[queequeger]

I've actually often considered the reason the average US citizen is behind the rest of the western world in geography, and I actually have a little theory. I think the reason your average westerner is more knowledgeable than we, is from necessity. Many americans have never left their country because they never have to, in fact it's a bit of a hassle.

We can't hop on the chunnel and arrive in a different country, little hop flights from city to city for some euros, these things are foreign to us. Most americans live their whole lives never leaving the country, in fact many don't leave their state. In addition, most western media is modeled after the US's and a great many people world wide speak english, so in the end, we're not forced to confront other societies or know where they're from. Whether good or bad, I think our geographic and cultural isolation has created a situation where one never NEEDS to know where one is on a globe, because just about everyone they meet is from their country or even state.