[jrushing]

Around a third of students in all three countries believed that US forces suffered the highest losses. In fact, there were 60,000 American deaths compared with the loss of two million Vietnamese, a ratio of 33 to one.

They fail to mention that most of the 2 million VC died while trying to enslave a whole country into Communism! This is a sad example of moral equivalence. (ie Both Vietnamese & Americans suffered so they must be equal--both guilty!)

[Brett66]

I'm not as concerned by someone not knowing how many were killed in the Afghan war as I would be by someone not understanding why we went to war in the first place.

[nkycincinnatikid]

"it's shocking ,but not surprising" pleasantly reminds me of Schindlers appraisal of fin de siecle Vienna's political "situation hopeless but not serious".

[Unassuaged]

RE: Russia
I for one was shocked to first read about the battle of Stalingrad, and the condition of the soliders(on my own, after taking history classes in HS that mostly dealt with the US portion of the war). It is a testament to our great and lucky nation that our soliders never had to endure such abject misery and dehumanization. That said, dead is still dead, the ultimate price was paid on all sides by many, many people, soliders and civilians alike.

[chudogg]

The same students were asked how many people were estimated to have been killed during bombing raids in Afghanistan in the subsequent war. Only 2% of the students knew the correct answer: approximately 20,000.

I wonder where they got this number, are they lumping Al Qaida and the Taliban in with the civilian population? I remember a study by a leftist professor from UNH(?) that concluded 4,000 civillian casulties, and it was a widely touted figure afterwards. His sources of course came from Al-Jazeera and Taliban officials claiming civilian casualites. I was thought the real number was more like two to five hundred.

[pierrem15]

The same students were asked how many people were estimated to have been killed during bombing raids in Afghanistan in the subsequent war. Only 2% of the students knew the correct answer: approximately 20,000.

If this is the kind of BS being peddled as "history," then ignorance is truly bliss.

[lizma]

It's a frickin movie! It's sad and VERY lazy if anyone looks at Hollywood to be their teacher.
The Sound of Music not only changed the kids name, they either added or bumped off a few.

Marie didn't ski their way out of Nazi Austria, they took the train.

Anyway, Conservatives believe history repeats itself. Liberals believe some how they are magically beyond this.

Whose the fool?

[afuturegovernor]

Very bias questioning. As bad as some of our schools are I think that American students would wimp Germans students on average.

[Rodney King]

He said: "In Germany, history and politics is compulsory in school until 17 and I think this is reflected in the results."

A better explanation is that two of the questions directly pertained to Germany and the experiences of their direct relatives.

[CasearianDaoist]

That 2 million is the figure that the Norht Vietnamese fave after the war. The real figure is likely half that.

[CasearianDaoist]

That 2 million is the figure that the North Vietnamese gave after the war. The real figure is likely half that.

[CGTRWK]

Philo claims Hollywood action movies must take some of the blame for the students’ distorted views.

He said: "They are generally all about the suffering of American soldiers and the demonisation of the Vietnamese and what the Americans did to the population was not discussed.

When I think Vietnam action movie, the picture that comes to mind is Rambo or maybe Chuck Norris singlehandedly mowing down the entire gook army.

Which movies was this guy watching? If the good guys don't slaughter the bad guys, it isn't an action movie at all - it's a historical film or maybe a drama.