Grave question to the Americans

[Alcibiaties of Athenae]

I never understand why people think Americans don't know geography, I know it just fine, and so do most people.

Let me ask you "worldy fellows" a question:

Where is Hicksville? (This stumped Stormerne, he thought I was kidding with this!)

Where is Oshkosh?

What is the Capital of Bolivia?

Where is Fivepoints?

See? It isn't as easy as you seem to think, knowledge is subjective.

As for the original question, the board's owner, Thunderfall, is an American, making this an American web site, and as such, there is little need to add USA to the location field.

But for the record, I have had NY NY USA from day one at CFC, longer then almost anyone at CFC.

 

[Marzipan]

It's true that most Americans don't know as much about world geography as they should. What's really scary is how many of those who can't find the US on the map are millionaires, and not college graduates

 

[Ohwell]

Originally posted by Alcibiaties of Athenae
I never understand why people think Americans don't know geography, I know it just fine, and so do most people.

Let me ask you "worldy fellows" a question:

Where is Hicksville? (This stumped Stormerne, he thought I was kidding with this!)


But for the record, I have had NY NY USA from day one at CFC, longer then almost anyone at CFC.

It is on Long Island, I lived there until I was 18

It is on NASSAU county.

 

[Jimcat]

Originally posted by Alcibiaties of Athenae
I never understand why people think Americans don't know geography, I know it just fine, and so do most people.

Let me ask you "worldy fellows" a question:

Where is Hicksville? (This stumped Stormerne, he thought I was kidding with this!)

Long Island.

Where is Oshkosh?

Wisconsin.

What is the Capital of Bolivia?

La Paz is where the legislature sits. Sucre is the "legal" capital.

For extra credit, what is the capital of South Africa?

Where is Fivepoints?

Which one?

 

[Maj]

I suggest that some of you read reports and studies conducted by recognized institutions on the educational prowess of a nation's people before posting your highly biased perspectives on the knowledge and intelligence of entire societies. Also take into account that most of the figures you'll encounter will be statistical calculations, which can be very misleading if one does not know how to interpret and challenge them.

Stamping 280 million people with "American" label takes reductionism a few too many steps in the wrong direction. The same can be said of judging the populace of any nation, society or culture.

I put the name of my country name down because I really don't know how many people here know where Ottawa is. And if you do, well done, you can read a map. You MUST be a cultured intellectual pseudo-omniscient deity-like genius.

Since no one really uses italics for much beyond book titles, I'll use it as my sarcasm font.

- Maj

P.S. Why is there a knowltok3 and knowltok2, but no knowlotok?

 

[Franklyn]

Where is Fivepoints?[/B]

I know of Five Points in Jacksonville, Fla. and High Point, N.C., and there's a Little Five Points in Atlanta. (All in the U.S., for the benefit of our international friends.)

I also believe there's a Cinq Pointes just outside Paris and a Petit Cinq Pointes in Lyon ...

 

[VoodooAce]

Originally posted by ainwood



Yes, I really do have to ask.

You must remember that US citizens tend to be a bit more inward-focused than most other cultures. Many have never even left the cities that they were born in, and have no desire to either. Therefore, if some of them have little interest in the outside world, why would they know where other countries or their own are?

Notice that I "just asked", because I actually find this hard to believe.

There you go again. We're not ALL like our President.

 

[ainwood]

Originally posted by Maj
I suggest that some of you read reports and studies conducted by recognized institutions on the educational prowess of a nation's people before posting your highly biased perspectives on the knowledge and intelligence of entire societies. Also take into account that most of the figures you'll encounter will be statistical calculations, which can be very misleading if one does not know how to interpret and challenge them.

I was just asking!

Stamping 280 million people with "American" label takes reductionism a few too many steps in the wrong direction. The same can be said of judging the populace of any nation, society or culture.

Surely there's many more than just 280 million americans? There's probably that many in Brazil alone!

 

[ainwood]

Originally posted by Jimcat

For extra credit, what is the capital of South Africa?

Depends. Pretoria is generally recognised as the Capital, although I think the government sits in Capetown, doesn't it?

 

[BigBirdZ28]

Originally posted by Mr Spice

Luckily, I am Swedish and therefore have godlike knowledge of geografy, so whatever obscure place you are from I will recognize it.

