Quiz: Beg, Borrow, Steal
Test your knowledge of borrowing and lending, which are discussed in the October 11, 2010, Money Issue of The New Yorker.
- 1.In Jake Halpern’s piece on a debt collector in Buffalo in this week's magazine, he uses a slang term that means “debt that banks, credit-card companies, and loan agencies have tried, and failed, to collect.” What’s the term?
- A.
Chit
- B.
Paper
- C.
Marker
- D.
Dice
- 2.What is the late fine for DVDs borrowed from the New York Public Library?
- A.
A dime a day
- B.
A quarter a day
- C.
A dollar a day
- D.
Three dollars a day
- 3.Which of the following people is NOT affiliated with the phrase “Lend me your ears”?
- A.
William Safire
- B.
William Shakespeare
- C.
Ross Perot
- D.
Ringo Starr
- 4.What is a “NINJA” loan?
- A.
A loan issued entirely without face-to-face interaction
- B.
A loan with no paper trail
- C.
A loan for someone with no income, no assets, and no job
- D.
A loan for someone who has a record of violating international law
- 5.Which musician is known for popularizing the Freegan movement, which advocates an anti-consumerism lifestyle that includes “dumpster diving” for free food?
- A.
Warren Oakes, the drummer for Against Me!
- B.
Paul Stanley, the lead singer of KISS
- C.
Paul Cook, the original drummer for the Sex Pistols
- D.
Jello Biafra, the original singer of the Dead Kennedys
- 6.On Sunday, Germany paid off its debt for what?
- A.
Reparations for the First World War
- B.
Reparations to Jewish Holocaust survivors
- C.
The 1936 Berlin Olympics
- D.
The 2006 World Cup
- 7.Who compared the Lend-Lease Act to letting your neighbor whose house is on fire borrow your garden hose, saying, "I don't say... 'Neighbor, my garden hose cost me $15; you have to pay me $15 for it.' I don't want $15 — I want my garden hose back after the fire is over"?
- A.
Franklin Roosevelt
- B.
Henry Wallace
- C.
John Maynard Keynes
- D.
Winston Churchill
- 8.The author of “Steal This Book” did all of the follow EXCEPT what?
- A.
Threw dollar bills onto the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange
- B.
Organized the Presidential campaign of a pig named Pigasus
- C.
Interrupted the Who’s performance at Woodstock
- D.
Became an entrepreneur and businessman after the Vietnam War
- 9.In 2006, Britain finished paying off its debts from the Second World War. What ratio most closely corresponds with the amount the British government paid back to the U.S. and Canada over the years to the original amount those countries lent?
- A.
Ten to one
- B.
Two to one
- C.
One to one
- D.
One to two
- 10.In the October 4, 2010, issue of the magazine, Jeffrey Toobin writes about Rachel Yould, who did what to take out nearly three quarters of a million dollars in student loans?
- A.
Enrolled in four universities at once
- B.
Changed her name three times
- C.
Got a second Social Security number
- D.
Married her loan officer
- 11.The 1939 film “On Borrowed Time,” based on the Broadway play and novel by the same name, stars the uncle of which modern actress?
- A.
Gwyneth Paltrow
- B.
Patricia Arquette
- C.
Joan Cusack
- D.
Drew Barrymore
- 12.Leading up to the French Revolution, a scandal erupted over whether Marie Antoinette had perpetrated a fraud involving large loans from a cardinal to buy what?
- A.
A gold-trimmed ball gown
- B.
A diamond necklace
- C.
The Great Sapphire of Louis XIV
- D.
A violin made in 1681 known as “the red violin”
- 13.In 1972, the British entry in the Eurovision Song Contest was “Beg, Steal or Borrow,” performed by the New Seekers. What was the U.K.’s entry this year?
- A.
“Dreamed a Dream,” performed by Susan Boyle
- B.
“That Sounds Good To Me,” performed by Josh Dubovie
- C.
“Satellite,” performed by Lena Meyer-Landrut
- D.
"Don't Stop Believin’,” performed by Joe McElderry
- 14.Who co-starred in the 2009 film “Stolen”?
- A.
Jon Hamm and Josh Lucas
- B.
Robert Downey, Jr., and Debra Messing
- C.
Mark Wahlberg and Susan Sarandon
- D.
Dennis Quaid and Marlon Wayans
- 15.Which of the following does the singer Ben Harper admit, in song, to stealing?
- A.
Love
- B.
Glances
- C.
Kisses
- D.
Chewing tobacco
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