[Oyk]

China is going to be the most powerful country in the world, so leaning Chinese is a smart move.

China is already an economic powerhouse.

Now is the taim to send your chewren for Chinese lessons if you don't speak Mandarin at home. 

And those who do speak it at home should aim to speak and WRITE it even better. 

But not everybody can speak more than one language well. 

In our case, it's a disaster. Most Singaporeans can't even speak any language well not to mention two. They can speak a bit of elementary English and a bit of elementary Mandarin, that's about it.

When Singaporeans speak English to Westerners, they feel inadequate. When they speak Mandarin to the Chinese, the latter feel like they're listening to five year olds who have a very small vocabulary and can only speak in very simpurr sentences without the subtlety and beauty of the language.