Are you a geographical illiterate when it comes to your own country. If you are a US resident what would your response to this question be? You'll have to go through your own embassy, a resident of Santa Fe was told when trying to order Olympic tickets for games on American soil.
[question posted by p1kef1sh]
responses and comments:
I may be a bit challenged when it comes to geography but, I DO know that NEW Mexico is in the U.S.! Just don't ask me which coast Florida and California are on. I tend to put them opposite of where they really are. [thebohemianheart]
Hi bo :D You need to accept my friends request, yes its really me lol. [darkjedi2]
nope Pikey I am up on my own country, and New Mexico isnt in old Mexico at all. That Olympic ticket seller was sure confused and knew little about the United States, New Mexico has little to do with Mexicans or old Mexico at all. Mostly white people live there now, any way the person was absolutely confused. Wonder what the Santa Fe resident had to say to that stupidity. If you missed the Olympics or you want some collectibles, World Sports Memorabilia has plenty! [Hatley]
I bet that the response isn't printable Hatley! LOL. [p1kef1sh]
Hi Pikey, not at all, I've always liked to know where the bits of the world fit together, historically, geographically and culturally. I do know that some inhabitants of countries are clueless as to things beyond their own shores and have heard such things as Paris is a country, Japan is part of China, and Europe is a country. [thea09]
Wigan, Warrington, Lancaster, Kendal- no I didn't use to work for British rail but I'm sure that was a regular trip. The only bullets round here are aimed at the birds. Often see big men at the sight of the road with loaded shotguns. [thea09]
Thanks to Maps of the world.com, even a Swedish person can look at one glance where New Mexico is. I wonder if it and Pennsylvania would be happier to have a brighter colour?? and then we could see better which countries they were actually in? well.. Pike.. I had this thought always that New Mexico was on the Mexican border.. and , by jove,, it still is!! (according to this map and the Aviation GPS systems) The question that begs to be answered : 'Was the person American who made this remark??'w00t [fjaril]
hahaha.. yes.. let's DO that,, think I will open a box of chocolates right now.. Darn good chocolate here in Sweden, you know!wink [fjaril]
p1key, I deal with the geographically challenged all the time. One of Bob's daughters last month was talking about England...what she was REALLY talking about was the state of Maine, in the area called "New England"...and she is also one of those I had to tell that New Mexico is NOT in Mexico...doh. Maybe she shouldn't plan on becoming an astronaut! =) Lack of sense is a family trait for them...lol [The_Lamb_Lies_Down]
HOOT! Thems capitals thems is. [p1kef1sh]
New Mexico is a state, not part of Mexico... why would anyone say that? I know that New Mexico and part of California used to be part of Mexico... but I don't see why anyone would say that. Someone really said that? I don't get it.lol [OreoCookie3]
Wow! I'm like a deer in headlights! I just don't understand that. [OreoCookie3]
Unbelievable! When still living in Scotland I was quite sure England was just a suburb one had to pass through when driving to Scotland!! (tee hee)! [whiteheather39]
Pftttt! We had to build a wall (well alright the Romans did) just to keep you in! LOL. [p1kef1sh]
Nope, I was born there (NM) so I know exactly where it is. It is astounding how many people are geographically challenged. Heck, I can even find Azerbaijan without any assistance! I even knew, before Sarah's blunder, that South Africa is not a continent...lol [JodiLynn]
Makes you wonder though doesn't it? [p1kef1sh]
Hi p1ke..New Mexico is in Mexico as far as I know but my geographical knowledge would end you up in Timbuctoo..even when reading a map in the car for someone we get lost!! LoLo [littleowl]
She has no sense of geography LoLo. Always interrupting me as well. [p1kef1sh]
I once asked a high-school junior if she knew exactly where Alaska is located. She said sure, it is in the Pacific Ocean, south of Hawaii. On many maps of the United States, the map of Alaska is placed as an insert in exactly the place she stated. The Internet has been helpful in raising awareness of the geographic location of things, but some people still think Iraq shares a border with Afghanistan. [trruk1]
Yikes on the one about the schoolie thinking Alaska was in the same patch of ocean as Hawaii! I bet there's some Alaskans who wouldn't mind not having to fly down there!lol [ShepherdSpy]
Well but P1key, I hate to get technical on you but a US resident isn't the same as a US citizen. Maybe the person had a foreign passport. :-) [dawnald]
Well then, assuming they were physically IN the US when they made the inquiry, it's a silly answer whether they're a citizen or not! Probably a silly question too... [dawnald]
New Mexico is in the the USA. I know that New York in the USA is very different from York in England. I have been to Sydney in Australia. There is another Sydney in Canada. I shall be visiting Nova Scotia in Canada in 2010. It has places called Halifax, Yarmouth and Bridge Water like we do in England. One naughty person put a photo of a posh looking train with an advert for tickets on it from Panama to Colombia. It really is the Darien Jungle that area of the world. It fooled some travelers. [maximax8]
LOL. I used to get Washington State and Washington D.C. mixed when I was young. [p1kef1sh]
Hell that doesnt surprise me at all, we have enough damn idiots in this country who dont know a single thing about their own country let alone the rest of the world. My response to it? Shiiit, It would be censored here on mylot lol. [darkjedi2]
Focking would Jed. [p1kef1sh]
Not a clue. Where's Santa Fe? All I know about the geography of my own country is that if you turn left past Coventry, you can get anywhere. If you turn right past Coventry, you fall off the edge of the world. [nannacroc]
Thank you for confirming my suspicions. [nannacroc]
I live in New Mexico and when I first moved here a decade or so ago, I was very suprised at how often people around the country but it seemed like it was a lot in the East, thought New Mexico was a foreign country. I have heard many tales like yours since I have been here but fortunately havenot encountered that situation myself. [stealthy]
I don't know why I am surprised by people's ignorance of their own geography; but I am. [p1kef1sh]
