¿Hablas inglés?

Joe Vento, the owner of Philadelphia's famous Geno's Steaks, the home of the original Philly Cheese Steak, is in all sorts of trouble because in 2005 he posted a sign, telling customers "This is AMERICA: WHEN ORDERING PLEASE 'SPEAK ENGLISH.'"

The Spanish-speaking population immediately pounced on him, calling the sign "intimidation," because it suggested that he did not want certain customers in his establishment. Since 2006, Vento has been the subject of a Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations, which in February found "probable cause against Geno's Steaks for discrimination." Vento did not post a sign that said "Whites Only," he did not post a sign stating, "No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service." He simply asked his customers to order in English. Maybe he wanted to keep the line moving. Maybe he wanted to make sure that people got what they ordered. Maybe Vento thought that in an English-speaking country it is reasonable to ask customers to order in English. When I travel in a foreign country, I try to learn basic phrases because I do not assume that the people of that country speak English (although more often than not in Europe, many do). When walking into a restaurant in Italy, I do not assume that I can order in English. But then I am not the Spanish-speaking population, which has something other than language on their agenda. I applaud that public information is now written in more than one language; I don't even mind that to get an English-speaking customer service representative, I have to punch number 2; but I am not thrilled when special interests groups take aim at a small business owner. I would feel differently if Vento had barred his doors to anyone who was not White or of a certain ethnic group. He didn't do this. No one has been refused service. He simply asked them to speak English.

Clearly, the timing of his sign is the heart of the issue. We have a problem with our porous borders. For years, anybody could get in and out without much hassle. And that includes Chinese workers stealing in by ship, Irish laborers who overstay their visitor visas, and Pakastanis who come as students and stay as IT professionals. If we are serious about Homeland Defense, and we aren't, then the first place to watch for illegals is at the borders. I do not care if 99.9 percent of the illegals from Mexico are clean living, honest, hard working people because some people are not (and how law abiding can you be if you are willing to flaunt immigration laws). Citizens have a right to know who is coming into the United States. Personally, whatever Vento says, I believe his sign had more to do with the immigration debate than anything else. But I don't know what his true motives are because I don't know the man, and neither do the Spanish-speaking activists who started the uproar in the first place. But they sure seem willing to strip him of a business he worked long and hard to build.