so when they are standing right next to you.

On the contrary, non-English speakers who visit the United States without a tour guide are pretty much at a loss. The likelihood is slim to none that the average American will be able to speak enough German in order to tell a German where to find the nearest toilet (this wouldn’t happen because the German would know English).

And the chances are also remote that an American will be able carry a decent conversation with a French or Spanish visitor, despite the fact our nation borders Canada and Mexico.

Still, Americans and other English speakers don’t really have a good excuse to not learn other languages. Unfortunately, the current circumstances diminish the necessity for us to do so. And these same circumstances are destroying, little by little, the world’s cultural diversity. And it is those who speak only one language who miss out.

The language plays a significant role in a culture’s personality. You change the language you are speaking and the mood changes.

And with the change-up, something is gained — meanwhile, something else is lost. Still, language is the cornerstone of a nation’s character. It gives the ambiance, and it creates the culture.

Maybe this also explains why Quebec insists on having French as its official language and why France is extremely sensitive when it comes to English words. They don’t want to lose what they have going for them.

Other people don’t want to inhabit an all-English speaking planet where everyone wears Levi’s.

And English speakers don’t either because they would have no place to take a holiday.

Let’s hope it doesn’t ever come to that.

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Amanda Fier is a senior in journalism and mass communication from Davenport.