Whoa. I Need To Study-Up.
Y’all, I could not vote in Louisiana. Even if I wanted to. Which I don’t.
The state of Louisanna had a Literacy Test for African Americans in the 1960’s.
… the test consisted of 30 ambiguous questions to be answered in 10 minutes. One wrong answer, and the test-taker was denied the right to vote.
Just recently, the same literacy test was also administered to Harvard students — students who can, if anything, ace a standardized test — and not one passed.
Now I have to tell you something, I have some not-terribly-bright-but-very-white relatives who crossed the Sabine River into Louisiana and it immediately raised the collective IQ of both states. They were, as Aunt Shirley said, so dumb “that they couldn’t pour pee out of a boot with the instructions written on the bottom.”
You can see the whole test here.
Check this out …
I have never in my life met a politician who was worth that much effort.
Thanks to Don for the heads up.
From what I can tell, there are some politicians in this country who wouldn’t mind at all bringing back this same test or one similar to it with only one end in mind — suppressing the vote.
And, of course, none of this had anything to do with knowledge of the Constitution.
Blatant, bizzare and damned.
1What astonishes is that the right-wingers were able to find anyone smart enough to make up the test.
2LynnN, the right wingers didn’t write the test; like Baby Aqua Buddha Paul, they plagiarized it. That test is a conglomeration of every April Fool’s Day quiz ever given by those ever so witty math teachers. Those quizzes usually began, “read every question before answering” and end with the final Q being, “April Fools!”
3I recollect clearly my mom and dad working in our little home town to ignore and banish literacy testing from election day. I dread having to deal with that again in my own lifetime, BUT all my children are adults and my wife can still chunk a rock when necessary. This is the wrong fight to pick for some of us.
4Anyone supporting giving this test to others must take a similar test in front of the public using the same requirements and pass. They aren’t allowed to review the test prior to taking it and no re-takes. Although I’ve always felt that politicians should be required to take a literacy or IQ test, and a test on American democracy and our constitution & bill of rights.
5Like PKM, I remember those tests from various math classes. The key only went to #19, but I did get every one correct up to that point.
I’m not sure any of our representatives could pass without a pre-test review. Cathy McMoron Rogers comes to mind.
6I’ve been to Louisiana. There is nobody in that state who could pass that written test. Not even Bobby Jindal. Especially Bobby jindal.
7The test isn’t even grammatical; the final question, for example, doesn’t have a verb. And the one before that screams plagiarism because it tells what the *original* looked like. Since what’s left is missing a needed “the,” there’s no telling what the original looked like.
You’re right: If any voter has to pass it to vote, every legislator has to pass it to get on the ticket.
8My youngest daughter is in NOLA and I can guarantee that her being there raised the IQ a small bit.
The only palindromes I could come up with are tot and lol and I can almost guarantee they wouldn’t have been accepted.
I love this kind of test, but that’s just me. The idea that there should be any such thing is just awful.
Every R running for public office should have to pass a legitimate literacy test.
9“I have never in my life met a politician who was worth that much effort.” I have definitely seen some worth that much effort to vote *against*.
I know that tests like this were used to deny African Americans the right to vote, but I still want to see a test for aspiring voters to make sure they don’t have their heads up their seat cushions. Just a simple true-false would do it.
1. Iraq was responsible for the 9/11 attacks.
2. We found the WMDs that Iraq was going to use against us.
3. Barack Obama was born in Kenya.
4. Barack Obama is a socialist.
5. Climate change is a hoax by scientists who want more money and want to destroy America.
One “true” and you’re disqualified because you don’t pay attention. Idiots who vote lead to idiots in office, and we certainly don’t need any more of those, no matter how good they are at castrating hogs.
10We don’t have to worry about a test like this coming back to be used. In order to use it, their own base would have to pass it. Let that sink in for a moment.
11Cheryl, I agree their base is too st00pid to pass. However, you are too kind by thinking the test would be administered/applied in any ethical fashion. The KKK wing of the GOP is very experienced in disenfranchising the blah voters. Never underestimate the blatant means by which the GOP will cheat. The Koch bros and ALEC have probably given them some new tools to eliminate white liberals, too.
The Roberts SCROTUS has eviscerated the VRA. “Inverting” section 2 to replace section 5 is an expensive lengthy and often futile process. If Congress doesn’t rewrite section 5, it could take years to fight this mess.
12as glf pointed out, politicians are worth this much effort – – if we could make THEM take the test before they could run for office.
What do you think Louie’s score would be?
13Cheryl #11–
Ah, Cheryl, you mention something I was about to comment on:
The Anglo ‘base’ would of course be given a “separate, but ‘equal’ ” style test (hint, hint, wink, wink…), which would have questions that a moron could ace without any problems.
(of course in those days the Anglo base and party in control was Dixie Democratic, having since flipped totally to the Republics of today)
14Rick #13–
“What do you think Louie’s score would be?”
What does his punkin haid look like? A ‘goose-egg’, a nought, a zero, of course.
15Rick, my first reaction was that Louie’s score would be in negative numbers.
On second thought I realized we would have to use imaginary numbers.
16Lucky for me I chose my parents well and got to grow up WASP in Louisiana./snark
Unfortunately I have family still there who are sorry this ever ended and would like to bring it back. Could be why we don’t go back for visits very often.
And, I’m reasonably sure Louisiana is not the only southern state to ever do this.
17Have you seen the citizenship test? I can’t pass one and I was born here.
18A considerable number of the questions have NO correct answer because they’re ambiguous, make too many assumptions, or are otherwise incompetently worded.
19Teh Gerg, some of the questions defy the rules of geometry similar to how I wish the right wing would defy the laws of physics with a rolling pastry hole.
You and Juanita Jean are all too kind with the “ambiguous,” when the sheer intent of the test is deceitful with the questions designed to insure failure. Deceitful is my “kind” word of the day for them, unless I get real st00pid and think I can outrun Mama.
20Sadly, many states didn’t need a test this time – they just removed thousands of voters’ names from the registration list.
21@Cheryl
22I shared the test with my little bride, who emailed back much the same thought as yours, Sandridge and PKM, maybe amongst others: such a test would strike at the heart of the Teahadist base.
PKM: SCROTUS? I love it!
23I don`t even like to travel in the south anymore.That Bobby Jindal has joined these southern creeps.I wonder if he could have passed this test?
24You know, I’m not sure Louie is dumb. I think maybe he just can’t talk. Kind of like how GWB was and probably still is. Nothing I want to lie awake at night considering, but still….
25And that test is illegal. Long may it not wave.
26Marge Wood, it’s a rare category of Tourette Syndrome, Politicos Asparagus. Loopy Louie has the most severe symptoms diagnosed to date of those suffering from this rare form of the disease. It has been theorized that there’s a causal link to drinking water, as this disease seems particularly acute in Texas politicians. Although not thought to be contagious, the disease has had two reported cases in Iowa, Steve King and Joni Ernst.
27Ditto Rhea @10. Too many politicians would be unable to pass a sixth grade literacy test, and the Fox Noise afficionados are brain dead.
28When I was teaching Political Science at TAMU I gave the Alabama literacy test to my students and a few passed. It is not literacy they are testing for.
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