It all comes down to geographs, I'm afraid. I studied French through HS & college, and I even got reasonably proficient. But alas, there's not a lot of French spoken in South Dakota. By now I've lost all I've learned due to decades of disuse.
Certainly in many parts of the world it's hard to function or travel without functional knowledge of other languages. If you take a 500 train trip in Europe, you may encounter several languages.
Just as bad as the average American's unwillingness to learn foreign languages is many immigrants unwillingness to learn English. If you moved to Germany and expected the natives to accomodate your desire to speak English, it would be considered the height of arrogance. So why is it different if for those who move here?