Thanks to the dumbing down of the American educational system,as well as news sources in the mass media, many Americans have little or no knowledge of the rest of the world. When I was a public school student forty odd years ago, geography was a regular part of the curriculum. In the "teach to test" environment forced upon today's schools (I have a daughter in middle school, and friends with kids in high school and colleges- I hear about what they learn, and their world views), it's largely nonexistent. Flip on any major news show, or open your newspaper. You'll see endless coverage of Michael Vick, pop tarts in distress, or John Edward's haircut. (I think Mitt Romney should demand equal time for his makeup consultation.)What you don't see is coverage of Darfur, unless some celebrity is involved, or even much about real issues in Europe, Asia, and the rest of the Americas. The "news" about Iraq is more carefully spun talking points than direct coverage of events. Flip to BBC or German TV coverage, or surf to even a Canadian newspaper and compare.

Why is this important? How else can we get led into Iraq with a majority of us believing Saddam Hussein was behind the 9/11 attacks? Why are so many oblivious to the total dependency of our economy on China, from shoes to Treasury bonds? How many are aware that at the start of NAFTA, a Mexican government minister predicted that ten million peasant farmers would be driven of their land and into cites, looking for work? (He viewed this not as a disaster, but as a great source of cheap labor- gosh, can you find the cities they came to on a map?)

Five hundred cable channels, but the revolution that is taking place all around us is not televised. Say, did you see Britney's ass?

It may not be necessary to know exactly where Iraq is on a blank map, but you should be able to at least identify the region it's in. Having a good idea where a country is -- especially a country that has an influence on your own -- at least gives you an idea of the flavor of its influence and what politics and history might be behind it. Reading a world map for countries, especially key countries, isn't just identifying a physical location but showing your understanding of history and culture behind it.

[...]

Farhad Manjoo at salon.com demonstrates what critical thought is all about.

[...]

http://www.blinkgeo.com/RantsRaves/One_Fifth_of_Americans_Cant_Find_the_U-S-_on_a_Map_Fact_or_Fiction/

Just as an aside, I was puzzled as to why Manjoo said her Facebook page made her hard to like or defend. Seems to read like a typical Facebook page to me. I suspect most teens in her shoes would employ similiar online defense mechanisms to cope with the embarrassment.