BOB HERBERT: Clueless in America

Ignorance in the United States is not just bliss, it?s widespread. An American kid drops out of high school every 26 seconds. That?s more than a million every year, a sign of big trouble for these largely clueless youngsters in an era in which a college education is crucial to maintaining a middle-class quality of life ? and for the country as a whole in a world that is becoming more hotly competitive every day.