Historical illiteracy: it’s a Thing

Posted on February 21, 2026 by Mike

Okay, I gotta admit, this made me laugh.

Dunno if they’re supposed to resemble Zeros or not, but what they look more like to me is FW 190s, excepting the prop spinner. The accompanying textplanation:

Yes, it’s Bluto’s (John Belushi) now iconic gaffe in “Animal House” come true: “Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?” Those are German planes on the cover of Michael J. Clark’s history book for young readers about the sneak attack that brought the U.S. into World War II.

Just think about all of the careless, irresponsible boobs, including the author and the cover artist, who had to breach the ethical values of competence, diligence and respect for that book to be published and put on the market. How many must it have been? Then you can add to that List of Shame our pathetic, ruinous education system, which has produced such a nation of dolts that not even a humble secretary or passing clerk had the knowledge to point out, when they saw the book as it made its way through production, “Uh, aren’t those German planes?” Anyone who did, thus preventing this epic embarrassment, might have received a promotion or a bonus. Or at least someone would have bought him or her a nice lunch.

A history book? SRSLY?!? Just hilarity heaped upon hilarity, really, as far as the eye can see. I do believe this Clark feller’s cover artist probably needs to seek other employment for which he is better suited, lest all the pointing and laughing leave him disillusioned and depressed.

(Via Ed Driscoll)

1 thought on “Historical illiteracy: it’s a Thing”

Barry says:

February 24, 2026 at 2:26 am

” SRSLY?!?”
I never tire of laughing at such nuttery as that.

OTOH, our very first response was to attack on the Atlantic side…

Followed not long afterward (Jan ’42) by attacking the Japs in the Marshall Islands (USS Enterprise).

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