Should I learn Standard Chinese

[Jarnhamar]

Standard Chinese or Mandarin?

I can't go in to a store anymore without most of the items seemingly being manufactured in China.  Not just at Walmart but places that even sell tactical equipment. EVERYTHING is made in China. Do they even need an army if they own the economy?  It's actually kinda disconcerting.

 

[Stevenhh]

What do you mean by "standard" Chinese?

Being from China/Taiwan makes you Chinese.
The language itself is Mandarin.
Then Mandarin splits into Traditional or Simplified.
Orally spoken, they're both the same (not including dialects) while the written characters are different.

But regardless, it's always nice to learn another language! Especially when a good 1.something billion people know it.

 

[Jarnhamar]

What do you mean by "standard" Chinese?

Being from China/Taiwan makes you Chinese.
The language itself is Mandarin.
Then Mandarin splits into Traditional or Simplified.
Orally spoken, they're both the same (not including dialects) while the written characters are different.

But regardless, it's always nice to learn another language! Especially when a good 1.something billion people know it.

"Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin, Putonghua and Modern Standard Mandarin, is a standardized variety of Chinese and the official language of the People's Republic of China[3] and the Republic of China (Taiwan), and is one of the four official languages of Singapore."

 

[DexOlesa]

I will assume he meant Cantonese vs Mandarin

 

[Stevenhh]

"Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin, Putonghua and Modern Standard Mandarin, is a standardized variety of Chinese and the official language of the People's Republic of China[3] and the Republic of China (Taiwan), and is one of the four official languages of Singapore."

Well I guess you answered your question. 
It'll come in handy if you ever visit Vancouver -especially Richmond.

 

[dimsum]

Orally spoken, they're both the same (not including dialects) while the written characters are different

I'd like to know how else it would be spoken  ;D

On-topic:  Mandarin is "easier" than Cantonese in that there are less tones (4 vs. 6) that will drastically change the meaning of the word.  It's a little tough to explain, but everything in Chinese (no matter the dialect) is dependent on the tone of the character/word. 

Also, Cantonese is just one of the 1000s (albeit one that's well-known outside of China due to immigration) of dialects.  Mandarin is the state language that technically all Chinese people in China/Taiwan/Singapore learn.  If you were to go touring around the PRC, Cantonese won't really help you outside of the city of Guangzhou/Canton; it's that localized.

Still, learning to read/write Chinese in any form is damn hard (and easy to forget, as I'm noticing right now.)