# US Civics test - how well can YOU do? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 1, 2011, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023 "2011-06-01T23:56:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/21 "2011-06-02T01:46:22Z")
> [@](#): > > ``` > You answered 28 out of 33 correctly — 84.85 % > > ``` Better than I expected to do, honestly. ETA: Holy crap, did you guys check out the [table](http://www.americancivicliteracy.org/2008/additional_finding.html)? Elected officials do \*worse \*on this than the average person?! ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/22 "2011-06-02T01:50:08Z")
31/33. 93.94% correct. One was a dummy error. ---
**Author:** ![GameHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ed655f/32.png) [@GameHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GameHat)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/23 "2011-06-02T01:50:37Z")
30/33 I was a bit disappointed by this, as I am a politics junkie. Shame on me for missing “Government of the people, by the people, for the people”. I remember memorizing and reciting the Gettysburg Address for an extra credit point or two in eighth-grade social studies. Clearly I don’t remember the whole thing. I also thought the question about Supreme Court challenges to the New Deal, while interesting and historically important, was probably a bit above the civics knowledge level of the rest of the test. I missed this one, but hey, glad to learn something new. I won’t say which was the third one I missed, because I should have damn well just thought about it a minute more and it shames me. Good quiz, though. I’ll be applying it to people at work tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/24 "2011-06-02T02:03:55Z")
31 out of 33 for me as well. I missed the Puritans question and the “if taxes equal government spending” question. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/25 "2011-06-02T02:16:37Z")
100%. I didn’t find it difficult. There were only two where I wasn’t sure of my answer. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/26 "2011-06-02T02:41:35Z")
30 correct, but should have been 28 because 2 were complete guesses. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/27 "2011-06-02T02:43:33Z")
97%. Not sure about the one I missed . . . a levee is a “public good” because people can benefit from it without paying for it? Well, so is the hubcap that I stole . . . ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/28 "2011-06-02T02:50:09Z")
I got them all right, but as the quiz went on, I definitely got the impression that the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (which I’m not sure I’d really heard of before) is a pretty conservative group; a little Googling and checking Wikipedia backs that up. One question that struck me as not having a truly correct answer: > [@](#): > > Free enterprise or capitalism exists insofar as: > [ul] > [li]experts managing the nation’s commerce are appointed by elected officials[/li][li]individual citizens create, exchange, and control goods and resources[/li][li]charity, philanthropy, and volunteering decrease[/li][li]demand and supply are decided through majority vote[/li][li]government implements policies that favor businesses over consumers[/li][/ul] I got this one right, and I suppose you could say the right answer (“individual citizens create, exchange, and control goods and resources”) is clearly the least wrong answer on the list, but it’s pretty obvious that in 20th and 21st century capitalism, _individual_ citizens hardly control all goods and resources. For better or for worse, corporations play a huge role in the economy. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/29 "2011-06-02T03:08:36Z")
Ha! 30/33! Not bad for a grubby unwashed foreigner, eh? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/30 "2011-06-02T03:29:27Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > 27/33. I guessed quite a few, especially the historical questions. > > It seems a very broad interpretation of “Civics” to me. Given what my son is being taught as Civics, I’m not surprised, but this is standard stuff Americans get in civics. You’re right as to the actual definition of the word, though. 31/33, I was a liberal arts major. I missed some of the economic ones. The test is worded oddly, IMO - the answers are obvious from the other three, in many cases. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/31 "2011-06-02T03:38:09Z")
> [@](#): > > You answered 33 out of 33 correctly — 100.00 % I’d love to post the quiz over at an ultra-conservative board. But I won’t. If I told them I got 100% they’d just denounce me as a liberal elitist. ---
**Author:** ![Caveat\_lector\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@Caveat\_lector\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caveat_lector_1)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/32 "2011-06-02T03:42:37Z")
30/33. Missed the puritans one, the abortion one (I didn’t go with my gut), and the taxes and revenue one. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/33 "2011-06-02T03:47:25Z")
