Dumb and dumber?

bolo121 · 02-15-2008, 10:35 AM

Hand-wringing About American Culture - Are Americans Hostile to Knowledge? - New York Times

Quote:

A popular video on YouTube shows Kellie Pickler, the adorable platinum blonde from “American Idol,” appearing on the Fox game show “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” during celebrity week. Selected from a third-grade geography curriculum, the $25,000 question asked: “Budapest is the capital of what European country?”
Ms. Pickler threw up both hands and looked at the large blackboard perplexed. “I thought Europe was a country,” she said. Playing it safe, she chose to copy the answer offered by one of the genuine fifth graders: Hungary. “Hungry?” she said, eyes widening in disbelief. “That’s a country? I’ve heard of Turkey. But Hungry? I’ve never heard of it.”
Such, uh, lack of global awareness is the kind of thing that drives Susan Jacoby, author of “The Age of American Unreason,” up a wall. Ms. Jacoby is one of a number of writers with new books that bemoan the state of American culture.

Hmm so what do the wab americans think?
The few americans I've met have seemed intelligent people but then again they were well educated university/travelling types.

GAU-8 · 02-15-2008, 10:40 AM

In a country of 300 million people, it's easy to find an uneducated person to put in front of a camera.

Cactus · 02-15-2008, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bolo121

Hand-wringing About American Culture - Are Americans Hostile to Knowledge? - New York Times

Hmm so what do the wab americans think?
The few americans I've met have seemed intelligent people but then again they were well educated university/travelling types.

Have you seen a recent video of a 2 or 3 year old girl ("Lily" I think), who has basically the whole world political map memorized? The cameraman - I presume her father or relative - goes through a list of countries and she points it off on the map. Its not just a few big countries or stereotypical high-porfile regions either, that kid's fingers are like friggin JDAMs!

Anyway, the point is it takes all kinds to make up a society.

IMHO Americans are lot more tolerant of fellow countrymen ignorant of what is usually shown as "common knowledge" than others. In turn it has meant that in 1 out of 10 cases an American who hasn't had to spend time and energy catching up to the the expected "common knowledge", instead spend his/her time creating and spreading new knowledge.

dave lukins · 02-15-2008, 13:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GAU-8

In a country of 300 million people, it's easy to find an uneducated person to put in front of a camera.

Without these hand picked people there would be no show. She can probably change a tyre, fix a plug and cook a meal..all the useful things in life.

omon · 02-15-2008, 13:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave lukins

Without these hand picked people there would be no show. She can probably change a tyre, fix a plug and cook a meal..all the useful things in life.

she pbly needs only one tool, to do all that, a telephone.

Adux · 02-15-2008, 13:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave lukins

Without these hand picked people there would be no show. She can probably change a tyre, fix a plug and cook a meal..all the useful things in life.

Dave,

Do you know what Jeremy Clarkson opinion is about America

GAU-8 · 02-15-2008, 13:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave lukins

Without these hand picked people there would be no show. She can probably change a tyre, fix a plug and cook a meal..all the useful things in life.

Precisely Dave. It is on TV.

The purpose of the show is to sell humiliation. Sponsors of the show know we'll sit and watch this drivel and subsequently, their commercials.

If foreigners want to point at this crude entertainment as proof once again of how bad America is, fine.

Yawn.

Ms. Jacoby got some free press for her book sales. But she needn't worry. A few Americans know Hungary is a country. A few Americans know precisely where all the countries are. That's how we're able to load their coordinates into our ICBMs.

dalem · 02-15-2008, 14:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by omon

she pbly needs only one tool, to do all that, a telephone.

She sits on the only tool she'll need for a while.

-dale

omon · 02-15-2008, 15:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dalem

She sits on the only tool she'll need for a while.

-dale

true that, but is it a tool, or the payment for the job?

dave lukins · 02-15-2008, 15:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adux

Dave,

Do you know what Jeremy Clarkson opinion is about America

The same as what he thinks about EVERY Country. He hates everyone, except Jeremy Clarkson.

Adux · 02-15-2008, 16:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave lukins

The same as what he thinks about EVERY Country. He hates everyone, except Jeremy Clarkson.

I am a fan, and I admire his nationalism. He thinks Brits are the greatest gift to mankind,..lol

I loved his Victoria Cross series.

Exarecr · 02-15-2008, 16:31 PM

While training in Wainright Alberta we had an American Infantry unit attached to our Battalion and we had them so convinced we had regular nightly beaver stampedes I am fairly certain they stayed awake all night to meet the fateful attack,which didn't materialize by the way (must have been a hockey game on) Of course,while training with the Americans down South in Georgia I believe, didn't I spend most of my first night in the bush watching out for"swamp monkeys" that apparently jumped out of trees onto the unsuspecting. Fools are but one good yarn away.

gunnut · 02-15-2008, 17:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bolo121

Hand-wringing About American Culture - Are Americans Hostile to Knowledge? - New York Times

Hmm so what do the wab americans think?
The few americans I've met have seemed intelligent people but then again they were well educated university/travelling types.

Hell I don't even know what country's capital budapest is, and I'm fairly knowledgeable on world geography. One problem is the map keeps changing. Is Germany's capital still Bonn? What's the capital of Serbia? What will be the capital of Kosovo? I just found out Burma's capital wasn't Rangoon! Someone moved the capital.

Southie · 02-15-2008, 17:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bolo121

Hand-wringing About American Culture - Are Americans Hostile to Knowledge? - New York Times

Hmm so what do the wab americans think?
The few americans I've met have seemed intelligent people but then again they were well educated university/travelling types.

I watched the American Idol with Kellie Pickler and I truly think most of how she acted was just that. A big act! She gave blonds everywhere a bad name!!

Shamus · 02-15-2008, 19:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exarecr

While training in Wainright Alberta we had an American Infantry unit attached to our Battalion and we had them so convinced we had regular nightly beaver stampedes I am fairly certain they stayed awake all night to meet the fateful attack,which didn't materialize by the way (must have been a hockey game on) Of course,while training with the Americans down South in Georgia I believe, didn't I spend most of my first night in the bush watching out for"swamp monkeys" that apparently jumped out of trees onto the unsuspecting. Fools are but one good yarn away.

Beaver stampedes??"Wooden" that be "dam" dangerous to be caught in front of??

Snipe hunt anyone??

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02-15-2008, 10:40 AM	#2 (permalink)
GAU-8 Old Cold Warrior *Military Professional* Join Date: 02-14-07 Location: Grapevine, Texas Posts: 580 Country:	In a country of 300 million people, it's easy to find an uneducated person to put in front of a camera.

02-15-2008, 16:31 PM	#12 (permalink)
Exarecr *Military Professional* Join Date: 10-18-07 Location: Kingston Ontario Canada Posts: 454 Country:	While training in Wainright Alberta we had an American Infantry unit attached to our Battalion and we had them so convinced we had regular nightly beaver stampedes I am fairly certain they stayed awake all night to meet the fateful attack,which didn't materialize by the way (must have been a hockey game on) Of course,while training with the Americans down South in Georgia I believe, didn't I spend most of my first night in the bush watching out for"swamp monkeys" that apparently jumped out of trees onto the unsuspecting. Fools are but one good yarn away.

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