Stupid americans

[Spoonist]

Yes, the title is only to get your attention.


To the topic:
I've noticed that there is a consensus in some parts of the world that the american public is dim-witted.
This is to be seen that by contrast the US always ends up in the top 20s of global eduction tests.

So how come that the world gets the impression that the american public isn't all that bright?

I'd like to hear your opinions and thoughts...

Here are two theories to start with:
The Jay Leno show has a segment called 'Jaywalking' where Leno goes out on the street and asks simple questions about this and that, the funny part is how little the people in the segment knows about the topic.
Example:
Jay -"What is the connection between Jesus and Eggs?" (this was the week before easter).
Random Person -"Well... (thinking hard) Jesus hid eggs for his disciples so that they would listen to his sermon."
Now this whole segment made me think, these people know that they are on TV, then they are asked questions to which they don't know the answers, so how come they try to answer anyway????
... so hypothesis 1= The american public is not afraid to make a fool out of themselves by answering questions to which they don't know the answer.

Hypothesis 2= People in situations they are not used to will behave stupidly. Therefore tourists will always seem stupid to the locals. Since most US residents only gets to travel once or twice abroad they have no experience of different cultures. This leads to local people forming an opinion about US residents by the way that US tourists behave around the world.

Do you have other hypothesis?

[InnerBrat]

The first amendment means any old idiot can sprout off aboout any moronic crap they want to..

[Wicked Pilot]

Do you have other hypothesis?

We're staying #1 in the world in terms of economic and technological development not because of out great secondary education system, but because we have great universities, and we import large volumes of students to fill them. On my campus, if you were to visit the Institute for Micromanufacturing, you would think you had mistakenly stepped into the Indian embassy.



EDIT: I'm glad we are giving these people the oppertunity to become engineers, doctors, etc, but if our own students and school district don't step up to the plate here, we as a nation will really start losing out in the next couple of years.

[Kelly Antilles]

So how come that the world gets the impression that the american public isn't all that bright?

Okay, you first have to think "how do other countries actually SEE America?" The answer is by the internet, television and movies. Now, take a look at those mediums and you have your answer.

[Baron Mordo]

That's interesting. Talking To Americans was on CBC last night.

[RedImperator]

Remember that when Leno runs out for those man on the street interviews, they're editing for the dumbest responses. The segment wouldn't be funny if they asked, "Who was the first President of the United States?" and 15 different people said "George Washington", one history professor said "John Hanson", and only one nitwit said "Um, Queen Elizabeth?"

[Stormbringer]

Because at a high school level American's are dumber than most countries. We've got a lot of idiots for one and they tend to be vocal and high profile (like our President for example ).

At a college/university level we've got plenty of smart people, native and immigrant. The problem is we also a have a lot of idiots sponging off their more intelligent brethren.

[NapoleonGH]

Perhaps the reason why people think most americans are dumb is because MOST AMERICANS ARE DUMB. Compared to the rest of the western world we are at the bottom of the list, yes we are on the top 20s for all the world, but when we are on the bottom for other first world countries, one starts to wonder. Our high school and pre-highschool education is attrocious, the only good think is our college and graduate schools.

[neoolong]

Those type of interviews also probably just pick the stupidest people.

[Stravo]

I do not subscribe to the dumb Americans stereotype, I know too many brilliant and smart people in my profession and in the circles that I run in. These blithering idiots we see on these on the street interviews are simple folks, for instance when Howard Stern does the same schtick, its always either homeless people or porn stars, neither group known for their intellect or knowledge of facts and figures. Dumb folks can be found in any country anywhere in the world.

What I DO think helps cement this view of Americans is that many Americans are oblivious to what happens outside the country. This is the center of the world for them (for national hangups this one ain't too bad) and thus anything going on outside of it they are painfully ignorant of it. This offends outside parties who are far better educated in terms of history and politics and aware of events going on in the foreign realm than Americans who are far more provincial in their attitude, a hangup I beleive that many Roman citizens suffered from during the Imperial era.

[Ignorant twit]

50% of Americans are below average intelligence.

[Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi]

I think it's just that most of society focuses on the more ignorant part of American society. There are plenty of brilliant Americans, but they don't get much attention. Perhaps it's just that the people that run everything (Take FOX, for example) are considered morons.

[Johonebesus]

Our culture has a strong anti-elitist attitude, and education is considered elitist. How many people were aware that both Gingrich and Clinton had Ph.D.'s? Common folks have no respect for knowledge or education, and anybody who betrays too much education is heaped with scorn. Just watch O'Reily.

[Frank Hipper]

That "Talking to Americans" show.... Now, I've dealt with more than a few Canadians(present company excluded, ) that would provide hours of hilarity for anyone with the budget to start a "Talking to Canadians" show.
I've said it before, and I'm saying it again-STUPIDITY IS A CONSTANT!