Hmm, interesting. I myself am a fan of geography. I know every state in the US and in fact even know their capital cities, or at least some of them since i start studying it since i was little. As for my own country, I try to remember as much as I can though, which makes me really guilty. I'll try exploring it on my own soon, just so i could get more "acquainted" with it (so to speak). [abbypringles]
Yes, indeed. There is no better way to get up close and personal with a given culture than to spend time on it and explore as much as you can. [abbypringles]
ARGGG - I believe it because people are not taught geography anymore, SCREAMING SHAME ain't it? [ElicBxn]
no, actually their PARENTS should've worn it... [ElicBxn]
I'm not surprised. Geography isn't taught to our kids like it was when I was young. Hell, the schools are now starting to teach the history of the labor movement in place of American History!!! angry My mom taught us our country's geography by getting us one of those vintage puzzles where the pieces were the fifty states. We played the card game War and used states for prizes and also used soldiers, tanks, etc. and battled to win territory. Within a month, my brother and I had a map of the U.S. in our heads along with the capitals of each state and we've never lost it. happy [dragon54u]
Sounds like the Civil War all over again there! LOL. I am stunned how little people know though. A lad that lives across the road from us couldn't tell me where the next town from us was when he was 18!!! He's 20 now, I wonder if he knows yet. [p1kef1sh]
Hello P1, I lived in New Mexico off and on over the past many years 20+ (but who is counting) I have a story to tell as well. I was ordering things for Christmas (including some awesome Cola Christmas collectibles a few years back and the person on the other end kept telling me that I could not get my items because I was out of country. I actually told the young woman on the other end that she was confused and that I said New Mexico not Mexico. She giggled and said "lady you must be drinking but, that is not in the United States." At this point I began to get a little ticked. More at the comment of me drinking.... (Geez, it wasn't even 5pm) I asked for her manager and explained the situation. To my shock, I guess this was not the first time this woman had done this to people. She told people that lived in Washington state that they couldn't ship to Canada, etc. It was horrible. While on the telephone with the manager, he actually fired her and told her she needed to go back to school or something. He then explained to me, that the company had actually paid the woman to go to school to learn geography. Come to find out the money was not used to further her education, 2 days after she was fired, while on the phone with this guy yet again, she was arrested for drugs. [chulce]
P1, I have to agree it is amazing. Heck, I was looking at my son's world history book for school the other day, I could not get over how thin it was. I decided to look up information in it on the Roman Empire for a book idea I had. I was really shocked, the book only had about 2 paragraphs of information on the Roman Empire, basically saying that it happened and the years. That was it. Come on that period of time deserved way more than 2 paragraphs. Many things that we use today were invented during the time of the Roman Empire. [chulce]
New Mexico is a state within the US. That person who known this resident of Santa Fe this is a#%&*!Lol... I have to laugh...Yes that person is geographically illerate..... Ths question should be put on are that show are you smarter than a fifth grader! This is hilarious! [carmenvj]
Makes you wonder doesn't it. [p1kef1sh]
New Mexico doesn't have anything to do with Mexico. except maybe the weather. I always thought that was a bad name for a state and could be confusing. I live in the US on the eastern coast and there is a territory called New England. New Mexico is on the west coast and I've never been to New Mexico but I have heard a lot about it. [cerebellum]
I know. I live in "Old" England! [p1kef1sh]
Well, I'm not too surprised, but I'm a bit shocked. I'm not a US resident, but I would have thought that a reasonable knowledge of the geography of your own country (like being able to at least recognise its states) would have been quite useful for that particular job. My geography isn't perfect by any means but I'd like to think that I'd be able to recognise most of the UK geographical areas, (and hopefully also be able to tell you whether they're in England, Ireland, Scotland or Wales!) I also think that I know vaguely where most countries are in the world. (Which will be especially useful if ever I get really lost!) [liquorice]
I put my hand up to say that I didn't know where the Falkland Islands were when they were invaded. I did very soon afterwards though as I was working for the Army at the time! I am astonished though just how poor some people's knowledge of even their local area is. [p1kef1sh]
P1ke, Iknow for a fact that New Mexico is in the US so, the question is what would I have said [in best Middle Eastern Accent] to this person would've been, "No I'm being an AMERICAN CITIZEN and YOU cannot be talking to me like that!"lol [ziyadahinc212]
LOL. They'd have called the cops! Goodness me - don't you know that anyone with a foreign accent MUST be a terrorist. [p1kef1sh]
Let Me get this straight...An American ticket Agency,based in THe US,had a query from Someone in NM for US based Olympic events tickets,and they didn't know NM was part of the US? All I can Say is.. Wow...blink [ShepherdSpy]
Don't these call centre type places have postcode lookup programs on their computers? I know that in the UK,All You need is the House Number and a postcode to get something to the correct address..surely NM residents have a Zip code they can give out to delivery companies.. [ShepherdSpy]
Hi p1kef1sh, interesting. I myself am a fan of geography. New Mexico is in the the USA. I know that New York in the USA is very different from York in England. I have been to Sydney in Australia. There is another Sydney in Canada. I shall be visiting Nova Scotia in Canada in 2010. It has places called Halifax, Vermouth and Bridge Water like we do in England. Have a nice day. [king512]
That sounds like a good trip to Canada. I'm hoping to get to the US in February - but nothing confirmed yet. [p1kef1sh]
Last time I thought New Mexico is just that..New Mexico. The country of Mexico is it's own. Am I right? Or have I lost my mind? [marysia66]
New Mexico is a state in the USA. Mexico is a sovereign country that abuts the US in the South [p1kef1sh]