Jimmy Kimmel Showed How Few Americans Can Find North Korea on a Map

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Relations between the United States and North Korea are languishing. After president Trump traded rhetorical jabs with officials in the rogue state on Tuesday, Pyongyang threatened a military strike on the United States territory of Guam.  

Given the escalating situation -- and the very grim prospects of a potential conflict -- Jimmy Kimmel decided to gauge the public's knowledge of North Korean geography, asking people in Hollywood if they could identify the country on a map on last night's episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! Spoiler: they couldn't. Most people seemed to think that North Korea lies somewhere in the Arctic or the Americas (it doesn't). Nor does it lie in the Middle East, which happens to be very far away from North Korea. So in what amounted to the saddest game of "Pin The Tail On The Donkey" ever played, people giggle through their own ineptitude and probably regret ever agreeing to go on television. It's hard to watch. 

Anyway, just so you know: North Korea is a small country, tucked away in the northern corner of the Korean peninsula, conveniently located on top of its historically less hostile neighbor, South Korea. Kimmel Live's findings more or less sync up with a Morning Consult survey that found that less than two-thirds of Americans can find North Korea if presented with the challenge. So, here's a map with the country outlined in pink, courtesy of the internet: 

Don't give up on humanity. 

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Sam Blum is a News Staff Writer for Thrillist. He's also a martial arts and music nerd who appreciates a fine sandwich and cute dogs. Find his clips in The Guardian, Rolling Stone, The A.V. Club and Esquire. He's on Twitter @Blumnessmonster.