Multilingualism: The language of everything

There is an increasingly common view in many Western countries that if you wish to live there, you should learn the culture, respect the local way of life and make an effort to learn the language. These are all reasonable expectations. But while this seems easy to understand and even respect, there is often a contradiction. Many of the countries where this view is most prominent are English-speaking nations whose citizens are among the least likely to speak a second language. And while that would not be such a great issue if people never left their home countries, they do.