Bahrain.



No cheating .

 

[knowltok2]

Originally posted by ainwood


Surely there's many more than just 280 million americans? There's probably that many in Brazil alone!

According to the CIA world factbook:

USA 278,058,881

Brazil 174,468,575


As to the knowltok situation:

My work computer occasionally eats my cookies and won't let me log onto the site. So I open up a new acount that works fine and ask Thunderfall to delete the other one. There is only one knowltok.

Good post Maj.

 

[ainwood]

Originally posted by knowltok2


According to the CIA world factbook:

USA 278,058,881

Brazil 174,468,575


As to the knowltok situation:

My work computer occasionally eats my cookies and won't let me log onto the site. So I open up a new acount that works fine and ask Thunderfall to delete the other one. There is only one knowltok.

Good post Maj.

I was trying to point out that America is not necessarily just the United States. Maybe I should have used italics.

 

[knowltok2]

Originally posted by ainwood


I was trying to point out that America is not necessarily just the United States. Maybe I should have used italics.

Oh that arguement. Well at least I didn't use your sarcasm to prove an opinion that all people exiled in England don't know anything about population statistics.

 

[Mr Spice]

First of all, I want to apologize to Alcibiaties for not officially recognizing him as one with "USA" as his location. I did not realize that you would be offended, and I hope you will forgive me. I kind of got the impression that Padma was only kidding, but if you weren´t I apologize to you as well.

Secondly, I want to clarify some things to Duke o' york, IceBlaZe and anyone else who misunderstood my statement that "Luckily, I am Swedish and therefore have godlike knowledge of geografy". I was convinced that every one would recognize that and the following sentence for the irony it was meant to be. I do not claim to be a master at geografy, in fact I am rather lousy at it.

To Duke o' york I would like to set another thing strait. No, I do not care about where people are from. I do not try to apply certain traits to certain nationalities. I was just curious about why Americans seldom write USA in their "location-field". (When they choose to declare any geografical location at all, that is.)

If I had known what reaction I was going to get, I would probably never have created this thread. One could claim that I should have guessed, but I really thought you people would recognize my question for the harmless curiosity it was.

 

[floppa21]

AOA meant the Five Points here in Colorado of course! It's the ONLY one that matters after all... As for my loction, I don't know what it says, don't really care, don't really care if anyone else cares.

 

[Maj]

Surely there's many more than just 280 million americans? There's probably that many in Brazil alone!

Some cultural misnomers got in the way. Most North Americans consider the citizens of the United States as "American". Mexico and all the nations south of it are considered to be part of "Latin America" while Canada and the United States are generally referred to as North America although politically and geographically Mexico is recognized as a member of that continent.

If you're thinking of "America" as including the continents of North and South America then I can't really argue that. It makes logical sense. Yet when Canadians and Americans refer to the supercontinent they normally call it the Western Hemisphere.

Of course, all of these names are entirely subjective, and the way you refer to each depends on how and where you were raised and educated. There is no "right" way of looking at the world. Considering the Earth is a blue marble in a vacuum there really is no true "up" or "down" nor a true "West" or "East" location. I've seen maps where "South east Asia" or in the center leaving North America as the Eastern Hemisphere and Eurasia+Africa as the Western Hemisphere. It's not wrong...just different.

- Maj

P.S. When I make critical remarks on the forum I'm not attacking any person in particular unless I nab their quote(s) and make it clear that I'm opposed to some part of their reasoning, knowledge, what-have-you.

 

[CurtSibling]

Originally posted by ainwood


I was trying to point out that America is not necessarily just the United States. Maybe I should have used italics.

Easy mistake to make,

There are 3 Americas...
This is why I use the term 'North Amercian',
There is also a South and Central America, as some of you
will know. The definition must be made to avoid silly situations,
For instance,
When a North American states that a Scotsman is 'English'.
This sort of thing leads to confusion, EVERYONE should learn
about the worlds countries.

And Geography IS important to all, especially North Americans (greadius).
Since our pals in the States like to state their reputed high
standards, Knowing where they are in relation to the rest of the
world is of great importance.

And this goes for any nation...
Get that atlas or geography book out!

Also, people should use whatever location they want on their ID.
Whether you are from Boston or Bejing, what does it matter?
We are all CIV people, that's our nation!

