Americans Growing More Ignorant and Disconnected from Nation's Heritage

A study performed by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute confirms what many American patriots have known all along: Americans are becoming increasingly disconnected from the nation's heritage, and more ignorant on topics ranging from international relations to free market economics.

The 33-question survey covers the most elementary knowledge about the United States and its history. Nevertheless, the scores from citizens, including from elected officials and college graduates, are simply abysmal. While yours truly scored 32/33, missing the final question due to strange wording and a misapprehension that it was too easy, most Americans failed the test completely. The following is a summary of the findings:

Of the 2,508 Americans taking ISI’s civic literacy test, 71% fail. Less than one percent score 90% or above. In addition:
* Less than half can name all three branches of the government.
* Only 21% know that the phrase “government of the people, by the people, for the people” comes from Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.
* Although Congress has voted twice in the last eight years to approve foreign wars, only 53% know that the power to declare war belongs to Congress. Almost 40% incorrectly believe it belongs to the president.
* Only 55% know that Congress shares authority over U.S. foreign policy with the president. Almost a quarter incorrectly believe Congress shares this power with the United Nations.
* Only 27% know the Bill of Rights expressly prohibits establishing an official religion for the United States.
* Less than one in five know that the phrase “a wall of separation” between church and state comes from a letter by Thomas Jefferson. Almost half incorrectly believe it can be found in the Constitution.

Americans from all age groups, income brackets, and political ideologies fail the test of civic literacy:
* Americans age 25 to 34 score an average of 46% on the exam; Americans age 65 and over score 46%.
* Americans earning an annual income between $30,000 and $50,000 score an average of 46%; Americans earning over $100,000 score 55%.
* Liberals score an average of 49%; conservatives score 48%.
* Americans who go to church once a week score an average of 48%; Americans who never go to church score 50%.

College graduates fair only slightly better:
* The mean of college Seniors at Harvard University is 69.56%
*The mean of college Seniors at Iowa State University is 52.69%
* The mean of college Freshman at Yale University is 68.94%, while the mean of college Seniors is 65.85%

At some prestigious universities, college Seniors actually scored worse than Freshman! This suggests that there is a purposeful campaign at schools and universities not only to neglect America's heritage, but to indoctrinate students into anti-American points of view that are based in untruth. This is precisely how you ideologically subvert and destroy a nation.