Margaret Wente has a little test for you to determine if you’re in the “elite”:
Before we venture further into this battle zone, you can calculate your elite status by taking this patented Elite-O-Meter test. See how you rate!
Your degree is from:
An American Ivy League university or Stanford (Score: +40)
Queen’s, McGill, the University of Toronto, Western or UBC (+20)
The University of Ottawa or other (-20)Your children’s degrees are from:
An American Ivy League university, etc. (+30)
Queen’s, etc. (+10)
The University of Ottawa or other (-20)What do these initials stand for?
NPR (+10 if you know)
MMA (-20 if you know)(For Torontonians)
None of your friends voted for Rob Ford (+20)
One of your friends voted for Rob Ford (0)
You voted for Rob Ford (-20)For a good time, you prefer
Luminato (+20)
A tailgate party in Buffalo (-20)Who is Carol Off? (+20)
Who is Jimmie Johnson (not the football coach)? (-40)
To get some exercise, you prefer
Yoga and Pilates (+10)
Hunting and fishing (-20)Have you ever had a housekeeper or nanny? (+10)
Have you ever been a housekeeper or nanny? (-20)
Have you ever had a job that made your feet tired by the end of the day? (Teaching, or jobs during high school and university, don’t count.) (-40)
As an adult, have you ever lived in a small town for at least a year? (University towns don’t count.) (-20)
Have you ever read a book by Michael Ignatieff? (+50)
Have you ever read a book by Tim LaHaye? (-20)
Your idea of good TV is
The Sopranos or Mad Men (+20)
Oprah or The Price is Right (-20)Needless to say, the higher you scored, the more Elite you are. If you are on the plus side of the Elite-O-Meter, there’s a good chance you belong to Richard Florida’s Creative Class. You are probably (or soon will be) in the top 10 per cent of income earners, and you are probably married to someone a great deal like yourself. Congratulations! You are the product of the modern meritocracy. Although your family may have come from humble origins, you have joined the ruling class — the one that runs our major institutions, including governments, the law and the media.
For the record, I scored -70. That confirms what I suspected: I’m not “elite” by downtown Toronto standards.
I am your brother at -70.
Comment by Flea — November 6, 2010 @ 17:25
And I am honoured to have you so, sir!
Comment by Nicholas — November 6, 2010 @ 18:56
The real problem here is that the very definition of elite has been watered down beyond belief. Everything on that list that signifies elite actually represents “middlebrow”.
Ivy League, elite? Try “Oxbridge” or Sandhurst. For a good time? The Royal Ascot Meeting. Need exercise? Henley Royal Regatta. Good TV? The videoconference link from your private investment counsel.
Damned colonials wouldn’t know elite if it threw them out of the Boodles club by their coattails! (I kid, but only slightly)
Comment by Chris Taylor — November 7, 2010 @ 16:40
[…] I posted an article last week about the people in the bubble, I linked to and credited Margaret Wente as the original author. I didn’t realize she was […]
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