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The study is not comparing computer skills with agrarian knowledge. It is a test of basic knowledge of geographical and historical facts that educated people should know in order to function responsibly in our nation.

Consider:

If you do not know which states border Canada, how can one correctly assess immigration problems along the border?

If you do not know that Einstein is reponsible for the theory of relativity, when someone says "Way to go, Einstein!" how will you understand what is meant?

If you do not understand the significance of the Purple Heart, how can you appreciate the sacrifices of those in our military?

Increasingly we are turning out students who are totally divorced from the history of our culture. They make decisions based on contemporary trends, without understanding the historical background on many issues. This is dangerous, because it means a significant portion of the population can be manipulated by celebrities who purport to be "experts."

The study posted here two weeks ago indicated only 29% of American people between the ages of 18 and 24 could find New Jersey on a map. We have college students who don't know where India or Australia are.

"Increasingly we are turning out students who are totally divorced from the history of our culture. They make decisions based on contemporary trends, without understanding the historical background on many issues. This is dangerous, because it means a significant portion of the population can be manipulated by celebrities who purport to be "experts.""

EXACTLY! I know plenty of people who are quite capable of handling computers, but are totally brain-dead otherwise. No knowledge of history, geography, math, science, or culture. Ask them who was elected president in 1960, or how to do a simple math problem, and they'll look at you with a blank expression on their face. Not only don't they know those things, but they don't even think they're important.

This plays right into the hands of the left. It's why they have deliberately dumbed-down our schools. No matter how skilled someone is in operating equipment (whether it's a tractor or a laptop computer), if they lack basic historical knowledge, reasoning skills, and cultural understanding, they're ripe for the leftist plucking.

I encounter college kids every day whose knowledge of American history is totally void. The constitution is meaningless to them. They have an MTV view of reality. They think that show, "The Real World", really is the real world.

Increasingly we are turning out students who are totally divorced from the history of our culture. They make decisions based on contemporary trends, without understanding the historical background on many issues. This is dangerous, because it means a significant portion of the population can be manipulated by celebrities who purport to be "experts."

Hi, You are so right. Students today do not know history or geography. Our younger daughter has to ask me where some country is or a city. It is a shame the way the kids are taught today.