May I Borrow Some Language?

A la carte: native to the French language, used by American English speakers quite often in restaurant settings. This phrase, along with many others, are examples of how non native words and phrases enter our language and become part of our everyday speaking and understanding of American English, so to say. Takako Tomoda explores this idea on Japanese in the article "The impact of loan-words on modern Japanese." Tomoda discusses not only the use of foreign words in general (called either "loan-words", or "gairaigo" in Japanese), but how it impacts understanding, changes and shapes culture (for better or worse), and is "used to fill the lexical gap." (241)

On the point of filling a lexical gap, Tomoda discusses how the use of loan-words, specifically from English, provide a clearer understanding of an idea or topic being discussed, even if there may happen to be a Japanese equivalent. For example, Tomoda provides a table in the text of gairaigo derived from English that are commonly used, one being the verb phrase, kyacchiappu suru (lit. "to catch up"). This phrase is, especially by younger people, preferred to the native Japanese equivalent, "oitsuku" (verb, lit. "to catch up", "to overtake") because it's easier to think of, and provides a more direct meaning or idea of "catching up" to someone or something, rather than also wondering about the additional meaning of overtaking something that comes with the native "oitsuku." (239) Now a days, though, it's just a lot trendier of a thing to say (girls go ga-ga over cute phrases like this one.) 

The counter argument to the use of loan-words, naturally, is from the older generation. Tomoda refers to some writings of other authors on this topic that state things like, "Their arguments tend to be based on the following notions: the rapid increase in gairaigo is placing the survival of the Japanese language in danger; the use of confusing and vague gairaigo is impeding communication and creating social division; the reliance on borrowing for expanding the language is impoverishing people's 'language life' (gengoseikatsu); the influx of English words is facilitating dominance by America; and the use of faddish gairaigo is leading to a shallow society." (233) The quote pretty much explains itself, I think. 

The other gripe older folks, as well as a variety of others in Japan, native or not, is that some loan-words don't really have a clear, understandable meaning. For example, the loan-word, "wanpisu" (one-piece) is in reference to a single dress, or a one piece skirt. "Wanpisu" literally would sound like "one piece" to the native English speaker's ear, but all that it does is make an English sound, rather than provide a meaning that makes sense. This idea is called "waseieigo", or Japanized English (an entire topic in itself, but I'll end here on it.)

How would you relate this to the way we speak English in the U.S. and the words we use? Is this kind of thing necessary in language or is it toxic?