Tuesday - May 02, 2006

Using Both Hands And A Roadmap

Americans are lost. We can’t find s**t. It’s a wonder our troops were even able to FIND Iraq or Afghanistan, much less invade those countries. At least that’s what National Geographic found out recently. It’s a good thing we have smart people like Dubya to draw maps and create strategery.

What amazes me is the millions of Mexicans who manage to find America on a map and across the desert in the dead of night. Perhaps we could hire some of them to teach our school kids where the rest of the uncivilized world hides.

Speaking of which, how many of you can locate on a map the following countries: (1) Andorra, (2) Benin, (3) Bhutan, (4) Suriname, (5) Nunavut. Give yourself 20 points for each one you can locate. Ten points extra credit if you can find your a** without using both hands and a roadmap ....

Poll Shows Many Young Americans
Can’t Find Louisiana or Iraq on Map
_{May 2, 2006, 10:06 AM EDT}

Despite the wall-to-wall coverage of the damage from Hurricane Katrina, nearly one-third of young Americans recently polled couldn’t locate Louisiana on a map and nearly half were unable to identify Mississippi. Despite nearly constant news coverage since the war there began in 2003, 63 percent of Americans aged 18 to 24 failed to correctly locate the country on a map of the Middle East. Seventy percent could not find Iran or Israel. Nine in ten couldn’t find Afghanistan on a map of Asia. And 54 percent were unaware that Sudan is a country in Africa.

Remember the December 2004 tsunami and the widespread images of devastation in Indonesia? Three-quarters of respondents failed to find that country on a map. And three-quarters were unaware that a majority of Indonesia’s population is Muslim, making it the largest Muslim country in the world.

Among the findings:

* One-third of respondents couldn’t pinpoint Louisiana on a map and 48 percent were unable to locate Mississippi.

* Fewer than three in 10 think it important to know the locations of countries in the news and just 14 percent believe speaking another language is a necessary skill.

* Two-thirds didn’t know that the earthquake that killed 70,000 people in October 2005 occurred in Pakistan.

* Six in 10 could not find Iraq on a map of the Middle East.

* While the outsourcing of jobs to India has been a major U.S. business story, 47 percent could not find the Indian subcontinent on a map of Asia.

* While Israeli-Palestinian strife has been in the news for the entire lives of the respondents, 75 percent were unable to locate Israel on a map of the Middle East.

* Nearly three-quarters incorrectly named English as the most widely spoken native language.

* Six in 10 did not know the border between North and South Korea is the most heavily fortified in the world. Thirty percent thought the most heavily fortified border was between the United States and Mexico.

- Get the full story at National Geographic ....

- Here is the full report ....

Posted by The Skipper     on 05/02/2006 at 01:07 PM   
Filed Under: • Stoopid-People •  
• Comments (19) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

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Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

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It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

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