Keep them stupid and fired up!

[BR_Parkway]

Some very interesting things in this poll - both on what folks don't know - and what they do

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steven-shehori/poll-37-of-americans-unab_b_150933.html

Washington, D.C. -- According to a Gallup/Harris poll released Monday, a full 37 percent of American citizens are incapable of identifying their home country on a map of the United States.

<snip>

"Personally, I believe if fewer people in this world could spot America on a map, we'd have a much better chance of avoiding national tragedies like 9/11," said Chertoff. "You can't attack a country you can't find."

Of the respondents actually capable of pinpointing America on the map of America, their accuracy decreased considerably with each additional query about the country. Asked for the name of the U.S. capital, those polled placed Washington, D.C., fifth behind "Minneapolis-St. Paul," "Mount Rushmore," "America City," and "Whitewater."

Despite Americans' seemingly underdeveloped sense of their own geography, history and domestic policy, they did score high points on the issue of patriotism, calling America "the greatest country in the world" (47 percent), "the best state of all the Unites States" (31 percent), and "a place to definitely explore when I finally get my passport" (22 percent).

[varkam]

1. Hahaha! I love the onion!

Oh, wait a minute...

:facepalm:

[DailyGrind51]

2. That is why NCLB does not emphasize social studies!

NCLB primarily focuses on literacy and math to the neglect of social studies. Go to your average K-8 public school and you will find new math and language arts texts, but history and geography texts that are 8+ years old. The propoenents of NCLB just want our children to be good worker-bees and not free independent thinkers.

[Ganja Ninja]

3. 37% What a coincidence.

Almost the exact same percentage as hardcore conservative voters.

[lanlady]

4. you didn't read the disclaimer at the top of the article

The article is a satire.

[Historic NY]

5. No wonder people need GPS....satire or not

they don't know where they are, where they are going, or where they have been.

[KharmaTrain]

6. Yet We're All "Experts"...

I always laugh when I watch teevee coverage and how all of a sudden they are instant experts on everything from Russia and Georgia to stock derivitives to Illinois politics and so on..and soon everyone else is an "expert" as well...all spreading the same talking points, bullshit and misinformation, but at least they have something to bump their gums about. Sure beats having a real job.

This country has long suffered from a "superiority" complex...as if the world truly does revolve around the U.S. and what happens elsewhere is always gauged on how it "affects us". There's little understanding of other cultures or history...always a "benefit" when we invade their country and try to impose our standards on them and then wonder why they're not greeting us as "liberators". The American arrogance is only trumped by the ignorance to that arrogance.