Ok, gag reflex in check now, I will be the first to admit I don't know where the heck most countries are in the world, or what their political structure is. I am not a firm believer in rote memorization, and surely, if someone is claiming some knowledge of a country because they know where it is located on map, that person is missing something.

We all know people with enough letters behind their name to start their own alphabet, yet, they can't get from point A to point B without someone holding their hand. Then, we know high school dropouts that can do math calculations faster than I can whip out my palm pilot and use the calculator.

The irony of this conversation- which has somehow grown to strange porportions, is that the very idea of intelligence that is being slung here...is sooooooo WESTERNIZED!!!!! When a good portion of the world's population is illiterate, I am confused how our definition of intelligence, knowledge, whatever, even matters? Especially to the ones here going on about how smart they are cause they know where every country is.

If the choice is intelligence or experience- I will sign up for experience..and this comes from someone with a doctorate. But, big whoop. If you don't have the experience as the stage for your education, you are living in a vacuum- either here, in India, Timbucktoo (how ever one spells it).