Fatness and Stupidity?

There are plenty of negative stereotypes abroad about Americans; most of all that we are fat and stupid. Yes, we may just be – America has ranked third fattest in the world, behind American Samoa and Kiribati, both of which are tiny island populations, with little to do besides drink beer and lounge on the beach (see Globalpost.com). Our knowledge of the world is the most pungent example of our stupidity; in 2006, two-thirds of young Americans between the ages of 18-24 could not find Iraq on a map after three years of American troops occupying the country. In 2003, only six months after Hurricane Katrina, one-third of the same demographic group could not find Louisiana on a map (see CNN.com – there are some other unfortunate stats worth looking at). Of course, these studies don’t prove with infallibility that all Americans are fat and stupid, but it is sure convincing that a lot of us are.

When abroad, as I am now, these stereotypes will come up now and again. I’m no ultra-nationalist, but it does irritate be when someone else points out your faults. Sure, we are fat, yeah, and kind of stupid – but I don’t need to hear it from someone from another country who I just met. So, defensively, I always end up addressing these stereotypes with a couple of points.

The first issue I wish to address is that America is not one homogenous unit, it is quite culturally and demographically diverse.  Obesity is a problem for the country (and the world), but the highest concentration of obese Americans is in the Southeast and Midwest (see Calorielab.com). On the education front the geographic distribution is strikingly similar – the Northeast and West Coast are heavily represented on the top end of a study ranking states by percentage of university graduates of the population, while Southeastern and Midwestern states tend towards the lower half (see US Census). At this point of the conversation, I usually mention that these geographic disparities have a name associated with each region’s political affiliation – Red States (Republican), largely the Southeast and the Midwest, and Blue States (Democrat), the Northeast and the West Coast. I then remind them that I am from California. If my conversation buddy knew their business, they’d point out that Californian schools are bankrupt and future generations may not fare as well in the rankings, but they seldom know this.

The second major point I press upon my listener is my observation that foreign populaces aren’t much better regarding knowledge of the world (excluding Northern Europe, they are educated like crazy, but kind of fat too – Germany ranks fourth in global fatness). In my time as an English teacher in Panama and Turkey I’ve had access to many, many people and their knowledge. My students don’t know anything about geography. I mean very, very little. However, I STILL imagine Americans know less – but there are good explanations. Americans, by and large, do not need to know anything about other countries, including their languages or geographical positions, during the course of their normal lives. Bear in mind, this is an explanation, not a justification. Why should an electrician in Nebraska ever need to know anything about another country (save Spanish) to live his/her entire life?, with the nearest international border being almost 1,000 miles away (1,690 km)?  Contrast this with a citizen from a much smaller and less powerful country, learning foreign languages and customs may just be the key difference in their ability to generate income – especially in places where tourism is important. Furthermore, Americans do not have information readily provided to them every morning about Panama, Turkey, or most other nations. On the other hand, in Panama, Turkey, and other nations the US is frequently on the front pages of their newspapers and in the headlines of their nightly broadcasts. It would take a reclusive simpleton not to know somethings about the US’s foreign policy, to say nothing of its culture and people whose doings are exported continuously through movies, television, and music. Despite this, sometimes all foreigners know about the US are these stereotypes.

To conclude; it is our loss. Americans are still fat and we don’t know much about the world or its peoples. And it’s a problem. We suffer because our democracy cannot function well when we celebrate, or at least are indifferent to ignorance. We suffer because we will be less competitive in international business, just at a time when our economic size alone will no longer be enough. We suffer because the personal and social benefits of education, particularly of languages and other peoples, is invaluable to an advanced and civilized society. We suffer because of the health costs, to ourselves and our system, by being so grotesquely overweight. And the worst part is, we are not the only losers – American power has been wielded irresponsibly at times, and much of that is due to our being too fat and stupid to stop it.

-Charles P. Pearson