Oct. 1, 2007
Rudy Visits Controversial Cheesesteak Shop
At Geno's Steaks, Sign Went Up Reading "This Is America. When Ordering Please Speak English."
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Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani visits Geno's Steaks in south Philadelphia on Monday Oct. 1, 2007. (AP)
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Rudy Giuliani and his wife Judith visit Geno's Steaks in Philadelphia, Oct. 1, 2007. (CBS)
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Monday night Rudy Giuliani visited a famous Philadelphia cheesesteak restaurant that serves as much controversy as it does calories.
Geno's Steaks has been a famous Philly hot-spot for years. It was thrown into the headlines last year when the owner posted a sign at the counter that reads, "This is America. When Ordering Please Speak English."
The national spotlight on the restaurant and its owner, Joey Vento, came at a time when both the media and Congress were fixated on illegal immigration - a subject that Republican candidates have been returning to in the past few months.
Giuliani, who has had to defend his record on illegal immigration as mayor of New York City, seems determined to prove he is a strong opponent of illegal immigration. Vento believes him.
"He's the right man - he's tough," Vento tells CBS News. "I'm hoping from what I've read so far about him - I believe we're on the same page as far as illegal immigration."
In the past few months, Giuliani has offered a slew of proposals signaling that he wants to end illegal immigration: increased electronic surveillance at borders, more patrol stations, "tamper-proof ID cards," and enforcing immigrants' fluency in English.
"We should make certain that they can read English, write English and speak English," Giuliani has repeated over the past several weeks at campaign stops and in radio ads - a sentiment that echoes Vento's views.
"Immigration is wonderful," Giuliani said on Monday, according to the Associated Press. "Immigration is the best thing we have going for us. We need new people. We need people who are going to inform us, give us new ideas, but it has to be legal.
"Illegal immigration is a bad thing," he added.
Vento says even if you speak fluent English, "if you're not a legal citizen, you need to get out of this country. People say we can't get rid of them. We can get rid of them in a heartbeat."
Vento is currently awaiting a court hearing regarding his sign. According to Vento, the complaint says that he's "violating and discriminating against a certain group which they don't identify."
"But the sign doesn't say we won't serve you if you don't speak English," adds Vento.
All in all, the staff at Geno's Steaks is excited that Giuliani will make a stop at the steak-and-cheese joint tonight. Whether the candidate will use the event to take aim at illegal immigration or just to meet the locals at a Philadelphia landmark is unclear, but its owner says he'll ask Giuliani to be on his side.
"We're not going to agree on everything, but I hope we agree on illegal immigration," Vento says. "Take care of Americans first, that's what Joey Vento has to say."
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- Since when is it ''racist'' of a shop owner to want to know what his customers would like to order? I don''t blame him for preferring his customers to speak English, just to process customers'' orders quicker if nothing else.
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- I can''t understand what they''re saying if they speak only Spanish & can''t understand English. Easier to do business where English is spoken so I can see Vento''s point in putting that sign up. Mexicans should learn enough English to order a sandwich if they''re going into an American sandwich restaurant. They came here. I wouldn''t expect them to understand English if were in Mexico instead of up here.
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- Sorry, Draftreid, it''''s MY country, and I will kick your stupid racist little butt into oblivion before I get out. Now, go school yourself on the difference between a "lefty" and a "fascist," so you can stop looking so ignorant.
Posted by SFTodd at 12:50 PM : Oct 02, 2007
That''s true, Lefties are not facists, the right has that honor, the left is socialist/communist - Reply to this comment
- how about:
"This Is America. If you don''''t like what you see, go next door."
Posted by parrots7 at 11:55 AM : Oct 02, 2007
The canadians don''t want the illegals either. - Reply to this comment
- Hey, the Americas used to be just a part of Pangaea - maybe we should scrap all human languages and talk dinosaur, eh?
Posted by ibsteve2u at 11:31 AM : Oct 02, 2007
Growl, growl, ROAR!!! - Reply to this comment
- why do i care what they speak in as long as they understand me and i understand their english.
Posted by parrots7 at 10:43 AM : Oct 02, 2007
Yes, that is the problem, many if not most, do not understand spoken english, not is their english understandable. Working in retail, I see many non-english speaking people who shop in my store. Many times they have to bring their children, some as young as 4-5yrs, to translate for them. - Reply to this comment
- "...the country has never seen this as an issue until...
Posted by parrots7 at 09:58 AM : Oct 03, 2007"
Apparently, you''ve never lived in one of the border states; California, New Mexico, Arizona or Texas. I''ve lived in 3 of the 4 and have seen it a number of times. They give me the attitude because I don''t understand them? I asked one guy where he was from and he named a town 10 miles away. I told him that I meant, where was he born and he named the same town. Didn''t even put in an effort as a born and raised American to become part of our union. Yet, I''m the one with the problem? I think not. - Reply to this comment
- It is not possible to collect social security benefits if you do not pay into your own SS account. That leads me to my second point. If some illegal worker wants to use my SS # to get a job and pay payroll taxes into my SS account, then I welcome it.
