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Comment by mc32 | Hacker News Reader

It’s akin to asking Iranians, can you point out Missouri [or Texas or Calif] on a map?

No, because Missouri is not a country. I'm always puzzled by this attitude that individual US states should have the same hierarchy in knowledge of the world as actual countries.

US states are like Chinese provinces. We know about our states, they know about their provinces and we both know a little bit about the countries we have ties to. US and Europe and the Americas, China and East Asia/pac rim and a bit of Africa.

Basically, smaller countries study more about their surroundings more and bigger countries have more internal stuff to learn.

A lot of Americans have trouble locating Nebraska or Kansas on a map. I’m sure a lot of Chinese might get confused about where Shanxi is, especially since many of them have never left their own counties before.

Not really, Iran is a little bit less than ten times the size of Missouri and is a regional military power, as well as controls globally relevant petroleum interests.

Christ. I'm from the U.S. and I can pick Iran on a map without thinking. If you asked me to pick Missouri and Missisippi on a map ... I'd probably get it but I'd sweat a little bit until I heard I was right.

Missisippi is a bit further south but it's not Louisiana.

Missouri is a bit further north but it's not Kansas.

Now that I've looked at a map I can safely say, yeah, I woulda got that wrong.

Actually it's akin to asking Americans, can you point out Missouri on a map?

I'm European and California, New York, Hawaii, Florida would be easy (and relevant for me).

Missouri...to tell you the truth I don't even know what is interesting about it (I'm sure it has a lot of interesting things going on though).

maybe they would if the state of Missouri starts bombing Iran.

That seems rather likely, all things considered: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whiteman_Air_Force_Base

It's not at all like that. Missouri is irrelevant to international politics. (don't tell the farmers that though)

It's more akin to asking Iranians, can you point out Ukraine?

Hm, are you comparing a state of 6 million people with a country of 83 million that has existed for thousands of years?

Not sure that it is. Obviously, you will get people that have no clue, but people should roughly know where most countries are.

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