Educating America
Middle East Strategy at Harvard reports that most Americans have no idea how to find Israel, Iran, Iraq or Saudi Arabia on a map:If Israel were interested in promoting its own self-interest, we would start producing maps which show where our little country is among the sea of 22 Arab nations.On average, young Americans can find one (1.3) of these four countries. Fourteen percent can point out all four countries correctly, while 44% cannot find any of them.
After three years of war in Iraq, only 37% of young Americans can find Iraq; 63% cannot. As many can—and cannot—identify Saudi Arabia. The result is even worse for Iran and Israel. Only one in four can find Iran (26%) or Israel (25%). Three-quarters cannot find these two countries. Overall, up to one in five say they “don’t know” where these four countries are located (ranging from 16% for Iraq to 20% for Iran).
Education makes a difference in young adults’ ability to locate these four countries in the headlines: young Americans with college experience (1.6 correct answers on average) are more likely than those with up to a high school education (0.9 correct) to locate these countries. That said, even the more educated group fares relatively poorly, with less than a quarter of those with a college education able to find all four countries (23%, 6% of those with up to a high school diploma).
Do you see us? We're the little orange spot against the Mediterranean Sea between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Don't we look like the least likely country in the bunch to have room for several hundred thousand more 'Palestinians'?Too bad our government views its job in life as bringing about the existence of a 'Palestinian'
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:19 PM
2 Comments:
Carl, you wrote:
"Do you see us? We're the little orange spot against the Mediterranean Sea between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Don't we look like the least likely country in the bunch to have room for several hundred thousand more 'Palestinians'?"
Predictable Leftist response: "This is a Lebensraum type of argument!"
Carl, I have lost all (and that means all) faith in waging the war of minds. Our enemies are quite explicit that they aren't willing to listen to our narrative, to recognize the existence of Jewish dreams and aspirations and not just a "need for life in security".
True debate involves the prospect of having one's mind changed. All this Israel/"Palestine" debate is a faux-debate, because the other side (the Muslims always, and now increasingly the Leftists all over the West) has no intention whatever of backing down from its stance, that there is no room for a Jewish state. The only purpose of this "debate" is to wedge us off our claims. The "debate" is only one among many weapons our enemies wield against us.
I've become Bismarckian in my attitude toward this entire conflict: away with speeches, conferences and articles (online or otherwise), and in with the task of removing the threat: elimination of all [non-Jewish] opposition to the idea of Israel as a Jewish state. We must strike fear into our enemies' hearts, everywhere. In the bounds of what the Torah allows, that goes without saying.
If you think this comment is too much for your blog (yes, I heard about the Lionheart Affair), then by all means delete it. It's yet another reason why I think this war should be taken offline.
Chodesh Tov. HaShem bless you.
ZY
Israel is about the size of the state of New Jersey in its post 1967 borders. Very few people have any idea just how small is Israel. Yet Israel's branja has fed people the misleading impression Israel is the size of Australia! Go figure. Its lying by omission... and its still a lie. Which doesn't justify setting up a Palestinian reichlet anywhere within Israel.
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