Take the quiz, Post your score - New Basic American Civics Survey (a random 71% faile

[FindLiberty]

answered 30 out of 33 correctly — 90.91 %

Q #30 was crap... I refused to give 'em the answer they were looking for* 'cause it's destructive in the long run

*(inflation pays for gov spending without taxation)

 

[tggroo7]

To you people bitching about question 30, look at what it is asking. There are two words in the question that made me realize what the right answer was: "Which of the following fiscal policy combinations would a government most likely follow to stimulate economic activity when the economy is in a severe recession?"

Cutting or freezing spending isn't going to stimulate the economy. Yes, it is the smartest thing to do, but my quiz doesn't phrase the question as "What is the smartest thing for government to do?" But maybe I just got a different test. Plus, no government in the world would do that if it explicitly wants a boost during a severe recession.


Also, can someone help me out with #33, I can understand why the answer is what it is (D.), but I don't know why choice A is wrong.
33) If taxes equal government spending, then:
A. government debt is zero
B. printing money no longer causes inflation
C. government is not helping anybody
D. tax per person equals government spending per person
E. tax loopholes and special-interest spending are absent

I'm not arguing or complaining, but just looking for a little education on that one.

 

[brandon]

To you people bitching about question 30, look at what it is asking. There are two words in the question that made me realize what the right answer was: "Which of the following fiscal policy combinations would a government most likely follow to stimulate economic activity when the economy is in a severe recession?"

Cutting or freezing spending isn't going to stimulate the economy. Yes, it is the smartest thing to do, but my quiz doesn't phrase the question as "What is the smartest thing for government to do?" But maybe I just got a different test. Plus, no government in the world would do that if it explicitly wants a boost during a severe recession.


Also, can someone help me out with #33, I can understand why the answer is what it is (D.), but I don't know why choice A is wrong.
33) If taxes equal government spending, then:
A. government debt is zero
B. printing money no longer causes inflation
C. government is not helping anybody
D. tax per person equals government spending per person
E. tax loopholes and special-interest spending are absent

I'm not arguing or complaining, but just looking for a little education on that one.

Debt is not the same thing as deficit. If choice A said "A. government deficit is zero" it would be correct.

Think about it like this. If today our government cuts all spending to the point where it is equal with taxes they will have "balanced the budget" but our previous multi trillion dollar debt will still remain.

 

[georgiaboy]

Also, can someone help me out with #33, I can understand why the answer is what it is (D.), but I don't know why choice A is wrong.
33) If taxes equal government spending, then:
A. government debt is zero
B. printing money no longer causes inflation
C. government is not helping anybody
D. tax per person equals government spending per person
E. tax loopholes and special-interest spending are absent

I'm not arguing or complaining, but just looking for a little education on that one.

I chose A for this one as well. At face value, it's not wrong. I'm assuming the questioners consider it an incorrect answer because it doesn't necessary follow directly. In other words, government could still have debt even though taxes=spending. Part of the spending could be paying off prior debt. Very poorly worded question.

 

[Rocket80]

I got 24/33 (72%). Decent I suppose, I also put A for #33 but in retrospect I should have thought it through more. It was an okay quiz, def. worth the time.

And I am ashamed to admit that I got #7 wrong, and I'm surprised I didn't know that. Oh well.

 

[tggroo7]

I chose A for this one as well. At face value, it's not wrong. I'm assuming the questioners consider it an incorrect answer because it doesn't necessary follow directly. In other words, government could still have debt even though taxes=spending. Part of the spending could be paying off prior debt. Very poorly worded question.

I see. Thanks.

 

[majinkoola]

I chose A for this one as well. At face value, it's not wrong. I'm assuming the questioners consider it an incorrect answer because it doesn't necessary follow directly. In other words, government could still have debt even though taxes=spending. Part of the spending could be paying off prior debt. Very poorly worded question.

It was worded that way purposely, because people often mistake debt for deficit. Everything else could be true, but the question only implies D. And I don't think #30 is wrong. It will stimulate the most economic activity during that recession. But it will cause a greater recession (and concurrently reduce economic activity that much more) later on.

 

[tggroo7]

...And I don't think #30 is wrong. It will stimulate the most economic activity during that recession. But it will cause a greater recession (and concurrently reduce economic activity that much more) later on.

Exactly.

 

[georgiaboy]

It was worded that way purposely, because people often mistake debt for deficit. Everything else could be true, but the question only implies D. And I don't think #30 is wrong. It will stimulate the most economic activity during that recession. But it will cause a greater recession (and concurrently reduce economic activity that much more) later on.

Yep. Typically political narrowly-focused approach to a solution we're living today that looks at the immediate with no view of the larger picture or underlying economics. If one simply asks the same question, but brings it down to the individual level, the correct answer jumps right out at you.

 

[angelatc]

81.82%

 

[roho76]

Some of these answers would have varied based on time frame and wether we are talking about how it should be or how it is. Not a very good quiz IMO.

 

[jabrownie]

You answered 32 out of 33 correctly — 96.97 %

Average score for this quiz during November: 78.5%
Average score since November 20, 2008: 78.5%

You can take the quiz as often as you like, however, your score will only count once toward the monthly average.

If you have any comments or questions about the quiz, please email [email protected].

You can consult the following table to see how citizens and elected officials scored on each question.

Where to from here?

Answers to Your Missed Questions:


Question #14 - B. stressed the sinfulness of all humanity


Thought the puritans were against war....must've been the quakers. The guys in early pennsylvania...arg.

 

[RockEnds]

You answered 31 out of 33 correctly — 93.94 %

I missed #'s 31 & 33.

 

[SWATH]

90% missed three including two history questions and the weirdly worded one about what to do during a recession.

 

[1000-points-of-fright]

Some of those questions aren't even civics related. They're just historical trivia. Sputnik?

 

[Minlawc]

Some of those questions aren't even civics related. They're just historical trivia. Sputnik?

Yeah, I don't know what they were thinking putting that in. It has nothing to do with civics let alone American civics.

 

[kaleidoscope eyes]

As someone who was never particularly interested in American History, I thought getting 79% was suprisingly good for me! lol
And yeah, some of those questions were bunk.

 

[Sheepdog11]

You answered 30 out of 33 correctly — 90.91 %

Average score for this quiz during November: 78.4%
Average score since November 20, 2008: 78.4%

I can't complain... some of the questions were worded badly though.

 

[georgiaboy]

over 60 players, and 98+% scored C or Better. Sweet!

 

[RedLightning]

These are the ones I got wrong-
Answers to Your Missed Questions:


Question #13 - E. certain permanent moral and political truths are accessible to human reason
Question #19 - B. teaching evolution in the schools
Question #27 - A. the price system utilizes more local knowledge of means and ends
Question #30 - C. decreasing taxes and increasing spending
Question #32 - C. buying or selling government securities
Question #33 - D. tax per person equals government spending per person


You answered 27 out of 33 correctly — 81.82 %