[XPViking]

Our culture has a strong anti-elitist attitude, and education is considered elitist. How many people were aware that both Gingrich and Clinton had Ph.D.'s?

Gingrich does have one (a doctorate in Modern European History from Tulane University), but Clinton? Not from what I've seen. Honorary degrees don't count.

XPViking

[Johonebesus]

Our culture has a strong anti-elitist attitude, and education is considered elitist. How many people were aware that both Gingrich and Clinton had Ph.D.'s?

Gingrich does have one (a doctorate in Modern European History from Tulane University), but Clinton? Not from what I've seen. Honorary degrees don't count.

XPViking

You're right, I was mistaken. He only has a B.A. and a J.D., and was a Rhodes scholar. The point was that both are better educated than the average American. About the only time we heard about their educations was when their opponents attacked them. Politically, being well educated is a liability, not an asset.

[Queeb Salaron]

You're right, I was mistaken. He only has a B.A. and a J.D., and was a Rhodes scholar. The point was that both are better educated than the average American.

Hell, being a Rhodes Scholar qualifies you as being one of the more intelligent people on the planet, never mind America. And a J.D. is still a doctorate. I never knew he was that well educated.

[NapoleonGH]

yea queeb, his law degree is either harvard law or oxford, i dont recall anymore (knew a while back). Clinton was probably the smartest president we have had in a long time and it showed compared to the four morons who preceeded him and the moron who succeeded him.

[Queeb Salaron]

yea queeb, his law degree is either harvard law or oxford, i dont recall anymore (knew a while back). Clinton was probably the smartest president we have had in a long time and it showed compared to the four morons who preceeded him and the moron who succeeded him.

[Mills Lane] That's below the belt, sonny. Bring 'em up! [/Lane]

But comparing Clinton to the likes of Bush, Bush, Regan, Nixon, and Carter is like comparing Waterford Crystal to a handful of loose granite.

[Stormbringer]

yea queeb, his law degree is either harvard law or oxford, i dont recall anymore (knew a while back). Clinton was probably the smartest president we have had in a long time and it showed compared to the four morons who preceeded him and the moron who succeeded him.

[Mills Lane] That's below the belt, sonny. Bring 'em up! [/Lane]

But comparing Clinton to the likes of Bush, Bush, Regan, Nixon, and Carter is like comparing Waterford Crystal to a handful of loose granite.

If only he hadn't been an ammoral scumbag and an almost sex offender he might have done the country some good. As it is he fucked us over six ways from Sunday.

[kojikun]

he US is full of stupid people, but is in the top 20s because the rest of the planet is fucking thirdworld or atleast has horrible education.

Seriously, name any non-european nation, any non-China-Japan-Korea-Australia nation, any non US-Canada nation, that isn't thirdworld, or atleast shitty and poor. You can't. Except maybe Cuba, whos literacy rate is the highest on the planet (thats one benefit of a dictatorship, Castro says youre gonna fucking read, youre gonna read). The majority of the world is incapable of providing its people with a decent education. And the US barely makes the 20s simply because education here is mandatory. Most Americans wouldnt be able to read if it was a voluntary school class.

The only time, I think, when we were really good in the education ranks was during the 60s when the Us government poured shitloads of money into education so it would have lots of scientists who could build rocket ships to nuke Cana-, i mean the USSR with.

[Knife]

50% of Americans are below average intelligence.

Statisticly that would make sence. On the other hand, that would imply that around 150 million people in America were above average intellegence, which sounds alot better.





America gets the bad rep of stupid people because our culture is prevelent and our media is world wide. Nobody watches India News Network in America, so we do not see the stupid mother fuckers on Apu's version of 'Jay Walking'. Nor do we spend vast amounts of time grading the reletive intellegence of the people of Romania. Ignorance is abundent and stupidity is a constant but if you're looking into a small box to see it, most of the cameras are in America.

[Knife]

yea queeb, his law degree is either harvard law or oxford, i dont recall anymore (knew a while back). Clinton was probably the smartest president we have had in a long time and it showed compared to the four morons who preceeded him and the moron who succeeded him.

How much you want to bet that he showed his law teacher what the meaning of the word 'is' is.

[Hethrir]

Do you have other hypothesis?

Are we differentiating between knowledge and intelligence?

I don't consider myself overly dumb, but when asked "who was the first president of US?" i have no idea, but the correct answer is, "who cares?"

However if asked, "Who was Australias first Prime Minister?" I can quite confidently reply, "Sir Edmond Barton!" Now it's quite amazing how many Australians don't know that, but i consider that knowledge, not intelligence.

[Hendrake]

Simple. Idiots everywhere tend to have more spotlight time than smart folks, especially politically and in the media. US has a lot more people than any single European country, so it has a lot more vocal morons. Sometimes their voice drowns that of others.

The shit tends to float to the top, after all.