I am from the UK (maybe) and my current location is, you may notice,
above the trenches, hunting Biggles!

I prefer funny locations!

 

[Blackadder]

Yes, awareness of the world is paramount. In my class, I am the only one who knew about Macedonia or Moldavia, and these are countries, not cities! Worse, these are European nations! It is paramount that we know there names, so when our glorious war-mongering armies march over them, we know where we are!
America, as a dual continent, often has/had a policy of isolationism. You guys have an excuse, we don't .
However, it would help if some of the more familiar area names (like London, Zurich etc) had the U.S. after it. We non-American continentals don't mind you having the smaller town names, and if you feel it is important, put the nearest major city in the middle. I will do the say from now on, put my exact town. Why should just the Americans do it? It won't make a difference.

 

[BlueMonday]

Originally posted by IceBlaZe
BlueMonday, bethlehem is in Israel... sorta.. in the area. there is another bethlehem in the US?

Of course there is. That's why I put Bethlehem on my 'cities that you don't know where they are' list.

About an hour north of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania there are three fairly large cities that have all grown into eachother, called Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton. Bethlehem was founded by Moravians who wanted to sort of create a "little Israel" in America back in the 1700s. As a testament to their "little Israel" strategem there are cities all over Eastern Pennsylvania named after biblical cities -Bethlehem, Nazareth, New Tripoli, and I think there's a Damascus somewhere.

I lived on the West side of Bethlehem right near Airport Road and not too far from Charles' Pizza (they make these great Philly Cheese Steaks using pepperoncini instead of bell peppers). The downtown of Bethlehem is a protected historical arena exhibiting all sorts of eighteenth century colonial architecture. Come Christmas time they string up every building downtown with lights and suspend a giant Moravian Star above the town to symbolize the Biblical Star over Bethlehem. The Star is so big and bright you can see for miles around. Someone told me that you could see it in Jersey but I think they're full of s***!

But those are the nice areas. On the East side you have the remnants of what was the not just the biggest steel operation in the US, but in the World -Bethlehem Steel. At the turn of the century this steel mill was producing more steel than any other mill in the world. Bethlehem steel was a standard building material for hundreds contractors around the country. Most of the railroads crossing the country were paved with Bethlehem steel along with some of the greatest American landmarks (like the Golden Gate Bridge). But now, the company has moved on and the city of Bethlehem is left with several square miles of blackened and sooty industrial buildings and furnaces. Standing there like ghosts from ages past, rows upon rows of smokestacks, one cannot be filled with anything other than hatred for the industrial destructive might of the Steel Industry, particularly as the undisposed wastes blacken the river and kill every fish downstream into the Delaware.

 

[BlueMonday]

Originally posted by Alcibiaties of Athenae
I never understand why people think Americans don't know geography, I know it just fine, and so do most people.

Let me ask you "worldy fellows" a question:

Where is Oshkosh?

It's in Nebraska. I load a nebraska truck nightly and I always see Oshkosh, NE 691**

But I think you have a very good point Albo. We know so much about our own areas of the world that I could start asking questions like "where is McCall, or Moab, or Elko?" and I'd know where they are, but people from Europe probably won't. Likewise Europeans could ask, "Where is Olmafurhirgartenbourg?" and I wouldn't have a clue. I could guess from the language structure where it is generally, but I don't know where it is.

But just cause we can't tell where that trifle town is doesn't translate into, "Americans have no grasp of Geography." Take your heads out of your asses. I'm fair at Geography, If you ask me to find a country or a city on a world map I could find it. Of course I know where sweden an india are. I don't know where you get these ideas like "Americans don't know anything outside their own coutnry" or "Americans don't know where x country is" but you're wrong. Sure we have geography morons (we may even have a few in Executive office ) but on the whole the population has the same (subjective) knowledge of geography that you do in your country. Or do you want to tell me that everyone in your country has a perfect knowledge of geography? I'm sure there are some in your country that couldn't point to their own country on a map just like there are some in our country who can't find America on a map.

I'm gonna say the same thing to you that I said to Hakan that made him get all huffy. You know as little about America as we know about you. What you know comes from watered down media just like what we know of you comes from bubble headed media. Forget everything you know, and everything you think you know about America, about it's people, and especially about you and me because most of it is wrong.