In some businesses I've been to in the United States that advertise themselves as having bilingual staff, I've noticed that most of the workers are Mexicans who yes, speak Spanish very well, but their English is horrible. I'm not trying to make fun of them for their English, but seriously, it seems like bilingual these days means "Spanish required, English optional". I myself speak Spanish way better than some of these people speak English, and yet I doubt I would ever be taken seriously trying to get a bilingual job in California because they can always just go hire a Mexican who speaks Spanish better than me, but who speaks English far worse than me. I just can't understand why there is so much emphasis on Spanish skills but almost none on English. And as a side question, why does it seem like the majority of Chicanos I've met are so arrogant about knowing both languages from birth? I even had one insisting that I'm not a true bilingual because I didn't learn Spanish from birth.
Not one of you understood my question. My question is why do EMPLOYERS care so much about Spanish proficiency but almost nothing about their English proficiency. My question had nothing to do with immigrants refusing to learn English. My question is, why is it that someone who speaks Spanish at a 100% level but English at only a 25% level is hired over someone who speaks English at a 100% level and Spanish at a 75% level. It seems like to be considered "bilingual" you really just have to speak Spanish only, as long as you can get by in English you're bilingual, but if you speak English natively, you have to speak Spanish very well or else you're not bilingual. That was my question: why when it comes to being judged as a bilingual or not, native English speakers have to speak Spanish a lot better than native Spanish speakers have to speak English.

I'm Irish-American, but I can speak Spanish. I speak it every day at work, sometimes I use it outside of work but not really. I don't speak it to people the first time I meet them, unless I find out they don't speak English. Alot of the time I hear people saying that women that are native Spanish speakers love Americans that speak Spanish, but I never know which language to use when I meet someone because I don't know if they'll be offended.

Does one set of speakers look down on the other, or view one version of the language to be inferior? Also, is there much communication between the two (I've heard South American TV shows are becoming increasingly popular in Spain, is the converse true)? Would a native of Spain think less of a non-native Spanish speaker if they chose to learn the Latin American version of the language? And finally, are there any problems between understanding each other (or is it merely a different accent, like US/UK English)?

Sorry for all the questions!
Sorry, by "non-native Spanish speakers" I meant to say "non-Spanish speakers"