Neal on the Street

My favorite curmudgeon, Neal Boortz, seemingly disgusted by the elementary nature of a “patriotism” quiz found in the July 4 Asheville Citizen-Times, has taken it upon himself to draft a more-thought provoking list of questions. Many of the below "questions" are, in the not-so-subtle Boortz-style, rhetorical to be sure. Here are few of my favorites:

3. What does the Declaration of Independence say the people can do when a government becomes destructive to the ends of liberty?

4. What would happen to anyone who tried today to alter or abolish our government if it became destructive to idea that government derives its powers from the consent of the governed?

8. Do you believe people living in a free country ought to be compelled to recite a pledge of allegiance to that country? Why?

9. Was the Revolutionary War supported by a majority of the Colonists?

11. How did our original Constitution provide for the appointment of Senators?

14. Explain the difference between a democracy and a constitutional republic.

21. How many times can the word "democracy" found in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution?

25. Was the war between the northern and southern states in the mid-1800s a civil war?

34. Do Americans derive their basic rights from the Constitution?

50. What is the one exclusive power our government has that no individual or business can legally exercise?

Fun stuff.