Geography quiz!

[dreamer_easy]

I received this JPG in email:



Eighteen nations are named on the map. How many are "Arab lands"?

Only nine of the eighteen countries named are Arab nations: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Libya, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Sudan, and Yemen. None of the others identify themselves as Arab nations, belong to the Arab League, or have a majority Arab population.

Comments

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

I think they're trying to say that Israel is surrounded by Arab countries, so that makes it all right for Israel to occupy Arab land, 'cos there's so much to go around. It's just more unhelpful sloganeering.

[hiraethin.livejournal.com]

Striking contrast, though, ain't it?

A better caption, in my view, would be "Count the nations with democratically elected governments." Not quite as striking a contrast as it would have been in 2002, but reason perhaps for optimism.

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

Striking contrast, though, ain't it?

Hmmm. How do we meaningfully compare countries? By area, population, arable land, GDP? The US isn't on that map, yet it occupies one country and is a close ally of another: how does this affect the map's meaning?

[drox.livejournal.com]

"Count the nations with democratically elected governments."

ISTR that Hamas was democratically elected in Gaza. Which rather upset the U.S. administration, which had long been trumpeting the benefits of democractic elections (never mind their own electoral...irregularities).

Compounding the Muslim == Arab fallacy, there's the "democratic election == good, humanitarian leadership and/or U.S. ally" fallacy.