View Full Version : Americans know surprisingly little about their government, survey finds
I'm 52 years old, we were taught this in elementary, middle and high school. Time to bring back "Schoolhouse Rock".
http://www.annenbergpublicpolicycenter.org/americans-know-surprisingly-little-about-their-government-survey-finds/
http://cdn.annenbergpublicpolicycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/Civics-survey-press-release-09-17-2014-for-PR-Newswire.pdf
"The survey of 1,416 adults, released for Constitution Day (Sept. 17) in conjunction with the launch of the Civics Renewal Network, found that:
While little more than a third of respondents (36 percent) could name all three branches of the U.S. government, just as many (35 percent) could not name a single one.
Just over a quarter of Americans (27 percent) know it takes a two-thirds vote of the House and Senate to override a presidential veto.
One in five Americans (21 percent) incorrectly thinks that a 5-4 Supreme Court decision is sent back to Congress for reconsideration."
Sadly, I'm actually surprised the numbers are that good. I thought it would be much worse.
Moose-Knuckle
09-19-14, 03:23
"For there is no knowledge that is not power" . . . there is a reason they don't teach this stuff anymore.
Color me shocked.. Not really.
Annenberg didn't need to study this, they just needed to watch some of the interviews on Watters' World: http://video.foxnews.com/playlist/the-oreilly-factor-watters-world/
I'm 52 years old, we were taught this in elementary, middle and high school. Time to bring back "Schoolhouse Rock".
I think that would be a great idea!
I simply have no idea how any of this is possible. I was "into" government and politics already as a kid in grade school, found it all absolutely fascinating and soaked it up: history, military history, cultural history, government, politics.....love it all.
How can you go through life so stupid?
Does not anyone remember the wisdom of Dean Wormer?
http://youtu.be/bK-Dqj4fHmM
Crow Hunter
09-19-14, 07:37
Unfortunately the vast majority of the US population does not care as long as there is something to watch on TV, their "mailbox money" keeps showing up and they have service on their "Obamafone".
They would have no issue whatsoever with Chairman Mao, Adolf Hitler, or Stalin in office as long as they didn't interrupt them watching "Ow My Balls".
They could care less about their freedom.
The_War_Wagon
09-19-14, 07:40
Americans know surprisingly little about their government, survey finds
And THAT'S the way their gummint PREFERS it... :big_boss:
brickboy240
09-19-14, 12:29
This is how we ended up with Carter, both Bushes, Clinton, Obama, Iran-Contra, stock market crashes, housing market crashes, cash for clunkers, Obamacare, the huge deficit, Vietnam, Iraq and many other blunders.
Our citizenry is dumbed down on purpose....so that govt. can loot and plunder and get away with it.
-brickboy240
This is how we ended up with Carter, both Bushes, Clinton, Obama, Iran-Contra, stock market crashes, housing market crashes, cash for clunkers, Obamacare, the huge deficit, Vietnam, Iraq and many other blunders.
Our citizenry is dumbed down on purpose....so that govt. can loot and plunder and get away with it.
-brickboy240
And the "Federal" Reserve can plunder from everybody.
Yeah, look at the string of Presidents we've had. Obvious the voting citizens either are ignorant of our form and purpose if govt or don't like it.
One of our neurosurgeons, formerly a Canadian, naturalized last year. He had his citizenship study guide in our department, and well over 75% of our staff could not answer more than half the questions.
Moose-Knuckle
09-19-14, 18:07
One of our neurosurgeons, formerly a Canadian, naturalized last year. He had his citizenship study guide in our department, and well over 75% of our staff could not answer more than half the questions.
Legal immigrants are required to know more about our country than our own students do. I have friends from all over who have verified this time and again.
I'm sure I would be embarrassed at my score on the citizenship test. Is it available online?
Legal immigrants are required to know more about our country than our own students do. I have friends from all over who have verified this time and again.
Small correction - not all legal immigrants try to become citizens. It is only those that go thru the citizenship process that are required to have the knowledge you refer to.
http://www.amazon.com/Dumbing-Down-Curriculum-Compulsory-Anniversary/dp/0865714487/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1411175103&sr=1-1&keywords=Dumbing+us+down
What funny is that people know even less about how the criminal justice system works but are all self appointed experts because they got a ticket when they were 16.
Even more so if you live in the suburbs.
Proof positive its up to us real Citizens to teach our children about the Government, guns, debt, and religion (among other things). The consumers will either not teach it at all or teach the sheeple slanted, listen and blindly obey concepts.
.46caliber
09-20-14, 06:40
This makes me sad. I had some good US History teachers in Middle and High School and I remember some things vividly to this day. I did have a couple "Dumber than a box of rocks" teachers too. My 5th grade teacher was one of them. We were doing a composition exercise based on the event of the Wright Brothers' first flight. We were instructed to write a newspaper article covering the event from the perspective of Kitty Hawk. I pointed out that Kitty Hawk was a place, not a person and was immediately corrected. She was cute but not all that bright.
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We homeschool. My kids started watching Schoolhouse Rock ("I'm only a bill") before they could walk. We are ensuring they have a grasp not only on history but the political system as well (my first degree is poli sci). It is as important as any math or science, but over the last 20 years or so the US decided otherwise and teach it less and less.
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