Poor 21-year old Kellie Pickler .
The young lady was a contestant on a Fox game show, Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader , which pits fifth graders against adults for large cash prizes.
Although Pickler -- a country music singer and "American Idol" contestant -- was on-air to raise money for charity, that apparently wasn't enough to spare her grave humiliation and embarrassment.
Pickler was asked the following question: "Budapest is the capital of what European country?"
Initially, the young lady suggested that she knew the response, and uttered, "This might be a stupid question."
In actuality, the performer was completely baffled by the inquiry and was of the belief that "Europe was a country" and volunteered "they speak French there."
Luckily, Pickler didn't go home Hungary. (She was permitted to coast on the response entered by a fifth grader.)
Some speculate that Pickler appeared on the program as a plant of the Republican party, ingeniously spewing its venom by refusing to recognize France's sovereignty.
Either that, or she is a total nincompoop.*
To download a copy of the Pickler video, please use this link: Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?
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Pickler is on tour, and is scheduled to perform at Madison Square Garden on January 18, 2008, opening for Rascal Flatts . (She will likely not be responding to any questions at that time.)
To download additional information about the performer, please use this link: KelliePickler.com
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*Which leads us to a related question and video (forwarded by Helene Blank, a dear friend and colleague): How Stupid Are Americans?