Quiz doesn't offer right answers

Sometimes, multiple choice just doesn’t cut it.
The world’s too complicated to fit into that format.
Sometimes, “none of the above” is the best answer. Sometimes, you need to write an essay question answer for a multiple choice question.
Anyone who has ever taken a survey knows that’s true.
My reminder came earlier this month when my nephew in Arizona asked if I could take an online survey in connection with a project his middle school social studies class was doing.
I was happy to help. He’s a great kid, and we don’t get to see him as much as we’d like because of the distance involved.
So I logged on, answered the first question by affirming that I’m over 15 years old (I wasn’t required to specify how much over 15 I am), and was confronted by this statement: “Our actions as a nation align with our core American principles.”
My choices were: Never, Seldom, Frequently and Always.
I stared at the computer screen.
The choice I would have preferred — Sometimes, but not as often as I would like — was nowhere to be seen. I clicked Frequently, but wish I could have placed an asterisk beside the answer.
I moved on.
Next statement: “The government works to ensure equal opportunity for all people.”
The choices: Strongly agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly disagree.
Again, I wanted some other options. Sometimes wasn’t an answer. And I couldn’t explain that sometimes the government’s efforts in this area have just the opposite of the intended effect.
Next statement: “The government respects our rights to protest peacefully.”
The choices were the same. Pretty much agree wasn’t a choice. Some parts of government respect the public’s right to protest; others like to require permits; still others have been known to resort to fire hoses to maintain “the public order.”
Next statement: “Our government balances the pursuit of the nation’s security with the protection of individual rights.”
Again, the choices were the same. This time, I found myself wondering how folks in Washington, D.C., would answer this one. It’s question No. 1 at the moment.
My guess is that it would all boil down to how one defines “balance.”
Another statement pulled out of today’s headlines: “Personal freedom should be limited to ensure the good of the nation.”
It would be easy to click on Strongly Agree after the TSA agent was shot at LAX a few weeks back. But I found myself focusing on that word “limited” and wondering just how limited the survey meant. Are we talking about airport screenings, stop-and-frisk procedures or gun control? There’s a world of difference, and the choices on the survey weren’t sufficient.
And that led to this: “The government is allowed to take away an individual’s civil rights if they are likely to be a threat.”
Now that’s a true statement but also one most of us aren’t comfortable about. The U.S. holds prisoners at Guantanamo, but the same statement that justifies that policy can be quickly abused.
The survey did a great job of framing tough questions, but it didn’t do much to help figure out answers.
My advice to those middle school kids in Arizona is to refuse to be boxed in to simple choices. Find the shades of gray and embrace complexity and ambiguity. Be skeptical about your government and its authority, but resist the laziness of cynicism.
And ask for an essay test the next time.[[In-content Ad]]