I am not a Neocon

...according to the results of a Christian Science Monitor quiz entitled "are you a Neoconservative"? Truthfully, I don't think there was ever much doubt.

Nope, I'm a "realist".

I really liked this quiz, but there was lots of reading in it. Unlike some RTB members (SayUncle and Yeah, yeah, sure, sure) I was reasonably satisfied with most of the quiz answers and would have tweaked the wording only a little. I never had a feeling that I wished there was a "none of the above" - but maybe, "could I have mostly option (b) with a little more (a) thrown in". Or rather, "I would choose option (c), but I don't trust that the Bush administration muppets have the governance skills to carry it off efficiently and effectively, so let's go with (d)".

The way the quiz was figured, you could turn out an Isolationist, a Liberal, a Realist or a Neocon. My guess is that if you don't fit in with the extremes of Isolationism, neoconservatism, or their idea of knee-jerk liberalism they lump you into "realist". (See I consider myself a liberal, but kind of a hawkish, hardbitten, utilitarian, pragmatic liberal).

But make no mistake - if you take the quiz and get thrown into the broad tent of "realism", my realism is almost certainly better than your realism. I'm keepin' it real with my realism.

UPDATE: The Vol-in-Law took the quiz and came out as an Isolationist (??!?). This seems slightly odd to me, because as a British citizen, he shouldn't really be counted as an "America-firster". He is pro-American (he betta be!) and he reckons it's because he's a bit "anti-UN", feeling there are negative consequences to giving primacy to other countries (e.g. members of the EU) and also feels that the Bush administration should maybe stay home a little more. Or, it could be the 'flu.