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I can tell you this...my first awakening to reality was in 1984 when I toured down in Peru.
The country was dirt poor. No middle class at all. Either very rich or very, very poor.
And yet all the kids there spoke several different languages and knew everything about the United States, Europe, and the rest of the world (they kept up on world events in all countries on their news broadcasts)
I felt "dumb" next to them. I can only speak English. I knew next to nothing about anything outside the U.S.
And in my travels since then...I've seen the same thing over and over. Whether it be Mexico, South America, The Bahamas, Jamaica, or Europe. I feel like I was cheated in our education system by not being taught different languages from kindergarten forward.
And when you are traveling outside the U.S. you suddenly realize that most people take a "world view" and keep up with events everywhere.
While our news broadcasts report very minimally on foreign affairs.
Just saying...it makes you feel "dumb" comparatively speaking.
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