NM man tries to get a marriage license in DC, told he can't because New Mexico is a foreign country

[thewayne]

I kid you not. NM resident presents his driver's license in DC, is told he needs his passport because New Mexico is a foreign country. He argues with the clerk, asks for clerk's supervisor. The supe ALSO claims NM is a state in the United STATES of America! Meanwhile people behind him in line are openly laughing at the idiots behind the counter.

The man is an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation and thinks he would've had an easier time if he'd presented that ID. Eventually the clerk relented and the license was issued. And a spokeswoman for the courts apologized in an email, recognizing that New Mexico became a state in 1912.

I have had the same problem where I'll order something over the phone and people will tell me that they can't ship outside of the country. And I'll say "Excuse me? We're the big space between Texas and Arizona and became a state in the same year as the state to our left?"

It's simply amazing at the ignorance of people these days.

HuffPo Article

Comments

[thewayne]

When you've lived in one place your entire life (up to that point) under the Arizona education system in the '70s, you don't have that big of a world view at that time. Even though now I've only had four addresses, I've at least been to three nation's capitols on two continents.

[kraig]

:D fair enough. Just wanted to note we don't call 'em zipcodes, is all.

I've had 5 addresses in this city alone, although this is likely my last place of residence, barring "too ill, gotta sell house and move into oldfolkshome" or sommat. I've been given to understand that Canadians do tend to move around a fair bit more than Americans, although we typically stick to the same city, or at least province, so I'm a bit of an outlier there too. I'm on my second go-round in Ontario, having also lived in Alberta, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick - five more addresses, not counting two separate residences while I was an undergrad. It's really strange to me sometimes that not everybody has that moving-around experience, especially outside of Canada.

Have you been up to Canada much? I'm guessing one of the capitals you mentioned is likely Ottawa. :)