What a dissaster

[andy_311]

I n my local pub tonight playing the quiz machine Q What year did the Japs attack Pearl Harbour multiple choice question and got it wrong :mad: time to give this game,a few beers and the brain goes into overdrive.:damn:

[Sailor Steve]

Well, you're not American, so it's forgivable. You have no idea how many Americans don't know the answer to that question. As long as you know what year the Germans invaded Poland you should be good. :sunny:

[Armistead]

Steve is right, I always laugh when talkheads go out and ask the public general questions in America. Do they teach history in school anymore.
Still, I was terrible in school, but I loved reading since the 4th grade, often read a book a day....in school.

[Daniel Prates]

Steve is right, I always laugh when talkheads go out and ask the public general questions in America. Do they teach history in school anymore.
Still, I was terrible in school, but I loved reading since the 4th grade, often read a book a day....in school.

I once saw this video, where random people in the streets (americans) are questioned about some basic geography questions. I still remember the funniest answers. Such as "yugoslavia" being a country that starst with the letter U.

[Herr-Berbunch]

I know the year because I always think of the game 1942 - and it occurred the month before 1942.

In a couple of weeks it's Pearl Harbo(u)r Day

[Sailor Steve]

I once saw this video, where random people in the streets (americans) are questioned about some basic geography questions. I still remember the funniest answers. Such as "yugoslavia" being a country that starst with the letter U.
Is the random Brazilian better informed? Does anybody even ask the average Brazilian these kinds of questions? Does anybody even care?

It's easy to pick a target and make fun of them, and in this case it's true - the average American is woefully undereducated about the rest of the world. But videos show that so is the average Briton. I've never seen a video asking the average Frenchman these questions. Perhaps their afraid of what they'll find. Or perhaps they exist, but don't get shown where I live.

So I agree, you're right about our education, but you're wrong to make fun of it or single us out unless you have videos showing the average Brazilian is that much better.

[col_Kurtz]

Well, you're not American, so it's forgivable. You have no idea how many Americans don't know the answer to that question. As long as you know what year the Germans invaded Poland you should be good. :sunny:
And the commies too :oops: (same year, two weeks later).

[USS Drum]

December 7th 1941.

[jcope]

Is the random Brazilian better informed? Does anybody even ask the average Brazilian these kinds of questions? Does anybody even care?

That doesn't seem like a fair comparison. I think I remember hearing that Brazil was one of the better educated European cities.

[Sailor Steve]

That doesn't seem like a fair comparison. I think I remember hearing that Brazil was one of the better educated European cities.
:rotfl2: That made my day! :rock:

[Daniel Prates]

Is the random Brazilian better informed? Does anybody even ask the average Brazilian these kinds of questions? Does anybody even care?

It's easy to pick a target and make fun of them, and in this case it's true - the average American is woefully undereducated about the rest of the world. But videos show that so is the average Briton. I've never seen a video asking the average Frenchman these questions. Perhaps their afraid of what they'll find. Or perhaps they exist, but don't get shown where I live.

So I agree, you're right about our education, but you're wrong to make fun of it or single us out unless you have videos showing the average Brazilian is that much better.

Ooops. I seem to have acidentaly steped on a landmine.

No Steve, the average brazilian sure isn't any better, possibly otherwise. But then again, that never was my point. Neither was making fun of anyone.

[Dread Knot]

What I found more distrubing than ignorance of the date, was the belief among some of our denser US citizens that the Sendai tsunami and Fukushima earlier this year was some sort of divine payback for Pearl Harbor. I think Midway, Guadalcanal, The Marianas, Leyte Gulf and Japan's economic collapse, firebombing and A-bombing, etc. were payback for Pearl Harbor with plenty of interest. It's like these idiots think Japan somehow got off a sucker punch clean. :nope:

And what's the point of divine payback 70 years later?

[Sailor Steve]

No Steve, the average brazilian sure isn't any better, possibly otherwise. But then again, that never was my point. Neither was making fun of anyone.
Sorry I misunderstood. Sometimes it's just the translation. :sunny:

[Herr-Berbunch]

It's easy to pick a target and make fun of them, and in this case it's true - the average American is woefully undereducated about the rest of the world.

What about international journalists? Surely they should know. :D

http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/files/2011/08/CNNTripoli.jpg

[Daniel Prates]

Sorry I misunderstood. Sometimes it's just the translation. :sunny:

Cool SS! Yep, and just to be sure I am not being misunderstood, I quoted that quiz only to point out a stupid remark and perhaps find some cheap laughs on it, and not to say that americans have exclusive ownership on stupidity, or that I quoted a tipical american response.

