me_irl

I will give them this, England is great at geography. Can't colonize if you can't get there.

It's all still on the curriculum from when everything was part of the Glorious Empire
That doesn't excuse the Americans though

USmilitarybasesaroundtheworld.jpeg

Edit: this one might be better
- Military bases != Colonization.
  
  One is an outpost. The other is making the people there subservient to you. I get the point you're making, but it's not the same and it trivializes actual colonization(which yes, the US does do). India wasn't just a military base for the British. They ruled over them and collected taxes and imposed laws. Same with Ireland. It's be offensive to compare their plights to placing a military base.
- I don't think they need the soldiers to know where the fuck they are, just that "you're protecting ~corporate interests~ freedom!"
- YEP!
- Look at all that China aggression!
The taste of fine English cuisine, and the beauty of English women made the English men the best sailors in the world.
I own that, I own that.
- How could I not upvote Robin.

Having grown up in both countries, the joke here is about colonialism more than American stupidity.

The British know everywhere spices, sugar and coffee come from innately

The joke is that America Bad, and you're ruining it by bringing England Bad into it. What are you, some kind of shill for America? How much is Big America paying you, bro?
- Big America pays everyone(except our employees)!
Permanently Deleted
It's absolutely not.

What's Nicaragua got to do with British colonialism? It's about Americans being ignorant of other countries.
- What's Nicaragua got to do with British colonialism?
  
  Well, they did colonize Nicaragua for over 200 years.
  
  English settlement in Nicaragua
  
  *Edit: added link
- Can we agree on a bit of both?
- Nothing specifically, but they had a hot interest in the "Americas" for a whiiiile, as did all European countries
  
  Edit, do a quick search lol
- Just because that's what you got out of it, doesn't mean that it was the intended joke.
- If the British are so educated, why don't they teach their kids about all the pillaging, raping and looting the British Empire has done throughout the world, including Latin America?
  
  Edit: lots of colonialists in his thread. You guys love living in a throne of blood

I love Noel Fielding

Man I wish they still made The Mighty Boosh. So brilliantly surreal.
- Have you heard the radio version that came first? If you thought the TV version was surreal...
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OZN1zyS7gY
  
  (Yes, I know it's weird to link to a radio series on a video streaming site. Welcome to the future.)
- I'd kill for a spin-off that's centered around the daily business of the shamans.
- I loved it so much at the time, but bits of it have aged very poorly (and probably should've been criticised back then too, like the full on blackface...)
Noel has no chill
While I do like him as a comedian, there are some stories about his time spent with barely of age girls and his time with Russell Brand that make him less likeable.
- Damn it.
Me too man.
Same I saw him for the first time in Taskmaster

This has little to do with American vs British schooling and a lot more to do with the specific people involved. The UK has lots of comedians dumber than Noel and the US has plenty smarter than Chelsea

Aye, but... we all know they are different.

Perhaps it's hard to see if you're American, but sometimes it's downright incredible — in the very sense of the word — how badly educated some Americans are.

I'm Finnish, and I genuinely have a hard time imagining someone not being able to name like 10 countries on a map. Even people I know who literally discovered an inner monologue at the age of 25 while in a stimulant psychosis, and who had been huffing gas and paint since they were 12, and never were too sharp to begin with, those people could name a couple of dozen countries and at least all the continents. (Edit, now that I consider it, I think it's also to do with Europeans "needing" to know Europe whereas Americans don't. Just need to know Canada, Mexico, but then all the different states. Although European countries have similar divisions as well, I'd argue the local entities are less crucial than in the States. Hell, I probably don't remember our one's 100% correctly)

No offense, America has a lot of smart people. And Noel Fielding isn't an example of a highly educated person. He was in the Croydon School for Art and then got a degree for graphic design. Meanwhile in the US, common core maths is a thing.

So like, let's not pretend there's not a pretty significant difference in the education systems. Not recognising that would mean accepting the one the US has, and I for one think education is rather important and that the US could improve even if they were the best in the world. Which they're not. Granted, now was the first time I checked the 2024 rankings, and the difference between UK and US is much smaller than I expected. UK being #14 and US #18.

Wow, Richmond looks so joyful there.

He went from goth to boss

Is she a right wing personality? Not remembering much about Nicaragua is a serious career booster in those quarters. They should have had Oliver North on the show. No one doesn't remember more about Nicaragua than him.

...no one is going to get this one.

Oh I got it, but then, I wasn’t schooled in America
Most of us aren't 60 years old or are going to remember every detail of every major GOP scandal. The short version, Ollie North took the fall for Reagan's Iran-Contra weapons sales, is sufficient without knowing that the Contras were Nicaraguan.
- Ollie North took the fall
  
  I'd hardly call that a fall.
Sorry, best I can remember is Peter North.
Lots of ancient elderlies on lemmy! We get you!

As someone totally ignorant about a lot of pop culture, who is that lady?

Chelsea Handler
- She's a football manager?
- Who?
- Thank you. I still didn't know who she was, but I looked her up. She's clearly ignorant, but it seems like her heart is in the right place.
  
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelsea_Handler#Political_views
I consider myself ignorant of only about 2/3rds of pop culture and I still have no idea who any of these people are.
- The two at the bottom are British comedians Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt, most famous for a very weird, partially-improvised show called The Mighty Boosh, which has quite a cult following. But I have no idea who the lady is.

As an American, I get surprised by US states. Like, wtf, you telling me Arkansas is a state? You mean there's a NEW Mexico? Rhode Island?

Fun fact. New Mexico is older than Mexico. New Mexico was much bigger back then, and named by the Spanish. The US got into a war, and claimed the New Mexico territory, leaving the name the same, and then several years later, the Mexican People declare independence and finally named their country Mexico.
As a European, I'm not surprised by US states, we literally learned them at school.
- As a fellow European, you turning an obvious joke into some weird flex on Americans is cringe af.

europeans dominating when they get into a naming countries competition with the not educated in the field of naming countries competition competition that they have.

Unfair advantage, England is the worlds leading cause of independence days.

https://youtu.be/hVhdFj9fxYs

Does the English system teach them about all the rape and pillaging their empire did?

Yes. It does. We have a national curriculum that includes the negative aspects of the British Empire. National curriculums are awesome, you should try it one day.
Considering the US is actively trying to reframe their atrocities as positives or flat out trying to write them out of history, probably not the best take
- Why is it a bad take? Nobody here is defending America over England. They're both monsters, they're both of the same cloth.
Oh, were you going into pearl-clutching withdrawal?

Carry on then.