Arising from a debate started by ConservPat, I thought it might be interesting to investigate this quiz at the Christian Science Monitor.

It's only ten questions (though the answers are lengthy) which "determine" whether one is an Isolationist, a Liberal, a Realist, or a Neoconservative.

Big surprise: the quiz results claimed that I'm a Liberal, akin to Woodrow Wilson and Jimmy Carter (though a change in two answers made me a Realist, akin to Dwight Eisenhower and Colin Powell)...

I love quizzes!!

I took it & it told me I am an ISOLATIONIST

Doesn't sounds very nice does, it? I suppose it's accurate, though. The questions weren't really set up to address my enfranchisement issues with the UN. Oh well, it's an internet quiz. I wasn't expecting all that much

FYI - The runners up for me were: Liberal, Realist & Neo-Con - in that order. So I'm relieved that Neo-Con is really far away but disturbed by Liberal being so close.

I'm an Isolationist.

Isolationists…

Are wary of US involvement in the United Nations
Oppose international law, alliances, and agreements
Believe the US should not act as a global cop
Support trade practices that protect American workers
Oppose liberal immigration
Oppose American imperialism
Desire to preserve what they see as America's national identity and character


The questions are specific to certain issues and my answers could vary thereby rendering different results. For instance, I don't oppose international law, alliances and agreements. But the specific question being asked that lead that that conclusion may have been on an issue I was against. Make sense?

Unsurprisingly, I'm liberal in this quiz as well.



And its all pretty much true, applying to my attitude toward my own nation and the West in general as well of course. Reading through the others, I found the description of neo-conservatism exceptionally scary.

Anyway, Woodrow Wilson, who is he then

I am listed as a realist:

Realists…

Are guided more by practical considerations than ideological vision
Believe US power is crucial to successful diplomacy - and vice versa
Don't want US policy options unduly limited by world opinion or ethical considerations
Believe strong alliances are important to US interests
Weigh the political costs of foreign action
Believe foreign intervention must be dictated by compelling national interest

Historical realist: President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Modern realist: Secretary of State Colin Powell

Pretty good company, I'd say.

I didn't even have to take the quiz to realize that I am a isolationist, thanks to Bela's post.
But I took it anyway, and surprise!

I'm an isolationist.

President of Princeton University, Governor of New Jersey, twenty-eigth president of the US - not someone I would consider entirely liberal. He championed a lot of social reforms, signed off on women's suffrage (in his final year in office), and kept the US out of WWI - until after his re-election. Following the war, his Fourteen Points for reconstruction gave rise to the League of Nations.

No surprise here. I'm a liberal.

Interesting questions I thought. Wonder where all the Neo-Cons are though?

That is a good question. I wonder if it's another DNC made up word that in reality has no meaning? hmmmm...

cusbilla

It said I was a realist, but just like any quiz, not all of the answers were satisfactory to me, so I picked the ones that were the closest.

I am a liberal . No surprise there.

But I could become an isolationist in a big hurry in the current world political situation. Sort of like Superman's wife: "What? Late for supper again? Why can't the world take care of its own problems for a change?"

I'm a realist. That seems accurate, I'm closer to Howard Dean and Wesley Clark than Dennis Kucinich or Dick Gephardt on foriegn policy.

That's the point, cusbilla - the neo-cons who are running this country are in no way representing the majority of decent Americans. That said, only a handful of contributors here have yet weighed in...

Have you taken the quiz yet - or are you just here to run down Democrats? hmmmm...

It bloody well called me a liberal.



I'm more of a Realist if you ask me.
Liberal
That's just plain mean!
Answering some of those questions was more picking the lesser evil. None were really representative of how I think.

I took the quiz on another site. Apparently I'm a Realist, with some sympathy for parts of the Isolationist and Neo-Con views, and none at all for the Liberal.

I came out as a liberal. No surprise there.

I am a definite isolationist. WOOHOO!

I'm a Liberal???

I'm surprised. Perhaps the quiz was centered only on the war/foreign policy issue. I wonder how Pat Buchanan would have rated? Liberal, I guess.

Or perhaps, the terms "Liberal" and "Conservative" are thrown around too generically. simpistically, and insultingly.

Pat Buchanan is Isolationist- and so am I - though a couple questions were realist LOL

I came out as a realist even when I skipped some of the questions where I didn't like any of the answers. Didn't seem to make any difference.

I did not answer any question and came out an isolationist.

When I didn't answer any questions I came out as the front-runner for the Presidential nomination of the Democratic Party!

