Apr 14, 2014 2 min read

Most of the world knows a great deal about the United States, given the outsize role we have across the planet, but it’s often been noted that we know all too little about other places.

In fact, one Canadian television host had a lot of fun with this back in the last decade, hosting a segment on a satirical program called “Talking to Americans.” It showcased a grab bag of our fellow countrymen stumbling and fumbling their way through basic questions about Canada or the rest of the world, or taking on faith various absurd propositions, such as Canada euthanizing its senior citizens by setting them loose on ice floes.

Our woeful knowledge of the world beyond our borders came to the fore yet again in a Washington Post poll taken late in March on the evolving crisis in Ukraine.

First, it asked respondents to place Ukraine on a map. Only 16 percent, or about one in six, were able to do so. Some were able to generally put it in Europe or Asia, but some said it was in Alaska, Africa or the Australian outback. Only 21 percent of college graduates were able to correctly say where Ukraine is located. Political independents, who were 29 percent correct, did better than Republicans (15 percent), Democrats (14 percent), members of military households (16 percent) and those aged 65 or older (14 percent).

Moreover, those who incorrectly reported where Ukraine was were more likely to favor military intervention.

“Information, or the absence thereof, can influence Americans’ attitudes about the kind of policies they want their government to carry out and the ability of elites to shape that agenda,” the newspaper noted.

All the more reason to heed Thomas Jefferson’s pronouncement that “an enlightened citizenry is indispensable to the proper functioning of a republic.”