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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who was George H. W. Bush's first Drug Czar?

2. O'Rourke argues that pollution is a byproduct of what?

3. O'Rourke says the hysteria over drugs in the middle class could be the product of what?

4. O'Rourke is critical of the way that America hands over food, aid and arms to what country?

5. Hoping to see poverty first hand, O'Rourke took a trip where?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does O'Rourke feel about the housing project he visits in Newark?

2. How does O'Rourke describe environmentalists?

3. How does O'Rourke feel about the seriousness of the problem of crack cocaine in America?

4. Explain how the government wastes billions of dollars on farm subsidies, according to O'Rourke.

5. How does O'Rourke feel about his town government blocking the building of a golf course?

6. What does O'Rourke see when he spends an evening with the Washington DC police department?

7. How does O'Rourke see a connection between the fear of crack cocaine in America and racism?

8. How does O'Rourke feel about Social Security after visiting the AARP?

9. Why does O'Rourke say Americans will not find a solution to the problem of drugs in the country?

10. What does O'Rourke mean when he says that Social Security is like the nation picking its own pocket?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explore O'Rourke's idea of the "whiffle life." How does it apply to people with different economic statuses? How do the rich fair in the whiffle life? How do the poor fair? What point is O'Rourke making about the country in general when he speaks about the "whiffle life"?

Essay Topic 2

Explore the Supreme Court's 1990 ruling that flag burning cannot be prohibited. What is the significance of the author mentioning this ruling? Why does O'Rourke believe that the Supreme Court ruled that flag burning cannot be prohibited? What does the ruling seem to convey about how the Supreme Court works? What are O'Rourke's feelings about the Supreme Court?

Essay Topic 3

Explore the title of O'Rourke's book. Who is he referring to when he speaks of the "parliament of whores"? Who are the "whores," and why does he use this word to describe this group? Use examples from the text to support your answer.

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