72.73 % (non-American) Incorrect answers: ``` * Question: In 1935 and 1936 the Supreme Court declared that important parts of the New Deal were unconstitutional. President Roosevelt responded by threatening to: Your Answer: eliminate the Supreme Court Correct Answer: appoint additional Supreme Court justices who shared his views * Question: A flood-control levee (or National Defense) is considered a public good because: Your Answer: government construction contracts increase employment Correct Answer: a resident can benefit from it without directly paying for it * Question: The Puritans: Your Answer: believed in complete religious freedom Correct Answer: stressed the sinfulness of all humanity * Question: If taxes equal government spending, then: Your Answer: government debt is zero Correct Answer: tax per person equals government spending per person on average * Question: The United States Electoral College: Your Answer: was established to supervise the first televised presidential debates Correct Answer: is a constitutionally mandated assembly that elects the president * Question: What was the main issue in the debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas in 1858? Your Answer: Do Southern states have the constitutional right to leave the union? Correct Answer: Would slavery be allowed to expand to new territories? * Question: What was the source of the following phrase: “Government of the people, by the people, for the people”? Your Answer: Declaration of Independence Correct Answer: Gettysburg Address * Question: The Bill of Rights explicitly prohibits: Your Answer: discrimination based on race, sex, or religion Correct Answer: establishing an official religion for the United States * Question: What part of the government has the power to declare war? Your Answer: the president Correct Answer: Congress ``` ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/34 "2011-06-02T03:54:10Z")
29/33… but then I’m not American or have ever been taught US Civics. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/35 "2011-06-02T03:54:15Z")
30/33. That score for college educators was pretty bad. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/36 "2011-06-02T04:10:12Z")
“You answered 32 out of 33 correctly — 96.97 %” I didn’t even cheat. It crossed my mind but I wanted to see how I could do. Most questions I had little trouble with. A few I had to ponder a bit. The one I got wrong was: \*“Question: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas would concur that:” \* I do not feel too bad about getting that one wrong. ETA: Some of those were not easy questions…the questions ranged from fall off the fence easy to you know it or you don’t. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/37 "2011-06-02T04:28:49Z")
31/33 I missed a couple of weird ones about the market ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/38 "2011-06-02T04:51:30Z")
I got them all, but i teach US history to college students, so would have been rather embarrassed by any wrong answers. I was, however, somewhat puzzled by this one: > [@](#): > > Which of the following fiscal policy combinations has the federal government most often followed to stimulate economic activity when the economy is in a severe recession? > > 1. increasing both taxes and spending > 2. increasing taxes and decreasing spending > 3. decreasing taxes and increasing spending > 4. decreasing both taxes and spending The correct answer was #3, and it was pretty clear to me that this is the answer that they wanted, but an equally good answer would have been something along the lines of “Not very much at all.” Yes, #3 reflects the federal government response to many of the recessions and depressions since the 1920s, but the nineteenth century in the United States saw a whole string of recessions, of varying length and intensity, and the main response of the federal government in many of these cases was, essentially, to do as little as possible and let the problem correct itself. The federal government was, by our modern standards, rather non-interventionist during the period, especially when it came to macroeconomic policy as a corrective to economic cycles. The question probably should have read “Which of the following fiscal policy combinations has the federal government most often followed to stimulate economic activity when the economy is in a severe recession **since the beginning of the 20th century**?” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/39 "2011-06-02T05:08:48Z")
29/33 and I usually suck at this sort of stuff. History and civics were my least favorite subjects in elementary school/high school. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2011, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023/40 "2011-06-02T05:16:27Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Better than I expected to do, honestly. > > ETA: Holy crap, did you guys check out the [table](http://www.americancivicliteracy.org/2008/additional_finding.html)? Elected officials do \*worse \*on this than the average person?! I gotta wonder about that table, or our representatives. How can it be possible that only 56.51% got the Cuban missile crisis question right? That just boggles my mind. And a full quarter of them don’t know the president is the commander-in-chief? 😕 ETA: And more than half didn’t know the three branches of government? WTF? As cynical as I can be about our representatives, I have to wonder about how good the sample is. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-civics-test-how-well-can-you-do/584023.md?page=3)