Melissa’s Soapbox

The geniuses at Slate provided this clever and hysterical rendition of Hillary as the over-achieving, vindictive, manipulative, and generally wacko Tracy Flick (played by Reese Witherspoon) from the movie Election (what a great movie).

An unauthorized biography about Tom Cruise was released this week not only to scathing reviews, but to a 15-page rebuttling statement from the Church of Scientology.

Not that author Andrew Morton seems to care …

Even with South Park and Matt Lauer’s pyschiatry discussion with Cruise, criticisms of the Church of Scientology are nothing new.  Time’s cover story for the May 6, 1991 issue, titled “Scientology:  The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power,” exposes huge indiscretions on the part of L. Ron Hubbard including lying about war service, a fake doctoral degree, tax fraud, money laundering, and a veritable potpourri of scummy scams.  The entire story is shocking and creepy.

Fifteen years later, Rolling Stone Magazine released an indepth and investigative piece on Scientology’s bad behavior called “Inside Scientology:  Unlocking the Complex Code of America’s Most Mysterious Religion.”  Again, shocking and creepy.

Still, is it possible to separate Tom Cruise (and other observers) as an actor from Tom Cruise as a Scientology advocate?  I’m afraid not … he’s just a defensive, bullying, sanctimonious honk, and this creepy clip is absolutely the last straw. 

Will I buy/read this book?  No.  Will I see the next Tom Cruise blockbuster?  No. 

I recently ran across the results from a survey commissioned in January of 2006 by the National Geographic Society studying the geographic knowledge of Americans between the ages of 18 and 24.  Highlights include:

65% of respondents could not identify the United Kingdom on a world map.
70% of respondents could not identify Egypt on a world map.
75% of respondents could not identify Indonesia on a world map.
69% of respondents could find China on a world map making it one of the few recognized countries outside North America.

63% of respondents could not find Iraq or Saudi Arabia on a map of the Middle East.
75% of respondents could not find Iran or Israel on a map of the Middle East.
45% of respondents could not find Iraq nor Saudi Arabia nor Iran nor Israel (not any 1 of the 4) on a map of the Middle East.

43% of respondents could identify Ohio on a map of the United States, up from 35% in 2002.
30% of respondents could not find Louisiana on a map of the United States.
50% of respondents could not find Mississippi on a map of the United States.
50% of respondents could not find New York state on a map of the United States.

88% of respondents could not find Afghanistan on a map of Asia.
70% of respondents could not find North Korea on a map of Asia.
21% of respondents could not find China nor Japan nor Afghanistan nor North Korea nor India (not any 1 of the 5) on a map of Asia.

54% of respondents could not place Sudan in Africa.   20% of respondents place Sudan in Asia, and 10% of respondents place Sudan in Europe.

So, we didn’t exactly fare well when it comes to the straight up geography quiz. What about geography as an extension of current events or global awareness?
75% of respondents could not identify Indonesia as a country with a Muslim majority when presented with a list of India, Indonesia, Armenia, and South Africa.  48% of respondents erroneously answered India.
74% of respondents believe that native English is the most widely spoken language on the globe.
38% of respondents view being able to speak a foreign language as “not that important.”
21% of respondents say that it’s “not too important” to know where countries in the news are located.

Less statistically relevant but equally frightening examples of Americans’ poor geography skills …