4th of July, Should We Laugh Or Cry?

Parent Cafe
41

<p>Sadly, I don’t think we have an independent watchdog media. I get all my news from non-mainstream sources.</p>

42

<p>I’m pretty sure that the video’s just a college of a small percentage of interviewees that did not know the answer to those questions. But the fact that there are indeed people that lack such basic knowledge is troubling. And I honestly do not really think that it was staged, I’ve much seen worse in my Honors U.S. History class, especially once when a kid thought Adolf Hitler was a video-game character.</p>

43

<p>We should all celebrate because college apps should be easier than ever.</p>

44

<p>I agree with NJres about the silver dollar one. It seemed very scammy, and we teach our kids that if something seems too good to be true, it almost certainly is.</p>

45

<p>It always makes me sad to see people who look for ways to demean or belittle othera.
What is even sadder is that they may not realize that " im rubber, you’re glue…"
;)</p>

46

<p>“China. Yeah, I knew that, China.”</p>

<p>LOL</p>

47

<p>It’s pretty sad that there are people out there that don’t know these things. I mean, maybe the average American can’t precisely remember the correct year, but 1978? When we declared independence from China? Wow.</p>

<p>That said, the responses are most likely cherry picked, as most of these type of videos are. Whether these types of responses were really representative of an average person’s historical knowledge is impossible to tell from the video, but I suspect (and hope) not.</p>

<p>Here’s the video’s YouTube description by the way:</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>So yeah, a bit sketchy.</p>

48

<p>What’s sketchy and what does the information you posted have to do with the ignorance of the interviewees? Do you think they are actors?</p>

49

<p>I think the information posted suggests that he’s all kinds of sketchy.

Having his YouTube videos go viral, or earning “mentions” on any media outlet, does not mean that his information is reliable/based in fact. I am always suspicious of non-charitable concerns that solicit donations (including politicians). I like to keep an eye on my purse when those guys start talking.</p>

<p>And really - The Resistance? Sounds a little … grandiose, to say nothing of disrespectful of, you know, those French and Polish folks who died in the real Resistance.</p>

<p>God, I hope the folks in the clips weren’t actors. Actors should be more convincing. The whole thing seems like a gigantic goof, and some of those interviewed seem to be goofing right along.</p>

50

<p>Lawyer and author, Lisa Bloom, wrote about this subject in a recent book:</p>

<p>[Lisa</a> Bloom: ‘Think’: Dumb American Syndrome](<a href=“HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News | HuffPost”>'Think': Dumb American Syndrome | HuffPost Entertainment)</p>

<p>[Amazon.com:</a> Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World (9781593157098): Lisa Bloom: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1593157096/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1593157096&linkCode=as2&tag=hubp0dc7f-20]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1593157096/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1593157096&linkCode=as2&tag=hubp0dc7f-20)</p>

<p>I don’t necessarily agree or disagree with her, though.</p>

51

<p>I think one flaw in this is the assumption that Americans of today are less knowledgeable than Americans were in the past. Even if this video reflected totally random interviews, it doesn’t prove that there has been any change in the level of knowledge. Just because WE know who Andrew Jackson was doesn’t mean that we represent the level of knowledge of people of our age.</p>

<p>Also, even if older people are more likely to know some particular fact, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is important. There was a comic strip in the newspaper today with a punchline that depending on the reader knowing about the movie “The Outlaw Josey Wales.” Was my daughter ignorant because she had no idea what it was referring to?</p>

52

<p>Even if it’s true that we aren’t more stupid than we used to be, does that make you feel better?</p>

53

<p>I asked my dad when the Declaration of Independence was signed, and he immediately replied with “July 4, 1776”. A guy who never went to college and barely got a high school education, who is over 50 years old, so it’s not like he just learned this stuff.</p>

<p>The fact that the average person today couldn’t do the same is pathetic.</p>

54

<p>@Susie Who said the average person couldn’t?</p>

55

<p>I don’t think those were “average” people, SusieAnne</p>

56

<p>How many people do you think he asked that actually knew the answers? He obviously only put the ones that didn’t know in his video.</p>

57

<p>This video is ridiculous. He is obviously trying to confuse who he’s talking to. It is like going up to someone and saying, “Hey, did Obama take cocaine in his college years?” Most people would say “I guess so” just for the sake of following the crowd.</p>

58

<p>What was so confusing?</p>

59

<p>we should dance!</p>

60

<p>Be proud of your country, if you lived elsewhere this conversation would not even matter
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