Posted by eggy1620 at 09:01 AM : Oct 02, 2007
If that was the case. Most that use stolen id/ss to get employment claim so many dependents that little if anything gets held out of their checks. That way when the feds decide to investigate you, you are left holding the proverbial bag. - Reply to this comment
- I''d rather deal with a person who puts in the effort to speak English and speaks it poorly than put up with a person with an attitude because I don''t understand Spanish.
- Reply to this comment
- This is America. We speak English here. I agree 100%. Learn it or leave.
- Reply to this comment
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- What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Answer: bilingual. What do you call someone who speaks three languages? Answer: trilingual. What do you call someone who speaks only one language? Answer: An American! Posted by huskerarmy at 02:04 PM
This joke actually speaks to the ethnocentric views of many, but not all, US Americans. History shows that Americans valued other languages so much less than their own, that they forced thousands of Native Americans to give up their language, and thereby literally committed ethnic genocide. It wasn''t good enough that the Native Americans learn English, they also had to forget their language and their culture forever. Fortunately, there was some resistance and some languages still survive. Spanish has been a living language within several parts of the US continuously for far longer than the United States has been a country. Nothing is going to change that. All the bigots in the world can scream and shout, but in the end people will do what they want and have a right to. I and others will speak the language we want to, when we want to, where want to, and how we want to, and if some bigot doesn''t like it, too bad. The bigot can go and have a heart attack for all I care. - Reply to this comment
- And I have never experienced hostility for not speaking the local language. I heard a joke while in Coast Rica. What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Answer: bilingual. What do you call someone who speaks three languages? Answer: trilingual. What do you call someone who speaks only one language? Answer: An American!
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Posted by huskerarmy at 02:04 PM : Oct 02, 2007
You must not ever have been to Paris on the Champs Elysee. Or since you do not understand other languages, you do not recognize the subtle derision and defamatory remarks made about you as an American--since they say it in their own tongue. Trust me, though many speak English--they look down on Americans who are soo ethnocentric that they cannot speak their language---believe it, I once heard 2 Italian waiters taking orders from a table full of Americans, they charmed the girls with Italian phrases that had them giggling--but perhaps they would not have giggled sooo hard, if they knew what that the waiters had called them fat, ugly, smelly American ******. - Reply to this comment
- Amen Joey. And we welcome all legal immigrants--who come in through the system. And we do not condone those who cut in the line. Line jumpers are not only breaking civil laws--they are cheaters from the get go--with no respect for the others waiting in front of them. They have no place in America and no one should support their being here--no matter what their circumstances are.
There are plenty in the legal line, who could "do the jobs Americans don''t want to do" and there are plenty in the legal line with horrible sob stories. We don''t need the cutters--no matter how hard they work, they start out by being cheaters, they cheat the system, cheat the American workers and cheat the people in the legal line ahead of them. And if they don''t want to speak or learn English--they can stay in the countries they come from. - Reply to this comment
- Hey Joey Vento-- what if I walk in speaking Calabrese or Sicilian? I bet you''d have no problem with that, you old son of a gun. Ciao bello, Alfredo
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- For all you 3 grade graduates I have been in more countries then you have been in states in fact I probably have been in more countries then you have been in different counties and for your information English is the Universal language. But leave it to some nut case to try to make a big deal of it. I went to Russia and the signs were in English. I went to China and guess what signs in English. They speak the language but most of you 3rd grade educated idiots can barley speak English. I know kids here who have only been in this country for a year that speak better English then most of you. So please stop trying to make a wedge between Americans we are on to your games not and are just tired of them.
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- If I were you DaveGF, I would be very careful of who you call a Vinny Spaghetti when you get to that neighborhood you just might make it into the next batch of meatballs.
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- I think it is great the way this business has taken a stand. I feel that all immigrants should learn our language, English, and come to this country in the proper way. Not slipping across the border or on boat. If they don''t know it when they first arrive, then they should learn it in a reseasonable time frame. That is only right. If not then they should go back to the country they came from.
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- Well husker, observations like that just prove that you must be a member of the liberal Soros Clintoon Ted Kennedy is fat defeatocrat neo-nazi KKK-Byrd liberal homoloving terrorist cuddling Rathergate fascist unhinged far left Bush hating Sesame Street watching liberal media conspiracy.
Did I miss anything? - Reply to this comment
- "If you read the piece..."
Posted by shingles1
But why read when Rovian-Limbaugh-Coulter style sound bites, talking points and swift-boating has served them so well? - Reply to this comment
The road ahead in Afghanistan, and the crucial decision Obama faces.