I came out as liberal. Not surprising really, since that word is code for "leftie" in America, and I'm definitely one of those.

Since the quiz is geared to American foreign policy, I wonder if any non-Americans are likely to come out as anything else, since most of the rest of the world wants America to engage with us, but on our terms, not yours?

Hey, I'm a realist! American strength is fine with me, as long as it keeps the Russians, Chinese etc at bay!

Does anyone know what the neo-con position on free trade & globalisation etc is? Or is neo-con entirely related to foreign policy apart from trade?

The Christian Science Monitor just called me a liberal. Yikes! Does that mean I'm to the left of THEM? Well, I guess that wasn't too hard.

I'm an isolationist. Before the test, I would've guessed myself to be a paleocon.

Wertz, just took the test and it said I am a realist. Please provide proof the neo-cons are running the country. Please provide proof that they are not representing the majority of the country. Democrats don't need me to run them down Wertz..all they need to do is try and debate.

cusbilla

cusbilla: Please see the postings which gave rise to this thread (there's a link in the first post here). If you wish to pursue the question, though, it'd be best to start a new thread - the referenced posts were already a bit off topic.

Oh - and I don't think the problem with Democrats is so much debating as acting (or failing to act) on the things they say in debates.

I'm an isolationist, I kinda figured I wouldv'e gotten realist, but hey, maybe not. Cool test. My runners up were [in order]: Liberal, Realist, Neo-Con. This once and for all shows that I'm not a neo-con, woo hoo

CP

I came out as a realist.

I rated "Realist".

I can certainly relate to Colin Powell, but Teddy Roosevelt is one of my all-time heroes. America was a bit different during Roosevelt's Presidency, however...we were a growing power, but not yet a superpower.

Some of those questions were hard to answer (maybe it's my browser...one just sort of led into another!) and I confess it took me a while to just decide...

GOOD quiz, however, considering the amound of cyber-drivel out there!

Carry on...

I came up as a realist. Like others on the board I often had to choose the what I felt was the best answer although I didn't actually agree with all of the statements.
Cool test!

I have my doubts about the quiz (almost certainly biased against the evil "neo-cons", there's that silly buzzword "imperialism" again . )I could be missing some subtlety, of course. The quiz maker may simply be using the jargon of the targeted group...

But I think my results are close enough, I'm a realist, which is how I like to describe myself (that or liberal)...

Being the smart person that I am, I didn't catch the blue writing on top of the screen, and assumed that my score was the ideology that was first in order from the top. In blue it says that I'm a realist.

CP

No surprises here. I'm a Liberal. I suspect I have a strong dose of Realist as well.

I've never seen a quiz with such complex answers. To many of the scenarios listed (Middle East, Korea, etc.) the only real answer I would give would be "There is no solution."

Interesting, an entire month and not one single neo-con. Even though a few people on this forum agree with the policies of an administration that is reputed to be the poster-child for the movement.

Without apportioning blame, I must say I share cusbilla's suspicion that the term is a simply a buzzword with little actual meaning.

Could be wrong, but when someone says neo-cons I hear boogyman!.

Perhaps the neo-cons are hidden along with the WMDs that we can't find!

Or perhaps they have too much to do trying to guide the country into another war, so they don't have time for AD.

Hard to know.

I'd go with the first (the surprisingly important realm of non-existence).

Understand the true meaning (or lack thereof) of "neo-con" is largely an effort in considering the source. It's most often used as a derogative term and is relatively new. The laws of political probability indicate it is likely Grade-A nonsense.

I'm sure they could take a break from planning the downfall of France to post a little.

Liberal here. I'm actually surprised, I thought I'd get realist...

Liberalist... agreed with every definition of it.

UN - not the ideal but the best way for peace on earth.

Why didn't they put Dick Cheney as Neo-Con? He is the shining example of this bunch.

Um, relatively new to you, maybe. The term has been around since at least the Nixon administration and emerged from a difference of approach to the Cold War. More on the history of neo-conservativism can be found here (a link provided in the first posting to this thread). Nor is it always used as a pejorative - in fact, many self-described neo-conservatives wear the badge quite proudly: neo-cons like Norman Podhoretz, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, and William Kristol.


The reason there are so few self-described neo-conservatives here (or anywhere else) is that they are a tiny minority - and an elite minority at that. This is one of the things which is so damaging about the neo-conservative philosophy having coopted our Executive. They represent practically no one but themselves and their own interests. Wolfowitz, Cheney, and Perle, for example, are not bogeymen - they are all too real. And they wield far too much power.