Intro to Global Politics?

I'm 21 and I'm embarrassed to say it, but I just realized a few days ago that I know NOTHING about WTF is going on in the world.  I barely know anything about what's going on in my own country, let alone in the Middle East, China, or Russia. I have no idea WHO is fighting, let alone what about.

What would be a good place to find a good, detailed introduction? I tried wikipedia, but there's just too much information presented at once there and I really have no idea where to start.

I've never really been into History classes and current events and such, and have avoided them when at all possible (I don't even watch the news or read the paper, ffs), but I think it's time I grow the fuck up and take a look at the world around me.

Any advice would be appreciated.

>>1
Well there are totalitarianisms (fascists/communists), military dictatorships, illiberal democracies (one party states, limited representation, limited function of representatives), corrupt liberal democracies and liberal democracies. Then there are 3rd world economies (shit holes), 2nd world economies (building it's industries), emerging economies (upgrading it's technology) and 1st world economies (us).

Get an Atlas and look left to right.

USA and Canada: 1st world liberal democracies.
Mexico and south : Emerging corrupt liberal democracies.
Everything else in the Americas and Caribbean is a 2nd world corrupt liberal democracy except Cuba (2nd world military dictatorship) and Haiti (3rd world military dictatorship).

Most of europe: 1st world liberal democracies.
North eastern europe: Emerging corrupt liberal democracies.
South eastern europe and turkey: 2nd world corrupt liberal.

North Africa, Sudan and Arabia: 2nd world illiberal.
South Africa: emerging corrupt liberal
Nigeria and Zambia: 2nd world extremely corrupt liberal
Rest of Africa: tapestry of 3rd world illiberals, extremely corrupt liberals and military dictatorships

Central asia including Iran and Pakistan: 2nd world corrupt liberal, Iran is illiberal.
Russia: emerging corrupt liberal
India: emerging in the cities, 2nd world in the countryside and east, corrupt liberal
China: emerging illiberal
Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Japan: 1st world liberal

South-east asia and Bangladesh: Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia are 3rd world military dictatorships; Vietnam is a 2nd world military dictatorship; Bangladesh is 2nd world corrupt liberal; Thailand is an emerging corrupt liberal

Malay Archipelago and oceania: 2nd world corrupt liberal
Australia and New Zealand: 1st world liberal