I was very young when the whole WATERGATE situation occurred. I remember hearing things on t.v. and thinking that it had something to do with alligators!

JILL

When I was in the fourth or fifth grade I learned that The Washington Post was considered the authoritative newspaper regarding politics and the government. I thought the paper was in Washington state, not Washington, D.C. I never understood how a newspaper way out west could be considered the authority on the federal government in the northeast. That misunderstanding persisted until I was in high school.

Jon

I used to think that Abraham Lincoln was the guy from the bible> During Church the priest asked who Abraham was and I said he was our president
a loooooooong time ago!!

Alex

I was 7 during the first Quebec referendum (you know, the first time they were deciding if Quebec should separate from Canada?). My parents let me stay up late to watch the reuslts, and when the 'Non' side won, I jumped up and yelled "Yay! We get to stay in Canada!!"

Part of me thought that the whole province would physically separate and have bridges to the other provinces and the US as the only connecting points.

gerald626

During the '88 presidential elections, when I was 4 years old, I was convinced that the winner was determined through a series of ballroom dancing contests. I had vivid fantasies of Bush dancing awkwardly, and I thought that adults were very strange to choose their leader based on these performances.

Alex

when I was very small Margaret Thatcher was still prime minister of Britain, and I used to think that she and the queen were the same person.

Megan

I had a belief that if you dialed 1234567890 on your home telephone, that you would call the President of the United States.

Scottie

In Kindergarden, my teacher told us about the presidential race (Ford/Carter) taking place the next day. Imagine my disappointment and utter confusion when I woke-up the next day, turned on the TV, and did not see Ford or Carter racing around a track (a horse track specifically in my mind) to see who wins & becomes President.

JB

i'm 15 and until a about a month ago i thought the UN (united nations) was just another name for UK (united kingdom).i only found out the truth because this guy from united nations came to talk to us at school.not knowing i asked my fiends "why is it so special that he's from Britain?" They looked at me very strangely and told me (in a voice they would use for toddlers) that i had it all wrong.i was so embarrassed!!!they still sometimes tease me about it.but i'm used to being teased for doing dumb things.

andy (pilot)

When I was little, I used to *honestly* believe that whoever won the Presidential race became the President, and whoever came in second was the Vice President.

I think I got it from the Miss America pageant. You know how, when they get ready to announce the first runner up, they say, "She will take over the title if the winner cannot perform her duties" or something like that? Well, when I found out that if the President died or just couldn't be President anymore, then the VP took over, I figured that the VP must be the "first runner up" for President.

It seemed completely logical to me when I was little, and now, looking back on it, I wonder if it might even work.

Julie

I used to believe because I was born I Abe Lincoln's birthday I had a better shot at being President.

END

I used to belive that Ronald Regan won presidency from Jimmy Carter in a boxing match. Maybe I got this from Frankie goes to Hollywood's Two Tribes video?

Anon

In 2nd grade, our teacher began every morning with a discussion of current events. One day she said that the topic for the next morning would be the Watergate hearings. That night I asked my mom what Watergate was, and she replied "It's a dirty trick by the Democrats to make the Republicans look bad."

My teacher wasn't too impressed with my answer.

Selena

When I first heard "USA PATRIOT act" from the news and in the magazine, I thought that "USA PATRIOT act" is something about the Americans involved in patriotism like people should love America and be patriotic about the nation.

Anon

I was born in the late fifties and went to grade school in the early to mid sixties-

JFK was asassinated in 1963- Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy asassinated in 1968.

I used to believe that all US Presidents died by asassination.

Mark Burroughs

I remember my Grandpa talking about the Cold War - and I always thought that it was a war at the south pole because that was the coldest place I knew of.

Jill

I used to think the liberal democrats were giant crabs that would wander round town and turn everybody into slaves/clones that did nothing but walk all day.

Trust me to have a politician as a dad.

Anon

I used to believe that the leader of a country could get whatever he wanted for free because of patriotism and the fact that he was the leader.

Anon

I used to believe there was a Russian Leader named Garbage Trough and an Arabian named Are A Fat

Anon

In 1995 (I was 8) President Clinton and the Republicans in Congress were fighting over the budget, and I heard on the news that if they couldn't agree on one, the federal government would shut down. I thought that meant the government would cease to exist, the country would descend into anarachy, and we would have to move to Britain or somewhere. Then the government really did shut down, but it only meant a few offices were closed.

Anon