Americans are stupid? Noooo...

It has failed to establish any public system of education, although possessed of almost boundless resources, (the public domain,) and although it is an axiom in political science, that unless a people are educated and enlightened, it is idle to expect the continuance of civil liberty, or the capacity for self government.

--from the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico

Ponder the words from 1836, think on them for a moment. Now, go and read this article about public education in the United States:
ABC News: Stupid in America