Actually, I am going to quote some of the most famous idiotic sentences of our former president, much apraised in the international press but regarded as an idiot by his own countrymen:

"I am the son of a woman who was born an analphabet"

"When Napoleon went to china..." (starting a well-propagated speech)

"I'm surprised to arrive in Windhoeck (namibian capital) to find out that it doesn't even feel like an african country"

"Poor is the country that nees martyrs to defend freedom and dead people to defend life"

"For many years, Brazil couldn't even speak to Lybia on account of the americans hating the Lebanese"

"I just went to Gabon (a military dictatorship) to find out how a president can stay in power for 37 years and still apply for reelections"

"All brazilians have reasons to feel optimistic. Perspectives are only bad for the unemployed"

"We are here in this event with some fellows that have phisical disabilities. I can see here M. Arnaldo Godoy, trying to look at me, but he cant because he is blind. Hey Arnaldo I'm here to your left! There, now you're looking at me" (during a conference).

[Elektroniikka-Asentaja]

Dread Knot made the point. I'm Finnish, happy about that and so on (insert the usual patriotic propaganda here) but I hated to see it as well when in some live news some man said that he is happy about the tsunami as the Japanese were finally punished for Pearl Harbor. I was like "FFS guys, you dropped 2 nukes there and think thatit wasn't enough??"

However, as much as I'd like to do it, I don't want to talk bad about Americans because if you have almost 400 000 000 people you can ALWAYS find some over patriotic idiots. You can find them in Finland too just as well as in everywhere else.

- Johnny :salute:

[Sailor Steve]

Dread Knot made the point. I'm Finnish, happy about that and so on (insert the usual patriotic propaganda here) but I hated to see it as well when in some live news some man said that he is happy about the tsunami as the Japanese were finally punished for Pearl Harbor. I was like "FFS guys, you dropped 2 nukes there and think thatit wasn't enough??"
I completely agree. People who say things like that are clueless. They were punished plenty, and when the war was over we did everything we could to make it up to them, just as we did in Germany.

The world has plenty of idiots to go around.

[Platapus]

One thing to keep in mind is that the attack on the US is almost 70 years ago. That qualifies as ancient history to most non-history nuts.

It is like asking people in 1984 about the First World War.

It is probably an anathema to members of this board, but most people really are not interested in history.

Does that really make them uneducated? Not really. It makes them uneducated in the subject of military history.

One could make the argument that "everyone" needs to know about 7 Dec 41, but really it was almost 70 years ago. Yeah, it was a pretty big event..... 70 years ago. A lot has changed since then. We are friends with all of our enemies of WWII. There is a lot of history only 70 years ago that most people don't care about.

It is important to us because most of us here on this forum have interests in history and we play WWII themed video games. Most of the citizens ain't.

We will have to face the fact that soon, WWII will have the same historical interest as WWI for the majority of citizens - There will always be some who are interested in it but most will dimly recognize something about it.

I am less concerned with today's citizens not knowing about an attack 70 years ago but am more concerned with today's citizen not knowing a lot about how today's government works.

[andy_311]

Well, you're not American, so it's forgivable. You have no idea how many Americans don't know the answer to that question. As long as you know what year the Germans invaded Poland you should be good. :sunny:
This I know off by heart because my mum was born on a carrage car out of Warsaw the day the germans Invaded Poland.

[dreadedlyfe]

RR- I am less concerned with today's citizens not knowing about an attack 70 years ago but am more concerned with today's citizen not knowing a lot about how today's government works. Amen.

@andy 311 Wow...gives a little bit more meaning when I invade Poland in HOI3.

I am into history because I am into causation. The butterfly effect. Military history usually stems from this. I am also into prehistory, following the flow of technology, and also language, since they usually went hand in hand. I can feel a diarrhea of a post coming so I'll stop here...:D

[DickDastardly]

To the OP: I wouldn't be too worried about getting the year wrong. Your History teacher may be a bit miffed, but not as mad as your English teacher, who is waiting with 50 lines for mis-spelling disaster :D

[Kongo Otto]

Well, you're not American, so it's forgivable. You have no idea how many Americans don't know the answer to that question. As long as you know what year the Germans invaded Poland you should be good. :sunny:

That remembers me a discussion i had some years ago with a buddy about ww1 and our Grandfathers:
"Where has your Grandpa served?"
"France, the Balkans, Romania, Italy"
"Dude I'm talking about ww1 not about ww2"
:damn:

[CptChacal]

He was shot in the Dardanelles.
Must hurt like hell.

[Sailor Steve]

He was shot in the Dardanelles.
Must hurt like hell.
:rotfl2: :rock:

Reminds me of a scene from JAG, involving a party at the admiral's house.

Admiral: Gunny! How's your wound healing?
Gunny: Just fine, sir.
Gunny's Date: You were shot? Where?
Gunny: New Mexico.