Posted by JadedSage

Being a History teacher, I may have overreacted when I heard about the latest story from the realm of ignorance.  In case you haven’t, you can let me know if I am the only one with a sense of dismay. Recently Dana Perino, the new White House Press Secretary was on an NPR program when she spoke of not knowing a small sliver of history. An event that nearly stopped the heart beat of every life form on earth. She did not know about the Cuban Missile Crisis. Chris Matthews on his MSNBC show Hardball said it best when he excoriated the Bush White House for not having a historical compass.  In the shadow of the recent talk of bombing Iran for having a nuclear program (which the NIE said was halted in 2003), it seems that those in the White House should know about the one incident that defines the dire possibilities that could flow from such an act or, from their vantage point, where the dangers of a nuclear Iran could ultimately lead. The amazing and ironic component of this story is Dana Perino has a minor in both political science and Spanish. The following is the excerpt from the NPR program on which she appeared.

MS. PERINO: I had a situation the other day when they said President Putin thought that our missile defense program was like the Cuban Missile Crisis, and so I got asked about the Cuban Missile Crisis, and I was – panicked a bit because I really know about nothing – (chuckles) – about the Cuban Missile Crisis.

MR. BLOUNT: It was just last week.

MS. PERINO: It had to do with Cuba and missile, I’m pretty sure.

MR. SAGAL: Yeah, it had to do – it did in fact have to do with Cuba and missiles, Dana.

MS. PERINO: Yeah, so I’ll have to get back to you on that.

MR. SAGAL: Really? Like, "I have to go Google this…"

MR. ROCCA : It’s a tropical drink. You should try it on spring break.

MS. PERINO: Well, I came home and I asked my husband -

MR. SAGAL: Yeah?

MS. PERINO: I said, wasn’t that like the Bay of Pigs thing?

MR. SAGAL: (Gasps.)

MS. PERINO: And he said, "Oh, Dana."

Full excerpt

From time to time people ask us where our ancestors are from. We will rattle off the nationalities that we know, usually thinking about our last name and our mother’s maiden name. But what about the nationality of our great grandparents or their parents. Sometimes the nationality of our grandmothers are lost or forgotten. Science has found a way to repair these holes. There have been significant strides made in the field of genetic mapping.  A company in Utah now offers to do genetic maps of your DNA and pinpoints from where your ancestors came.  Recently, I was watching a Nightline episode that detailed the entire story of this process.  For $150.00 your entire history can be revealed. Click on the link below and be sure to watch the embedded video

ABC News: Nightline

Related link: National Geographic Genographic project

GeneTree: The DNA mapping service mentioned above